1st Bn The Royal Rifles of Canada
General Information | ||
| Rank: | First Name: | Second Name: |
|---|---|---|
| Rifleman | Denzil | John George |
| From: | Enlistment Region: | Date of Birth (y-m-d): |
| Matapedia QC | Eastern Quebec | 1922-04-25 |
| 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
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 |
|---|---|---|
| 41/12/23 | N/A | 36 |
Hospital Information
| Name of hospital | Date of admission | Date of discharge | Comments | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HK-QMH | 12/28/1941 | N/A |
POW Camps
| Camp ID | Camp Name | Location | Company | Type of Work | Arrival Date | Departure Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HK-NP-01 | North Point | North Point, Hong Kong Island | 41 Dec 30 | 42 Sep 26 | ||
| HK-SA-02 | Shamshuipo | Kowloon, Hong Kong | 42 Sep 26 | 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
VET RETURNS TO HONG KONG AFTER 49 YEARS
Denzil Firth left the Jean Lesage International Airport last Friday. The new trip took him to Ottawa, Vancouver, Honolulu and Guam before landing in Hong Kong.
Sainte Foy resident Denzil Firth is part of a group of Canadian veterans visiting Hong Kong this week. They will participate in a memorial ceremony at the Sai Wan Bay Cemetery on Remembrance Day along with Prime Minister Jean Chretien.
Firth was a member of the Royal Rifles of Canada, a Quebec City artillery regiment. He arrived in Hong Kong December 8th, 1941 along with 1974 other Canadian soldiers.
There were members of two regiments, the Royal Rifles and the Winnipeg Grenadiers.
The men fought day and night for 18 days until the Japanese took Hong Kong on Christmas Day, 1941. Firth says it was just go, go, go all the time. It was a long hard battle.
Firth and many of his fellow soldiers remained prisoners of War for 3 years and 9 months. They were finally freed on August 15th, 1945. Firth says it was hard to imagine that we were free after almost 4 years, but we were glad that we were.
Submitted by granddaughter May, 2017
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 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995-09-27 | Post War | ||
| Cemetery Location | Cemetery | Grave Number | Gravestone Marker |
| Quebec Quebec Canada | Mount Hermon Cemetery | Yes | |
Gravestone Image
Obituary / Life Story
Denzil J.G. Firth born April 25.1922, died September 27, 1995, suddenly in a Ste Foy, PQ. Hospital from a brain haemorrhage. Born in Matapedia. P.Q. to the late Madeleine Strachan and John Firth, he Joined the Royal Rifles of Canada in 1940 and was taken a prisoner in Hong Kong when It was taken by the Japanese. He spent almost four years in a prisoner-of-war camp before returning home.
He worked 36 years with Bell Canada before retiring. During that time he married Elizabeth (Betty) Frazer in Stellarton, N.S. Dec. 28, 1948 and they raised four children. He was a member of Trinity Anglican Church in Ste Foy as well as the Hong Kong Veterans of Canada, where he was the president of the Quebec Maritimes branch until August, 1995.
Mr. Firth received the 33rd degree which is the highest honor in the Masonic Lodge, in September, 1993. He was also a member of the Shriners, the Scottish Rites, the-Boy Scout committee, the YMCA, the Junior Board of Trade and Irish Protestant Benevolent Society, holding various offices In these organizations. After he was discharged from the army, Mr. Firth joined the army reserve and attained the rank of Regimental Sgt. Major. His hobbies were being a member of a fishing club and the Bell Telephone Pioneers.
Mr. Firth is survived by his wile Betty, daughters Carolyn Albright, Denyse Griffiths and Deborah Webber and son Fraser; as well as two sons-in-law Rodger Albright and G. Webber and daughter-in-law Tara (Trites) Firth. His eight grandchildren are Matthew, Mike and Heather Albright, Erin, Kathryn and Lindsay Griffiths and Jennifer and Kyle Webber.
The funeral service held in the Trinity Church, Ste. Foy, was taken by Rev. Raymond Jensen assisted by Canon Ronald Reeves with burial in Mount Hermon Cemetey, Sillery P.Q. Page 12, January 7, 1996. Spec
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
Picture of MacLeans Magazine article
End of Report.
Report generated: 04 Dec 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.