大象传媒

The following story appears courtesy of and with thanks to Ronald Parker and Father
Major Maurice Albert Parker:

The only effective forces left in the East Brigade were the Royal Rifles of Canada, some Middlesex Machine Gunners, and some HKVDC units. The Rajputs were exhausted at rest in the rear echelon. All troops were sleep deprived, tired and hungry. On the night of December 16th the Japanese made a probing attack which, in spite of their exhaustion, was beaten back by "C" Company of the Royal Rifles.
From an interview with Rifleman John Beebe...
"From December 8th to 18th the battle went on at a distance, but with the Japs pushing down in force and getting closer and closer. By the that time they had surrounded Kowloon and then on the 18th they succeeded in crossing to the island in heavy fog. From then on, it was hand-to-hand with cold steel."
The Japanese occupied the mainland from Kowloon to Devil's Peak. On the night of December 17th. they began a heavy bombing and artillery barrage of the island's northern coastal defenses from North Point in the northwest to Fort Sau Ki in the northeast knocking out many of the pill box machine guns manned by the Middlesex Regiment. They had amassed thousands of troops, tons of equipment, and hundreds of small craft, all without causing any doubt in the mind of General Maltby that the main attack would come from the South.

Continued...
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