Caribbean colonial leaders met at Montego Bay, Jamaica, helping launch committees (including a Closer Union Committee) that developed proposals for a British West Indies federation—an important early step toward the eventual West Indies Federation.
Contemporary reporting described the decision to locate the future federation’s capital in Trinidad, amid broader negotiations over the shape of the coming political union.
TIME reported that an (inactive) U.S. naval base at Chaguaramas Bay, Trinidad, had been selected as the proposed site for the federal capital, foreshadowing later disputes over the base’s status.
In the UK House of Lords, ministers discussed and advanced the West Indies (Federation) Order in Council, 1957, laid under the British Caribbean Federation Act 1956, providing the constitutional framework to establish the Federation.
The West Indies Federation was established as a federation of British Caribbean colonies, intended to create a single political unit that could proceed to independence.
The Federation’s flag—designed by Edna Manley—was officially described as a blue field with four white wavy bars and an orange sun, a key symbol of the new federation’s identity.
The Federation held its first (and only) federal parliamentary elections, filling all 45 seats in the House of Representatives and creating a federal political mandate.
Following the federal election, Grantley Herbert Adams formed the government and became the West Indies Federation’s first (and only) prime minister, leading the federation through its brief lifespan.
Princess Margaret opened the new federal parliament in Port of Spain (de facto capital), a major ceremonial milestone marking the federation’s move from constitutional creation to functioning institutions.
In the UK House of Commons, ministers explained why the UK would not press the United States to give up the Chaguaramas base for the federal capital, underscoring a practical constraint on the federation’s planned seat at Chaguaramas.
Jamaica held a referendum on whether to remain in the Federation; voters chose “No,” triggering Jamaica’s withdrawal and accelerating the federation’s collapse by removing its largest member.
After Jamaica’s departure and subsequent political breakdown, the West Indies Federation was formally dissolved, ending the 1958–1962 experiment in British Caribbean political integration.
West Indies Federation (1958–1962)
