Leading Seaman Gordon Cleaver

Kyt · Nov 10, 2008

Leading Seaman Gordon Cleaver - Telegraph

Leading Seaman Gordon Cleaver, who has died aged 75, was the hero of the Pearl River Incident in 1953 when, with half his shipmates killed, he took command of his patrol boat to bring her into British waters off Hong Kong.

On Sept 9, 1953, Cleaver, who had just been made up to a leading hand in Harbour Defence Motor Launch 1323, was watching traffic at the mouth of the river on the Hong Kong boundary with China. Her captain, the South-African born Lieutenant GCX Merriman, had just inspected a junk when he saw a warship, flying the Communist Chinese flag, coming downriver.

Despite orders to avoid provocation so soon after the Korean War armistice, Merriman steered a course to intercept. Cleaver went to the six-pounder gun on the forecastle, ready to jump into the mounting should action stations be sounded. With the distance between the two ships closing rapidly, Merriman had just taken photographs with a telescopic camera, when the Chinese warship hoisted an international flag "K", signalling him to stop his vessel, emphasising this with a burst of small arms fire.

Ignoring the order Merriman turned away and increased to full speed when a large calibre shell smashed into ML 1323's engine room without exploding. As the crew sheltered in the lightly armoured wheelhouse, Cleaver entered the engine room to find a large hole in the port side and opposite an unexploded shell, which he carried on deck and dropped over the side.

Chinese machine-gun fire now cut through the wooden hull of ML 1323 to destroy the radio. As Merriman gave the order "Action Stations!" a shell shattered the bridge, severing his legs and a hand. He cried out for morphine, but when Cleaver forced open the safe he could find only papers and a sextant. Meanwhile more shells killed everyone in the wheelhouse and detonated the launch's ammunition.

Cleaver helped to put out a fierce fire in the engine room and then, still under attack, calmly unscrewed a deck plate to connect the emergency steering. While two unarmed RAF Hornets screamed over the Chinese warship to draw her fire, he then steered for the police station on one of the colony's islands.

With the wrecked engines knocking as blood ran onto them from the decks above, he ordered Stokers Milner and Clarke, who were unhurt, to reduce speed in order to avoid the engines stalling.

With help from Clarke, Cleaver cut away the mast which was trailing over the side and rehoisted the White Ensign at the stern.

Despite rising wind and rough seas he gradually closed the coast until a Hong Kong Marine Police launch took ML 1323 in tow.

In under three hours the action was over: among the six dead were Merriman and Captain EF Gower of the Royal Hong Kong Defence Force, and four others were seriously injured. Cleaver was found to have shown outstanding coolness and courageousness when suddenly and unexpectedly surrounded by death and bloodshed, and was awarded the BEM.

Gordon Cleaver was born on March 20 1933, the son of a Surrey postman, and joined the Navy at HMS St Vincent, Gosport, as a boy seaman in 1948. In retirement he worked in engineering management in Middlesex, and at the time of his death he was an effective chairman of the Hong Kong Flotilla Association. The Untold Story of HDML 1323 by John H Fleming was published in 2002.

Gordon Cleaver, who died on October 28, is survived by his wife Jean; there were no children.
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Adrian Roberts · Nov 10, 2008

Why only the BEM? Did someone not want to upset the communists (bearing in mind that the British Establishment was riddled with communist sympathisers at the time)?

I would have thought at least a DSM, and if you compare it with Motor Launch actions at Zeebrugge and Kronstadt in 1918/19, possibly a VC or at least a CGM

Kyt · Nov 11, 2008

Having seen the way that the government and the establishment conferred medals to some individuals andnot others, I think they probably took the view that it was not an action against an "enemy", and so did not merit a gallentry medal of that magnituted. The BEM is for saving lives rather than actual action...

.....I know, it doesn't make sense and isn't fair :frusty: It is like awarding GCs to POWs rather than VCs because, technically, they are no longer combatents (that is not to diminish the high value of the GC).

Antipodean Andy · Nov 11, 2008

An interesting action. Cleaver certainly kept a cool head. RIP.

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