1st Bn The Winnipeg Grenadiers
General Information | ||
| Rank: | First Name: | Second Name: |
|---|---|---|
| Corporal | Edward | William |
| From: | Enlistment Region: | Date of Birth (y-m-d): |
| St. Vital MB | Manitoba | 1918-07-19 |
| Appointment: | Company: | Platoon: |
| Section Commander | B | 11 Plt |
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
No wounds recorded.Hospital Information
No record of hospital visits found.POW Camps
| Camp ID | Camp Name | Location | Company | Type of Work | Arrival Date | Departure Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | 44 Apr 29 | ||
| JP-Se-2B | Yoshima | Fukushima-ken, Iwaki-gun, Yoshima-mura, Kamyoshima, Japan | Furukawa Mining Company | Coal mining | 44 May 30 | 45 Sep 09 |
Transport to Japan
| Draft Number | Name of Ship | Departure Date | Arrival Date | Arrival Port | Comments | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| XD6 | Naura Maru | 44 Apr 29 | 44 May 27 | Moji, Japan | Stopped over in Formosa, went through Nagasaki and Hiroshima to POW camp | Tony Banham |
Transportation SE Asia to Home
| Transport Mode | Arrival Destination | Arrival Date | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| NATS 90399 | Oakland | 1945-09-20 |
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 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011-10-09 | Post War | ||
| Cemetery Location | Cemetery | Grave Number | Gravestone Marker |
| Calgary Alberta Canada | Queen's Park Cemetery and Mausoleum | Engraved | |
Gravestone Image
Obituary / Life Story
SHAYLER - William Edward "Ed" July 25, 1918 - October 9, 2011 Ed Shayler passed away peacefully at the Colonel Belcher Care Center, Calgary AB on Sunday, October 9, 2011. Ed was predeceased just three months prior on July 6, 2011, by his beloved wife of seventy-one years Lorna Shayler. He will be lovingly remembered by his daughters Gail and Donna; his grandsons Eric and Brynn and their families. Ed's path through life was not an easy one, having bravely fought alongside "his" men in the Battle of Hong Kong during WWII, and then enduring four years as a POW in Japan. These experiences marked the beginning of another lifelong battle for Ed, who celebrated his 40th AA birthday last April. Ed was generous in both his actions and his ideas, and was always ready to pitch in and help a friend. Ed and Lorna weathered life's trials one day at a time, and celebrated life's joys, through their Christian faith in the Megiddo Church. A tribute to Ed in the wall of honor at the Colonel Belcher remembers 'courage not forgotten', and Ed will sadly be missed by both his family and all those whose life he touched. A Funeral Service will be held at FOSTERS GARDEN CHAPEL, 3220 - 4th Street N.W., Calgary (across from Queen's Park Cemetery) on Sunday, October 16, 2011 at 2:00 p.m. Interment will follow at Queen's Park Cemetery. Expressions of sympathy may be forwarded to the family via the website www.fostersgardenchapel.ca. (Published in the Calgary Herald, 12 Oct 2011)
Links and Other Resources
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
- Find a Grave® is a valuable resource that may contain additional information on this 'C' Force member. When you arrive at the site search page, fill in as much detail as you can for best results.
General Comments
Three of the five soldier, sons of Mr. and Mrs. Shayler, 2521 East 7th Avenue, are among the Canadian prisoners taken by the Japanese at Hong Kong. The trio, showing here, are, from the left, Private Harry Shayler, Sergeant Edward and Lance Corporal William Alfred Shayler. The three men were born and brought up in Winnipeg and joined the Winnipeg Grenadiers at the outbreak of war. They were in Jamaica for 16 months and return to Winnipeg for short while prior to their departure for the Orient. Two other brothers, John Philip and Robert Charles, are members of the Grenadiers, and the sixth, James, is in the Royal Canadian Navy. Mr. Shayler, a watchmaker, is a veteran of the First Great War.
Ed is one of 7 honored in Winnipeg within a park. Located in Winnipeg at the northeast corner of River Road at St. Michael Road in St. Vital, the park is named in honour of market gardener and municipal official Jules Henry Mager. It was officially dedicated in September 1972.
The memory of seven young men who volunteered to fight in the Battle of Hong Kong in 1941, all from Winnipeg's Arden Avenue, was honoured Saturday.
The city unveiled the Arden Seven Commemorative Plaza in Jules Mager Parkin St. Vital this morning.
Although all survived being captured and taken prisoner, only one of the seven is still alive.
George Peterson was part of the unveiling ceremony. His brother, Morris, was among the group.
"I was proud to serve my country with my brother and friends and I know they would approve of having this beautiful park in our neighbourhood dedicated to us," he said in a news release. "I appreciated being personally involved in this project and would like to express my gratitude to all of the individuals, government representatives and St. Vital Historical Society for their support and work on developing this park."
The city said the men served in the Winnipeg Grenadiers during the Second World War and included Fred Abrahams (also known as Fred Harding), Bill Lancaster, twin brothers George and Morris Peterson, and brothers Alfred, Edward and Harry Shayler.
Members of the “Arden Seven” were:
• Frederick Percival “Fred Abrahams” Harding (c1922 - 2 January 1998) • William James “Bill” Lancaster (19 June 1921 - 2 July 1970) • George Nelson Peterson (8 February 1921 - 5 September 2021) • Morris Andrews Peterson (8 February 1921 - 9 June 1986) • William Alfred Shayler (15 October 1913 - 12 January 1989) • Harry Albert Shayler (15 July 1919 - 17 November 1944) • William Edward “Ed” Shayler (25 July 1918 - 9 October 2011)
’C’ Force Family Connections:
- Brother of H6794 William Shayler
- Brother of H6309 Harry Shayler
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.