1st Bn The Royal Rifles of Canada
General Information | ||
| Rank: | First Name: | Second Name: |
|---|---|---|
| Rifleman | Albert | Lorne |
| From: | Enlistment Region: | Date of Birth (y-m-d): |
| Lac Megantic QC | Eastern Quebec | 1911-02-21 |
| Appointment: | Company: | Platoon: |
| A | ||
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
Killed in action at Repulse Bay Hotel. 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
No wounds recorded.Other Military or Public 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1941-12-23 | Killed In Action | ||
| Cemetery Location | Cemetery | Grave Number | Gravestone Marker |
| Cape Collinson Road Chai Wan Hong Kong China | Sai Wan Memorial | Column 24. | NA |
Gravestone Image
Canada Memorial - Saint Barnabas Anglican Cemetery Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, Canada
Obituary / Life Story
PTE. ALBERT LORNE ANDREWS, 31, only son of Mr. and Mrs. A. H. Andrews, of Lake Megantic, Que., who has been reported missing at Hong Kong. Pte. Andrews was born in 1911, and was educated at the Lake Megantic High School. He enlisted in August, 1940. Surviving are his wife. Mrs. Catherine Andrews, and his daughter, Dorothy; his parents, and two sisters, Mrs. Clyne Elger, of Lake Megantic, and Nursing Sister Julia Andrews, R.N., in South Africa.
Unknown Newspaper clipping
This SAI WAN MEMORIAL honours over 2000 men of the land forces of the British Commonwealth and Empire who died in the defence of Hong Kong during the Second World War. The SAI WAN MEMORIAL is in the form of a shelter building 24 metres long and 5.5 metres wide. It stands at the entrance to Sai Wan Bay War Cemetery, outside Victoria, the capital of Hong Kong. From the semi-circular forecourt, two wide openings lead to the interior of the building. The names are inscribed on panels of Portland stone. The dedicatory inscription reads:
1939 - 1945 The officers and men whose memory is honoured here died in the defence of Hong Kong in December 1941 and in the ensuing years of captivity and have no known grave.
The northern side of the Memorial is open and four granite piers support the copper roof. From a commanding position 305 metres above sea level, it looks out over the War Cemetery where some 1,500 men lie buried, and across the water to Mainland China - a magnificent view of sea and mountains.
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.
Related documentation
- Our HKVCA Vault (Google Docs) may contain additional information, newspaper clippings, and documents which have been saved for this soldier. To access this information, click on the vault link and a Google Docs folder list will open in a separate tab. Use the first letter of the soldier’s service number, found at the top of this report, to open the correct folder. Each sub-folder is identified by service number. Scroll down until you reach the one of your interest.
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General Comments
Pte. Andrews was educated at Lake Megantic High School. He enlisted in 1940. Surviving are his wife Catherine Andrews and his daughter.
Cause of death: Statement from E30192 Rfmn Miller Oct. 23/1945; Place: Hong Kong - Red Hill. Date: Dec. 21/41. Andrews was in a defense position in a trench. Two of his pals told me he became nervous and stood up and was riddled by Jap M/G bullets. He was in "A" Coy of R. Rifles. He was a friend and from my hometown of Lac Megantic, Quebec. Statement by F35180 Rfmn Myers Oct. 4/1945: Place; Ridge behind Repulse Bay Hong Kong. Date/Time; About 6pm Dec. 21/1941. Patrol party of 30 under British officer, approaching Repulse Bay Hotel from ridge. There were a few bursts of enemy M/G fire, which killed Allen (E30199), "Andrews" and Atwood (F40870) outright. The party spread out. Sgt. Beattie was killed a few minutes later at the back of the Hotel. The survivors of the party moved on and took up positions further up the ridge. Any men who were not killed outright were finished off by the Japs if they could not get out of the way. Statement by E30426 Rfmn Cyr Oct. 3/1945: Place; Repulse bay HK. Date/Time; Approx 2100 hrs Dec. 20/21 1941. 7,8.9 pls were cut off from HQ and were endeavouring to fight their way back but Japs had taken and were holding bridge. Some of us managed to get around by another route. I personally saw Andrews body at the bridge, but do not know name of bridge. After the surrender I was on burial parties while POW, but at that time the bodies were unrecognizable and most of the bodies had no identity discs. Letter from Major-General, Adjutant-General A.E. Walford (July 21/1945) states that E30262 Rfmn Albert Lorne Andrews is now for official purposes presumed to have been killed, in action on the 21st day of December, 1941. Letter from Colonel C.L. Laurin (July 11/1945) states that E30162 Rfmn Albert Lorne Andrews date of death is being recorded as on or about the 21st of December, 1941.
'C' Force Family Connections:
- Cousin to E30176 Donald Wood
- Cousin to E30191 Leonard Wood
End of Report.
Report generated: 27 Apr 2025.
Additional Notes
(These will not be visible on the printed copy)
- Service numbers for officers ("X") 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.
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