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The Japanese occupation of Hong Kong

began after the Governor of Hong Kong, Sir Mark Young surrendered the territory of Hong Kong to Japan on 25 December 1941 after 18 days of fierce fighting between British and Canadian defenders against Japanese Imperial forces.

The occupation ultimately lasted for three years and eight months, leading many survivors to call the occupation as simply "Three Years and Eight Months" .

Battle of Hong Kong

The Battle of Hong Kong took place during the Pacific campaign of World War II. It began on 8 December 1941 and ended on Christmas Day with Hong Kong, then a British colony, surrendering to the control of Imperial Japan.

In the autumn of 1941, the Third Reich was at its height of power. German forces had overrun much of Western Europe and was racing towards Moscow in its invasion of the Soviet Union. With France under occupation, England was enduring devastating German bombardment almost daily, barely able to fend off an amphibious invasion. Hitler"s designs for total European conquest seemed unstoppable.

In the Asian theatre, Japan was also experiencing spectacular victories and began consolidating its territorial gains. At the time, the United States did not partake in the war but was seen by the Axis Powers as an obstacle to further global conquest. This prompted Japan to launch a sudden attack against the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor on December 7 1941. As part of a general Pacific campaign, the Japanese launched an assault on Hong Kong on the morning of December 8, 1941 (Hong Kong local time), less than eight hours after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. British, Canadian and Indian forces, supported by the Hong Kong Volunteer Defense Forces attempted to resisted the rapidly advancing Japanese invasion but were outnumbered.

After racing down the New Territories and Kowloon, Japanese forces crossed Victoria Harbour on December 18. After fierce fighting continued on Hong Kong Island, the only reservoir was lost. Canadian Winnipeg Grenadiers fought at the crucial Wong Nai Chong Gap that secured the passage between Hong Kong proper and secluded southern sections of the island. Hopelessly defeated, on December 25, 1941, British colonial officials headed by the Governor of Hong Kong Mark Aitchison Young surrendered in-person at the Japanese headquarters on the third floor of The Peninsula Hotel. On 20 February 1942, General Rensuke Isogai became the first Japanese governor of Hong Kong, ushering in almost four years of Imperial Japanese administration.


Japanese soldiers marching along Queen"s Road on Hong Kong Island in December 1941.

Background

Britain first began to consider Japan a threat in 1922 with the ending of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance. This risk increased with the expansion of the Sino-Japanese War. On October 21 1938 the Japanese occupied Guangzhou and Hong Kong was effectively surrounded. Various British Defence studies had already concluded that Hong Kong would be impossible to defend in the event of a Japanese attack but in the mid-1930s work had begun on new defences including the Gin Drinkers" Line. By 1940, the British had determined to reduce the Hong Kong Garrison to a symbolic scale only. However, Air Chief Marshal Sir Robert Brooke-Popham, the Commander-in-Chief of the British Far East Command argued that limited reinforcements could allow the garrison to delay a Japanese attack, gaining time elsewhere. In Autumn 1941, the British government accepted an offer by the Canadian Government to send two infantry battalions and a brigade headquarters (1,975 personnel) to reinforce the Hong Kong garrison. C Force, as it was known, arrived on 16 November. It did not have all of its equipment as a ship carrying its vehicles was diverted to Manila at the outbreak of war.

Overview of the battle

The Japanese attack began shortly after 8 am on 8 December 1941 (Hong Kong local time), less than eight hours after the Attack on Pearl Harbor. British, Canadian and Indian forces, commanded by Major-General Maltby supported by the Hong Kong Volunteer Defence Forces, resisted the Japanese invasion by the 38th Division, commanded by Lieutenant General Sakai Takashi, but were outnumbered two to one and lacked their opponents" recent combat experience.

The Japanese achieved air superiority on the first day of battle as two of the three Vickers Vildebeest torpedo-reconnaissance aircraft and the two Supermarine Walrus amphibious planes of the RAF Station, which were the only military planes at Hong Kong"s Kai Tak Airport, were destroyed by 12 Japanese bombers. The attack also destroyed several civil aircraft including all but two of the aircraft used by the Air Unit of the Hong Kong Volunteer Defence Corp. The RAF and Air Unit personnel from then fought on as ground troops. British naval vessels were ordered to leave Hong Kong for Singapore.


Map showing the Japanese lines of attack.

The Commonwealth forces decided against holding the Sham Chun River, which was quickly forded by the Japanese using temporary bridges, and instead established three battalions in the Gin Drinkers" Line across the hills. These defences were rapidly breached at the Shing Mun Redoubt early on 10 December 1941. The evacuation from Kowloon started on December 11, 1941 under aerial bombardment and artillery barrage. As much as possible, military and harbour facilities were demolished before the withdrawal. By December 13, the Rajputs of the British Indian Army, the last Commonwealth troops on the mainland, had retreated to Hong Kong Island.

Maltby organised the defence of the island, splitting it between an East Brigade and a West Brigade. On 15 December the Japanese began systematic bombardment of the island"s North Shore. Two demands for surrender were made on 13 December and 17 December. When these were rejected, Japanese forces crossed the harbour on the evening of 18 December and landed on the island"s North-East. They suffered only light casualties, although no effective command could be maintained until the dawn came. That night, approximately 20 gunners were massacred at the Sai Wan Battery after they had surrendered.

On the morning of 19 December, a Canadian Company Sergeant Major, John Robert Osborn of the Winnipeg Grenadiers, threw himself on top of a grenade, sacrificing himself to save the lives of the men around him; he was later posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross. Fierce fighting continued on Hong Kong Island but the Japanese annihilated the headquarters of West Brigade and could not be forced from the Wong Ne Chong Gap that secured the passage between downtown and the secluded southern parts of the island. Again there was a massacre of prisoners, this time of medical staff, in the Salesian Mission on Chai Wan Road. From 20 December the island became split in two with the British Commonwealth forces still holding out around the Stanley peninsula and in the West of the island. At the same time water supplies started to run short as the Japanese captured the island"s reservoirs.

On the morning of December 24, Japanese soldiers entered the British field hospital at St. Stephen"s College, and tortured and killed over 60 injured soldiers, along with the medical staff.

By the afternoon of 25 December 1941, it was clear that further resistance would be futile and British colonial officials headed by the Governor of Hong Kong, Sir Mark Aitchison Young, surrendered in person at the Japanese headquarters on the third floor of the Peninsula Hong Kong hotel. This was the first occasion on which a British Crown Colony was surrendered to an invading force.[citation needed] The garrison had held out for 18 days.

Aftermath

Isogai Rensuke became the first Japanese governor of Hong Kong. This ushered in the three years and eight months of Imperial Japanese administration. Japanese soldiers also terrorised the local population by murdering many, raping an estimated 10,000 women1, and looting. This day is known in Hong Kong as "Black Christmas".


Japanese soldiers marching along Queen"s Road on Hong Kong Island in December 1941.

Prisoners of war were sent to:

* Shamshuipo Prisoner Camp (later a Vietnamese detention centre)
* Yokohama Camp in Japan
* Fukuoka Camp in Japan
* Osaka Camp in Japan

Although Hong Kong surrendered to the Japanese, the local Chinese waged a small guerilla war in New Territories. However, because of the resistance, some villages were razed as a punishment. The guerillas fought until the end of the Japanese occupation. Western historical books on the subject have not significantly covered their actions. The resistance groups were known as the Gangjiu and Dongjiang forces.


The Cenotaph in Hong Kong


Sai Wan War Cemetery

Enemy civilians (meaning Allied nationals) were interned at the Stanley Internment Camp. Initially, there were 2400 internees although this number was reduced following some repatriations during the war. Internees who died, together with prisoners executed by the Japanese are buried in Stanley Cemetery.

British sovereignty was restored in 1945 following the surrender of the Japanese forces on 15 August, less than a week after the United States had dropped atomic bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

The Allied dead from the campaign, including British, Canadian and Indian soldiers were eventually interred at the Sai Wan Military Cemetery on the northeastern corner of Hong Kong Island. A total of 1,528 soldiers, mainly Commonwealth, are buried there. There are also graves of other Allied combatants who died in Hong Kong during the war, including some Dutch sailors.

The cenotaph in Central commermorates the Defense as well as war-dead from World War I.

The shield in the colonial coat of arms of Hong Kong granted in 1959 featured the battlement design to commemorate the Defence of Hong Kong during World War II. The arms was in use until 1997 when it was replaced by the current regional emblem.

Lei Yue Mun Fort has lost its defence significance in the post-war period and has since become a training ground for the British Forces until 1987 when it was finally vacated. In view of its historical significance and unique architectural features, the former Urban Council decided in 1993 to conserve and develop Lei Yue Mun Fort into the Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defence.

The nearby Sai Wan Battery, with buildings constructed as far back as 1890, housed the Depot and Record Office of the Hong Kong Military Service Corps for nearly four decades after the War. The barracks were handed over to the government in 1985 and were subsequently converted into Lei Yue Mun Park and Holiday Village.

Politics

Rensuke Isogai
Throughout the Japanese occupation, Hong Kong was ruled as a detained terrain and was subjected to martial law. Headed by General Rensuke Isogai, the Japanese established their administration and commanding post at the Peninsula Hotel in Kowloon. The military government, comprised of the departments of politics, civilian, economy, judiciary, and navy, enacted stringent regulations and established executive bureaus to have power over all residents of Hong Kong. On top of Governor Mark Young, 7,000 British soldiers and civilians were kept in prisoner-of-war or internment camps, such as ones in Sham Shui Po and Stanley. Famine, malnourishment and sickness were pervasive. Severe cases of malnutrition among inmates, for example, occurred in the captivity camp at Stanley in 1945. Moreover, the Japanese military government blockaded Victoria Harbour and controlled warehouses.

Early in January 1942, former members of the Hong Kong Police, including the Indians and Chinese, were recruited into a reformed police, the Kempeitai (Military Police) with new uniforms. The Japanese gendarmerie took over all police stations and organized the Police in five divisions, namely East Hong Kong, West Hong Kong, Kowloon, New Territories and Water Police. The headquarters was situated in the former Supreme Court Building. Police in Hong Kong were under the organization and control of the Japanese government.

The onset of the new Japanese governor was the indicator for important administrative fluctuations. Japanese experts and administrators were chiefly employed in the Governor"s Office and its various bureaux. These Japanese experts occupied all key posts whereas the Chinese could only take the middle and lower ranks of posts. Under the Japanese control, the basic framework of Japanese administration was created by the division of Hong Kong Island into 12 districts and Kowloon into 6. Each district was under a Chinese who represented the needs of the district residents to the Japanese authorities. Also, a Civil Affairs Bureau was set up for policy-making, exercising control and supervision. The administrative regime re-designed by Governor Isogai was under instructions from Tokyo.

Economy

Japanese soldiers arrested the western bankers and kept them in a Chinese hostel.

Economically, all trading activities were sternly guarded, and the majority of the factories were taken over by the Japanese. Having deprived the vendors and banks of their possessions, the Japanese replaced local dollars with Japanese Military Yen. The Hong Kong Dollar was outlawed and anyone caught with possession of it was tortured. The exchange rate was fixed at 2 Hong Kong dollars to one military yen in January 1942. Later, the yen was re-valued at 4 Hong Kong dollars to a yen in July 1942, which meant local people could exchange less military notes than before. While the citizens of Hong Kong became poor in forced exchanges, the Japanese government sold the Hong Kong Dollar to help finance their war-time economy. Later, the yen was made the sole legal tender for official purposes in June 1943. Prices of commodities for sale had to be marked in yen. Its gradual devaluation resulted in severe inflation and disruption of the economy, directly affecting Hong Kong citizens. The Japanese Military Yen was later declared worthless and the citizens, without possession of their original HKD, were completely destitute.

Not only did all manufacturing industries cease but also most necessities failed. Food, in particular rice, sugar, flour, and cooking oil were in shortage and were subjected to rationing. Public transport and public utilities, unavoidably, failed owing to shortage of fuel and augmentation of American air raids on Hong Kong. Tens of thousands of people became homeless and helpless, and many of them were employed in shipbuilding and construction. In agricultural field, the Japanese took over the race track at Fanling and the air strip at Kam Tin for their rice-growing experiments. A scheme of reclamation of Tolo Harbour was also discussed.

With the intention of boosting the Japanese influence on Hong Kong, two Japanese banks, the Yokohama Specie Bank and the Bank of Taiwan, were re-opened. The Japanese banking experts were sent to liquidate enemy banks. British, American and Dutch bankers were forced to live in a small hotel, while some bankers who were viewed as the enemy of the Japanese were executed. In May 1942, Japanese companies were encouraged to be set up. A Hong Kong trade syndicate consisting of Japanese firms was set up in October 1942 to manipulate all overseas trade.

Community life, social services and public hygiene

Life in fear

Population decrease due to repatriation.

The Japanese enforced a repatriation policy throughout the period of occupation because of the scarcity of food and the possible counter-attack of the Allies. As a result, the unemployed were deported to the Mainland, and the population of Hong Kong had dwindled from 1.6 million to 600,000 in 1945[1]. Furthermore, the Japanese reconstructed both government and private facilities for the sake of their own interests and developments. In order to expand the Kai Tak Airport, for example, the Japanese demolished the Kowloon Walled City and the Sung Wong Toi Monument in today’s Kowloon City. Buildings of some prestigious secondary schools such as Jesuits" Wah Yan College, Diocesan Boys" School, the Central British School (now King George V School), the St. Paul"s Girls" College (now St. Paul"s Co-educational College) of the Anglican church and de La Salle brothers" La Salle College were commandeered as military hospitals by the Japanese. Diocesan Boys" School was even rumoured to be the execution place of the Japanese.

Life was hard for people under Japanese rule. As there was inadequate food supply, the Japanese rationed necessities such as rice, oil, flour, salt and sugar. Each family was given a rationing license, and every person could only buy 6.4 taels (0.24 kg), of rice per day. Most people did not have enough food to eat, and many died of starvation. The rationing system was canceled in 1944.

Charity and social services

After the occupation of the Japanese, charitable activities were highly restricted. Although a fund which may be translated as "Far East Foundation Fund" was set up to collect donations, it was regarded as a means to collect money for the Japanese government, instead of providing welfare services for the Hong Kong people. The Bishop and the Chinese Representatives" Association, as organizers of charitable activities for relief of the poor, demanded assistance from the government. In September 1942, the Japanese governor Isogai promised to accept their suggestion. The implementation of this suggestion involved money from the Far East Foundation Fund being given to the governor first, and then transferred to a relief fund for the local people of Hong Kong. This was seen as a credit to Japanese administrative policy.

With the assistance of the Far East Foundation Fund, an association which may be translated as "Chinese Charity Association" was set up to organize fundraising and distribution work. In order to promote charity activities, a fundraising committee was established which created a network of donation movement. It selected famous people from trade unions to be the leaders of the fundraising groups. They were then asked to choose members to join their group and to help with activities. These members then took donations from different social strata so as to raise as much funds as possible. The activities also included propaganda works which promoted the program. This mass donation movement finally resulted in a collection of 55500 military yen (MY). Besides this, there were also charitable football competitions and drama performances which donated all of their profits for the Chinese Charity Association. The fund raising activities were continued in the following years.

During the occupation, hospitals available to the masses were limited. The Kowloon Hospital and Queen Mary Hospital were occupied by the Japanese army. The Japanese also used the Tung Wah Eastern Hospital as a military hospital.

Despite the lack of medicine and funds, the Tung Wah and Kwong Wah Hospital continued their social services but in a limited scale. These included provision of food, medicine, clothing, and burial services. Although funds were provided, they still had great financial difficulties. Failure to collect rents and the high reparation costs forced them to promote fundraising activities like musical performances and dramas.

The charitable organization Po Leung Kuk was another important organization taking in orphans. However faced with financial problems during the occupation, their bank deposits could not be withdrawn under Japanese control. Their services could only be continued through donations by Wu Wen Fu, a long-term financier of Po Leung Kuk.

Health and public hygiene

Poster for promoting radio exercise, a health policy which is still being practiced among primary students in Japan


A hand-out of a Japanese language learning radio programme.


Celebration of a "New Hong Kong" after Japanese occupation.

There were very few public hospitals during the Japanese occupation as many of them were forced to be converted to military hospitals. With the inadequate supply of resources, Tung Wah Hospital and Kwong Wah Hospital still continuously offered limited social services to the needy persons.

Education, press and political propaganda

Through schooling, mass media and other means of propaganda, the Japanese tried to control the mindsets of Hong Kong people so as to build up a stronger administration regime. Japanization was a common means for restricting people"s thinking, and it prevailed in different aspects of daily life.

Japanese education

It was the Japanese conviction that education was an imperative means in infusing Japanese influence. Teaching of Japanese was obligatory, and students who received bad results in Japanese exams risked corporal punishment. English could not be taught. Some private Japanese language schools were established to promote oral Japanese. The Military Administration ran the Teachers" Training Course, and those teachers who failed a Japanese bench-mark test would need to take a three-month training course. Also, Japanese culture, affairs, ethics and rituals were introduced through education.

The primary aims of this Japanization of the education system were mainly to facilitate the Japanese control over the local people and to establish the Greater East Asia Co-prosperity Sphere. Therefore, what it was trying to create was a rush to learn Japanese.

Propaganda

The Hong Kong News, a pre-war Japanese-owned English newspaper, was revived on January 1942. Ten local Chinese newspapers had been reduced to five in May. These newspapers were under press censorship. Radio sets were used for Japanese propaganda. Amusements still existed, though only for those who could afford them. The cinemas only screened Japanese films, such as The Battle of Hong Kong, the only film made in Hong Kong during the Japanese occupation. Directed by Tanaka Shigeo and produced by the Dai Nippon Film Company, the film featured an all-Japanese cast but a few Hong Kong film personalities were also involved. This film appeared on the first anniversary of the attack. Horseracing continued to be held.

Strikes and anti-Japanese activities

During this period, people organized strikes and refused to buy or use Japanese products. Owing to hostilities to Japanese aggression, many Hong Kong trade unions which had disappeared in the past ten years again revived in the 1930s. They were moved by their patriotic feeling to renew their activities, this time against the Japanese.

The Japanese Occupation of Hong Kong did not mean the immediate termination of Chinese anti-Japanese patriotism. In fact, these activities turned underground and continued in secrecy.

Gangjiu Da Dui Guerillas

Founded by the Communists in January 1942, the Guangdong Renmin Kangri guerrillas were established to reinforce anti-Japanese forces in Dongjiang and Zhujiang (Pearl River) deltas. The third and fifth branches under Cai Guoliang, which were sent to Hong Kong and Kowloon, became known as Gangjiu (Hong Kong-Kowloon) da dui (brigade). Led by Wong Kwun Fong and Lau Hak Tsai, the guerillas endeavored to attack robbers, traitors and enemies, and secure farm produce and human lives in Hong Kong. In April 1942, the guerillas extended their influence over Lantau Island, which enhanced communication with Macao and Guangzhou. The spread of their activities into multi-ethnic Hong Kong Island, in particular, led to Chinese collection of classified information on Japanese strategies of South China, Taiwan, and Southeast Asia. Furthermore, the force played a central role in saving British and foreigners of the Allied cause. 20 British, 54 Indians, 8 Americans, 3 Danish, 2 Norwegians, 1 Russian, and 1 Filipino were estimated to have been saved. The Gangjiu Da Dui helped undermine the Japanese military position in Hong Kong, and fostered friendships among Chinese, British and Americans.

Dongjiang Guerillas

Dongjiang Guerillas fighting in trenches

During the Japanese Occupation the only fortified resistance was mounted by the Dongjiang guerillas. Originally formed by Zeng Sheng in Guangdong in 1939, this was mostly comprised peasants, students, and seamen. When the war reached Hong Kong in 1941, the guerilla force grew from 200 to more than 6,000 soldiers. In the wake of the British retreat, the guerillas picked up abandoned weapons and established bases in the New Territories and Kowloon. Applying conventional tactics of guerilla warfare, they killed Chinese traitors and collaborators, protected traders in Kowloon and Guangzhou, attacked the police station at Tai Po, and bombed Kai Tak Airport. Additionally, the guerillas were noteworthy in rescuing prisoners-of-war, notably Sir Lindsay, Sir Douglas Clague, Professor Gordan King, and David Bosanquet. The guerillas" most significant contribution to the Allies, in particular, was their rescue of twenty American pilots who parachuted into Kowloon when their planes were shot down by the Japanese.

British Army Aid Group

The British Army Aid Group was formed in July 1942 at the suggestion of Colonel Lindsay Ride. After the fall of Hong Kong in December 1941, all British side personnel were sent into various prisoners-of-war camps on Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon. Ride later escaped from his camp and arrived in Chongqing, where he formed the unit, with its headquarters in Guilin, Guangxi as a frontline base in the south. They mainly rescued POWs from the camps, smuggled medicine and other supplies in and out of the camps, and gathered intelligence for the Allied Forces. In the process, the Group provided protection to the Dongjiang River which was a source for domestic water in Hong Kong.

Liberation

Japanese surrender

Japanese document of surrender


The document of surrender was signed by Japan on September 15, 1945 in Hong Kong.

The Japanese Occupation of Hong Kong ended in 1945. The United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. Another one was dropped on Nagasaki three days later. Japan finally surrendered on August 15, 1945. The British sovereignty over Hong Kong thus was restored.

The Sino-Japanese War Victory Anniversary ("the Saturday preceding the last Monday in August" and "Liberation Day, being the last Monday in August" before the handover) became a public holiday, before being replaced by Labour Day and the PRC National Day.

Political stage of Hong Kong

The surrender of Japan in 1945 brought with it a new question: who, now, should rule Hong Kong? Several years earlier, U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt argued that the British government should give up Hong Kong to the Chinese Nationalist government of Chiang Kai-shek. But the British moved quickly to regain control of Hong Kong. As soon as he heard word of the Japanese surrender, Franklin Gimson, Hong Kong"s colonial secretary, left his prison camp and declared himself the territory"s acting governor. Gimson set up a temporary government, which welcomed a British naval fleet into Hong Kong harbour several days later. British Rear Admiral Sir Cecil Halliday Jepson Harcourt then formally accepted the Japanese surrender.

Hong Kong"s post-war recovery was astonishingly swift. The population returned to its pre-war levels in next to no time; business boomed; eight months after the Japanese surrender, the territory"s civilian administration was restored. Colonial taboos also broke down in the post-war years as European colonial powers realized that they could not administer its colonies like it did before the war. Chinese were no longer restricted from certain beaches, or from owning assets on Victoria Peak.