19 Dec 1941, Major John Monro MC RA diary of the Battle of Hong Kong

The Japs landed last night, at Sai Wan, Lyemun Magazines and North Point.  I suppose it was obvious they would land there from the amount of artillery preparation they have carried out in these areas.  For a long time we refused to believe it in the Battle Box.  There have been so many false alarms from this area that the attitude was rather “Those bloody windy buggers! At it again”.  they took Sai Wan Redoubt during the night.  Bompas made a counter attack and retook it but most of his troops melted away and he was pushed off again.  By daybreak we had to evacuate Sai Wan 6” How position.  The Japs were up on the top of Mt. Parker and beginning to trickle down into the Tai Tam Valley.  Then we had to evacuate Parker How position; after that came news that they had captured most of the guns in the Tytam Valley and were attacking Wong Nei Chong.  It looked as if Tytam Gap would go at any minute, so the C.R.A ordered the destruction of the guns at Collinson, D’ Aguilar, Bokhara and Chung Am Kok.  The men had to go to Stanley for use as infantry.  The controlled mine fields in the Tathong and East Lamma Channels were blown up. 

I rang up to ask Jack Fox what the position was at Wong Nei Chong.  I could hear the machine gun fire down the phone.  He had been manning one himself.  “Tell Pat” he asked me.  Quarter of an hour later I rang up again, this time I got Tim.  He said that they were surrounded and fighting a tremendous battle with small arms: “What else is there to do” he said in a rather humorous, resigned tone of voice.  That was the last we heard of them.  Wong Nei Cheong was taken.  It was the key point of the island.

Ted Hunt came in this evening.  He had led a counter attack against Wong Nei Chong and had recaptured it almost single-handed.  As he got near the enemy his Battery just melted away.  Though the gunners are steady under shellfire, they will not face the enemy at hand to hand fighting.  I don’t really blame them.  They have had very little training in the use of infantry weapons and so few of our young officers can make themselves really understood in their language.  Jack Fielden was killed in this attack and Colonel Yale badly wounded.  Ted could tell us nothing of Tim Temple, Geoffrey, or Jack Fox.  Ted is looking very wild and woolly.  He is wearing an extraordinary assortment of uniform, he has 3 or 4 day growth of beard and is carrying a Tommy gun which he swears is the finest weapon ever invented.  He has had no sleep for the past two days.  The C.R.A. had ordered him to go back to Stanley and rest.  About this time news came through that the Japs had reoccupied Wong Nei Chong.  Just as Ted was leaving I warned him of this and told him to go round by Pok Fu Lam but he replied “Bugger the Nip I am going back that way anyhow”.  And with that he dashed up the stairs out of the Battle Box.

John Trapman has done very well today.  With the capture of Wong Nei Chong the whole of the H.Q. of West Group R.A. appear to have been wiped out.  He has reopened it at Wanchai Gap and has carried on magnificently.  Later we sent Lundy Duncan to take over from him.