Examining the wages of war - Jamaicans' contribution to the two world wars

The following is an excerpt from remarks given at last Sunday's opening of 'From War to Windrush' and 'War ... Lest We Forget', by Merrick Needham, member, oversight board, Jamaica Military Museum and Library.

I do greatly hope that in the 10 months' life of this admirable joint Institute of Jamaica and British Imperial War Museum exhibition, there will be an adequately enticing publicity programme to encourage our young citizens to visit, and see how commendably Jamaicans contributed to the sadly necessary British and Commonwealth war effort of the four years that followed 1914, and the half decade of World War II, 20 years later.

Unfortunately, they should also see how, especially at the onset of World War I, West Indians were enthusiastically recruited by the local British authorities in Jamaica, only to be treated with such little appreciation and even respect once they boarded the troopships at the Kingston wharves. Perhaps the worst example of this was the third recruited group, which left Jamaica in 1916 for Nova Scotia in the late winter of that year. Provided only with tropical weight uniforms, hundreds suffered from frostbite, over a hundred required amputations and five died before they even crossed the Atlantic.

Mutiny at Taranto

Continued use of West Indian troops, mainly as pioneers or labour battalions, continued through much of the war, culminating in the very understandable mutiny at Taranto in southern Italy after the end of the war. And of all the British West Indies territories, Jamaica's manpower contribution to the war effort, both in troops and civilian workers was by far the greatest, just over 10,000, with Trinidad a distant second with just under 1,500.

The eventual repatriation of Jamaicans acted as a distinct spur to the labour unrest that culminated in the events of 1938, and thus was a distinct factor in the overall sequence which eventually led to internal self-government. For this overriding reason alone, I have been constantly puzzled, for a long time, at not only the lack of knowledge, but moreso the lack of interest shown in our military history by those of whom one might reasonably expect distinctly more awareness, the unavailability of relevant books, at least up to a few months ago, at the UWI Bookshop.

Why do names like Mary Seacole and Sergeant William Gordon, the only Jamaican holder of the Victoria Cross, probably the world's premier gallantry decoration, appear so little in our history books? Since the days of historian and archivist Clinton Black, Rebecca Tortello's Pieces of the Past is regrettably exceptional in paying tribute to Jamaicans who served.

War is terrible and, worse yet, often unnecessary. Very arguably, there is no such thing as a 'glorious victory'. However, for historians to assume its irrelevance to West Indian history is ridiculous and irresponsible. Why was Jamaica's manpower contribution to Britain's First World War efforts so disproportionate to Trinidad's, and why was that of little Barbados more than half of Trinidad's? Not so much because of the chance to 'get a wuk', recruiting standards were high and recruits came far more from the employed than the reverse. They enlisted because of a motivation to serve and, undoubtedly, in part because of the special standing - if you like, snob appeal - that the soldier had from the early days of the first and last, and largely Jamaican, 120-year-old West India Regiment (WIR).

Originally comprising, in the enlisted or Other Ranks, specifically purchased slaves, once they became members of the West India regiments, the soldiers were treated the same as white British soldiers.

Perhaps more perceptive than their counterparts over a century later, the relevant British officials included a clause in the Mutiny Act of 1807 which freed all slave soldiers in the then eight West India regiments. Thus, some 10,000 WIR slave soldiers, at the stroke of a pen, became free, as if they had enlisted voluntarily.

Significant historical event

This extraordinary act of manumission of thousands of former slaves, over quarter of a century before the general abolition of slavery in 1834, is a significant general historical event of which most of our history books seem to show no record. I outline these two events, one a century ago and the other a century before that, to show that military history in our country is most wrongly regarded by historians as something quite apart from our general history, and disdainfully treated as comprising merely the recounting of victories and defeats for those odd characters who like that sort of thing. And lest I appear not to give credit to the many Jamaicans who gave their service with distinction and courage, the official records show numerous instances of gallantry and other conspicuous service awards to Jamaicans, not only in the two world wars, but through the centuries.

If you'll allow me, I'll read a short extract from a booklet of mine due for publication shortly by the Jamaican Military Museum & Library.

'Seen through today's enlightened eyes, Jamaica's link with the Sixth West India Regiment of Foot (to give it its full name) is more

one of shame than credit, save for one redeeming incident of great courage by a relatively small number of Sixth WIR black soldiers - most if not all of them slaves purchased by the military - in far away British Honduras, now Belize. The Regiment was recruited firstly in Jamaica and then moved to British Honduras, although originally the Leeward and Windward Islands were designated as the recruiting territories.'

For at least two years, Jamaica's planters obstructed the formation of the Sixth on the premise of the danger and embarrassment of having black soldiers, and slaves at that, based in Jamaica. The commendable War Office attitude of equal pay to that for whites, with white privates frequently serving under black non-commissioned officers, and even on occasion having black soldiers in charge of chained white deserters was greatly resented and, in the latter case, was seen by a group of whites in Jamaica as a 'revolting sight'! Eventually, the Jamaican planters won the day. The British gave in and moved the slowly recruited regiment to British Honduras by 1798.

A year before the 1798 move, while the Sixth was in Jamaica, and Britain was at war with Spain, there was a major impending Spanish attack on the British Central American colony. The stalwart 'Baymen' of British Honduras faced seemingly impossible Spanish odds. What could be done by the colonial power? Britain sent a warship, HMS Merlin and the Earl of Balcarres, Governor of Jamaica sent three companies (a total then of probably less that 300 troops) from the still recruiting Sixth in Jamaica.

Together with the plucky civilian Baymen defenders, they jointly turned back the massive Spanish invasion force. In the words of author Colin Rickards' well- researched and written recounting of the Battle of St George's Caye, in The Gleaner on the occasion of the 200th anniversary in 1998, and from which this account is taken:

'It was a hard-fought sea battle in which one small Royal Navy warship, assisted by local schooner captains, hastily constructed gun-mounted log rafts called 'flats', and a handful of black troops from Jamaica gave battle to a Spanish invasion force of 31 warships, and defeated them.'

This 'handful', feared, scorned and banished by the Jamaican plantocracy, is remembered to this day with gratitude in Belize, over two centuries later.

Excellent qualities

The renowned British 18th/19th century general, Sir John Moore, whose fame rests on his gallant command in the early 19th century Peninsular War in Europe, and in which he was mortally wounded, previously had served in the West Indies and, indeed, at one point even commanded the Ninth West India Regiment. Of the black soldiers of the new West India regiments, he notably recorded that: 'They possess, I think, many excellent qualities as soldiers, and may, with proper attention, become equal to anything.'

So, I again commend the Institute of Jamaica for its exceptional initiative in mounting this double exhibition. Over the past two months or so of my own very peripheral involvement, I have been impressed by not only the enthusiasm but the meticulous and time-consuming attention to detail that Tortello, David Stimpson and their colleagues have put into its very apparent success.

This is the moment of anniversary of the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, 92 years ago, when the guns finally fell silent at the end of what was then described as 'the war to end all wars'. Sadly, it was not, and I hope that an animated and continuing promotion will be maintained by the Institute's Development & Public Relations Department, to ensure a good educative attendance over the following 10 months.