1st Bn The Winnipeg Grenadiers
General Information | ||
| Rank: | First Name: | Second Name: |
|---|---|---|
| Private | Emile | A. |
| From: | Enlistment Region: | Date of Birth (y-m-d): |
| St. Boniface MB | Manitoba | 1920-10-12 |
| Appointment: | Company: | Platoon: |
| HQ Coy | ||
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Unknown | N/A |
Hospital Information
| Name of hospital | Date of admission | Date of discharge | Comments | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HK-BMH | 12/17/1941 | N/A | 118(42 Sep 21) | |
| HK-UNK | N/A | N/A | Transferred to BMH | |
| HK-BMH | 01/31/1942 | 06/29/1942 | 118 |
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 20 | 41 Dec 22 | ||
| 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 | 43 Jan 19 | ||
| JP-To-3D | Tsurumi | Yokohama-shi, Tsurumi-ku, Suyehiro-cho, 1-chome, Japan | Nippon Steel Tube - Tsurumi Shipyards | Variety of jobs related to ship building | 43 Jan 19 | 45 May 13 |
| JP-Se-1B | Yumoto | Fukushima-ken, Iwaki-gun, Yumoto-cho, Mizunoya, Japan | Joban Coal Mining Company | 45 May 13 | 45 Sep 15 |
Transport to Japan
| Draft Number | Name of Ship | Departure Date | Arrival Date | Arrival Port | Comments | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| XD3A | Tatuta Maru | 43 Jan 19, left Shamsuipo Camp, 0500 hrs; left Hong Kong 1300hrs | 43 Jan 22, 0400 hrs | Nagasaki, Japan | Boarded train, arrived in Tokyo on 43 Jan 24 at 0700 hrs, boarded electric train for 10 mile ride to camp | Tony Banham |
Transportation SE Asia to Home
| Transport Mode | Arrival Destination | Arrival Date | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| USN 02736 | 1945-09-20 | plane no. 2736, for both entries, the 6 is not completely legible--could it be an 8? |
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.
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 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003-02-02 | Post War | ||
| Cemetery Location | Cemetery | Grave Number | Gravestone Marker |
| Peterborough Ontario Canada | Rosemount Memorial Gardens | ||
Gravestone Image
Obituary / Life Story
EMILE VAN RAES My dear husband "Van" passed away February 2, 2003 at Peterborough Regional Health Centre after four years of failing health. Born Jean Emile Auguste Van Raes on October 12, 1920 to Jean Van Raes and Josephine Dandurand. "Van" (as he was known) grew up and lived in St. Vital and St. Boniface most of his life. Emile is survived and will be greatly missed by his wife and best friend Floris (Ferguson) of over 34 years. His only son David Ferguson Van Raes (Ginette), Pamela (Alan Reimer), Cheryl (Gerard Noonan), and Floris daughter Marilyn (Jacob Van Dam). Also surviving are his sisters, Marie-Paule (Vivien DuBois) of France, and Louise (Frank Collins) of Burnaby, BC. Ten grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. Emile was predeceased by his first wife Gloria DuQuesnay in 1968; his parents, Jean and Josephine Van Raes; his brother Rene; and his sister Cecile Hermary. On September 2, 1939 at the age of 18, Emile joined the Winnipeg Grenadiers, as news of the Second World War broke out. He was first stationed in the Caribbean and then sent to Hong Kong to fight alongside the British. The Winnipeg Grenadiers were subsequently posted to the island of Hong Kong. Their mission was to protect Hong Kong from foreign invasion. In one of the fiercest battles of the Second World War these troops were put under attack in an attempt to gain control of Hong Kong territories. These men were distinguished in this battle, but ultimately were overwhelmed and were captured by Japanese troops on Christmas Day in 1941. As a Prisoner of War, he was subjected to incredible hardships and intolerable conditions. The Hong Kong Veteran captives were some of the most harshly treated prisoners of any war. Following the surrender of Japan the surviving prisoners were released after having spent three years and eight months in captivity. After recuperating for a year, Emile went to work for the C.N.R. - Transcona Shops in Winnipeg. He retired after 35 years of service. In his retirement he enjoyed 23 years of cottage life at Falcon and Star Lake and 12 winters in Arizona. Throughout his life "Van" enjoyed many happy times with his many friends in the Belgian and French communities. "Van" was a member of the Belgium Club, Royal Canadian Legion Branch No. 107 and the Hong Kong Veterans Association. Today we lost a very honest, sincere, good living person. May God Bless and keep him. A memorial service will be held in Winnipeg in the near future and will be announced.
As published in the Winnipeg Free Press on Feb 04, 2003
Submitted in November 2017 by granddaughters first cousin who grew up across the street from Emile
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.
- 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
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General Comments
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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.
- 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.