The Commander British Forces in Hong Kong (CBF) was a senior British Army officer who acted as Military Advisor to the Governor of Hong Kong and was in charge of the Hong Kong British Forces. The officeholder of this post concurrently assumed the office of the Lieutenant Governor of Hong Kong before the abolition of the position in 1902.
The Governor was advised by the Commander British Forces in Hong Kong (CBF) on all military actions. During the 1980s and 1990s, the CBF was normally a career Major General or Lieutenant General from the British Army. Until 1966, the CBF was an ex officio member of the Legislative Council. [1]
The Commander British Forces in Hong Kong (CBFHK) held overall command of all British military formations stationed in the territory, including regular British Army units, the Brigade of Gurkhas, elements of the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force, as well as locally raised units under the Crown. Among these local formations were the Royal Hong Kong Regiment (The Volunteers) (RHKR(V)) and the Hong Kong Military Service Corps (HKMSC). The RHKR(V) was a locally raised Crown regiment established under the Royal Hong Kong Regiment Ordinance (Cap. 199), enacted in 1957. [2]
From the early 1960s, the regiment was affiliated to the Royal Armoured Corps and, from 1970, was formally incorporated into its order of battle and placed under the operational command of the CBFHK. [3] In 1970, subsidiary regulations (L.N. 190 of 1970) updated the Regiment’s administrative framework under Cap. 199. [4]
The HKMSC, formed in 1962, was a regular unit of the British Army composed of locally enlisted personnel. It provided administrative, transport, and technical support across the Hong Kong garrison and was directly funded by the Ministry of Defence. [5]
Commanders have included: [6] [7]
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This correspondence provides documentary evidence of the regiment's administrative inclusion within the Royal Armoured Corps.
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