Hong Kong urban myths, why the truth should get in the way of

a good story.

If tour guides, corporate histories and locals repeat urban

legends loudly and often enough, fiction soon becomes fact.

Acknowledgment of ignorance, for most people, signals the

beginning of a desire to learn more. But Hong Kong, as ever,
provides an exception to this rule. A classic example is the over-
flowing grab bag of urban legends, distortion, confabulation and
nonsense that makes up so much popular local historical
knowledge.

If a local legend gets a five-minute head start on the prosaic

truth, hard facts seldom overtake the fanciful version, thanks to
the human preference for dramatic or fun stories. Eventually,
a ripping yarn becomes so widely retailed, by so many people,
with such seeming authority, over such a long period, that it
becomes unchallengeable truth in the popular imagination.

The wartime destruction of archives is an example. While much

valuable paperwork was lost during the Japanese occupation, a
lot was not. Significant amounts of Hong Kong-related material
survived in other locations the other half of official and
private correspondence, for example.

Everything was lost during the war, however, conveniently

justifies glaring information gaps. Repeated often enough, these
excuses discourage other researchers. Potential project funders
insist there is no point expending resources in a fruitless search
for original material that everyone knows no longer exists.
Ignorance, laziness and inadequate resources combine to create
a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Left unchecked, Hong Kongs urban myths rapidly take on a life

of their own.

- Jason Wordie (South China Morning Post)

BATTLE OF HONG
KONG
GREAT BRITAIN
London Gazette No. 38183 Despatch on the Far East 1940 Oct. 17-1941 Dec. 27, by Air Chief
Marshal Sir Robert Brooke-Popham, Commander-in-Chief, Far East; includes correspondence
with Major-General Sir Hastings Ismay and comments on General Gordon Bennett's report on the
Malay campaign. 1940-1942
http://ibiblio.org/hyperwar/UN/UK/LondonGazette/LondonGazette/38183.pdf

London Gazette No. 38190 Despatch on operations in Hong Kong 1941 Dec.8-25, by Major-
General C. M. Maltby, General Officer Commanding British Troops in China
http://ibiblio.org/hyperwar/UN/UK/LondonGazette/LondonGazette/38190.pdf

London Gazette No. 38216 Report on the air operations during the campaigns in Malaya and
Netherland East Indies 1941 Dec.8-1942 Mar. 12, by Air Vice-Marshal Sir Paul Maltby Air Officer
Commanding Royal Air Force in Java
http://ibiblio.org/hyperwar/UN/UK/LondonGazette/LondonGazette/38216.pdf

London Gazette No. No. 38214 Despatch on the loss of H.M. ships "Prince of Wales" and
"Repulse" 1941 Dec. 10, by Vice Admiral Sir Geoffrey Layton, Commander-in-Chief, Eastern
Fleet; includes reports by Captain W. G. Tennant, Captain of "Repulse" and Lieutenant-
Commander A. G. Skipwith, senior surviving officer "Prince of Wales"
http://ibiblio.org/hyperwar/UN/UK/LondonGazette/LondonGazette/38214.pdf

War Diary and Narrative, Mainland Infantry Brigade and Attached Troops, by Brigadier Cedric
Wallis Commander of the "Mainland Brigade" during the Battle of Hong Kong in December 1941

War Diary and Narrative, East Infantry Brigade and Attached Troops, by Brigadier Cedric Wallis
Commander of the "East Brigade" during the Battle of Hong Kong in December 1941

CANADA
Report No.163 Canadian participation in the defence of Hong Kong, December 1941, by Historical
Section, Department of National Defence, Canadian Military Headquarters.
https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/UN/Canada/CA/163-HongKong/index.html

BRITISH (UNDIVIDED) INDIA

The Official History of the Indian Armed Forces in the Second World War 1939, Vol.1, 1939-45,
Campaigns in South-East Asia, 1941-42 (Hong Kong, Malaya, Borneo), by Krishna Dayal
Bhargava & Kasi Nageswara Venkatasubba Sastri. Combined Inter-services Historical Section
(India & Pakistan). Documented and authentic account of the defensive operations of the Indian
and Allied forces against the Japanese advance in Hong Kong, Malaya, Singapore, Sarawak, and
Dutch West Borneo from the 7th of December 1941. to the end of March 1942.
http://www.idsa.in/system/files/IndiaWorldWarII.pdf

The Royal Indian Navy 1939-1945 by Instructor Lieutenant D.J.E. Collins, B.A.L.T. Indian Navy.
http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/UN/India/RIN/index.html
https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/UN/India/index.html