A Tiny Ship That Terrorized a Japanese Fleet

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Captain Wilkinson knew the Japanese very well and knew there was no way out for his crew. As the Captain sighted the convoy of 15 enemy ships that slowly approached him, he pondered his situation.

He could turn back to occupied Singapore and face a terrible fate, or face the enemy convoy and take down as many Japanese as possible before the inevitable end.

After a few seconds, the captain ordered his crew to battle stations. Armed with only one cannon and two Lewis machine guns, the converted Ferry Li Wo headed straight into the enemy formation.

Outgunned, outnumbered, and outmatched, Li Wo and her crew were about to write their name in Royal Navy history…

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34 thoughts on “A Tiny Ship That Terrorized a Japanese Fleet”

  5. After reading for years on WWII, I understand why the ship's Captain did what he did. I also have been in the miliary and know why all the men followed him into the battle. Thank You for telling the story of such brave men.

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  10. The horse power of the ship is in Nominal Horse power, which is calculated by piston size and working pressure. The steam engine is said to be triple compound so that UPS the HP by a lot. Best guess is the Nhp x 7-10 to equal Brake Horse power. Not sure how that would convert to Shaft Horse power which is what ships tend to be rated in.

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  12. This is a testament to the bravery and fighting spirit of the British and their allies on board that little ship. Thank you.
    What is the background song with the french horns? I'd love to know the name.

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  13. Hi, I am a subscriber to Dark tech for a couple of years and only found this channel today, so have liked both videos I have just watched and subscribed. i am a former RN vet and had never heard of this story of HMS Li Wo and the absolute bravery of her crew, thank you for sharing. i look forward to watching more vids of this series.

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  15. This is an object lesson in why it's a good idea to treat your prisoners-of-war decently. If surrender means a fate worse than death, you force your enemy to fight to the death.

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  28. The Fact that the Japanese themselves followed the Bushido Code of Honor was One Legitimate Fact that Foreign Military's were Aware of. So Captain Wilkinson's Decision was Very Impressive, and Sound Militarily Speaking.
    As mentioned with No other Options available, Other than Surrender too Superior Forces, & Fanatical Treatment by People Considered to be Barbaric, Ruthless & Cruel. Especially to POW or Even Civilians Captives. The Choice made was Definitely Heroic, Honorable, and the Only Choice in The End.
    And Apparently by the Number of Survivor's being just Eleven of 84 or So. The IJN Navel Personel, had too of Been Guilty, of Shooting the Other's in the Lifeboats after they had Abandoned the Ship ⚓🚢⚓.
    Behavior like that was Total War? And should of been Answered by the Same Policies of The Allies, from the beginning of the War Till it's End.
    As Always Dark Sea's, Your Program's are Excellent, Fascinating, Fantastic, Entertaining, and Really Great Reminder's 🎗️🎗️🎗️ of the Heroic Effort's of Many of Our Forefathers & Mother's as Well. Thank You so Much. May God Grant Them Eternal Peace & Love 💕😘💗🙏🙏🙏🙏.

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  29. This is another example of Brit soldiers and sailors are like lions but led by donkey-like politicians, generals and admirals. During the Japanese invasion of Malay and Singapore, there were 36,000 Jap soldiers landed facing 93,000 Brit soldiers who were ordered by London to surrender. 🤔🤨😎

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  34. Similar to the story of the USS Samuel Roberts, a destroyer escort that took on cruisers and destroyers. The little destroyer that could. Also the USS Johnston, which bravely assaulted larger Japanese warships. The captain of the Johnston did not survive.

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