Canadian History

Who knew we had to come to Hong Kong to learn about Canadian WWII history?  Scattered in a variety of places across Hong Kong are reminders of the Japanese invasion and the troops (including Canadians) who tried to defend it.  Come journey with our Canadian boys......

Two infantry battalions from the Royal Rifles of Canada and the Winnipeg Grenadiers arrived in Hong Kong November 1941, bringing the total defence force to 10,000.  They had not completed their training, did not have all of their equipment, and were not combat ready, however they became the first Canadian soldiers to fight in WWII. 

Click on this to enlarge - it is in
English, Cantonese and French!

On December 8, 1941, at 8 a.m., four hours after they bombed Pearl Harbour, the Japanese invaded Hong Kong.  By December 18th they were on Hong Kong island and fierce hand to hand combat began.  Much of this fighting happened at the Wong Nai Chung gap, the key route for the Japanese to get to the other side of the island.  The Canadian presence in the gap was so important that the Canadian government has posted numerous signs along a trail in the gap to ensure this history is not forgotten. 

Lawson's bunker

The trail starts at Lawson's bunker.  He was the Canadian commanding officer and one of two brigade leaders.  He lead his troops in defense of the gap with incredible bravery.  On December 19th, down to just a few men, he radioed headquarters to say he was "going outside to fight it out", and left the bunker with pistol in hand.  The Japanese so admired his bravery that after the war they erected a memorial to him.

Standing on one peak, looking
across the Wong Nai Chung gap

As you follow this very peaceful trail through the gap, it is hard to imagine that when our troops fought here, it was barren land -not a tree or bush in sight.  The troops would have seen the thousands and thousands of Japanese troops approach, knowing that they were utterly unprepared and would loose.  Yet, they held their ground.




As we walked, we came across a few pillboxes that have been left.

 



Quietly, we wandered and thought about these Canadian boys, so far from the  farms of Canada, who fought and died here.  The statue to the right stand in Hong Kong park.  It is of Sergeant Major John Osborn of the Winnipeg Grenadiers who fought in the gap, and threw himself on a grenade to save the lives of his fellow soldiers.  For that, he was awarded the only Victoria Cross given for the defense of  Hong Kong.

 



Click on to enlarge

By the morning of December 20th, the gap was lost and the fighting continued down the hills to the shore at Stanley.  On December 25th, Sir Mark Young, governor of Hong Kong, officially surrendered to the Japanese.  In Stanley sits the Stanley Military Cemetery, maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.  Here 20 of our Canadian boys are finally at peace, and our history lesson ends. 

We continue to love exploring this country, and learning a wide variety of things, even about Canada.

Oh, and this was part of the bus ride home from the gap!  Enjoy the view from the top of the double decker bus!  As always, we love you all....Linda and Jeff