WW2 hero who fired first British shots against Japanese dies aged 90

Daily Mail ^ | 12th October 2009 | Daily Mail

[the scotsman]

'The British serviceman who first fired on Japanese forces during World War Two has died at the age of 90.

Jim Mariner was on board the gunboat HMS Peterel when he secured his place in history at about 4am on December 7, 1941. The vessel was in China's Shanghai Harbour and the crew had been issued with cutlasses and told they should be prepared to die defending the ship.

It was the last commissioned Royal Navy craft on the Yangtze River and had been stripped of most of her weapons. She had a skeleton crew and was clearly in no position to fight when a much larger Japanese cruiser pulled alongside.

In an attempt to delay the inevitable and give the crew time to scuttle her, the commanding officer invited Japanese officers onboard. When the officers refused to discuss the matter below decks, Lieutenant Stephen Polkington ordered them to: 'Get off my bloody ship.'

[wbill]

Taking on a Jap cruiser with a machine gun, and cutlasses.

Tough guy.

[massgopguy]

TOMMY!

[Gay State Conservative]

Lots and lots of very brave men served in those years.Brits,Americans,Canadians,Aussies and many others as well.They're leaving us now and have been for some time.Soon they'll be all gone.

As a well known American news anchor (news presenter) once said,they're "the Greatest Generation".And I agree 1000%.

[STONEWALLS]

“For it’s Tommy this, an’ Tommy that, an’ “Chuck him out, the brute!”
But it’s “Saviour of ‘is country” when the guns begin to shoot;”

http://www.portitude.org/literature/kipling/pt-tommy.php

[Former MSM Viewer]

“Get off my bloody ship”

[Ronbo1948]

Taps for a hero!

[Broker]

Kudos to this heroic man.. A witness to unmentionable depravity. The Japanese proved to be a ruthless and remorseless enemy. May God rest his soul as he joins his mates in heaven.

[OldCorps]

...issued cutlasses to repel boarders

Now those are some tough hombres. A true hero. Shameful he was never decorated.

[Last Dakotan]

You have to wonder what has happened to the Brits in the 60 years since that brought on such an embarrassing surrender in similar circumstances to the Iranians just recently.

[Mr. Silverback]

If you don’t mind me using an American phrase...A hero proved in liberating strife.

[jimmyray]

You have to wonder what has happened to the Brits in the 60 years since that brought on such an embarrassing surrender in similar circumstances to the Iranians just recently.

Spineless leadership was there in the 30's too, aka Chamberlain!

[j-damn]

*You have to wonder what has happened to the Brits in the 60 years since that brought on such an embarrassing surrender in similar circumstances to the Iranians just recently.*

The Brits surrendered plenty in the early days of the Second World War, too, let’s not paint these guys as supermen up to the day Maggie left 10 Downing.

[j-damn]

*Lots and lots of very brave men served in those years.Brits,Americans,Canadians,Aussies and many others as well.They’re leaving us now and have been for some time.Soon they’ll be all gone.

As a well known American news anchor (news presenter) once said,they’re “the Greatest Generation”.And I agree 1000%. *

They were great at everything but raising children, apparently.

[Gay State Conservative]

They were great at everything but raising children, apparently.

Unfortunately there some truth to this.But a detailed analysis of that whole subject exonerates them...at least to a degree.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Note the article repeats the big lie about America’s participation/entry into the war..

[Ling Ting To]

I think that Chamberlain was aware of the dreadful state of
HM armed forces in ‘38 and ‘39 after several Labour
Governments and was attempting to buy time to build them up.

He may have even privately known that Herr Hitler was a liar.

[Fiddlstix]

Tommy
by Rudyard Kipling

I went into a public-'ouse to get a pint o' beer,
The publican 'e up an' sez, "We serve no red-coats here."
The girls be'ind the bar they laughed an' giggled fit to die,
I outs into the street again an' to myself sez I:

O it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, go away";
But it's "Thank you, Mister Atkins", when the band begins to play,
The band begins to play, my boys, the band begins to play,
O it's "Thank you, Mister Atkins", when the band begins to play.

I went into a theatre as sober as could be,
They gave a drunk civilian room, but 'adn't none for me;
They sent me to the gallery or round the music-'alls,
But when it comes to fightin', Lord! they'll shove me in the stalls!

For it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, wait outside";
But it's "Special train for Atkins" when the trooper's on the tide,
The troopship's on the tide, my boys, the troopship's on the tide,
O it's "Special train for Atkins" when the trooper's on the tide.

Yes, makin' mock o' uniforms that guard you while you sleep
Is cheaper than them uniforms, an' they're starvation cheap;
An' hustlin' drunken soldiers when they're goin' large a bit
Is five times better business than paradin' in full kit.

Then it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, 'ow's yer soul?"
But it's "Thin red line of 'eroes" when the drums begin to roll,
The drums begin to roll, my boys, the drums begin to roll,
O it's "Thin red line of 'eroes" when the drums begin to roll.

We aren't no thin red 'eroes, nor we aren't no blackguards too,
But single men in barricks, most remarkable like you;
An' if sometimes our conduck isn't all your fancy paints,
Why, single men in barricks don't grow into plaster saints;

While it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, fall be'ind",
But it's "Please to walk in front, sir", when there's trouble in the wind,
There's trouble in the wind, my boys, there's trouble in the wind,
O it's "Please to walk in front, sir", when there's trouble in the wind.

You talk o' better food for us, an' schools, an' fires, an' all:
We'll wait for extry rations if you treat us rational.
Don't mess about the cook-room slops, but prove it to our face
The Widow's Uniform is not the soldier-man's disgrace.

For it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Chuck him out, the brute!"
But it's "Saviour of 'is country" when the guns begin to shoot;
An' it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' anything you please;
An' Tommy ain't a bloomin' fool -- you bet that Tommy sees!

[Ciexyz]

Never decorated? How sad.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

My dad flew C-46s in the China-Burma-India Campaign. 25 trips back and forth over the Hump. He suffered burns in a crash landing. It took weeks to get him back to the US.
He never got a ribbon or recognition.

[jimmyray]

I think that Chamberlain was aware of the dreadful state of HM armed forces in ‘38 and ‘39 after several Labour Governments and was attempting to buy time to build them up.

Interesting perspective. Is there any evidence that he was actually trying to buy time, followed by an effort to build up the military?

[naturalman1975]

Interesting perspective. Is there any evidence that he was actually trying to buy time, followed by an effort to build up the military?

Considerable evidence, yes.

One data point - in September 1938 at the time of the Munich Agreement, the Royal Air Force had about 400 aircraft - including virtually no 'modern' fighters (a handful of Hurricanes were in service). Britain's factories could produce 45 fighter planes a month.

By the start of the war in September 1939, the RAF had 1500 aircraft, nearly 1000 of them fighters and the factories were now capable of producing 800 planes a month.

Chamberlain had met with the British Joint Chiefs of Staff in March of 1938. The Chiefs had been unambiguous in their advice to the Prime Minister - Britain was not ready for war and would not be ready for at least another 12-18 months.

A visual representation - typical British fighter plane in September 1938.

Typical British fighter plane in September 1939.

That's the difference that year made.

[jimmyray]

I learn more on this website...

Can you provide some good references online that support this, other than what a Google search could yield? I have never even considered this point of view.

This is not unlike the bad rap "doubting" Thomas gets, when in actuality he was Berean in practice.

[naturalman1975]

A few good books:

Neville Chamberlain: A biography by Robert Self.

Battles, lost and won by Hanson Baldwin.

Key to Victory. by Lieutenant Commander P.K. Kemp, RN

In terms of online information, the best I can find are reviews of Self's book that summarise his arguments.

http://www.ashgate.com/isbn/9780754656159

Extracts from the book can be seen at google books.

[jimmyray]

Brilliant, as the Brits say. I thank you for the education on Chamberlain, as I had always taken the "Guilty Men" perspective that he was an appeaser. The Sudetenland was, at the agitation of Hitler, clamouring for self rule, away from the Czechs. Britain and France were scarred by WWI, and wanted to avoid another war at practically all costs. On top of that, as you point out, Britain was woefully unprepared for war with a highly mechanised Germany.

It did work out, then that Britain had time to update their airforce, but whether that was in Chamberlain's mind is not clear. Perhaps the book you reference by Self has records from Government sources to substantiate that claim. In any case, I did learn that Chamberlain was the PM when Britain delcaed war on Germany. Thanks again!