CO129-498-12 Recommendations to strengthen defences against overseas attack 17-2-1926 - 17-2-1926 — Page 3

No. SECRET.

NUMBER AND DATE SHOULD BE QUOTED IN REFERENCE

TO THIS LETTER

Sir,

GOVERNMENT HOUSE,

HONGKONG,

190

17th February,1926.

X

The Naval Commander-in-Chief, Sir

Edwyn Alexander-Sinclair, the General Officer

Commanding the Troops, Major-General C.C.Luard, and I have for some time past been engaged upon

a scrutiny of the means of defending Hongkong

against oversea attack. In this task we have been

assisted by the advice of the Hongkong General

Defence Committee and of the Officers of the

Aircraft Carrier, H.M.S.Hermes. I now enclose

a copy of a joint memorandum in which Admiral

Sir Edwyn Alexander-Sinclair, General Luard and

I agree.

2.

This memorandum deals with the

defence of Hongkong, under actually existing conditions, against an attack by an enemy from overseas, and you will observe that both the

Naval and Military Authorities consider that

under actually existing conditions we could do

no more than defend the island of Hongkong and temporarily deny an enemy the use of Hongkong

harbour, but that we could not hold the mainland.

THE RIGHT HONOURABLE

LIEUTENANT COLONEL L.C.M.S. AMERY,M.P.,

&c.,

&c.,

&c.

This