Brigade
General Information |
||
| Rank: | First Name: | Second Name: |
|---|---|---|
| Colonel | Patrick | |
| From: | Enlistment Region: | Date of Birth (y-m-d): |
| Ottawa ON | Central Ontario | 1885-04-01 |
| Appointment: | Company: | Platoon: |
| Senior Administration Officer | Brigade Headquarters | |
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 Mount Austin Barracks. 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 |
|---|---|---|
| 41/12/20 | By shellfire; both legs blown off 5 to 6 inches above the ankles. | 36; 17(p179), 127 |
Decorations Received
| Image | Name of Award | Abbreviation | References | Precedence | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Distinguished Service Order | DSO | 02 | Citation not found | |
 | Military Cross | MC | 05 | Citation not found |
Other Military or Public Service
Before the first Great War, he served in the ranks of the Imperial Army. He came to Canada just before WW1 and gained his commission Canadian army. He served in France and England as staff captain of the 5th Brigade. Later he was appointed to the post of D.A. and Q.M.G. of the 1st Canadian Division in France.
Death and Cemetery Information
| Date of Death (y-m-d) | Cause of Death | Death Class | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1941-12-20 | Died of wounds | Died of Wounds | |
| Cemetery Location | Cemetery | Grave Number | Gravestone Marker |
| Cape Collinson Road Chai Wan Hong Kong China | Sai Wan War Cemetery | VIII. C. 4. | CWGC |
Gravestone Image
Obituary / Life Story
COL. HENNESSY NATIVE OF CORK LONG IN ARMY
Killed at Hong Kong Where He Was Chief Administrator of Canadian Troops
Colonel "Pat" Hennessy, chief administrator of the Canadian troops in Hong Kong, who was reported today as killed in action at Hong Kong, was a distinguished soldier who rose from the ranks.
Before the first Great War, he served in the ranks of the Imperial Army. He came to Canada just before the last war broke out and gained his commission Canadian army.
Born in Cork, Ireland, 56 years ago, he had occupied several important posts in the Canadian permanent forces. During the last war he served in France and England as staff captain of the 5th Brigade. Later he was appointed to the post of D.A. and Q.M.G. of the 1st Canadian Division in France. After the war he served as D.A. and Q.M.G. in Military District No. 10; D.S. and T.O. in M.D. 10 and 11, and held the same post in Toronto from 1931-37. From 1937 to 1939 he served the same post in Military District No. 1.
From Military District No. 1 he went to Camp Borden where he organized the RCASC training centre, the first centre of its kind in Canada. From Borden he was transferred to Ottawa as director of organization at National Defense Headquarters, and it was only recently that it was announced that he had been selected for important duties overseas.
Unknown newspaper clipping
Son of James William and Ellen Hennessy; husband of Ellen Dorothy Hennessy (nee Robb), of Toronto, Ontario.
Honours and Awards: Distinguished Service Order
Canadian Virtual War Memorial
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.
General Comments
No comments found.
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, note the soldier's service number shown at the top of this page, then use the letter prefix to select the corresponding link below. A Google Docs folder list will open in a separate tab. Search for the file identified by the service number to access any additional information we may have acquired.
- Service Number Prefix: A to G
- Service Number Prefix: H to P
- Service Number Prefix: X (Officers)
Facebook has proven to be a valuable resource in the documentation of 'C' Force members. The following link will take you to search results for this soldier based on his regimental number, but they may be incomplete.
Facebook Search Results.
To capture all items for an individual, we recommend visiting our Group: Hong Kong Veterans Tribute of Canada and using the search option there. Note: results may be contained within another related record.
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.
End of Report.
Report generated: 15 Dec 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.
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- The 'From' information box at the top of the report represents the enlistment location unless we have obtained updated information pinpointing where the member lived.
- 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.
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