By M. G. Britts
Norfolk Island, the beautiful island the British chose as a penal settlement and source of shipbuilding materials, became living hell for thousands of convicts.
Unfettered by government control, the Commandants of Norfolk Island were brutal and sadistic rulers of this tiny island, turning it into a place to rival the concentration camps of later years. Few were enlightened leaders, the only one who attempted reform was foiled by his subordinate
Vicious floggings, multiple executions, barbaric and ingenious punishments - all failed to completely suppress the convicts of Norfolk Island, who found ways of fighting back only to suffer worse punishment. The convicts developed a cruel sub-culture little better than the one which dominated them and in which homosexuality was the norm.
M. G. Britts graphically depicts the impressions made by the succession of brutal Commandants who made the name of Norfolk Island notorious around the world.