Andrew Chan Chak (; 2 April 1894 – 31 August 1949) was a Chinese admiral of the

Republic of China Navy The Republic of China Navy (ROCN; ), also called the ROC Navy and colloquially the Taiwan Navy, is the maritime branch of the Republic of China Armed Forces (ROCAF). The service was formerly commonly just called the Chinese Navy during World W ...

, best known for his role in a breakout in five Royal Navy torpedo boats from the

Japanese occupation of Hong Kong The Imperial Japanese occupation of Hong Kong began when the Governor of Hong Kong, Sir Mark Young, surrendered the British Crown colony of Hong Kong to the Empire of Japan on 25 December 1941. The surrender occurred after 18 days of fierce ...

on Christmas Day 1941.

Career

A native of

Hainan Hainan (, ; ) is the smallest and southernmost province of the People's Republic of China (PRC), consisting of various islands in the South China Sea. , the largest and most populous island in China,The island of Taiwan, which is slightly l ...

, Chan was a Midshipman in Canton city (now "Guangzhou") during the final years of the

Qing Dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-spea ...

when he became a committed republican. Throughout the Warlord Era he participated in several naval engagements in Southern China. In 1923 he was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Guangdong Fleet, later renamed the 4th Fleet of the ROC Navy. At the beginning of the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...

Chan was given the additional position of Commander of the Fortresses of

Humen The Humen, also Bocca Tigris or Bogue, is a narrow strait in the Pearl River Delta that separates Shiziyang in the north and Lingdingyang in the south near Humen Town in China's Guangdong Province. It is the site of the Pearl River's discharge ...

; during a battle there in 1938 his left leg was wounded which eventually necessitated its amputation. In 1939 Chan, then a Rear Admiral, was sent to

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...

as Liaison Officer of the Nationalist Government. Under the cover as a stockbroker, he arranged for the transportation of

materiel Materiel (; ) refers to supplies, equipment, and weapons in military supply-chain management, and typically supplies and equipment in a commercial supply chain context. In a military context, the term ''materiel'' refers either to the specif ...

into China despite the Japanese blockade, and at the same time liaised with British colonial authorities, keeping the local Chinese population on-side, controlling the Triad gangs and identifying Japanese sympathisers. On 8 December 1941 the Battle of Hong Kong began; on Christmas Day the Governor, Sir

Mark Aitchison Young Sir Mark Aitchison Young (楊慕琦, 30 June 1886 – 12 May 1974) was a British administrator who became the Governor of Hong Kong during the years immediately before and after the Japanese occupation of the territory. Early life, service in ...

, informed Chan of his intention to surrender to the Japanese. Chan decided to flee Hong Kong, and was given command of the five remaining

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

Motor Torpedo Boats. In

Aberdeen Harbour Aberdeen Harbour, rebranded as the Port of Aberdeen in 2022, is a sea port located in the city of Aberdeen on the east coast of Scotland. The port was first established in 1136 and has been continually redeveloped over the centuries to provide ...

he and his entourage boarded the motor launch '' Cornflower II''; while on the way to a rendezvous with the torpedo boats waiting south of

Ap Lei Chau Ap Lei Chau or Aberdeen Island is an island of Hong Kong, located off Hong Kong Island next to Aberdeen Harbour and Aberdeen Channel. It has an area of after land reclamation. Administratively it is part of the Southern District. Ap Lei C ...

it was fired upon by Japanese forces. Chan ordered “Abandon Ship”, threw off his artificial leg, only to be shot at the left wrist; barely able to swim with one arm and one leg (he gave his life jacket to his bodyguard, who did not know how to swim), he was dragged ashore by his aide-de-camp, Lieutenant-Commander Henry Hsu. The torpedo boats came to their rescue, then headed towards

Mirs Bay Mirs Bay (also known as Tai Pang Wan, Dapeng Wan, Dapeng Bay, or Mers Bay; ) is a bay in the northeast of Kat O and Sai Kung Peninsula of Hong Kong. The north and east shores are surrounded by Yantian and Dapeng New District of Shenzhen. Ping C ...

at high speed. From there the escapees, with the help of Chinese guerrillas, walked for four days through Japanese-occupied territories towards

Huizhou Huizhou ( zh, c= ) is a city in central-east Guangdong Province, China, forty-three miles north of Hong Kong. Huizhou borders the provincial capital of Guangzhou to the west, Shenzhen and Dongguan to the southwest, Shaoguan to the north, Heyu ...

in unoccupied China. Altogether sixty-eight British, Chinese and Danish intelligence, naval and marine personnel were saved in the breakout, including

David Mercer MacDougall David Mercer MacDougall (; 8 December 1904 – 13 May 1991) was a Colonial Secretary of Hong Kong between 1945 and 1949. In 1928, while a Cadet Officer, MacDougall was seconded to the Colonial Office, and posted to Hong Kong. By 1941 he was p ...

, who had worked with Chan on intelligence matters. For aiding in the escape of these British military personnel, Chan was made an honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire on 19 August 1942. From September 1945 to June 1946, Chan was the

Mayor of Guangzhou This list includes only those persons who served as mayors of Guangzhou since the mid- Warlord era. Republic of China Mayors People's Republic of China Mayors {, class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" , - ! # ! width="250", Name ! widt ...

. He died in Guangzhou on 31 August 1949, during the final weeks of the

Chinese Civil War The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on m ...

, officially from a stomach ulcer, although there was speculation that he was poisoned by agents of Chiang Kai-Shek.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chan, Chak 1894 births 1949 deaths People of the Northern Expedition Mayors of Guangzhou People from Hainan Republic of China Navy admirals Chinese military personnel of World War II Admirals of World War II Qing dynasty military personnel History of Hong Kong Battle of Hong Kong Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire