Hammond-Albert-William-Wakefield

To honour those who served their country

“In this their finest hour”

7384600

Lance Corporal

Albert William Wakefield Hammond

1915/05/29 - Born Wilburton, Cambridgeshire

Son of George William and Ruth (nee White) Hammond

Brother to Bertha and Doris Mary

Occupation Typographical Engineer Lino Type Operator

1939/05/29 - Married Phyllis Eleanor Noble at St Augustine’s Wisbech, Cambridgeshire

Hammond-Albert-William-Wakefield-Marraige

Hammond-Albert-William-Wakefield-Lynn_News__County_Press_06_June_1939_0001_Clip

1940/08/15 - Enlisted

Next of Kind Wife, P E, Ashfield Road, Andover, Hampshire

Royal Army Medical Corps

197 Field Ambulance

Service

An infantry Field Ambulance at that time comprised of a Medical Officer, his batman, 13 officers and 225 other ranks (Sergeants, Corporals and Privates). The unit also had 42 vehicles including 8 six wheeled motor ambulances, which were driven and maintained by members of the Royal Army Service Corp, who were attached to the unit. There were three Field Ambulances per Division and 1 per Corps. The 197 Field Ambulance was destined to become part of the 18th Division, 55th Infantry Brigade along with the 1/5 Sherwood Foresters, 1st Cambridgeshires and 5th Beds and Herts Regiment.

The 18th Division were prepared for oversea employment and left Britain in Convoy CT5 for Halifax on the 30th October 1941.

‘USS West Point’

On reaching Halifax on November 10th, they were transferred to USS West Point as part of the 55th Infantry Brigade and departed Halifax in Convoy William Sail 12X. Destination still unknown.

Convoy William Sail 12X continued with six American troopships, two cruisers, eight destroyers and the aircraft carrier Ranger, the Convoy William Sail 12X was under way, destination still unknown.

Convoy William Sail 12X

Above Photo supplied by the late Maurice Rooney

Detailed Account by Thomas M. Allison

A reproduction of an account by Thomas M. Allison who is understood to be serving as an American Naval officer in the convoy.

Aircraft

Vought SB 2U Vindicator Scout Bomber - USS Ranger which was flying an Anti Submarine patrol over the convoy.

Ships Front Line, Top to Bottom:-

USS West Point - USS Mount Vernon - USS Wakefield - USS Quincy (Heavy Cruiser)

Ships Back Line Top to Bottom:-

USAT Leonard Wood - USS Vincennes (Heavy Cruiser) - USS Joseph T Dickman

The convoy passed through the Mona Passage between Puerto Rico and St Domingo.

Arrived at Trinidad 17th November in glorious sunshine so troops changed to tropical kit, but no shore-leave, left Trinidad after two days of taking on supplies. The equator was crossed soon after leaving Trinidad on the 24th, there was a crossing the line ceremony.

After a month the convoy arrived at Cape Town, and soon after on the 8th December news reached the regiment that Japan had attacked Pearl Harbour and Malaya.

Britain and America were now at war with Japan and the rumours were that the convoy was now heading for the Far East and not the Middle East as first thought.

On the 13th December the convoy left Cape Town and sailed along the coast of East Africa past Madagascar and into the Indian Ocean heading for Bombay.

After 17,011 miles at sea Bombay was reached on 27th December and the troops were transported by train to Ahmednagar for further training.

After a couple of weeks at Ahmednagar, they were on the move again. Their destination was to be Singapore.

Embarking on the 17th January, Convoy BM 11 sailed from Bombay on 19th January, sailing with a British escort. The escort included HMS Exeter and HMS Glasgow with British and Australian destroyers, destination was now the Far East.

Passing Colombo, (Ceylon), crossing the equator for the third time, the convoy passed through the Sundra Straits between Java and Sumatra and then the Banka Straits. The convoy was then bombed by Japanese Planes.

The convoy reached the safety of Keppel Harbour, Singapore on 29th January. Ships were ablaze in the harbour, clouds of smoke drifted across the sky and the smell of fumes was overpowering, this was not the best of greetings. The Japanese had taken most of Malaya in the last three weeks and were only thirty miles away from Singapore.

Singapore officially surrendered to the Japanese on the 15th of February 1942.

1942/03/19 - WO 417/40, Casualty List No. 775. Reported ‘Missing’.

Japanese PoW

1942/02/15 - Captured Singapore

Roberts Hospital, Changi, Singapore

PoW No. 3189

Japanese Index Card - Side One

Japanese Index Card - Side Two

In the late days of August 1942, the I.J.A. issued instructions that all officers and men were to sign a "non-escape" form, which in itself was a flagrant breach of the Hague and Geneva Conventions. On this form was a promise not to escape or help anyone else to escape, and to acknowledge that it was understood that the penalty for any contravention of this promise was death.

This order was bitterly opposed by Col. Holmes and his staff officers. Officers and men were paraded and the situation fully explained to them, and unanimously all agreed not to sign. This was general throughout all units in the camp. Working parties in Singapore Town, etc., delayed action until they could get a line on our reactions to this order. On their refusal to sign came a Japanese ultimatum giving them about 24 hours to sign, after which time all troops in Changi Camp were to be concentrated in Selarang Barracks, the peacetime home of 2nd Battalion and the Gordon Highlanders. From the thousands of PoW in Changi Camp, only four men signed. The ultimatum was put into effect, and the concentration, which was to be completed by early evening of the same day, commenced. This entailed the movement of all troops, both fit and sick, reserves of rations, cooking utensils and containers, kits, bedding, etc.

Owing to lack of transport, anything on wheels was commandeered to assist the move. By evening of the same day, all troops (less Roberts Hospital) were confined in the new area.

Albert stayed at in Roberts Hospital, Changi until August 1943 when he was at Selarang Hospital.

1943/08/27 - Selarang Hospital, Singapore

1944/05/29 - Kranji Hospital, Singapore

New PoW No. 5238

1945/11/02 - Liberated

General Seishiro Itagaki, Japanese Commander of Singapore, would not accept the surrender. Plus it gave him time to cover up all Japanese Atrocities in Singapore. The allied naval landing force 'Operation Tiderace' were delayed as it was still understood the Japanese would dispose of all the PoWs in Singapore if they landed. Mountbatten ordered British paratroopers into Singapore to protect the camps. To many of the PoWs in Singapore, those red berets of the paratroopers were the first signs that the war had ended. All this delayed organising the PoWs. It wasn't till the 12th September that Lord Mountbatten accepted the Japanese surrender at the Municipal Building. Hospital cases were the first to leave Singapore 1945/09/10 on the HMHS Koroa. They were soon followed by Repatriation ships which started reaching the UK about the 15th of October 1945. Why many of the liberated PoWs on these ships had November on their Japanese Index cards, I don't know as in other areas of the Far East, PoWs were marked as Liberated at their PoW camps with the correct date. Unless General Seishiro Itagaki did not make the cards available when the camps were liberated.

Liberation Questionnaire filled in by Albert after being liberated

1945/11/07 - WO417/99, Casualty List No. 1904. Previously shown on Casualty List No. 1147 as reported Prisoner of War now Not Prisoner of War. Previous Theatre of War, Malaya.