Maude Franks, an internee, wrote on 31 August 1945 to her mother, Olive Braga, in Macau:
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“Yesterday was the crowning day of all ... at about 5 o’clock the Admiral [Rear Admiral Cecil Harcourt] arrived in the camp, and told us that they had come from Australia especially for us: they had steamed all the way at 25 knots an hour. The Japanese had packed up before they expected and so they had to rush post haste here to release us. The Americans had planned to bombard Hong Kong on the 21st. Had they done so we would all have been massacred by the Japs – they intended to machine-gun all internees and prisoners-of-war. What a miraculous escape ... 9 flags – British, American, Belgium, China, French, Australian, Greek, Dutch and Polish flags were then hoisted amid tremendous cheering. The English national anthem and the hymn “Oh God our help in ages past” were sung and the Admiral departed. Thank God for protecting you all, and for bringing us all through this terrible nightmare. We do hope we may see you all soon. God bless and keep you and all our loved ones. Much love from Maude and Eric.” |
Harcourt naturally did not mention that the fleet had been delayed in Subic Bay for a fortnight while negotiations took place between Britain and China over the future of Hong Kong. There was certainly foreboding lest the Japanese massacre their prisoners, but no evidence emerged subsequently to indicate that this was the intention of Japanese authorities in Hong Kong or elsewhere.
The admiral’s comment that the ship steamed at full speed from Sydney was confirmed by a crew member, Norman Barker, on 31 July 2011. In 1945 Barker was a Radar Engineer in HMS Swiftsure, the admiral’s flagship. The ship’s radar scanner jammed, and Barker was sent aloft to fix it. As the ship entered Lyemun Pass, Barker found himself staring at Japanese guns aimed straight at the flagship. They did not fire, and the narrow waterway contained no minefields.