Lei Yue Mun Park and Holiday Village
Lei Yue Mun Park and Holiday Village is a holiday village located in the east of Shau Kei Wan, facing Lei Yue Mun, with an area of 22.97 hectares. It used to be Lyemun Barracks, barracks for the British soldiers stationed in Hong Kong prior to its conversion into a holiday village, the only holiday camp owned by the government in the urban districts of Hong Kong.
History
Early Construction
Lyemun Barracks was named after the fishing village of Lei Yue Mun. The old Lyemun Barracks was one of the earliest and most important British Army fortifications in Hong Kong. Situated at the northeast corner of Hong Kong Island overlooking the eastern approach to the Victoria Harbour, Lei Yue Mun occupied a strategic position. In 1885, the military decided to build a permanent infrastructure at Lei Yue Mun and later in 1889, the land was transferred to the War Department for the construction. The Barracks consisted mainly of three portions:The central area: Main Barracks
The western ridge: Upper Fort
The headland: (Lei Yue Mun Fort, now the Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defence, Pak Sha Wan Battery.
Significance in World War II (1941-1945)
The fortifications of Lei Yue Mun had already become an important point of coastal defense during the 1890s and continued to expand in the following decades. By the 1930s, however, the strategic importance of Lei Yue Mun had declined considerably as a result of technological and tactical advances.On 19 December 1941, the Barracks fell into the hands of the Japanese. At 3:00 am, a troop of Japanese soldiers, in a car, broke through the fence, using bombs and killed the British Guards. The rest of the soldiers, around 100 British soldiers, were locked in a cannon loading room, until 9:30 pm, the Japanese ordered the soldiers to get out, and shot all of the soldiers, two Chinese-British soldiers survived by hiding under the corpses, escaping successfully.
Conversion to the Holiday Village
The Barracks housed the Depot and Record Office of the Hong Kong Military Service Corps between 1948 and 1986. The Barracks were handed over to the Government in 1987 and were subsequently converted into the Lei Yue Mun Park and Holiday Village.After the Lyemun Barracks were left disabled and were handed over to the Government, the Southern Part was converted into the Lei Yue Mun Park and Holiday Village, while the headland was left unused and lost until it was converted into the Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defence in 2000.
The whole former barracks compound is graded as Grade I historic building because of its historic significance. The buildings of the compound are graded as Grade I and II historic buildings separately, however.
SARS Outbreak
During the outbreak of the Severe acute respiratory syndrome in 2003, a larger cluster of cases in Hong Kong were focused on the Amoy Gardens housing estate, particularly in Block E. Its spread was later suspected to have been facilitated by defects in its drainage system, and it was subsequently discovered that fecal-oral transmission of SARS was possible. By March, the total number of infected people have reached over 200, 137 of those residing in Block E. By the end of the month, the government issued an order to transfer the remaining unaffected residents of Block E into isolation in the Lei Yue Mun Park and Holiday Village and the Lady MacLehose Holiday Village in Sai Kung. The residents were subsequently returned to their homes after Hong Kong was removed from the World Health Organization 's list of 'Affected Areas' in late-June 2003.Coronavirus
In January 2020, SARS-CoV-2 emerged in Wuhan, China, and began spreading across the globe. By January 22, 2 confirmed cases of COVID-19 emerged in the SAR and the government set up two quarantine locations, the Lei Yue Mun Park and Holiday Village and the Lady MacLehose Holiday Village. 5 citizens who came in close contact with the 2 victims of the coronavirus were put into isolation at one of the two quarantine camps.Buildings and facilities
Facilities
The holiday village include a total of 4 family hostels and 2 group hostels, all provided with balconies, bedrooms, and lavatories with showering facilities, accommodating the living of up to 282 people. It has transformed into a park/holiday village, with facilities such as rope courses, a horse-riding school, tennis courts, basketball courts, football pitches, as well as other facilities for numerous indoor and outdoor entertainment. The barracks once housed by soldiers have now been transformed into small living quarters for the holiday village. Each block has a different purpose, providing different facilities for campers to enjoy, the most well-known being Block 10, the main Recreational Center, and Block 7, the Coffee Corner.Buildings
As the Lei Yue Mun Park and Holiday Village was constructed in the early 20th century, the buildings inside the Holiday Camp were modelled on the European-style buildings at the time of their construction. The buildings share a similar color scheme, with white as their primary color and light blue as their secondary color, usually found on window frames. The buildings were located across hillsides, with passageways linking them. The buildings of the previously known Lyemun Barracks were converted into Lei Yue Mun Park and Holiday Village, with a number of exceptions. One example of this would be Block 8, an outhouse located behind the Coffee Corner, with the area listed as out of bounds and prohibited to enter, although tourists could follow a pathway behind Block 10 to reach it.Block 3, located diagonally from the Canteen, was previously left unused and deactivated. Its surrounding area was sealed off, though tourists could risk climbing a nearby stone slope, and over the iron wire mesh to enter it. In May 2016, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department proposed converting the then deactivated Block 3 into a quarantine facility, with the function to prevent epidemics from spreading in case of an outbreak. The conversion would be scheduled to undergo in late-2017 to 2019. However, even with the building re-painted, it is still unclear whether the proposed plan went through as the facility was never opened to the public. As a result, its current status remains a mystery.
Buildings in the holiday village have numbers printed on their exterior walls for visitors to identify, some with its year of establishment, a distinctive feature kept from its days as part of the Lyemun Barracks. Some buildings however, have re-printed them with a different font, or have even stripped off these numbers and have replaced them with signs.
Renovation
In between January and July 2018, Block 7, the 'Coffee Corner', underwent renovation procedures to improve the building's interior. After the refurbrishment, the Coffee Corner was reopened in August 2018 and introduced itself as more aesthetically appealing. The floor was replaced from plastic texture sheets to polished wood tiles, parts of walls and pillars fitted with dark marble coatings, and improved lighting. This renovation also introduced drawings hung on walls, representing the layout of buildings of the Royal Artillery Barracks. This includes the Soldiers' Barracks, Officers' Barracks, Outhouses, Married Quarters and the Guard House. These drawings illustrate each building's exterior and interior structure in their days as part of the Lyemun Barracks.Based on these illustrations, it can be concluded that during the process of conversion into the Holiday Village, the structures had to be altered to be catered to the building's new purposes. For example, the Officers' Quarters' original structure consisted of individual rooms, a big contrast to the current design of the Coffee Corner, being one large living room with several smaller rooms on the sides. Another drawing depicts the locations of these buildings on a hand-drawn map, suggesting that Block 10 was originally built to be shorter in length, but was extended subsequent to the demolition of the Married Quarters, which occupied said space. Furthermore, Block 9 was not present in the illustrations, which could suggest that either Block 9 was not built at the time of the residential period of the Royal Artillery Army, or that Block 9 was present but was not part of the Artillery barracks to be included in the drawings.
Pak Sha Wan Battery
There's a road right next to the Lei Yue Mun Public Riding School, with a locked gate preventing tourists from entering. According to the map, the road continues to stretch towards the coast, and crosses the Island Eastern Corridor as a bridge. Along the road are buildings previously part of the Lyemun Barracks, alongside the Pak Sha Wan Battery, which were left isolated and lost from the Holiday Village, now claimed as property of the Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defense. However, these places were not open to the public, and tourists would get inside themselves through various methods, either finding themselves on the bridge over the Island Eastern Corridor, or just inside the area. Maintenance along this area is shown to be poor, as leaves and fallen tree branches are often found, with a car parking gate left closed at the end of the bridge, the road then continues to the deactivated and isolated blocks of the former Lyemun Barracks.Block 1, the 'Changing Room'
Situated on a small hillside beside the Eastern Corridor, the green and white structure uses a different color scheme than other buildings, and was formerly used as a Changing Room for soldiers before pool training. Block 1's structure remains intact, though in poor condition, with glass pieces and layers of dried up paint scattered across the rooms, with broken doors and showering facilities gone rusty. Several signs pasted on the walls and pillars have also deterioated and not legible, with both the main swimming pool, and two other hot tubs blocked off with concrete.Block 44, the 'Sniper Room'
Other structures within the isolated area share the same poor condition, with Block 44 being another example. Named the 'Sniper Room', the block resembles a sniper ranch with a round window near the roof of the front wall. The white structure remains intact with significant evidence of deteriotation, with chipped paint on walls peeled off and broken floor tiles. The impaired condition shared by these isolated and deactivated buildings is a drastic comparison to the buildings converted into parts of the holiday village, in addition to its proof of the barracks' lengthy history.Structures and historic buildings
The whole compound was graded as a Grade I historic structure, while some buildings were graded as Grade I and Grade II individually, these ratings were confirmed in 18 December 2009.Three of the buildings in the Holiday Village were declared historical monument on 20 May 2016 and are now protected under the Antiquities and Monuments Ordinance. This includes Block 7, Block 10 and Block 25.
The following are all structures of the former Lyemun Barracks, some of them graded as Historic Buildings.
Number Location Note: implies that the number was painted on by soldiers since their construction, implies that it was re-printed on using a different font.
| Block | Built | Historic Grade | Current Status | Number Location | Notes | Photographs |
| Block 1 | N/A | Isolated | Side, Top | Isolated from the Holiday Village. Formerly used as a Changing Room for British soldiers prior to trainings carried out in a nearby swimming pool. Unlike the other buildings which utilizes the white and light blue color scheme, this block uses green as its primary color. | ||
| Block 2 | Built in 1939 | N/A | Demolished | N/A | Built in 1939, this block ulitized the same architectural style as Block 3, and is believed to have been built along with Block 3, serving the same purpose. In 1992, Block 2 was demolished to create space for the construction of the Lei Yue Mun Public Riding School, which was commissioned on 21 November 1992. The photograph shows both Block 2 and Block 3 before Block 2 was demolished. | |
| Block 3 | Built in 1939 | Grade II | Unknown | Formerly Front, Top Left Currently Removed | Formerly used as the Officers' Barracks. It was intended to be left deactivated, but was the subject of a proposed plan to be converted into a quarantee facility. The building was re-painted, but its status was never officially confirmed. The top photograph shows the old version, with the bottom photograph displaying its appearance after the renovation. Block 3's structure features the International Style of Modern Architecture, and is said to be one of the only remaining structures used for military purposes that ulitizes this model. | |
| Block 4 | N/A | In Use | Removed | Now used as the Canteen for the Holiday Village, along with 4 Activity Rooms. | ||
| Block 5 | Built in 1920s - 1930s | Grade II | In Use | Front, Top Center | Former Chapel and Garrison Hall of the Barracks, now used as the Main Hall of the Holiday Village. It is served as a venue for weddings due to its resemblance to a 20th-century European church. | |
| Block 6 | N/A | In Use | Side, Top Center | Now used as the Orchid House of the Holiday Village. | ||
| Block 6A | N/A | In Use | Front, Top Center | Now used as the African Violet House of the Holiday Village | ||
| Block 7 | Built in 1890 - 1895 | Grade I | In Use | Side, Top Center | Formerly used as the Officers Quarters of the Artillery Barracks, later used as the "HKMSC Training Complex", now used as the Coffee Corner of the Holiday Village. Block 7 went under renovation between January and June 2018. It was declared a monument on 20 May 2016 and is protected under the Antiquities and Monuments Ordinance along with Block 10 and Block 25. The architectural style of Block 7 is “Colonial Vernacular”, which featured the characteristic wide open verandahs on three sides, a raised ground floor and a central “Jack-Roof”. | |
| Block 8 | N/A | Deactivated | Side, Top Center | Located beside Block 7, formerly used as an outhouse and now deactivated. The photograph shows the drastic difference between the conditions of both buildings. Block 7 in the background, and Block 8. | ||
| Block 9 | N/A | In Use | Front, Top Center | Now used as the Children Play House of the Holiday Village. | ||
| Block 10 | Built in 1890 - 1895 | Grade I | In Use | Front, Top Center | Formerly used as the Soldiers Quarters of the Artillery Barracks. Now used as the Indoor Recreational Center of the Holiday Village. It was declared a monument on 20 May 2016 and is protected under the Antiquities and Monuments Ordinance along with Block 7 and Block 25. Block 10 is a rare piece of simplified Classical design architecture. It is a three-storey long rectangular building featuring open arched, colonnaded and balustraded verandahs on the front and rear facades.The segmental arches are supported on square Tuscan order columns. The first and second floor verandahs have classical urn-shaped balustrading. The extension in 1935 was generally constructed to the same scale and to the same design as the older block. | |
| Block 11 | N/A | In Use | Front, Top | Formerly used as an outhouse of the Artillery Barracks. Now used as a Storage House for barbecue equipment. | ||
| Block 12 | N/A | In Use | Behind, Top | Formerly used as an outhouse of the Artillery Barracks. Now used as a Storage House for barbecue equipment. | ||
| Block 13 | N/A | In Use | Front, Top | Formerly used as an outhouse of the Artillery Barracks. Now used as a Latrine of the Holiday Village. | ||
| Block 14 | N/A | Demolished | Formerly used as the Married Quarters of the Artillery Barracks. | |||
| Block 15 | N/A | Demolished | Formerly used as the Guard House of the Artillery Barracks. | |||
| Architectural Services Department Property Services Branch District Management Office | N/A | Not In Use | N/A | Built in the location of the former Guard House of the Artillery Barracks. Now left unused. | ||
| Block 16 | N/A | In Use | Front, Top | Now used as a Storage Room. | ||
| Block 17 | Believed to have been built in the early 1900s | Grade II | In Use | Front, beside bridge entrance | Formerly used as the Sergeants' Mess, now used as the Art & Craft Centre of the Holiday Village. | |
| Block 17A | N/A | In Use | Front, Middle | Now used as a Storage Room. | ||
| Block 18 | Built in late 1890s and early 1990s | Grade I | In Use | Side, Top | Formerly used as Soldiers' Quarters, Institution, Office and Storage. Now used as the Horticulture Building of the Holiday Village. | |
| Block 20 | Built in late 1890s and early 1990s | Grade I | In Use | Side, Top | Formerly used as the Bathhouse and Kitchen. Now used as the Entertainment Center of the Holiday Village. | |
| Block 21 | Built in late 1890s and early 1990s | Grade I | In Use | Side, Top | Formerly used as Soldiers' Quarters. Later used as the H.K.M.S.C. Headquarters. Now used as the main office of the Holiday Village. | |
| Block 22 | N/A | In Use | Front Right | Now used as a Latrine and the Staff Room of the Holiday Village. | ||
| Block 23 | N/A | In Use | Front, Top Left | Now used as a Flowering Garden of the Holiday Village. | ||
| Block 25 | Built in late 1890s to early 1900s | Grade I | In Use | Center Right | Formerly used as Officers' Mess of the Barracks, converted to a group hostel of the Holiday Village. It was declared a monument on 20 May 2016 and is protected under the Antiquities and Monuments Ordinance along with Block 7 and Block 10. Block 25 is a two-storey building with elegant simplified Classical design, featuring open colonnaded and balustraded verandahs on three sides. | |
| Block 25A | N/A | In Use | Removed | Now used as a Group Hostel of the Holiday Village. | ||
| Block 26 | N/A | In Use | Right Side | Now used as an Activity Room of the Holiday Village. | ||
| Block 28 | N/A | In Use | Formerly Front, Top Now Front Right | Now used as a Squash Court Room of the Holiday Village. | ||
| Block 29 | N/A | In Use | Right Side | Formerly used as a vehicle garage. Now used as multiple storage rooms. | ||
| Block 30 | Built in 1936 | Grade I | In Use | Side, Top Center | "Masefield Block", named after English poet and writer John Masefield. Formerly used as Married Quarters. Now used as a hostel of the Holiday Village. | |
| Block 31 | Built in 1907 | Grade I | In Use | Removed, presumably under the words "Shakespeare" | "Shakespeare Block", named after English poet William Shakespeare. Formerly used as Married Quarters. Now used as a hostel of the Holiday Village. | |
| Block 32 | Built in 1909 | Grade I | In Use | Side, Top, Under the words "Tennyson" | "Tennyson Block", named after English poet Alfred Tennyson. Formerly used as Married Quarters. Now used as a hostel of the Holiday Village. | |
| Block 33 | Built in 1938 | Grade II | In Use | Removed | "Milton Block", named after English poet John Milton. Formerly used as Married Quarters. Now used as the Staff Quarters of the Holiday Village. | |
| Block 34 | Built in 1936 | Grade II | In Use | Removed, presumably under the words "Wordsworth" | "Wordsworth Block", named after English poet William Wordsworth. Formerly used as Married Quarters. Now used as a hostel of the Holiday Village. | |
| Block 35 | N/A | In Use | Removed | Now used as an Activity Room of the Holiday Village. This building was rarely used and as a result, its condition is relatively poor compared to other refurbrished buildings. | ||
| Block 37 | N/A | In Use | Front, Top Left | Now used as a Storage Room for the Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defense, and is one of the two only blocks within the area that is currently being used. Formerly used as a Barracks room. | ||
| Block 38 | N/A | Deactivated | Front | Formerly used as an outdoor Latrine of the barracks, now deactivated and left unused. | ||
| Block 39 | N/A | Deactivated | Front, Top Left | Formerly used as a Barracks room, linked with Block 40. It is now deactivated and left unused. | ||
| Block 40 | N/A | Deactivated | Beside Entrance | Formerly used as a Barracks room, linked with Block 39. It is now deactivated and left unused. | ||
| Block 41 | N/A | Deactivated | Side | Formerly used as a showering facility of the barracks, now deactivated and left unused. | ||
| Block 42 | N/A | Deactivated | Side | Formerly used as a Latrine of the barracks compatible with Block 41, now deactivated and left unused. | ||
| Block 43 | N/A | In Use | Side | Now used as a Storage Room for the Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defense, and is one of the two only blocks within the area that is currently being used. | ||
| Block 44 | N/A | Deactivated | Front, Top | 'Sniper Room'. Formerly used as a Barracks Room and a War Shelter for the Lyemun Barracks. Now deactivated and left unused. | ||
| Block 45 | N/A | Deactivated | Side | 'Hall-Fire Room'. Formerly used as a Barracks Room for the Lyemun Barracks. Now deactivated and left unused. | ||
| Block 46 | N/A | Deactivated | Front | 'Engine House'. Formerly used as a storage room for machinery and engines. In front of Block 46 is what seems to be an anti-aircraft cannon which is kept in good condition. | ||
| Block 48 | N/A | In Use | Front Top | Now used as a Storage Room. | ||
| Block 49 | N/A | In Use | Beside Entrance, Side | Now used as a Snooker Room of the Holiday Village. Due to its length, this is the only known building to have its number printed on the side of the building and beside the entrance. | ||
| Block 50 | N/A | In Use | Left Side | Now used as a Storage Room. | ||
| Block 52 | N/A | Deactivated | Front, Left | Located outside the Barracks and beside Chai Wan Road and the Park's entrance. Formerly used as the Pump Room for the Barracks. |