During the Second World War and the ensuing blitz on Malta, Pembroke did not escape unscathed and has borne the scars from its share of the bombardment. From June 1940 St George's Barracks was used to house the families of naval staff in the hope that it was far enough away from the RN Dockyards to avoid bombing. In the later stages of the war, German prisoners of war were held in Pembroke's POW camp. By 1945 they reached 2500 prisoners and several of them were of Roman Catholic denomination. They built a small chapel which served the religious needs of the catholic troops and prisoners. The Chapel was formally blessed by the Archbishop of Malta Mikiel Gonzi in May 1946. During 1947, several prisoners were repatriated to Germany and on 9 February 1948, the last contingent of 787 Germans were embarked from Malta heading home to Germany. On 17 February 1948, No.1 (Malta) Prisoner of War Camp was officially disbanded.