The King's School Canterbury |
Roll of Honour |
Lieutenant Wallace David HATTON (EC/7627) | |
19th Hyderabad Regiment attached to A Company, 152nd Indian Parachute Battalion Date of birth: 3rd August 1923 Date of death: 20th March 1944 Killed in action aged 20 Buried at Imphal War Cemetery Collective Grave 8 H 6-13 |
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He was born at Ramsgate on the 3rd of August 1923 the son of Wallace Duncan Hatton LDS, RCS, dental surgeon, and Ellen Sarah (nee Wigg) of 8, Chapel Place, Ramsgate. He was educated at St Hugh's, Bickley and at the King's School Canterbury from September 1937 to July 1940 where he was in School House. He left before his 17th birthday in order to join the army. He reached the rank of Corporal in the Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment before receiving his cadet training in India. He was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Indian Army on the 12th of December 1942 and was posted to the 19th Hyderabad Regiment. He was promoted to Lieutenant on the 12th of June 1943 and was later attached to the 152nd Indian Parachute Battalion. On the 8th of March 1944 the Japanese began crossing the Chindwin River as a prelude to Operation U-Go, the invasion of India. The two first key objectives of their attack across the border was the capture of the British held towns of Kohima and Imphal. By mid March the 152nd (Indian) Battalion Parachute Regiment, under Lieutenant Colonel Paul Hopkinson, was conducting jungle training in the area and had received orders to move back to positions at the village of Sangshak. As reports of the forward movement of the Japanese came in from local Naga tribesmen, Hopkinson pushed two of his companies out onto the surrounding Somra Hills. A Company, under Captain Richard Gillett, was sent to Point 7386 ("Badger") and to Point 7000 ("Gammon") and C Company, under Major John Annesley O'Donnell Fuller, was sent to the unnamed Point 7378 near Ukhrul. At dawn on the 19th of March 1944 a column of Japanese troops, estimated to be at battalion strength, was spotted moving towards Fuller's position. Although Fuller had an observation team to his front it wasn't until 9am that he heard from them to the effect that the enemy were heading directly for his position. By 2pm the Japanese had surrounded his position and they attacked an hour later. The first attack was successfully repelled but further attacks followed and during the evening Colonel Hopkinson decided to despatch Richard Gillett's A Company to strengthen Fuller's garrison. As A Company probed forward towards Point 7378 they ran into a Japanese roadblock where they came under fire and Wallace Hatton was killed by sniper fire. The Company was unable to break through to their beleaguered comrades and were forced to pull back. From first light on the 20th of March nothing more had been heard from C Company and according to Japanese accounts the fighting there was over by noon. His Commanding Officer wrote: - "David, as he was known to all of us, was killed on the morning of the 20th of March. The Btn. was holding an isolated forward position and to us fell the task of holding up the main Japanese advance. We were attacked repeatedly during the whole of the 19th. On the night of the 19th they attacked continuously with fresh troops and by the morning of the 20th had got into part of one of my company positions. David went forward with a reserve company to counter-attack the enemy. His company was held up by a Japanese road block and David was shot by some snipers who were in trees bordering the track. David was an outstanding officer and would have had a great career in the army. His keenness and enthusiasm won for him the respect of everyone. He was very popular with the men and most efficient. Besides losing a first rate officer I feel that I have lost a personal friend." |
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