“C” Force to Hong Kong with Brad St.Croix
In fall 1941, the Canadian government accepted a request to reinforce the British garrison at Hong Kong. Canada sent two infantry battalions, the Royal Rifles of Canada and the Winnipeg Grenadiers, a brigade headquarters, and two nurses from the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps. “C” Force, as they were known, arrived in Hong Kong on November 16th 1941, less than a month before the Grand Japanese Offensive of 1941-1942 began on December 7/8th. By December 18th, the Japanese had a foothold on Hong Kong island. From this point, the Canadian members of the garrison were involved in sharp close-quarters fighting with Japanese forces over mountainous terrain. Before the Hong Kong garrison surrendered on Christmas Day 1941, 290 Canadians had died. Another 264 would die during nearly four years of brutal conditions in Japanese captivity.
Today’s guest, Brad St.Croix, joins us to share the story of C Force. We cover the circumstances behind the Canadian decision to reinforce Hong Kong, the fierce fighting against the Japanese, the Canadian soldiers’ fight for survival in the prisoner of war camps, and their fight for compensation and recognition after the war. Brad’s overriding message from the veterans is that the Canadians sent to Hong Kong were volunteers, not victims.
Canadian soldiers training in Hong Kong in the days before the Japanese invasion (© IWM KF 189).
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Time Stamps
3:38 The Dissertation
7:48 The Strategic Situation
17:15 The Decision to Send Canadians
27:12 “C” Force
33:50 The Battle of Hong Kong
40:37 Prisoners of War
45:43 Liberation
48:45 Compensation and Memory
Guest Biography
Brad St.Croix received his PhD from the University of Ottawa, where he recently completed his dissertation, Fighting it Out: Canadian Troops at Hong Kong and in Memory. Brad is a passionate historian who runs a popular Twitter account that showcases events in Canadian military history on a daily basis. He has also become a YouTuber. Please subscribe to his OTD Canadian Military History page!
Notes
The following links offer more information on the topics discussed in this episode:
Podcasts
“Z” Force to Iceland with Steven Bright
The Fight For History with Tim Cook
Rush to Danger with Ted Barris
Events
People
Credits
Juno Beach & Beyond is hosted and edited by Alex Fitzgerald-Black, the Juno Beach Centre Association’s Executive Director.
Mackenzie King’s speech to British Parliament from the British Pathé YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SlEvclY5LE&t=48s
Artillery firing sounds from the CBC News: The National YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RsCSQ4uWR1Y
Female veteran’s voice (Eileen Green, née Short) Courtesy of The Memory Project, Historica Canada: http://www.thememoryproject.com/stories/383:eileen-green-nee-short/
Winston Churchill’s “Finest Hour” speech from Jonathan Thomas’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jB5wZtV1MWM
Spitfire sound effect from Jason Kirby’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgZI4tAoMN0
Dramatic Interlude by Alexander Nakarada | https://www.serpentsoundstudios.com
Music promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.com
Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Dispatches from Juno shares all the news, events, and stories from the Juno Beach Centre in France and Canada. Interested in contributing a story to the blog? Email the editor at jbca@junobeach.org.
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