Continued from the previous posts
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| Alan Courtney Tytheridge Reproduced by permission of Jenny Stroud |
Alan obviously realised trouble was brewing and on 15 April 1941 he wrote a will detailing what was to happen to his assets in New Zealand.
In September 1940, Japan signed the Tripartite Pact with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, in which they agreed to assist one another should any of them be attacked by a country not already involved in the war. Many British and Americans were evacuated from Japan in 1940, but Alan had chosen not to leave.
On 7 December 1941 the Japanese attacked the US naval base at Pearl Harbour, a surprise attack to prevent the U.S Pacific Fleet from entering the War in the Pacific. Over 350 Japanese fighter planes destroyed 188 U.S aircraft, sunk or damaged 18 ships and killed over 2,400 Americans. The following day America declared war on Japan.
The declaration of war by the Empire of Japan on the United States and the British Empire was published on December 8, 1941 Japan time and was printed on the front page of all Japanese newspapers. On 8 December 1941 Eric Bell, Alan's friend, was arrested as a spy and imprisoned in Yokohama Prison. After several months he was released but in September was interned at Kanagawa No1 Camp at the Negishi Racecourse.
Kanagawa No 2 Camp
Alan was luckier and was not identified as a spy. On 9 December 1941 Alan was arrested, as a general foreign national, not as a spy, and interned at the Kanagawa No 2 Camp, Yokohama, which was the Yokohama Yacht Club. Both Alan and Eric had their properties taken into the custody of the Japanese government. This would have included their two houses and all their private belongings.
Eight months later in May 1942 Alan wrote to his English cousin Dorothy and she passed the letter on to the local newspaper. The article below appeared in the Chichester Observer (note the misspelling of Dorothy’s surname!).
21 November 1942.
A Britain in Japan
Since 9 December I have been in this internment camp with about 30 other Britons and Americans. You must not imagine that I have been suffering any hardship during this time; on the contrary, I have had quite a pleasant time of it. The camp is in the former premises of a rowing club, is situated on the seashore and commands a fine view, with plenty of sun and fresh air. The rooms are large and airy, with a wide balcony like the deck of a ship, and there is a large recreation ground. The food is quite good, European style, three meals a day, with bread and butter and tea for all three meals, fish or meat and vegetables for lunch and dinner, and soup at dinner. Further we can get additional supplies from our homes at any time. We are allowed interviews of one hour with our people three times a month, and those who have families are now allowed to visit their home once a week for a few hours.
In the camp we are allowed a great amount of liberty, though at first the regulations were strict. There are various amusements, fishing off the seawall and ball games out of doors, and ping-pong, chess and card games indoors. There is a library of about 400 books, of which I have read about 50 already. The daily routine is as follows: 7am put away bedding and clean up the room; 7.30am roll call; 8am breakfast; 12noon lunch; 5.30pm dinner; 8pm roll call, then bed and lights out at 9pm. If the weather is fine, most of us spend the day entirely out of doors, and now that the warm days are here sunbathing is very popular, and we lie around reading smoking or chatting, wearing a pair of shorts or bathing trunks and acquiring a coat of tan. Luckily the weather has been remarkably fine ever since December, and the whole winter was unusually mild. Wet and cold days are not so pleasant, and time hangs rather heavily - that is the time for cards and reading. You can understand that this sort of open-air life is very good for the health, and I am just as fit and strong as when I was at home if not more so."
The letter tells of conditions much better than expected. Britons and American who were resident in Japan when war broke out, were treated very much better than those captured in war itself. However, whether it reflects a true account of life is debatable. Letters would have been read, so Alan would have been careful only to write a positive account for fear of backlash.
As time passed and the war dragged on Japan began to suffer more defeats and living condition for Japanese civilians themselves became harsher as food and provisions became scarce. Life for Alan became tougher too.
Yamakita Camp
In June 1943 the two camps that both Alan and Eric were in closed and the internees were relocated in the same camp, the Yamakita Camp, also known as the Odawara City Camp. It was in the hills to the south west of Yokohama, with the nearest village 15 minutes away and Yamakita an hours’ walk away.
Alan's capture was reported to the Red Cross on 24 August 1943 and details appeared in New Zealand newspapers on 17 November 1943.
The Yamakita internment camp received visits from the International Red Cross who reported to back to Head Quarters in Geneva and their reports can be read on line. The reports show the conditions for Alan and the other internees deteriorated as the war progressed. The camp was built to house 55 people and the internees were a mix of British, Canadian and American citizens, ranging in age from 21 to 74.
The initial report in 1943 suggested that things were not too bad with food, lodging and treatment of the internees satisfactory.
By the second and third reports in 1944 things were not so good. The reports show the buildings needed repair, sleeping was in overcrowded dormitories and there were open cesspools, no septic tank and water supply was from a spring. There was no heating in the building and the walls were very thin since it had been built for summer use by Catholic priests. Outside was freezing in winter and Internees told the Red Cross that apart from performing various duties outside they spent most of their time in bed during the winter. A few internees worked for the Farmers' Association in the nearby village of Uchiyama and as remuneration they received two rice balls per day. A few men worked in the vegetable garden inside the camp grounds growing potatoes, sweet potatoes, pumpkins, tomatoes and corn in small quantities. All the internees, except for a few weak and old men, had to haul provisions from the nearby village and collect firewood from the hills. Food was scare for the Japanese civilians and hence food for the internees became less. The internees were always hungry and losing weight and many of them had weakened constitutions and suffered severe malnutrition. They reported to the Red Cross they needed underwear, socks and boots. Friends and relatives were permitted to see the internees twice monthly, but they were no longer allowed to bring in food. The internees received very few letters, although they had been sent by relatives abroad the post did not make it to the camp.
All conditions deteriorated with the arrival of the new Acting Camp Commander Sergeant Watanabe. After the war he was charged with war crimes which included mistreating prisoners.
World War 2 Ends
America dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima on 6 August 1945 and on 9 August on Nagasaki. On 8 August the Soviet Union declared war on Japan and invaded Manchuria and on August 14 Japan agreed in principle to unconditional surrender. It was 2 September 1945 when Japan formally surrendered, ending World War II. At Yamakita Camp relief was dropped on 27 August and the military, American soldiers, arrived on 4 September.
On 10 September the internees in Yamakita Camp were released and Alan and Eric were transported to Chigasaki to Alan’s home. Eric was unable to return to his home as it had been sold by the Japanese authorities and was occupied.
In New Zealand on 2 October 1945 a Wellington paper reported than that Eric Bell and Alan Tytheridge and some other New Zealanders were safe following the end of the War in Japan.
To be continued in next blog ……..
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