This is a study of the history of global refugee movements over the 20th century, ranging from east European Jews fleeing Tsarist oppression at the turn of the century to asylum seekers from the former Zaire and Yugoslavia.

Introduction - refugees, place and memory. Part 1 The closing of asylum 1900-1932: refugees in the age of mass immigration - from the late 19th century to World War I; refugees and World War I; triumphant anti-alienism - the absence of asylum 1919-1932. Part 2 The Fascist era, 1933-1945: refugees from the Spanish Civil War; refugees from Nazism, 1933-1939; refugees, World War II and the Holocaust. Part 3 refugees from the Cold War: Polish refugees - assistance to wartime heroes; refugees from Hungary - anti-communist fervour takes hold. Part 4 Government-enforced dispersal during the 1970s and 1980s: Ugandan Asian exiles - the colonial connection; refugees from Chile - a gesture of international solidarity; refugees from Indo-China - a media-driven resettlement scheme? Part 5 World asylum seekers at the end of the century - closing the doors: the Kurds - a moment of humanity in an era of restriction?; refugees from former Yugoslavia - the last "programme" refugees?; refugees from the former Zaire - the context of colour. Conclusion: asylum, refugees and "home".