THE LAST STAND OF THE BRITISH IN HONG KONG, DECEMBER, 1941
THE BRITISH DEFENDERS OF HONG KONG ARE ORDERED ...

THE LAST STAND OF THE BRITISH IN HONG KONG, DECEMBER, 1941
THE BRITISH DEFENDERS OF HONG KONG ARE ORDERED TO SURRENDER TO THE JAPANESE

An historic manuscript document written on order of the last British officer commanding forces in the field on Hong Kong Island, ordering the various British and Commonwealth officers beneath him in the last British defensive position on the island to cease fire and stand down pending their imminent surrender to the Japanese. This one page, 6 x 9 inch order was dictated by Canadian Brigadier CEDRIC WALLIS (1896-1972) to his aide to Capt. P. J. T. Skipwith, Adjutant of the 8th Coast Battery at Stanley Fort where the last British and Commonwealth forces were prepared to make a last stand against the Japanese, only one hundred yards away. The message, written in indelible pencil on a telegraph form, is dated December 26 at 0045 hours and is addressed to the 8th Coast Battery (the only formed unit remaining), as well as the leaders of several small detachments then in Stanley Barracks and within its perimeter. Wallis orders: "By order of his Excellency the Governor [Sir Mark Young] and G.O.C. [Gen. C. M. Maltby] His Majesty's Forces in Hong Kong have surrendered. On no account will firing or destruction of equipment take place as otherwise all lives of British hostages will be endangered. Units will organize themselves centrally forthwith. He signs his directive: "C. S. Wallis Brig. 0045" The document has been dampened at some point and is a bit worn. This could be explained by an inscription on the verso which indicates this is the copy belonging to a Lieutenant W. Markey. There was a Lieutenant Markey in the R.A.O.C. on Hong Kong, possibly in command of the R.A.O.C. detachment there at the time of the surrender, and he apparently retained this message during his long confinement by the Japanese. Additional copies of this signed order would have been issued to the other officers under Wallis, but none have ever surfaced. The Japanese attack on Hong Kong began shortly after 0800 on December 8, 1941, only four hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Commanded by Major-General Christopher Maltby, British, Canadian, Indian, as well as Chinese troops resisted the Japanese attack by three veteran Japanese regiments led by Lieutenant General Takashi Sakai, but they were overwhelmingly outnumbered 50,000 to 14,000. The colony had no significant air nor naval defenses, as Britain still considered Hong Kong simply an outpost. For its defense, Maltby split the island between an East Brigade and a West Brigade. Following British refusal of two surrender demands, on 15 December, the Japanese began systematic bombardment of the island's North Shore. Japanese forces crossed the harbor on the evening of 18 December and landed on the island's north-east, suffering only light casualties. On the morning of 19 December fierce fighting commenced on Hong Kong Island and the Japanese annihilated the headquarters of the West Brigade, causing the death of Brigadier John Lawson, the commander of the West Brigade. The Japanese drove a north-south wedge down the center of the island and commenced heavily shelling and bombing the remaining western forces which Maltby surrendered at 0315 on 25 December. Wallis, commanding the East Brigade, could not be reached and stubbornly defended his position on Stanley Peninsula. Finally, a message from Maltby reached Wallis � on a Japanese form, which Wallis believed to be a Japanese ruse. As the Japanese shelled Stanley Fort at point blank range, a second message from Maltby on a proper British form reached Wallis, at which time he prepared the surrender order offered here. Photos for illustrative purposes only and not included.