Kitchener Camp Collection

Biographical History

The Kitchener Camp (KC), located at Richborough near Sandwich in East Kent, was originally a First World War military base. In early 1939, the derelict site was repurposed by the Central British Fund (CBF, now World Jewish Relief) to provide temporary shelter for nearly 4,000 male Jewish refugees fleeing Nazi persecution in Germany and Austria.

Following the events of Kristallnacht, the British government approved a rescue mission for adult men, many of whom had been detained in concentration camps. Admission to Kitchener Camp required residents to be aged 18-40 and to have definite prospects for overseas emigration.

After the outbreak of the Second World War, the camp closed as a refugee centre but functioned as training facility for the Pioneer Corps. Most Kitchener residents enlisted in the British Army. By mid-1940, the camp was fully shuttered, and the remaining non-enlisted refugees were interned as ‘enemy aliens’.

Scope/Content

This collection documents the (re)construction of the derelict Kitchener Camp (KC) site and the process of setting it up for Jewish refugees from Germany and Austria. It offers insights into the operation of the camp throughout 1939 and aspects of day to day life of its residents, including among others work assignments, communal living and entertainment, and preparation for emigration.

 

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