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DEVILS ISLAND : 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. It has an area of 14 ha (34.6 acres). It was a small part of the notorious French penal colony in French Guiana until 1952. The most infamous prison in history, it was a desolate place of exile in French Guiana, Devil's Island was actually a small island off the coast of French Guiana, but the main prisons on the mainland, over time, became known collectively as "Devil's Island". Just as we have school children (and adults) who have never heard of Hiroshima, there are many more who have never heard of this most dreaded of all prisons. 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 Papillon starring Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman. 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. The song "Devil's Island" is on the album Peace Sells... but Who's Buying?, by heavy metal band Megadeth. Information above and on some photo captions are from Wikipedia, http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-3920624.html, http://www.sacollectables.com/devils.html and http://www.crimemagazine.com/PrisonsParole/devilsisland.htm

DEVILS ISLAND

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. It has an area of 14 ha (34.6 acres). It was a small part of the notorious French penal colony in French Guiana until 1952. The most infamous prison in history, it was a desol ...

Updated: Jul 15, 2009 3:36pm PST

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