Macau was under Portuguese rule from 1557 until 1999. During the final period of colonial administration prior to the handover of Macau to China, Portugal retained only limited numbers of military personnel in Macau for liaison and support purposes; the last major units having been withdrawn following the Carnation Revolution of 1974.
The Macao Garrison of the People's Liberation Army was established in 1999. [1]
The permanent Portuguese military garrison of Macau dates from March 1691, replacing the employment as needed of sailors from warships based in the colony.
During much of the colonial period, the Portuguese garrison of Macau comprised a mixture of units from Portugal itself, African troops from Mozambique and locally recruited indigenous soldiers. Between 1784 and 1810, sepoys from Portuguese India were used to augment the regular troops. The colonial troops, whether Chinese, Indian or African, had Portuguese officers and some NCOs. In accordance with general Portuguese colonial practice, they served in units designated as Caçadores (light infantry).
Prior to 1914, a pale blue-grey zouave style uniform was worn by the Mozambiquean askaris with red fezzes and sashes for parade. The indigenous Macau units wore Chinese pattern dress of the same colour with conical headdresses. [2]
In 1936 the garrison consisted of 497 men - 22 officers, 35 NCO's and 440 soldiers; including 224 native Caçadores. The total was increased to 797 men by 1940. They were organised as follows: [3]
Following the surrender of Hong Kong in December 1941 the Japanese respected Portuguese neutrality. However, although Japan did not formally occupy Macau, Japanese troops transited the territory at will.
During World War II, the Portuguese military units stationed in Macau were:
Following the war, the machine gun company was changed to an armoured cavalry squadron equipped with armoured cars. Five indigenous companies (Companhia Indígena de Caçadores) were posted at Colane, Flora, Ilha Verde, Mong Ha and Portas do Cerco. An anti-tank company (Companhia de Anti-Carro) was posted at Ramal dos Mouros.
The last of the Mozambican Caçadores were withdrawn from Macau in 1964, after the outbreak of the Portuguese Colonial War in Portugal's African possessions. The remaining Portuguese garrison in the colony effectively ceased to exist following the change of government in Portugal in 1974 and agreement on a timetable for a takeover by mainland China by 1999. For the remaining quarter-century of Portuguese administration, order was kept in the territory by a civilian police force without substantial military backing. Only Military Police Company 2428 of the 2nd Lancers Regiment was stationed in Macau from 1968 to 1970. [4]
The Macau Naval Aviation Centre was created in 1927 as a seaplane base on Taipa to combat piracy activities in and around Macau. It was decommissioned in 1933, but re-activated from 1937 to 1940. The naval station was later moved to the Exterior Port (now site of old Fishing Wharf and the Macau Ferry Terminal) in 1940 and decommissioned after 1942. The naval station in Macau was part of the Far East Fleet covering Macau, Portuguese Timor, Lapa and Montanha (during World War II only).
Portuguese naval ships stationed in Macau:
A naval air station was established in 1927 with limited equipment.
A list of some aircraft stationed in Macau prior to 1974:
When it was discovered that neutral Macau was planning to sell aviation fuel to Japan, aircraft from the USS Enterprise bombed and strafed the hangar of the Naval Aviation Centre during the South China Sea raid on 16 January 1945 to destroy the fuel. American air raids on targets in Macau were also made on 25 February and 11 June 1945. Following Portuguese government protests, in 1950 the United States paid US$20,255,952 to Portugal. [5]
The Japanese presence ended in August 1945. [6]
From 1956 to 1974, Macau was part of the 3rd Aerial Region (3ª Região Aérea) of the Portuguese Air Force with its headquarters in Lourenço Marques, Portuguese Mozambique (now Maputo, Mozambique). [7] No Air Force unit was however stationed at Macau.
Macau or Macao is a special administrative region of the People's Republic of China. With a population of about 710,000 people and a land area of 32.9 km2 (12.7 sq mi), it is the most densely populated region in the world.
Macau is a special administrative region (SAR) of the People's Republic of China. It was leased to Portugal in 1557 as a trading post in exchange for a symbolic annual rent of 500 tael. Despite remaining under Chinese sovereignty and authority, the Portuguese came to consider and administer Macau as a de facto colony. Following the signing of the Treaty of Nanking between China and Britain in 1842, and the signing of treaties between China and foreign powers during the 1860s, establishing the benefit of "the most favoured nation" for them, the Portuguese attempted to conclude a similar treaty in 1862, but the Chinese refused, owing to a misunderstanding over the sovereignty of Macau. In 1887 the Portuguese finally managed to secure an agreement from China that Macau was Portuguese territory. In 1999 it was handed over to China. Macau was the last extant European territory in continental Asia.
The People's Liberation Army Macao Garrison is a garrison of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), responsible for defense duties in the Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR) since the sovereignty of Macau was transferred to China in 1999.
Macau International Airport is an international airport in the special administrative region of Macau, situated at the eastern end of Taipa island and neighbouring waters. It opened for commercial operations on 9 November 1995, during Portuguese administration of the region.
Coloane is the southernmost area in Macau, connected to Taipa through the area known as Cotai, which is largely built from reclaimed land. Known as “Lou Wan” in Cantonese, Coloane forms the southern part of Macau. Its population consists of several settlements dotted around the parish, such as Vila de Coloane, Hac Sa, Ká-Hó, and Cheoc Van. Administratively, the boundaries of the traditional civil parish of São Francisco Xavier are coterminous with that of Coloane.
The Battle of Hong Kong, also known as the Defence of Hong Kong and the Fall of Hong Kong, was one of the first battles of the Pacific War in World War II. On the same morning as the attack on Pearl Harbor, forces of the Empire of Japan attacked the British Crown colony of Hong Kong around the same time that Japan declared war on Great Britain. The Hong Kong garrison consisted of British, Indian and Canadian units, also the Auxiliary Defence Units and Hong Kong Volunteer Defence Corps (HKVDC).
British Forces Overseas Hong Kong comprised the elements of the British Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force stationed in British Hong Kong. The Governor of Hong Kong also assumed the position of the commander-in-chief of the forces and the Commander British Forces in Hong Kong took charge of the daily deployment of the troops. Much of the British military left prior to the handover of Hong Kong to China in 1997. The present article focuses mainly on the British garrison in Hong Kong in the post Second World War era. For more information concerning the British garrison during the Second World War and earlier, see the Battle of Hong Kong.
The People's Liberation Army Hong Kong Garrison is a garrison of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), responsible for defence duties in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) since the handover of Hong Kong in 1997.
The Portuguese Army is the land component of the Armed Forces of Portugal and is also its largest branch. It is charged with the defence of Portugal, in co-operation with other branches of the Armed Forces. With its origins going back to the 12th century, it can be considered one of the oldest active armies in the world.
The Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal, also known as the Macau Maritime Ferry Terminal, Macau Ferry Terminal or Hong Kong-Macau Ferry Pier in Chinese, is a ferry terminal located at Porto Exterior, Sé, Macau, China.
Colonial troops or colonial army refers to various military units recruited from, or used as garrison troops in, colonial territories.
The Fire Services Bureau is responsible for fire and rescue services in Macau. Volunteer fire brigades in Macau dates back to 1851 and full-time department in 1883. Prior to 1851, the Portuguese military provided fire services in the colony. In 1999, the CB became a fully civilian agency. Today the department is organized under the Macau Security Force. The brigade is responsible for fire and rescue for both land and air.
The Portuguese Marine Corps is the special operations capable amphibious force of the Portuguese Navy.
Articles related to Macau include:
The 12-3 incident was a series of political demonstrations and riots against Portuguese colonial rule in Macau which occurred on December 3, 1966. The incident, inspired by the Cultural Revolution in the People's Republic of China, occurred as a direct response to a violent police crackdown by colonial authorities against local Chinese protesters demonstrating against corruption and colonialism in Macau.
Fernando Augusto Colaço Leal Robles or Fernando Robles is a Portuguese former Second Lieutenant who participated in initial counterinsurgency operations against insurgent União dos Povos de Angola (UPA) guerrillas operating in northern Angola during 1961, at the onset of the Portuguese Colonial War. He was born in Coimbra.
The Caçadores (hunters) were the elite light infantry troops of the Portuguese Army, in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Units of Caçadores – with features somewhat different from the original ones – continued to exist in the Portuguese Armed Forces until the 1970s, namely the Caçadores Especiais – several special forces companies of the Portuguese Army created by the Special Operations Troops Centre at the beginning of the 1960s and heavily employed throughout the Portuguese Colonial War (1961-1974) in Africa.
Macau was a Portuguese colony from the establishment of the first official Portuguese settlement of Macau in 1557 to its handover to China in 1999. It comprised the Municipality of Macau and the Municipality of Ilhas. Macau was both the first and last European holding in China.
The South China Sea raid was an operation conducted by the United States Third Fleet between 10 and 20 January 1945 during the Pacific War of World War II. The raid was undertaken to support the liberation of Luzon in the Philippines, and targeted Japanese warships, supply convoys and aircraft in the region.