Grave Locations - China (incl. Hong Kong)
Total Australian Commemorations in Hong Kong: 67 + 41 NAU
RED - this indicates those cemeteries that have been completed.
BLUE - this indicates those cemeteries that have been offered for completion
BLACK - this indicates those cemeteries that have yet to be completed.
Status Current as of the 22nd April 2007
Cemetery/Memorial
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No.
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Volunteer
|
Status
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HONG KONG CEMETERY
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1
|
Photos Required |
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HONG KONG MEMORIAL
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23
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Photos Required |
|
SAI WAN WAR CEMETERY
|
33
|
Matthew Killick
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Incomplete
|
Australians Serving in Other Allied Units
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|||
HONG KONG CEMETERY
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2
|
- |
Photos Required |
SAI WAN MEMORIAL
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15
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- |
Photos Required |
SAI WAN WAR CEMETERY
|
2
|
- |
Photos Required |
STANLEY MILITARY CEMETERY
|
22
|
- |
Photos Required |
HONG KONG CEMETERY, China, (including Hong Kong).
Location:
Formerly Hong Kong (Happy Valley) Cemetery, Hong Kong Cemetery is a large civilian cemetery situated on Hong Kong island, to the east of the business centre of Victoria, opposite the race course.
Historical Information:
In November 1914, the German leased territory of Tsingtao in north-east China was captured by the Japanese, supported by a small contingent of Commonwealth forces on land and sea. Military hospitals in Kowloon and Hong Kong received the sick and wounded from this fighting and later, from German prison camps. Throughout the First World War, Hong Kong was garrisoned by local defence and Commonwealth forces. During the Second World War,
Hong Kong fell to Japanese forces on Christmas Day 1941 following a brief but intense period of fighting. Most of those buried or commemorated on the island were killed at this time, or died later as internees or prisoners of war during the Japanese occupation. Hong Kong Cemetery, a large civil burial ground, contains 79 scattered Commonwealth burials of the First World War and 62 from the Second.
HONG KONG MEMORIAL, China, (including Hong Kong).
Location:
The Hong Kong Memorial stands at the main entrance to the Botanic Gardens, Victoria, Hong Kong.
Historical Information:
The Hong Kong Memorial was erected after the First World War as a general memorial to all Chinese who served and died with the Commonwealth forces. Many were casualties of the Chinese Labour Corps and have known graves in France and Belgium. Others who served with the Commonwealth navies, merchant services and the Inland Water Transport of the Royal Engineers died at sea, or in Iraq, have no know grave. During the Second World War, Chinese living in Hong Kong and Singapore served with local auxiliary formations of fighting forces,
such as the Hong Kong Volunteer Defence Corps. Many of the dead have known graves but as local records were lost or destroyed during the Japanese occupation, there are many more whose names and graves are not known. After the war, the Chinese community in Hong Kong suggested that the existing memorial be given a new inscription commemorating in general terms all Chinese dead of both wars. This suggestion was adopted and the inscription in English and Chinese now reads: IN MEMORY OF THE CHINESE WHO DIED LOYAL TO THE ALLIED CAUSE IN THE WARS OF 1914-18 AND 1939-45 The memorial itself bears no names but the accompanying registers record 941 casualties of the First World War and 1,494 from the Second World War, whose graves are not known.
SAI WAN MEMORIAL, China, (including Hong Kong). OTHER UNITS
Location:
Sai Wan War Cemetery on Cape Collinson Road. is situated in the north-east of the island of Hong Kong, about 11 kilometres from the centre of Victoria. The easiest way to reach the cemetery is by the mass transit railway (MTR) Hong Kong line to Chai Wan Terminus. From the Terminus one can either walk up to the cemetery following Chai Wan Road to the roundabout, turning west into Wan Tsui Road, then south east up Lin Shing Road, which leads
to Cape Collinson Road. The CWGC road direction sign is fixed to a wall facing down Lin Shing Road. The Cape Collinson area has many cemeteries. Walking up this narrow one-way traffic road, one will pass the Catholic Cemetery situated on the hillside to the left of the road, and the Hong Kong Military Cemetery on the right. Sai Wan War Cemetery is about half way up Cape Collinson Road and faces the Muslim and Buddhist cemeteries. One can also get a taxi from Chai Wan Terminus and follow the same route. Alternatively, one can board a public light
bus, Route No.16M, which runs from Chai Wan MTR Terminus to Stanley where the CWGC has another cemetery (Stanley Military Cemetery). En route to Stanley the minibus will pass Sai Wan War Cemetery, stopping only on request.
Historical Information:
Hong Kong fell to Japanese forces on Christmas Day 1941 following a brief but intense period of fighting. Most of those buried or commemorated on the island were killed at this time, or died later as internees or prisoners of war during the Japanese occupation. The SAI WAN MEMORIAL forms the entrance to Sai Wan War Cemetery and bears the names of more than 2,000 Commonwealth servicemen who died in the Battle of Hong Kong, or subsequently in captivity, who have no known grave. Additional panels to the memorial form the SAI WAN
CREMATION MEMORIAL, listing the names of 144 Second World War casualties whose remains were cremated in accordance with their faith, and the SAI WAN (CHINA) MEMORIAL, commemorating 72 casualties of both wars whose graves in mainland China could not be maintained. SAI WAN WAR CEMETERY contains the graves of more than 1,500 Commonwealth servicemen who died during the Second World War, more than 400 of them
unidentified. A small number of First World War casualties are also commemorated in the cemetery. Both the cemetery and memorial were designed by Colin St Clair Oakes.
SAI WAN WAR CEMETERY, China, (including Hong Kong).
Location:
Sai Wan War Cemetery is in the north-east of the island of Hong Kong, in the Chai Wan area, about 11 kilometres from the centre of Victoria. At the entrance to the cemetery on Cape Collinson Road stands the memorial to those who died in Hong Kong and have no known grave. From it the cemetery slopes down towards the sea. The original magnificent view towards the main land is now blocked by high rise buildings. The easiest way to reach the cemetery is by the mass transit railway (MTR) Hong Kong line to Chai Wan Terminus. From the Terminus one can either walk up to the cemetery following Chai Wan Road to the roundabout, turning west into Wan Tsui Road, then south east up Lin Shing Road which leads to Cape Collinson Road. The CWGC road direction sign is fixed to a wall facing down Lin Shing Road. The Cape Collinson area has many cemeteries. Walking up this narrow one way traffic road, one will pass the Catholic Cemetery situated on the hillside to the left of the road, and the Hong Kong
Military Cemetery on the right. Sai Wan War Cemetery is about half way up Cape Collinson Road and faces the Muslim and Buddhist cemeteries. One can also get a taxi from Chai Wan Terminus and follow the same route. Alternatively one can board a public light bus, Route No. 16M, which runs from Chai Wan MTR Terminus to Stanley where the CWGC has another cemetery (Stanley Military Cemetery). En route to Stanley the minibus will pass Sai Wan War Cemetery, stopping only on request.
Historical Information:
The island of Hong Kong fell to the Japanese on Christmas Day 1941 following a brief but intense period of fighting. Most of those buried in this cemetery were killed at this time, or died later as internees or prisoners of war during the Japanese occupation. The remains of those who died as prisoners in Formosa (now Taiwan) were brought to Hong Kong for burial at Sai Wan in 1946. There are now 1,528 Commonwealth casualties of the Second World War buried or commemorated at Sai Wan War Cemetery. 444 of the burials are unidentified. In addition, there are special memorials to 16 Second World War casualties buried in Kowloon (Ho Man Tin) No 3 Muslim Cemetery, whose graves were lost. There are also 77 war graves of other nationalities from this period, the majority of them Dutch. The cemetery also contains special memorials to 12 First World War casualties buried in Kowloon (Ta Sek Ku) Mohammedan Cemetery, whose graves have since been lost. At the entrance to the cemetery stands the SAI
WAN MEMORIAL bearing the names of more than 2,000 Commonwealth servicemen who died in the Battle of Hong Kong or subsequently in captivity and who have no known grave. Additional panels to the memorial form the SAI WAN CREMATION MEMORIAL, bearing the names of 144 Second World War casualties whose remains were cremated in accordance with their faith, and the SAI WAN (CHINA) MEMORIAL, commemorating 72 casualties of
both wars whose graves in mainland China could not be maintained. Both the cemetery and memorial were designed by Colin St Clair Oakes.
STANLEY MILITARY CEMETERY, China, (including Hong Kong). OTHER UNITS
Location:
Stanley Military Cemetery is just beyond the town of Stanley in the southern part of Hong Kong island on the Tai Tam Peninsula. From Stanley take the Wong Ma Kok Road. The cemetery is adjacent St Stephen's College and is close to St Stephen's beach. It is reached from Victoria by car along a winding, hilly road which at first overlooks the harbour and mainland. After climbing to the pass called Wong Nei Cheng Gap the road descends to the sea at Repulse Bay and then continues along the rocky hillside to Stanley.
Visiting Information:
The cemetery is constructed on a hill with the only means of access being via four flights of steps, rising approximately 10 metres above the road level.
Historical Information:
Hong Kong fell to the Japanese on Christmas Day 1941 following a brief but intense period of fighting. During the Japanese occupation, Stanley jail and village were used as a prisoner of war and civilian internment camp and the cemetery, which had not been used for more than 70 years, was reopened for burials from the camp. After the war, the cemetery was extended on its northern side when graves were brought in from civilian burial grounds and isolated sites in the surrounding country. Although the cemetery as a whole is laid out and maintained as a military
cemetery, in the older part, service graves and the graves of civilian internees who died during the Japanese occupation are intermingled. A number of the graves in this part of the cemetery are still marked by the original headstones erected by the prisoners of war, who collected the granite from the 19th century fortifications and carved the inscriptions themselves. Nearly all casualties of the local defence forces, chiefly the Hong Kong Volunteer Defence Force and the British Army Aid Group, are buried in this cemetery. The British Army Aid Group was a military establishment which came into being early in 1942 to encourage and facilitate escapes, to assist escapees and to get information and medical supplies into the camps. Attached to the establishment was a large staff of civilian employees operating in an extensive area of enemy held territory and the group gradually developed into an organisation for the collection of intelligence of military value and later into an escape and evasion organisation for the American Air Force. There are now 598 Commonwealth servicemen of the Second World War buried or commemorated in this cemetery. 175 of the burials are unidentified but a number of special memorials commemorate casualties known to be buried among them. The names of the 96 civilian internees buried in this cemetery are recorded in volume 7 of the Civilian War Dead Roll of Honour. The cemetery also contains special memorials to three First World War casualties buried in cemeteries in Kowloon and Hong Kong, whose graves have since been lost.
(Information: Courtesy of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission)
Please contact the Archive Director for details and photographic requirements
australianwargraves@bigpond.com