Martin Clemens
| Martin Clemens | |
|---|---|
Martin Clemens and his Solomon scouts.
|
|
| Born |
17 April 1915 Aberdeen, Scotland |
| Died | 31 May 2009 (aged 94) |
| Allegiance |
 United Kingdom
|
| Service/branch | British Solomon Islands Protectorate Defence Force |
| Years of service | 1941–1945 |
| Rank | Major |
| Battles/wars | |
| Awards |
Commander of the Order of the British Empire Member of the Order of Australia Military Cross Legion of Merit (United States) |
Major Warren Frederick Martin Clemens CBE, AM, MC (17 April 1915 – 31 May 2009) was a British colonial administrator and soldier. In late 1941 and early 1942, while serving as a District Officer in the Solomon Islands, he helped prepare the area for eventual resistance to Japanese occupation.
His additional duties as coastwatcher alerted the Allies to Japanese plans to build an airstrip on Guadalcanal. This resulted in Allied carrier raids and eventually a landing by United States forces and the beginning of the epic struggle in the Solomons. Clemens then directly served the U.S. Marines in coordinating intelligence on Japanese activities.
Martin Clemens was born in Aberdeen, Scotland, son of Warren Clemens, a musician. He won scholarships to Bedford School and Christ's College, Cambridge, where he studied agriculture and natural sciences from 1933–1937.
In 1938, Clemens joined the Colonial Service and was sent out to the British Solomon Islands Protectorate (BSIP). He served for three years as a cadet in Malaita, and became a District Officer in 1941. With the coming of the Pacific War, he volunteered for military service in the British Solomon Islands Protectorate Defence Force and was commissioned a captain. After a short leave in Australia in late 1941, Martin Clemens returned to the Solomons on a ship sent to evacuate European and Chinese residents from Guadalcanal.
While responsible for nearly fifteen thousand citizens and various other people on Guadalcanal, District Officer Clemens additionally served as a coastwatcher. The Japanese planned to cut off the United States' communications with New Zealand and Australia by building an airstrip on Guadalcanal. When they began landing infantry, support troops and engineers to begin the airstrip, Clemens reported such to the Allies by radio.
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