Description

1942 (Aug 26) Lester R. Mordecai printed airmail envelope with some foxing registered to Daisy Serfaty, Tangier bearing on reverse GV1 pair 6d & pair 1½d making 1/3 rate tied double ring Kingston /Jamaica cds & with smudged oval Kingston-Jamaica / Registered (27 Aug) alongside from L.W. Serfaty, Hut 48, Camp Gibraltar, Kingston with on face R /Gibraltar Camp / No 0912 registration label & circular thick 37mm GIBRALTAR CAMP hand stamp overall 37mm with inner ring 31mm (Sutcliffe M-BCU 2B with no dates of use recorded) plus red on white PC90 OPENED BY CENSOR label tied violet losenge Crown PASSED D 7(?) overlaid by red on white PROTECTORACO ESPANO EN MARRUECOC label (Not listed by Heller) tied 2 x black Interwoven triangles making a Star with C in centre & on reverse New York (31 Aug) & Madrid (15 Oct) transit date stamp & red unframed 54616 filing hand stamp …A very unusual & interesting item…………… ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. After France fell in 1940 it was felt the Germans could advance through Spain threatening Gibraltar & denying the allies access to the Mediterranean. British authorities decided to evacuate as many as possible of the civilian population of Gibraltar to safer zones, mostly to the UK but 25 Oct 40 a group of 1104 of these evacuees arrived at Kingston with a further 400 evacuees arriving Port Arthur on 15 Dec 40. These evacuees were deemed Wards of the Crown & were not allowed to follow crafts or professions for pay nor could they reside anywhere other than the camp. All the able males were mobilised into the Pioneer Corps & as such acted as guards for the POW & Internment Camp. Ref..The Military Mail of Jamaica by Derek Sutcliffe 1982.