1st Bn The Winnipeg Grenadiers
General Information | ||
| Rank: | First Name: | Second Name: |
|---|---|---|
| Lieutenant | Thomas | Alexander |
| From: | Enlistment Region: | Date of Birth (y-m-d): |
| Regina SK | Saskatchewan | 1919-05-18 |
| Appointment: | Company: | Platoon: |
| Platoon Commander | HQ Coy | 1 Signals |
Transportation - Home Base to Hong Kong
Members of 'C' Force from the East travelled across Canada by CNR troop train, picking up reinforcements enroute. Stops included Valcartier, Montreal, Ottawa, Armstrong ON, Capreol ON, Winnipeg, Melville SK, Saskatoon, Edmonton, Jasper, and Vancouver, arriving in Vancouver on Oct 27 at 0800 hrs.
The Winnipeg Grenadiers and the local soldiers that were with Brigade Headquarters from Winnipeg to BC travelled on a CPR train to Vancouver.
All members embarked from Vancouver on the ships AWATEA and PRINCE ROBERT. AWATEA was a New Zealand Liner and the PRINCE ROBERT was a converted cruiser. "C" Company of the Rifles was assigned to the PRINCE ROBERT, everyone else boarded the AWATEA. The ships sailed from Vancouver on Oct 27th and arrived in Hong Kong on November 16th, having made brief stops enroute at Honolulu and Manila.
Equipment earmarked for 'C' Force use was loaded on the ship DON JOSE, but would never reach Hong Kong as it was rerouted to Manila when hostilities commenced.
On arrival, all troops were quartered at Nanking Barracks, Sham Shui Po Camp, in Kowloon.
Battle Information
We do not have specific battle information for this soldier in our online database. For a detailed description of the battle from a Canadian perspective, visit Canadian Participation in the Defense of Hong Kong (published by the Historical Section, Canadian Military Headquarters).
Wounded Information
| Date Wounded | Wound Description | References |
|---|---|---|
| 41/12/19, 41/12/22 | foot and ankle wound |
Hospital Information
| Name of hospital | Date of admission | Date of discharge | Comments | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HK-BMH | 06/13/1942 | 06/30/1942 | 118 |
POW Camps
| Camp ID | Camp Name | Location | Company | Type of Work | Arrival Date | Departure Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HK-AS-01 | Argyle Street | Kowloon, Hong Kong | N/A | N/A | ||
| HK-SA-01 | Shamshuipo | Kowloon, Hong Kong | Capture | 42 Jan 22 | ||
| HK-NP-02 | North Point | North Point, Hong Kong Island | 42 Jan 22 | 42 Sep 26 | ||
| HK-SA-02 | Shamshuipo | Kowloon, Hong Kong | 42 Sep 26 | 45 Sep 10 | ||
| HK-SA-02 | Shamshuipo | Kowloon, Hong Kong | 43 Aug 19 | 44 May 11 | ||
| HK-SA-02 | Shamshuipo | Kowloon, Hong Kong | 44 May 11 | 45 Sep 10 |
Transportation SE Asia to Home
| Transport Mode | Arrival Destination | Arrival Date | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| USS Admiral Hugh Rodman | Vancouver, BC | 1945-10-07 | Manilla to Vancouver, BC |
No other or additional related information found. Please submit documents to us using the contact link at the top of this page.
Post-war Photo
No other or additional related information found. Please submit documents to us using the contact link at the top of this page.
Decorations Received
| Image | Name of Award | Abbreviation | References | Precedence | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Military Cross | MC | 37, 38, 123 | 05 | |
MC CitationLieutenant Blackwood was attached to "D" Company Headquarters the Winnipeg Grenadiers at Hong Kong, December 1941.On the night of 18/19 December this headquarters was located at Wong Nei Chong where a Japanese landing in force brought it under immediate attack. As this post controlled the main road across the Island orders were received to hold on at any cost. Early in the action the company commander was killed, and the Second-in-Command, Captain Robert W. Philip, was severely wounded. Lieutenant Blackwood displayed great courage and marked skill in carrying out the orders given him by Captain Philip. The fact that this small body of forty men held out for three days, although short of ammunition, food and water, and caused very heavy enemy casualties, is in no small way attributable to Lieutenant Blackwood. The fact that the Japanese were denied the use of the main road across the Island undoubtedly assisted and prolonged the defence of Hong Kong materially. During this time a report was received that an officer who was obviously wounded was lying about sixty yards in advance of the foremost position and was unable to get to shelter due to his wounds and intense enemy small arms fire. Lieutenant Blackwood and H.6 132 Private William Morris volunteered to bring the officer in. After considerable difficulty they brought back safely to shelter Lieutenant-Colonel R.D. Walker, OBE, MC, of the Hong Kong Volunteer Defence Corps. Lieutenant-Colonel Walker was found to be suffering from gun shot wounds in both legs. This difficult and dangerous task took place when the Japanese were in complete possession of the area surrounding the post, and located so close to it they could at times crawl within grenade throwing distance. Lieutenant Blackwood's courage and devotion to duty throughout this arduous period were a source of inspiration to all those around him. | |||||
Other Military Service
No other or additional related information found. Please submit documents to us using the contact link at the top of this page.
Death and Cemetery Information
| Date of Death (y-m-d) | Cause of Death | Death Class | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998-03-31 | Post War | ||
| Cemetery Location | Cemetery | Grave Number | Gravestone Marker |
| Victoria British Columbia Canada | Ross Bay Cemetery | ||
Gravestone Image
Obituary / Life Story
No other or additional related information found. Please submit documents to us using the contact link at the top of this page.
Links and Other Resources
There may be more information on this individual available elsewhere on our web sites - please use the search tool found in the upper right corner of this page to view sources.
Facebook has proven to be a valuable resource in the documentation of 'C' Force members. The following link will take you to any available search results for this soldier based on his regimental number. Note: results may be contained within another related record. Facebook Search Results
→ Related documentation for information published in this report, such as birth information, discharge papers, press clippings and census documents may be available via shared resources in our HKVCA Vault. It is organized with folders named using regimental numbers. Use the first letter of the individual's service number to choose the correct folder, then scroll to the specific sub-folder displaying the service number of your interest.
General Comments
No comments found.
End of Report.
Report generated: 30 Sep 2024.
Additional Notes
(These will not be visible on the printed copy)
- Service numbers for officers are locally generated for reporting only. During World War II officers were not allocated service numbers until 1945.
- 'C' Force soldiers who died overseas are memorialized in the Books of Remembrance and the Canadian Virtual War Memorial, both sponsored by Veterans Affairs Canada. Please use the search utility at VAC to assist you.
- Some birthdates and deathdates display as follows: 1918-00-00. In general, this indicates that we know the year but not the month or day.
- Our POW camp links along with our References link (near the bottom of the 'C' Force home page) are designed to give you a starting point for your research. There were many camps with many name changes. The best resource for all POW camps in Japan is the Roger Mansell Center for Research site.
- In most cases the rank displayed was the rank held before hostilities. Some veterans were promoted at some point prior to eventual post-war release from the army back in Canada. When notified of these changes we'll update the individual's record.
- Images displayed on the web page are small, but in many cases the actual image is larger. Hover over any image and you will see a popup if a larger version is available. You can also right-click on some images and select the option to view the image separately. Not all images have larger versions. Contact us to confirm whether a large copy of an image in which you are interested exists.
- In some cases the References displayed as part of this report generate questions because there is no indication of their meaning. They were inherited with the original database, and currently we do not know what the source is. We hope to solve this problem in future.
- We have done our best to avoid errors and omissions, but if you find any issues with this report, either in accuracy, completeness or layout, please contact us using the link at the top of this page.
- Photos are welcome! If a photo exists for a 'C' Force member that we have not included, or if you have a higher quality copy, please let us know by using the Contact Us link at the top of this page. We will then reply, providing instructions on submitting it.