Over the course of time, and through the decades of the 20^th century the world and the objects that occupy it have changed drastically. The world today is a much different and far removed place to the one that stood before it 100 years ago.

From the beginning of the 1900’s the human race has been in a constant state of flux, as the industrial revolution kick-started the 1800’s, it was this century that we saw the most advancement in terms of technology and how we really live day-to-day. Buildings, communication, and my favourite food have all benefited from the ingenuity of the human race and innovations to make life easier, or more confusing depending on your age.

In this sense it was perhaps over the past 50 years and dating back to the first Pan American transatlantic flight in 1939 that the world became the connected place it is today. For this is when International immigration was truly born.

The ease in which it was now possible to move to another part of the world, was to a large extent thanks to this first flying of a Boeing 314.

Immigration necessitates a change for the better

A US visa has for so long been held in such high-regard by immigrants from all over the world. Over the last century and long before, most felt it an opportunity to be afforded a chance, where they could settle and be rewarded for hard-work.

Today we celebrate 3 immigrants who have lived over the past 100 years and who have used not just US immigration but who have also entered through UK immigration, as both a means to a better life or simply to necessitate a free life.

1) Albert Einstein

Germany>>Switzerland>>USA



An entry in such an article would have to consume several dozen pages to truly document what an impact this man had on the world and how without his idea’s we would probably be living considerably different existences today. Physicist, Philosopher and Author, Einstein is credited for his theories on special relativity and general relativity, winning the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1921 for his ‘Services to Theoretical Physics’.

His theory on special relativity coined what is perhaps this century’s most famous equation E = mc² , this involved the complicated process of tiny amounts of mass being converted into larger amounts of energy and in no small part pre-dated what we now know as nuclear power.

Born to German parents in 1879 in the German Kingdom of Württemberg, Einstein denounced his German citizenship in 1896 and enrolled in a Physics program in Zurich, Switzerland. His most productive time was spent in Switzerland where he published literally hundreds of books and articles on subjects as far-reaching and diverse as Zionism, Black Holes and Cosmology. He immigrated to the United States at the end of his career and with his wife Elsa in 1933. He outlived his wife and died on 18 April 1955.

2) Charlie Chaplin

UK>>USA>>UK>>Switzerland


Charlie Chaplin is best known as the most famous movie star of the silent film era. Films such as The Immigrant and Kid Auto Races at Venice saw him play the role of the Tramp, perhaps his most well-known character.

Born Charles Spencer Chaplin in 1889, Chaplin first made a name for himself by using slapstick, mime and visual routines in silent films pre-dating World War 1. He later went on to produce and compose many of the films he starred in. This creative control was cemented in 1917 when Chaplin already living in the US signed a deal with First National to produce eight two reel films. Chaplin found himself in complete control of his own studio, although the brief was to deliver short comedies as he had done before, he ambitiously elaborated previous personal projects and made such feature length films as The Pilgrim and The Kid. Chaplin went on to be a co-founder of United Artists in 1919.

To say Charlie Chaplin lived a boring life would be mis-leading at best; he fathered no less than 10 children and married a total of 4 women, all at different times of course, controversially two of his wives became so at 16.

Never far from the spotlight, Charlie Chaplin was famously exiled from America during the McCarthy years, due in large part to his political views. At the time of the ban Charlie Chaplin, although still a British citizen had been living in the US for 40 years, and only learnt of the furore over his communist views after landing in England.

Public opinion had changed so much in the States Chaplin soon realised that it would be impossible to return and eventually settled in Switzerland, he only returned to the US once after this in 1972, when he was recognised for his talent and awarded a ‘Special Academy Award’ 5 years before his death in 1977.

3) Sigmund Freud

Austria>> UK

Freud was born in the Moravian town of Příbor in what is now the Czech Republic. Born Sigismund Schlomo Freud May 6, 1856, Freud was the eldest of 8 children; he did however have older siblings as his father Jakob had children from a previous marriage.

From an impoverished family his intellect was apparent from a very early age and his parents insisted that he should have the best education they could possibly afford, to the detriment of his younger siblings.

After studying at the University of Vienna, Freud went onto being credited by many as the founding father of Psychiatry and Psychoanalysis, his works on how the human mind is organised still stands today as being hugely influential as does his theory on how human behaviour results form this.

Famously coming up with the idea that all human actions are primarily motivated by sexual urges, Freud was at the time regarded by many as a radical thinker. He also had ground-breaking theories on the power of the sub-conscious mind and the role dreams played in warning the mind of dangers in the physical world.

Perhaps because of his notoriety as a leading psychologist, when the Nazi’s took control of Germany it was his books that were some of the first to be burned. At the time Freud could not have imagined what events would take place and in the end he lost a large proportion of his family in the Holocaust.

Because of his position, Freud was fortunate enough to have allies within the Nazi party, and so it was such that he emerged from the Nazi occupation, eventually settling in Hampstead, London with most of his fortune not being discovered and plundered.

Freud died soon after moving to the UK in 1939, he was cremated at Golders Green crematorium in North London.

Immigration as a huge positive

As like me I think you will agree that these three individuals had an effect on the world that would be sorely missed if they were not to have lived. Each was groundbreaking in their field and each used immigration as a means to further live their lives.

It is evident that without the protection of another country, in the case of Freud, then he would have surely died before his time.

International immigration is a great thing and should be celebrated, whenever a talented person enters into a new country that country is guaranteed to benefit and become stronger for it, whether it UK immigration or a US visa everyone’s a winner.