Ronald Francis Shaw (28 November 19209 August 1945) was a

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

corporal who was captured by the Japanese during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, and was killed by the atomic bombing of

Nagasaki is the capital and the largest Cities of Japan, city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. It became the sole Nanban trade, port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hi ...

while in Japanese captivity. Shaw was from

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, and served as an engine fitter in the

. He initially served in

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...

before being transferred to the

Far East The ''Far East'' was a European term to refer to the geographical regions that includes East and Southeast Asia as well as the Russian Far East to a lesser extent. South Asia is sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons. The ter ...

. His plane took off from

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mos ...

to fly to Sumatra, however it turned back and then crashed roughly 16 miles south-east from Lahat, where he was assisted by Chinese civilians. Shaw was later seen by the No. 84th Squadron R.A.F, who noted he was severely injured, and aboard a boat heading to either

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo m ...

. Shaw sent a note to the Officer-in-charge which stated "plane got out of control and crashed". His boat did not reach the destination, and Shaw was declared missing in the Far East. Shaw was captured in 1942 in Jakarta and taken to Japan as a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of w ...

. In 1944 he was sent by sea on a Japanese

hell ship A hell ship is a ship with extremely inhumane living conditions or with a reputation for cruelty among the crew. It now generally refers to the ships used by the Imperial Japanese Navy and Imperial Japanese Army to transport Allied prisoners o ...

, however the ship was sunk. Shaw survived and was taken to Kyushu, and then in August 1945 worked in a

shipyard. On 9 August 1945, the US atomic bombing of Nagasaki took place, and the bomb is believed to have exploded close to the area where Shaw was being held prisoner. He was killed when a wall fell on him.CWGC entry
/ref> Shaw was the first

to be listed at the Nagasaki National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims and the second non-Japanese (the first being a

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

civilian Civilians under international humanitarian law are "persons who are not members of the armed forces" and they are not " combatants if they carry arms openly and respect the laws and customs of war". It is slightly different from a non-combatant ...

References

1920 births 1945 deaths Royal Air Force airmen Royal Air Force personnel killed in World War II World War II prisoners of war held by Japan British World War II prisoners of war Military personnel from London People from Edmonton, London {{RAF-bio-stub Prisoners who died in Japanese detention Deaths by American airstrikes during World War II