Canadian Defense at the Onset of the Battle of Hong Kong - Essay Example

Canadian defense at the onset of the Battle of Hong Kong, 1941 The Sino japan war had continued for a long time since gaining the whole of China would take some time since most china, as a whole is vast. The Japanese had a better-equipped and highly trained military that put the Chinese on the receiving end. The Japanese were, therefore, a force to reckon in the war. Japan had plans to expand and occupy more territories and countries, and one of them was China. HongKong was in the vicinity, and the British feared that HongKong would be the next target for the Japanese empire. TheBritish deliberated to continue the defensive in Gin Drinkers line (Felton, 127). Having gained much of China the Japanese next targeted HongKong. The war between China and Japan was, therefore, a cause for the attack of HongKong since Japan was stretching its rule further from its boundaries. The HongKonginvasions took the world by storm and the speedy retaliation of the allies to support HongKong was marshalled. The Japanese invasion of Hong Kong finally happened in December 1941 (Tsang, 119). It was of the wars that led to World War II. The Japanese army invaded Hong Kong, which was under the British. The Japanese had not stated clearly, why they would to attack HongKong and had not notified the British. TheBritishwere not prepared for the war since it was a surprise attack. The forces in Hong Kong were the Indians, Canadians and British forces. The main resistance to the Japanese forces was the local troops in Hong Kong, and they were no march for the invaders. The invasion overwhelmed the Indian, British and Canadian forces, who were part of the Commonwealth forces. They were outnumbered, and therefore they would not have defended the island under the British protectorate. The leader of the troops was Sir Robert Brooke. He had under his command few British troops. He thought that the troops on the ground would reduce the time that the Japanese would take to complete take over HongKong. Since HongKong was under the British protectorate there,a decision to change adds reinforcement to the forces at HongKong. Winston Churchill was the premier of Britain at the time of the attack on Hong Kong. He decided to add more troops, which had not been the case since initially they had recommended few troops. He had envisioned an imminent defeat should the Japanese attack the island(Barman, C. & Barman, R., 94). The then British premier, WinstonChurchill, decided to send a contingent of the British Army to ensure that reinforcements would be available should there be an attack. The Chinese had control of HongKong, and the British wanted to win their confidence in that the island would not be lost to the Japanese. The premier eventually changed his mind, and the reinforcements were not sent to HongKong. The premier reached out to the Canadians to provide troops for defending the island. General Maltby had a force of 14000troops who consisted of ground troops, the navy and air force soldiers. General Maltby was thus relieved of some of the pressure that had built up due to inadequate military personnel, and the addition of the Canadians proved to be a relief for some time. Kowloon harbor was to be protected by the additional forces from attacks from the mainland. The Canadian troops were allocated to the mainland brigade, which was conducted by Brigadier Wallis(Barman, C. & Barman, R., 1). Brigadier Lawson commanded the island forces, which had the Middlesex and part of the Canadian forces. The Canadian on the mainland were trained to be conversant with the harsh terrain and, therefore, be prepared in case on any attack. The Japanese force had 50000 troops on the ground and this from the start which is a battle that was unequally matched. The Japanese military were better trained than their counterparts were, and this was an added advantage in terms of defeating the allies. The Canadian were sent to HongKong to help provide support in the protection of the British colony. The Canadian force was ill-equipped since it did not have enough since the equipment was directed to another area. The Canadians therefore went to HongKongwithout the machinery to engage the Japanese invaders. The Canadian armed forces consisted of Winnipeg Grenadiers and the royal Rifles of Canada. The royal rifles and Winnipeg Grenadiers had little minimal training in the military and therefore they were no match for the highly trained and equipped Japanese military (Granatstein, 200). The Canadian thought that they would only counter a small garrison of the Japanese but were in for a surprise. The Japanese faced the 38th Infantry under the command of General Takaishi. The Canadian were therefore not prepared for the extensive attacks that they would face in the coming days. The Canadian regiment suffered greatly in with war, and the death toll was 554. Canadian troops displayed a lot of courage in the war and refused to give up even though they were outnumbered. They refused to surrender to the Japanese and fought valiantly for the defense of Hong Kong.TheCanadian troops were not as properly trained militarily as the Japanese was. The Canadian troops were sent as reinforcement to the forces that were already in Hong Kong. The Canadian government was thus giving support to the British forces. The allied forces in Hong Kong could not defend themselves from the air attacks as the Japanese had damaged their aircraft. There was no properly established force and well-equipped force in HongKong. The allied forces were far away and reinforcements asked before had been rejected. The inadequate navy and the air force put HongKong in harm’s way should there be any attack by the Japanese. The Japanese in destroying the airport and naval bases gained control on the water and in the air. The Japanese on the various attacks carried out on HongKong provided the British with the option of surrender but the British refused to yield on each occasion. The Japanese were brutal in their attacks since they tortured and killed the prisoners of war and fatal attacked the remaining forces on the island (Malley-Morrison, McCarthy, & Hines, 487). The day the Japanese dealt with the remaining forces brutally was eventually called Black Christmas. The battle ended on Christmas day in 1941 with the Japanese having conqueredHongKong. General Maltby had to surrender to the Japanese and, as a result,Governor of Hong sir young had to surrender (Carroll, 2007). The decision by the British premier WinstonChurchill not to send more reinforcement could have contributed to the defeat of the allied forces in Hong Kong. Though he requested for the Canadians, the battle proved that they had made miscalculations where the Canadians suffered greatly. The Japanese inflicted great damage on HongKongespecially the troops and their equipment. The Japanese attacked the Kai Tak airport and destroyed the airfield and the available aircraft. The remaining forces on had to carry out ground attacks on the already overwhelming of the Japanese since their equipment had been destroyed. Some of the Japanese forces were under the command of General Takaishi Sakai. General Takaishi and Colonel Teihichi marshalled their forces to attack the allies. The allies consisted of forces who were under British control especially the Indians and others who were assisting the British like Canada. Colonel White commanded the Scottish troops who were under attack by the Japanese forces (Fryer, 1993). The Scottish force was attacked and withdrew but later regained the golden hill, which was again attacked by the Japanese forces. The Canadians in the defense of the island were a ferocious and tenacious force, which refused to give up and fought bravely against the Japanese, who were well prepared for war. The Canadians were greatly afflicted, and the lack of equipment and know-how on warfare proved to be a disadvantage to them but not a deterrent to them. The courageousness exhibited by the Winnipeg Grenadiers and the royal rifles of Canada together with the other Commonwealth forces went a long way in holding off the Japanese, who eventually took over HongKong. The Canadians therefore paid with their lives for the defense of HongKong and could not relent to the last man. Works Cited Barman, Charles, and Ray Barman. Resist to the End: Hong Kong, 1941-1945. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, 2009. Internet resource. Carroll, John M. A Concise History of Hong Kong. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2007. Print. Felton, Mark. China Station: The British Militry in the Middle Kingdom 1839-1997. Havertown: Pen and Sword, 2013. Internet resource. Granatstein, J L. Canadas Army: Waging War and Keeping the Peace. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2011. Print. Malley-Morrison, Kathleen, Sherri McCarthy, and Denise A. Hines. International Handbook of War, Torture, and Terrorism. New York, NY: Springer, 2013. Internet resource. Tsang, Steve Y.-S. A Modern History of Hong Kong. London: I.B. Tauris, 2003. Internet resource. Read More