December, 1941.

83 years ago, tensions were high as war with Japan grew ever more likely. On December 8th, Hong Kong's fears were confirmed when Japanese planes attacked Kai Tak, and Japanese soldiers crossed the border into the New Territories. The fighting continued until the British surrendered on Christmas Day.

The end of the fighting marked the beginning of the Japanese occupation, a time of great hardship for Hong Kong's residents. They would have to endure for three years and eight months, until the Japanese surrendered in August 1945 and Hong Kong was liberated shortly afterwards.

What was it like?

Let the people who lived through those times tell you themselves: A new cycle of Hong Kong's wartime diaries has just begun, where a daily email message from Gwulo shows you a selection of diary entries written on the same date, 83 years ago.

If you look at the diary entries from 7 Dec 1941, you'll see that on the eve of war there were still conflicting opinions: Hong Kong's soldiers were being mobilised, but Major Monro had strong doubts, "I don’t really believe that anyone thinks that it will come to anything".

To read the diary entries from December 1941 and beyond, please click here to sign up and receive them by e-mail each morning. It's free of charge, your details stay private, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Sample extracts from the daily messages

• 8 Dec 1941: "I started my birthday with a war. Kowloon bombed about 8AM."
• 10 Dec 1941: "Sid has been wounded. Bullet through shoulder. He told Hospital to phone Mum at the Jockey Club and she went to see him."
• 13 Dec 1941: "We hear rumours that
  

It’s a small photo, just 8cm / 3in wide, but there’s enough detail for us to investigate who and what we’re looking at, where and when the photo was taken.

(Please click here to watch the video on Youtube if it isn't shown above.)

If you'd like to see more information about the topics in the video, please use these links:

This week’s video explores the second of the two 1909 panoramas I received recently. The photos that make up the panorama are sharp enough that we can see details as far away as Lai Chi Kok, even though the photographer took the photos from mid-levels on Hong Kong island.