I Had Never Handled A Bren Gun
Heroes Remember
I Had Never Handled A Bren Gun
Transcript
Description
Mr. Billson describes being placed in charge of a Bren gun, a weapon he had never handled. His unit is sent to protect a pillbox at Tai Tam Gap without being issued any ammunition. When the ammo arrives, it isn't Bren cartridges, it is hand grenades. Eventually a few cartridges arrive.
Walter Billson
Walter Billson was born in Lennoxville, Quebec on October 2, 1914. After completing grade six, he went to work at a local garage. He also joined the Sherbrooke Regiment so he could take rifle practice. In 1940, he enlisted with the Royal Rifles of Canada and became a dispatch rider. After training stints at Valcartier, Sussex and Gander, he returned to Valcartier and was married. The next day, he was heading for Hong Kong. When the battle for Hong Kong begins, Mr. Billson, by then a Corporal, is put in charge of a Bren gun, guarding a pillbox at TaiTam gap. After being captured and imprisoned at North Point Camp, he is sent to a Japanese labor camp near the Omini coal mine. After being liberated, Mr. Billson sees the devastation of Nagasaki as a result of the atomic bomb.
Meta Data
- Medium:
- Video
- Owner:
- Veterans Affairs Canada
- Duration:
- 1:58
- Person Interviewed:
- Walter Billson
- War, Conflict or Mission:
- Second World War
- Battle/Campaign:
- Hong Kong
- Branch:
- Army
- Units/Ship:
- Royal Rifles of Canada
- Rank:
- Corporal
- Occupation:
- Dispatch Rider
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