Devil's Island
Encyclopedia
Devil's Island is the smallest and northernmost island of the three Îles du Salut
located about 6 nautical miles (11 km; 6.9 mi) off the coast of French Guiana
(South America). It has an area of 14 ha
(34.6 acre
s). It was a small part of the notorious French penal colony
in French Guiana until 1952. It lies in the Atlantic Ocean
.
's government in 1852, and became one of the most infamous prisons in history. In addition to the prisons on all three islands, prison facilities were located on the mainland at Kourou
. Over time, they became known collectively as "Devil's Island" in the English-speaking world, while they are known in France as the bagne de Cayenne , Cayenne
being the main city of French Guiana.
While the colony was in use (1852–1946), the inmates were everything from political prisoner
s (such as 239 republicans who opposed Napoleon III's coup d'état
) to the most hardened of thieves and murderers. A great many of the more than 80,000 prisoners sent to the harsh conditions at disease-infested Devil's Island were never seen again. As an island, the only way out was via the water; accordingly, very few convicts ever managed to escape.
On 30 May 1854, a new law provided that convicts would be forced to stay in French Guiana following their release for a time equal to their forced labour time, or, for sentences exceeding eight years, for the remainder of their lives. They were to be provided with land to settle on. In time, a variety of penal regimes emerged, convicts being divided into categories according to the severity of their crimes and their imprisonment or forced residence regime.
In 1885, a further law accelerated the process, since repeat offenders for minor crimes could also be sent. A limited number of convicted women were also sent to French Guiana, with the intent that they marry the freed male inmates; however, the results were poor and the government discontinued the practice in 1907.
The horrors of the penal settlement became notorious with the publicity surrounding the plight of the French army captain Alfred Dreyfus
, who had been unjustly convicted of treason and sent there on 5 January 1895.
, an anarchist, was sent to Devil's Island in 1886. He was sentenced to death
but this sentence was commuted to hard labour on. He contracted smallpox
while on the island. He escaped in April 1901 and fled to New York City, where he remained for the rest of his life. He eventually wrote a book on his time of imprisonment called Revolte.
's bestselling book Papillon
describes a successful escape by him from Devil's Island, with a companion, Sylvain, using two sacks filled with coconuts. According to Charrière, the two men leapt into heavy seas from a cliff and drifted to the mainland over a period of three days. Sylvain died in quicksand
a short distance from the shore.
Charrière's account aroused considerable controversy and was disputed by the French authorities, who released penal colony records that showed that much of the prisoner's book was untrue. Charrière, the records showed, had never been interned on Devil's Island and had made his escape from a prison camp on the mainland. Numerous other aspects of Charrière's account were challenged by French journalists or prison authorities, and it was claimed that a significant number of the incidents recounted in his book were invented or were experiences of other prisoners which Charrière had appropriated.
In 1938 the French government stopped sending prisoners to Devil's Island, and in 1952 the prison was closed. Most of the prisoners returned to metropolitan France
, although some chose to remain in French Guiana.
In 1965, the French government transferred the responsibility of most of the islands to the newly founded Guiana Space Centre. The islands are under the trajectory of the space rockets launched eastward, toward the sea, from the Centre (to geostationary orbit
). They must be evacuated during each launch. The islands host a variety of measurement apparatus for space launches.
The CNES
space agency, in association with other agencies, has since had the historical monuments restored. Tourism facilities were added; the islands now welcome more than 50,000 tourists each year.
starring Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman
.
In the 1925 film depiction
of The Phantom of the Opera
, the Phantom is an escapee from Devil's Island.
The infamous penal colony was mentioned in the French dramatist Jean Genet
(1910–1986)'s 1947 absurdist
play The Maids
.
Likewise, the diary-like Danish
novel Helvede Hinsides Havet (Hell beyond the Sea) from 1949 by an anonymous former inmate describes the life in the camp.
Humphrey Bogart
and Joan Bennett
starred in the 1955 film We're No Angels, which is set on Devil's Island.
Before the bestseller Papillon, Rene Belbenoit
's book, titled Dry Guillotine
and published in 1938, was instrumental in exposing the prison colony of Devil's Island.
In an episode of the 1966 TV series The Time Tunnel
, time travelers Tony and Doug arrive on Devil's Island shortly before Captain Dreyfus arrives, and attempt to formulate an escape.
Heavy metal music
band Megadeth
released a song named "Devil's Island" as a part of the Peace Sells... but Who's Buying?
album in 1986.
Devil's Island is referenced in Revenge of the Pink Panther
where Clouseau is thought to be dead, however it was only someone wearing his clothes who had died. On his return home, Clouseau discovers that his man-servant Cato has turned his flat into a brothel
. When confronted about this, Cato tells Clouseau that it could turn a profit of 200-300K per year and "that ain't chickenfeed". Clouseau retorts with "and ten years on Devil's Island is not chicken feed either", even though by the time the movie was made (1978) Devil's Island had not been a working penal colony for over 30 years.
Much of Plan de evasión, translated as A Plan For Escape, published in 1945 by Adolfo Bioy Casares
, takes place on and around Devil's Island.
The main character of Émile Zola
's The Belly of Paris, Florent, spent several years in exile on the island for his participation against Napoleon III's coup d'état
.
Îles du Salut
The Îles du Salut are a group of small islands of volcanic origin about 11 km off the coast of French Guiana in the Atlantic Ocean...
located about 6 nautical miles (11 km; 6.9 mi) off the coast of French Guiana
French Guiana
French Guiana is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department located on the northern Atlantic coast of South America. It has borders with two nations, Brazil to the east and south, and Suriname to the west...
(South America). It has an area of 14 ha
Hectare
The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2...
(34.6 acre
Acre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
s). It was a small part of the notorious French penal colony
Penal colony
A penal colony is a settlement used to exile prisoners and separate them from the general populace by placing them in a remote location, often an island or distant colonial territory...
in French Guiana until 1952. It lies in the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
.
Use as penal colony
The rocky, palm-covered island rises 40 m (131.2 ft) above sea level. The penitentiary was first opened by Emperor Napoleon IIINapoleon III of France
Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte was the President of the French Second Republic and as Napoleon III, the ruler of the Second French Empire. He was the nephew and heir of Napoleon I, christened as Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte...
's government in 1852, and became one of the most infamous prisons in history. In addition to the prisons on all three islands, prison facilities were located on the mainland at Kourou
Kourou
Kourou is a commune in French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France located in South America.Kourou is the location of the Guiana Space Centre, France and ESA's main spaceport.-Geography:...
. Over time, they became known collectively as "Devil's Island" in the English-speaking world, while they are known in France as the bagne de Cayenne , Cayenne
Cayenne
Cayenne is the capital of French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France located in South America. The city stands on a former island at the mouth of the Cayenne River on the Atlantic coast. The city's motto is "Ferit Aurum Industria" which means "Work brings wealth"...
being the main city of French Guiana.
While the colony was in use (1852–1946), the inmates were everything from political prisoner
Political prisoner
According to the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, a political prisoner is ‘someone who is in prison because they have opposed or criticized the government of their own country’....
s (such as 239 republicans who opposed Napoleon III's coup d'état
French coup of 1851
The French coup d'état on 2 December 1851, staged by Prince Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte , ended in the successful dissolution of the French National Assembly, as well as the subsequent re-establishment of the French Empire the next year...
) to the most hardened of thieves and murderers. A great many of the more than 80,000 prisoners sent to the harsh conditions at disease-infested Devil's Island were never seen again. As an island, the only way out was via the water; accordingly, very few convicts ever managed to escape.
On 30 May 1854, a new law provided that convicts would be forced to stay in French Guiana following their release for a time equal to their forced labour time, or, for sentences exceeding eight years, for the remainder of their lives. They were to be provided with land to settle on. In time, a variety of penal regimes emerged, convicts being divided into categories according to the severity of their crimes and their imprisonment or forced residence regime.
In 1885, a further law accelerated the process, since repeat offenders for minor crimes could also be sent. A limited number of convicted women were also sent to French Guiana, with the intent that they marry the freed male inmates; however, the results were poor and the government discontinued the practice in 1907.
The horrors of the penal settlement became notorious with the publicity surrounding the plight of the French army captain Alfred Dreyfus
Alfred Dreyfus
Alfred Dreyfus was a French artillery officer of Jewish background whose trial and conviction in 1894 on charges of treason became one of the most tense political dramas in modern French and European history...
, who had been unjustly convicted of treason and sent there on 5 January 1895.
Clément Duval
Devil's Island was used mainly for French prisoners from 1852 to 1946. Clément DuvalClément Duval
Clément Duval was a famous French anarchist and criminal. His ideas concerning individual reclamation were greatly influential in later shaping illegalism....
, an anarchist, was sent to Devil's Island in 1886. He was sentenced to death
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
but this sentence was commuted to hard labour on. He contracted smallpox
Smallpox
Smallpox was an infectious disease unique to humans, caused by either of two virus variants, Variola major and Variola minor. The disease is also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera, which is a derivative of the Latin varius, meaning "spotted", or varus, meaning "pimple"...
while on the island. He escaped in April 1901 and fled to New York City, where he remained for the rest of his life. He eventually wrote a book on his time of imprisonment called Revolte.
Henri Charrière and Sylvain
Henri CharrièreHenri Charrière
Henri Charrière was a convicted murderer chiefly known as the author of Papillon, a hugely successful memoir of his incarceration in and escape from a penal colony in French Guiana....
's bestselling book Papillon
Papillon (autobiography)
Papillon is a memoir by convicted felon and fugitive Henri Charrière, first published in France in 1969. It became an instant bestseller. It was translated into English from the original French by June P. Wilson and Walter B. Michaels for a 1970 edition, and by author Patrick O'Brian...
describes a successful escape by him from Devil's Island, with a companion, Sylvain, using two sacks filled with coconuts. According to Charrière, the two men leapt into heavy seas from a cliff and drifted to the mainland over a period of three days. Sylvain died in quicksand
Quicksand
Quicksand is a colloid hydrogel consisting of fine granular matter , clay, and water.Water circulation underground can focus in an area with the optimal mixture of fine sands and other materials such as clay. The water moves up and then down slowly in a convection-like manner throughout a column...
a short distance from the shore.
Charrière's account aroused considerable controversy and was disputed by the French authorities, who released penal colony records that showed that much of the prisoner's book was untrue. Charrière, the records showed, had never been interned on Devil's Island and had made his escape from a prison camp on the mainland. Numerous other aspects of Charrière's account were challenged by French journalists or prison authorities, and it was claimed that a significant number of the incidents recounted in his book were invented or were experiences of other prisoners which Charrière had appropriated.
Aftermath
Metropolitan France
Metropolitan France is the part of France located in Europe. It can also be described as mainland France or as the French mainland and the island of Corsica...
, although some chose to remain in French Guiana.
In 1965, the French government transferred the responsibility of most of the islands to the newly founded Guiana Space Centre. The islands are under the trajectory of the space rockets launched eastward, toward the sea, from the Centre (to geostationary orbit
Geostationary orbit
A geostationary orbit is a geosynchronous orbit directly above the Earth's equator , with a period equal to the Earth's rotational period and an orbital eccentricity of approximately zero. An object in a geostationary orbit appears motionless, at a fixed position in the sky, to ground observers...
). They must be evacuated during each launch. The islands host a variety of measurement apparatus for space launches.
The CNES
CNES
The is the French government space agency . Established under President Charles de Gaulle in 1961, its headquarters are located in central Paris and it is under the supervision of the French Ministries of Defence and Research...
space agency, in association with other agencies, has since had the historical monuments restored. Tourism facilities were added; the islands now welcome more than 50,000 tourists each year.
Cultural references
Several movies, songs, a stage play, and a number of books feature Devil's Island. The most famous was Henri Charrière's autobiography, published under the title Papillon in 1970. The book, which became a bestseller, told of his numerous alleged escape attempts, and in 1973 it was made into the movie PapillonPapillon (film)
Papillon is a 1973 film based on the best-selling novel by the French convict Henri Charrière.This motion picture was directed by Franklin J. Schaffner, starring Steve McQueen as Henri Charrière , and Dustin Hoffman as Louis Dega...
starring Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Lee Hoffman is an American actor with a career in film, television, and theatre since 1960. He has been known for his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and vulnerable characters....
.
In the 1925 film depiction
The Phantom of the Opera (1925 film)
The Phantom of the Opera is a 1925 American silent horror film adaptation of the Gaston Leroux novel of the same title directed by Rupert Julian. The film featured Lon Chaney in the title role as the deformed Phantom who haunts the Paris Opera House, causing murder and mayhem in an attempt to force...
of The Phantom of the Opera
The Phantom of the Opera
Le Fantôme de l'Opéra is a novel by French writer Gaston Leroux. It was first published as a serialisation in "Le Gaulois" from September 23, 1909 to January 8, 1910...
, the Phantom is an escapee from Devil's Island.
The infamous penal colony was mentioned in the French dramatist Jean Genet
Jean Genet
Jean Genet was a prominent and controversial French novelist, playwright, poet, essayist, and political activist. Early in his life he was a vagabond and petty criminal, but later took to writing...
(1910–1986)'s 1947 absurdist
Absurdism
In philosophy, "The Absurd" refers to the conflict between the human tendency to seek value and meaning in life and the human inability to find any...
play The Maids
The Maids
The Maids is a play by the French dramatist Jean Genet. It was first performed at the Théâtre de l'Athénée in Paris in a production that opened on 17 April 1947, which Louis Jouvet directed...
.
Likewise, the diary-like Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
novel Helvede Hinsides Havet (Hell beyond the Sea) from 1949 by an anonymous former inmate describes the life in the camp.
Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey DeForest Bogart was an American actor. He is widely regarded as a cultural icon.The American Film Institute ranked Bogart as the greatest male star in the history of American cinema....
and Joan Bennett
Joan Bennett
Joan Geraldine Bennett was an American stage, film and television actress. Besides acting on the stage, Bennett appeared in more than 70 motion pictures from the era of silent movies well into the sound era...
starred in the 1955 film We're No Angels, which is set on Devil's Island.
Before the bestseller Papillon, Rene Belbenoit
René Belbenoit
René Belbenoit was a French prisoner on Devil's Island who successfully escaped to the United States. He later wrote a book, Dry Guillotine, about his exploits.-Early life:...
's book, titled Dry Guillotine
Dry Guillotine
Dry Guillotine is the English translation of a French phrase la guillotine sèche which was prisoner slang for the Devil's Island Penal colony at French Guiana...
and published in 1938, was instrumental in exposing the prison colony of Devil's Island.
In an episode of the 1966 TV series The Time Tunnel
The Time Tunnel
The Time Tunnel is a 1966–1967 U.S. color science fiction TV series. The show was created and produced by Irwin Allen, his third science fiction television series. The show's main theme was Time Travel Adventure. The Time Tunnel was released by 20th Century Fox and broadcast on ABC. The show ran...
, time travelers Tony and Doug arrive on Devil's Island shortly before Captain Dreyfus arrives, and attempt to formulate an escape.
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
band Megadeth
Megadeth
Megadeth is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California which was formed in 1983 by guitarist/vocalist Dave Mustaine, bassist Dave Ellefson and guitarist Greg Handevidt, following Mustaine's expulsion from Metallica. The band has since released 13 studio albums, three live albums, two...
released a song named "Devil's Island" as a part of the Peace Sells... but Who's Buying?
Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?
-25th Anniversary 2-CD reissue:-25th Anniversary box set:Disc 5 contains both the original album, and the above listed 1987 show in hi-resolution audio....
album in 1986.
Devil's Island is referenced in Revenge of the Pink Panther
Revenge of the Pink Panther
Revenge of the Pink Panther is the sixth film in the Pink Panther film series. Released in 1978, Revenge of was the last entry featuring series star Peter Sellers, who died in 1980...
where Clouseau is thought to be dead, however it was only someone wearing his clothes who had died. On his return home, Clouseau discovers that his man-servant Cato has turned his flat into a brothel
Brothel
Brothels are business establishments where patrons can engage in sexual activities with prostitutes. Brothels are known under a variety of names, including bordello, cathouse, knocking shop, whorehouse, strumpet house, sporting house, house of ill repute, house of prostitution, and bawdy house...
. When confronted about this, Cato tells Clouseau that it could turn a profit of 200-300K per year and "that ain't chickenfeed". Clouseau retorts with "and ten years on Devil's Island is not chicken feed either", even though by the time the movie was made (1978) Devil's Island had not been a working penal colony for over 30 years.
Much of Plan de evasión, translated as A Plan For Escape, published in 1945 by Adolfo Bioy Casares
Adolfo Bioy Casares
Adolfo Bioy Casares was an Argentine fiction writer, journalist, and translator. He was a friend and collaborator with his fellow countryman Jorge Luis Borges, and wrote what many consider one of the best pieces of fantastic fiction, the novella The Invention of Morel.-Biography:Adolfo Bioy...
, takes place on and around Devil's Island.
The main character of Émile Zola
Émile Zola
Émile François Zola was a French writer, the most important exemplar of the literary school of naturalism and an important contributor to the development of theatrical naturalism...
's The Belly of Paris, Florent, spent several years in exile on the island for his participation against Napoleon III's coup d'état
French coup of 1851
The French coup d'état on 2 December 1851, staged by Prince Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte , ended in the successful dissolution of the French National Assembly, as well as the subsequent re-establishment of the French Empire the next year...
.
Further reading
- Belbenoit, René. 1940. Hell on Trial. Translated from the Original French Manuscript by Preston Rambo. E. P Dutton & Co. Reprint by Blue Ribbon Books, New York, 1941.
- Belbenoit, René. 1938. Dry guillotine: Fifteen years among the living dead. Reprint: Berkley (1975). ISBN 0-425-02950-6. Reprint: Bantam Books, 1971.
- Seaton, George John. Isle of the Damned: Twenty Years in the Penal Colony of French Guinea. Farrar, Straus and Young, 1951. Also published in England as Scars Are My Passport.
- Charrière, Henry. Papillon. Reprints: Hart-Davis Macgibbon Ltd. 1970. ISBN 0-246-63987-3 (hbk); Perennial, 2001. ISBN 0-06-093479-4 (sbk).
- Godfroy Marion, Bagnards Tallandier, 2008.
- Godfroy Marion, Bagnards édition du chêne, 2002 (Best coffee table book of the year by "Le Monde").
- CNESCNESThe is the French government space agency . Established under President Charles de Gaulle in 1961, its headquarters are located in central Paris and it is under the supervision of the French Ministries of Defence and Research...
, Dossier de presse Îles du Salut - Nicol Smith, "Black martinique, Red Guiana", 1942.