WAYABIYASHI [????-1942]
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Lieutenant Wayabiyashi was the officer who led the opening attack on The Shing Mun Redoubt, and effectively led to its fall. He was able to utilize the cover of darkness on the early morning of the 10th of December to skirt around the pillboxes of the Shing Mun Redoubt and go over the reservoir dam, attacking the redoubt from the rear. He led the group of 20 highly motivated men of the 229th IJA Infantry Regiment, and according to memoirs, they used only grenades and blades in capturing the redoubt.
They were able to capture the main bastion of the line, an intersection between the Charring Cross Station tunnel and the Pickadely Avenue Tunnel. His name is inscribed there today.
He nearly faced court martial due to technically defying commands, since Japanese High Command initially wanted to completely bypass the redoubt. He was commended however, by his more immediate superiors as an excellent commander with good foresight.
He was later killed in Guadalcanal in 1942, from American mortar fire.
Comments
Photos
The signature on the wall:
Piccadilly Circus and Charing Cross:
What memoirs?
You mentioned that, according to memoirs, only grenades and bayonets were used to capture Shing Mun Redoubt. Where can one find these memoirs?
Thanks in advance!
Sources
To be honest it was a while ago that I made this post and I was not very good at keeping track of/citing my sources then. I do remember however that the sources referenced were online exerpts of Colonel Doi's diary along with some others (and biographical remarks). It exists somewhere but I cannot find it now, will have to get back to you. As I recall Tony Banham sourced some similar excerpts in his book aswell...
Although, the idea that the Japanese took the redoubt 'without firing a shot' is a commonly shared statement, although it could have easily been a wartime exagguration.