British Army Aid Group
Encyclopedia
The British Army Aid Group was a para-military organisation for British and allied forces in Southern China
during the Second World War. The BAAG was officially classified in the British Army
's order of battle
as a MI9
unit that was responsible for assisting prisoners of war to escape from the Japanese Army's POW camps.
Following the Battle of Hong Kong
, Lt. Colonel Sir Lindsay Tasman Ride
, who was then the Chair of Physiology of the University of Hong Kong was captured. He had been the commander of the HKVDC Field Ambulance, and once hostilities commenced was given command of the Combined Field Ambulance. Shortly after being captured, Ride escaped from Sham Shui Po POW camp to China with three trusted men. There, in order to further the war effort, support the Chinese, and shore up damaged British prestige in the area, he suggested forming a group that became known as the British Army Aid Group.
Throughout the war the BAAG provided agents to gather military intelligence in Southern China and Hong Hong and these agents had also facilitated many of the POWs' escapes from Hong Kong to the Allied Command Headquarters in Chungking. Escaped POWs were then debriefed by BAAG staff and subsequently rejoined the war effort. 128 men, for example, were re-trained for further operations in Burma with the Chindits
.
At the end of the war the BAAG had also played a vital role in re-establishing British sovereignty in Hong Kong.
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
during the Second World War. The BAAG was officially classified in the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
's order of battle
Order of battle
In modern use, the order of battle is the identification, command structure, strength, and disposition of personnel, equipment, and units of an armed force participating in field operations. Various abbreviations are in use, including OOB, O/B, or OB, while ORBAT remains the most common in the...
as a MI9
MI9
MI9, the British Military Intelligence Section 9, was a department of the British Directorate of Military Intelligence, part of the War Office...
unit that was responsible for assisting prisoners of war to escape from the Japanese Army's POW camps.
Following the Battle of Hong Kong
Battle of Hong Kong
The Battle of Hong Kong took place during the Pacific campaign of World War II. It began on 8 December 1941 and ended on 25 December 1941 with Hong Kong, then a Crown colony, surrendering to the Empire of Japan.-Background:...
, Lt. Colonel Sir Lindsay Tasman Ride
Lindsay Tasman Ride
Sir Lindsay Tasman Ride CBE, Hon RAM , was an Australian physiologist and soldier who became the 5th Vice Chancellor of the University of Hong Kong.-Early life:...
, who was then the Chair of Physiology of the University of Hong Kong was captured. He had been the commander of the HKVDC Field Ambulance, and once hostilities commenced was given command of the Combined Field Ambulance. Shortly after being captured, Ride escaped from Sham Shui Po POW camp to China with three trusted men. There, in order to further the war effort, support the Chinese, and shore up damaged British prestige in the area, he suggested forming a group that became known as the British Army Aid Group.
Throughout the war the BAAG provided agents to gather military intelligence in Southern China and Hong Hong and these agents had also facilitated many of the POWs' escapes from Hong Kong to the Allied Command Headquarters in Chungking. Escaped POWs were then debriefed by BAAG staff and subsequently rejoined the war effort. 128 men, for example, were re-trained for further operations in Burma with the Chindits
Chindits
The Chindits were a British India "Special Force" that served in Burma and India in 1943 and 1944 during the Burma Campaign in World War II. They were formed into long range penetration groups trained to operate deep behind Japanese lines...
.
At the end of the war the BAAG had also played a vital role in re-establishing British sovereignty in Hong Kong.
See also
- British Forces Overseas Hong KongBritish Forces Overseas Hong KongBritish Forces Overseas Hong Kong consisted of the elements of the British Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force. Much of the British military left Hong Kong prior to the handover in 1997. The present article focuses mainly on the British garrison in Hong Kong in the post Second World War era...
- Memoirs of Captain Paul Tsui, MBE, British Army Aid Group