The Hong Kong defence line of Blockhouses has been known locally as the Anderson Line, named after Major General Charles Anderson, the Commander of British Forces. In the 1930s roughly the same stop line was used for the Gin Drinker’s Line with pillboxes and Shing Muen Redoubt.
Listing Type : Defence Line
Location : Hong Kong
The Hong Kong blockhouses would appear to have their design origins in South Africa. During the Second Boer War (1899 to 1902) the British made extensive use of blockhouses to restrict the movement of the Boer Commandoes. The British built over nine thousand blockhouses and had some ninety thousand troops deployed in the blockhouse defence lines.
Hong Kong as a British Colony was obtained in three district steps. In 1841 they took control of Hong Kong Island only. In 1860 they expanded North to include most of the Kowloon Peninsular up to Boundary Street. The last expansion was in 1898 when Britain leased the New Territories up to the Shum Chun River. It is fair to say that the British had always been concerned about defending the Northern approaches to Hong Kong from hostile forces including bandit gangs.
The defence line developed in 1910 to 1911 included thirty blockhouses. These blockhouses were built on the north slopes of the ridge line stretching from Eagles Nest on the Tai Po Road over to Devils Peak. This defence line was later developed with Pillboxes into the Gin Drinkers Line, with the Western hinge being Shing Muen Redoubt.
During the Boer War the blockhouses built by the British had developed into a major strategy used by the them to cut off the Boer Commandoes from their support bases. From the two photographs seen of a blockhouse in Hong Kong they would appear to be circular and known as Rice Blockhouses. The circular blockhouse had a six to nine foot radius inside, with a one foot ledge for soldiers to rest their elbows on. The main circular structure was just over six feet tall, but with a sloped roof, a further seven feet could be added to the height. It is suspect that in Hong Kong the sloped roof was not used, due to the strong winds, and that they relied on flatter canvas rooves. The standard Rice Blockhouse had twelve loopholes and a small two foot wide entrance. The build was almost entirely of pre-cut and shaped corrugated iron. The main walls were two sheets of corrugated iron with a shingle core. The lower few feet were a protective revetment of soil faced with rocks. The blockhouse was often surround by a dry trench, and this was definitely done in Hong Kong at some locations such as Blockhouse 22.
Actual plans of the Rice Blockhouse can be see in Professional Papers of the Corps of Royal Engineers, Vol. XXX (1904), pp. 279-280.
Two images of Hong Kong Blockhouses can be seen at https://gwulo.com/comment/44267#12~22.3273~114.1978~Map_by_GovHK~100.
The first image shows a blockhouse being built, apparently by Chinese labourers. The circular blockhouse has earth covering it lower levels. This image was provided by Tim M from a private collection.
The second image shows a circular blockhouse which appears to have at least sixteen loopholes, so maybe large that the stand Rice. This blockhouse is again on an earther platform, reinforced with stoned, standing below Lion Rock. It appears to have a flat roof covering on half of the structure. This is from HT Wong’s flickr.
Additional images of blockhouses in South Africa can be seen on the following web site: https://www.angloboerwar.com/other-information/16-other-information/1844-blockhouses. Some of the images show blockhouses using corrugated iron being constructed.
The Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors have published an excellent paper, “A Note on British Blockhouses in Hong Kong”. The author is Rob Weir who has now retired to Australia after doing considerable research on Hong Kong fortifications. He handed much of his research work to Gulo Hong Kong who have incorporated much of his records into their website. A copy of the publication by the Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors can be downloaded here.
This paper with sketches and photographs was prepared by Rob Weir, now in Australia, who also did a lot of work on fortifications. From Surveying & Built Environment.