唐樓中 的二戰日記

During the Japanese invasion in World War II, China wanted the world's 2 major naval powers, Britain and the US, to train its officers. Declassified telegrams indicate both countries were receptive to the idea, and the scheme was announced in 1942. 50 were sent to the US while 24 were sent to Britain, with the latter group arriving at the Royal Naval College in October 1943.

These 24 Chinese naval officers would participate in the D-Day landings to liberate France.

This story was almost lost until 2015, when a notebook was discovered inside an old building in Hong Kong that was slated for demolition. This was Lam Ping-yu's diary, the only known primary source on Chinese participation in D-Day. After the war, he settled in Hong Kong, living there until the early 1970s when he moved to Italy, then to Brazil, and finally the US. This diary was left behind to his younger brother's care, who passed away unmarried and childless in 2008 and his flat was abandoned.

King's College is hosting a special exhibition about these forgotten heroes at D-day along with 2 Hong Kong universities thanks to the notebook discovery and subsequent research.





These documents show the Chinese officers' training program in Portsmouth in early 1945.



This letter from the Chinese naval headquarters in 1939 thanked their British counterparts for hosting their trainees.



This is a group photo of the 24 Chinese officers taken at the Royal Naval College in Greenwich.



During their voyage to Britain, the officers made a stop in Cairo and visited the pyramids in Giza.









More photos on my website : https://www.globalphotos.org/london-exhibit202507c.htm