Hong Kong fell to Japanese forces on Christmas Day 1941 following a brief but intense period of fighting. Most of those buried or commemorated on the island were killed at this time, or died later as internees or prisoners of war during the Japanese occupation. The SAI WAN MEMORIAL forms the entrance to Sai Wan War Cemetery and bears the names of
more than 2,000 Commonwealth servicemen who died in the Battle of Hong Kong, or subsequently in captivity, who have no known grave. Additional panels to the memorial form the SAI WAN CREMATION MEMORIAL, listing the names of 144 Second World War casualties whose remains were cremated in accordance with their faith, and the SAI WAN (CHINA) MEMORIAL, commemorating 72 casualties of both wars whose graves in mainland China could not be maintained. SAI WAN WAR CEMETERY contains the graves of more than 1,500 Commonwealth servicemen who died during the Second World War, more than 400 of them unidentified. A small number of First World War casualties are also commemorated in the cemetery. Both the cemetery and memorial were designed by Colin St Clair Oakes.