1.
Fort Canning
–
Fort Canning is a small hill slightly more than 60 metres high in the southeast portion of the island city-state of Singapore, within the Central Area that forms Singapores central business district. It is also a venue for music shows and concerts. The Malays called the hill Bukit Larangan or Forbidden Hill since olden times and this is due to the belief that it is the place where the kings of ancient Singapore were laid to rest, and it was believed to be haunted. It was also believed that a palace once stood on the hill, a settlement on the hill in the 14th century was named Ban Zu by the Yuan dynasty traveller Wang Dayuan. Later Sir Stamford Raffles built his residence there, which was used by other Residents. It became known as Government Hill until it was renamed Fort Canning in 1861 when a fort was built on the site, today it is the location of the Fort Canning Park. In around 1330, the Chinese traveller Wang Dayuan visited the island of Singapore, Wang described in his work Daoyi Zhilüe the two distinct settlements of Temasek, Long Ya Men, and Ban Zu. Ban Zu, located on a hill behind Long Ya Men, is thought to be todays Fort Canning Hill, in contrast to the inhabitants of Long Ya Men who were described as being prone to acts of piracy, the people of Ban Zu were described as honest. The people were said to wear their hair short, with turban of gold-brocaded satin and it is now believed that the Fort Canning Hill area was once occupied by a palace with various buildings of political, religious and commercial significance. Archaeological evidence suggests that the settlement on Fort Canning was abandoned around this time, in 1928, a cache of Javanese-style gold ornaments dating to the mid-14th century were discovered at Fort Canning Hill while workers were excavating for a reservoir. Ban Zu is likely a transcription of the Malay word pancur meaning a spring or stream, a spring used to exist on the west side of the hill, called pancur larangan or forbidden spring, where the women of the rulers household were said to bathe in ancient times. Raffles, impressed by the significance of the hill and the commanding view it offered over the colony he had established. The residence was used by other Residents and Governors of Singapore. A keen botanist, Raffles also established Singapores first botanical garden there in 1822,48 acres of land were set aside for experimental crop cultivation, but the experiment failed and the garden was then abandoned in 1829. A Christian cemetery used to exist on the hill, serving as the ground for early Europeans in Singapore. Later the cemetery was moved further down the hill, a Gothic gateways built by Captain Charles Edward Faber in 1846, two classical monuments, and some headstones placed along brick walls remain at the site. By 1859, increased security concerns led to the taking on a military role with the demolition of the governors residence, and the building of a fort with an arms store, barracks. The fort was completed in 1861, and was named Fort Canning after Viscount Charles John Canning, who was then Governor-General, the old fort was later demolished, and a military headquarters was built with underground rooms serving as operations centre
2.
Singapore
–
Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, sometimes referred to as the Lion City or the Little Red Dot, is a sovereign city-state in Southeast Asia. It lies one degree north of the equator, at the tip of peninsular Malaysia. Singapores territory consists of one island along with 62 other islets. Since independence, extensive land reclamation has increased its size by 23%. During the Second World War, Singapore was occupied by Japan, after early years of turbulence, and despite lacking natural resources and a hinterland, the nation developed rapidly as an Asian Tiger economy, based on external trade and its workforce. Singapore is a global commerce, finance and transport hub, the country has also been identified as a tax haven. Singapore ranks 5th internationally and first in Asia on the UN Human Development Index and it is ranked highly in education, healthcare, life expectancy, quality of life, personal safety, and housing, but does not fare well on the Democracy index. Although income inequality is high, 90% of homes are owner-occupied, 38% of Singapores 5.6 million residents are permanent residents and other foreign nationals. There are four languages on the island, Malay, Mandarin, Tamil. English is its language, most Singaporeans are bilingual. Singapore is a multiparty parliamentary republic, with a Westminster system of unicameral parliamentary government. The Peoples Action Party has won every election since self-government in 1959, however, it is unlikely that lions ever lived on the island, Sang Nila Utama, the Srivijayan prince said to have founded and named the island Singapura, perhaps saw a Malayan tiger. There are however other suggestions for the origin of the name, the central island has also been called Pulau Ujong as far back as the third century CE, literally island at the end in Malay. In 1299, according to the Malay Annals, the Kingdom of Singapura was founded on the island by Sang Nila Utama and these Indianized Kingdoms, a term coined by George Cœdès were characterized by surprising resilience, political integrity and administrative stability. In 1613, Portuguese raiders burned down the settlement, which by then was part of the Johor Sultanate. The wider maritime region and much trade was under Dutch control for the following period, in 1824 the entire island, as well as the Temenggong, became a British possession after a further treaty with the Sultan. In 1826, Singapore became part of the Straits Settlements, under the jurisdiction of British India, prior to Raffles arrival, there were only about a thousand people living on the island, mostly indigenous Malays along with a handful of Chinese. By 1860 the population had swelled to over 80,000, many of these early immigrants came to work on the pepper and gambier plantations
3.
Geographic coordinate system
–
A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system used in geography that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation, to specify a location on a two-dimensional map requires a map projection. The invention of a coordinate system is generally credited to Eratosthenes of Cyrene. Ptolemy credited him with the adoption of longitude and latitude. Ptolemys 2nd-century Geography used the prime meridian but measured latitude from the equator instead. Mathematical cartography resumed in Europe following Maximus Planudes recovery of Ptolemys text a little before 1300, in 1884, the United States hosted the International Meridian Conference, attended by representatives from twenty-five nations. Twenty-two of them agreed to adopt the longitude of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, the Dominican Republic voted against the motion, while France and Brazil abstained. France adopted Greenwich Mean Time in place of local determinations by the Paris Observatory in 1911, the latitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle between the equatorial plane and the straight line that passes through that point and through the center of the Earth. Lines joining points of the same latitude trace circles on the surface of Earth called parallels, as they are parallel to the equator, the north pole is 90° N, the south pole is 90° S. The 0° parallel of latitude is designated the equator, the plane of all geographic coordinate systems. The equator divides the globe into Northern and Southern Hemispheres, the longitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle east or west of a reference meridian to another meridian that passes through that point. All meridians are halves of great ellipses, which converge at the north and south poles, the prime meridian determines the proper Eastern and Western Hemispheres, although maps often divide these hemispheres further west in order to keep the Old World on a single side. The antipodal meridian of Greenwich is both 180°W and 180°E, the combination of these two components specifies the position of any location on the surface of Earth, without consideration of altitude or depth. The grid formed by lines of latitude and longitude is known as a graticule, the origin/zero point of this system is located in the Gulf of Guinea about 625 km south of Tema, Ghana. To completely specify a location of a feature on, in, or above Earth. Earth is not a sphere, but a shape approximating a biaxial ellipsoid. It is nearly spherical, but has an equatorial bulge making the radius at the equator about 0. 3% larger than the radius measured through the poles, the shorter axis approximately coincides with the axis of rotation
4.
British Army
–
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom. As of 2017 the British Army comprises just over 80,000 trained Regular, or full-time, personnel and just over 26,500 trained Reserve, or part-time personnel. Therefore, the UK Parliament approves the continued existence of the Army by passing an Armed Forces Act at least once every five years, day to day the Army comes under administration of the Ministry of Defence and is commanded by the Chief of the General Staff. Repeatedly emerging victorious from these decisive wars allowed Britain to influence world events with its policies and establish itself as one of the leading military. In 1660 the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were restored under Charles II, Charles favoured the foundation of a new army under royal control and began work towards its establishment by August 1660. The Royal Scots Army and the Irish Army were financed by the Parliament of Scotland, the order of seniority of the most senior line regiments in the British Army is based on the order of seniority in the English army. At that time there was only one English regiment of dragoons, after William and Marys accession to the throne, England involved itself in the War of the Grand Alliance, primarily to prevent a French invasion restoring Marys father, James II. Spain, in the two centuries, had been the dominant global power, and the chief threat to Englands early transatlantic ambitions. The territorial ambitions of the French, however, led to the War of the Spanish Succession and the Napoleonic Wars. From the time of the end of the Seven Years War in 1763, Great Britain was the naval power. As had its predecessor, the English Army, the British Army fought the Kingdoms of Spain, France, and the Netherlands for supremacy in North America and the West Indies. With native and provincial assistance, the Army conquered New France in the North American theatre of the Seven Years War, the British Army suffered defeat in the American War of Independence, losing the Thirteen Colonies but holding on to Canada. The British Army was heavily involved in the Napoleonic Wars and served in campaigns across Europe. The war between the British and the First French Empire of Napoleon Bonaparte stretched around the world and at its peak, in 1813, the regular army contained over 250,000 men. A Coalition of Anglo-Dutch and Prussian Armies under the Duke of Wellington, the English had been involved, both politically and militarily, in Ireland since being given the Lordship of Ireland by the Pope in 1171. The campaign of the English republican Protector, Oliver Cromwell, involved uncompromising treatment of the Irish towns that had supported the Royalists during the English Civil War, the English Army stayed in Ireland primarily to suppress numerous Irish revolts and campaigns for independence. Having learnt from their experience in America, the British government sought a political solution, the British Army found itself fighting Irish rebels, both Protestant and Catholic, primarily in Ulster and Leinster in the 1798 rebellion. The Haldane Reforms of 1907 formally created the Territorial Force as the Armys volunteer reserve component by merging and reorganising the Volunteer Force, Militia, Great Britains dominance of the world had been challenged by numerous other powers, in the 20th century, most notably Germany
5.
Malayan Campaign
–
The Malayan Campaign was fought by Allied and Axis forces in Malaya, from 8 December 1941 –31 January 1942 during the Second World War. The Japanese had air and naval supremacy from the days of the campaign. For the British, Indian, Australian and Malayan forces defending the colony, the operation is notable for the Japanese use of bicycle infantry, which allowed troops to carry more equipment and swiftly move through thick jungle terrain. Royal Engineers, equipped with demolition charges, destroyed over a hundred bridges during the retreat, by the time the Japanese had captured Singapore, they had suffered 9,800 casualties, Allied losses totaled 138,708, including 130,000 captured. By 1941 the Japanese had been engaged for four years in trying to subjugate China and they were heavily reliant on imported materials for their military forces, particularly oil from the United States. From 1940 to 1941, the United States, the United Kingdom, the object of the embargoes was to assist the Chinese and encourage the Japanese to halt military action in China. The Japanese considered that pulling out of China would result in a loss of face and decided instead to take action against US, British. The Japanese forces for the invasion were assembled in 1941 on Hainan Island and this troop build-up was noticed by the Allies and, when asked, the Japanese advised that it related to its operations in China. When the Japanese invaded, they had over 200 tanks, consisting of the Type 95 Ha-Go, Type 97 Chi-Ha, Type 89 I-Go, in addition, they had over 500 combat aircraft available. They had just over 250 combat aircraft, but half of these were destroyed inside the first few days of combat, between the wars, the British military strategy in the Far East was undermined by a lack of attention and funding. He predicted that landings could be made at Songkhla and Pattani in Siam and he recommended large reinforcements to be sent immediately. His predictions turned out to be correct, but his recommendations were ignored, a strong naval presence was also thought to act as a deterrent against possible aggressors. By late 1941, after Lieutenant-General Arthur E. Percival had taken over as GOC Malaya, in addition, Churchill and Roosevelt had agreed that in the event of war breaking out in the east, priority would be given to finishing the war in the west. The east, until that time, would be a secondary priority, containment was considered the primary strategy in the east. Planning for this offensive was undertaken by the Japanese Military Affairs Bureaus Unit 82 based in Taiwan, intelligence on Malaya was gathered through a network of agents which included Japanese embassy staff, disaffected Malayans, and Japanese, Korean, and Taiwanese business people and tourists. Japanese spies, which included a British intelligence officer, Captain Patrick Stanley Vaughan Heenan, in November 1941 the British became aware of the large scale buildup of Japanese troops in French Indo-China. Thailand was seen to be under threat from this build-up as well as Malaya, British strategists had foreseen the possibility of Thailands Kra isthmus being used by the Japanese to invade Malaya. To counteract this threat, plans for a pre-emptive invasion of southern Thailand
6.
Battle of Singapore
–
Singapore was the major British military base in South-East Asia and was the keystone of British imperial interwar defence planning for South-East Asia as well as the South-West Pacific. The fighting in Singapore lasted from 8 to 15 February 1942 although this was preceded by two months of British resistance as Japanese forces advanced down the Malaya peninsula and it resulted in the Japanese capture of Singapore and the largest surrender of British-led military personnel in history. About 80,000 British, Indian and Australian troops became prisoners of war, the British prime minister, Winston Churchill, called it the worst disaster in British military history. During 1940 and 1941, the Allies had imposed an embargo on Japan in response to its continued campaigns in China. The Japanese were encouraged to choose war by their intelligence, in December 1940, the Germans handed over copies of the papers to the Japanese. As a part of process, the Japanese planners determined a broad scheme of manoeuvre that incorporated simultaneous attacks on the British. In addition, strikes would be made against the United States naval fleet at Pearl Harbor, as well as landings in the Philippines, and attacks on Guam, Wake Island and the Gilbert Islands. With this perimeter, it was intended to block Allied attempts to regain the lost territory, the Japanese 25th Army invaded from Indochina, moving into northern Malaya and Thailand by amphibious assault on 8 December 1941. This was virtually simultaneous with the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor which precipitated the United States entry in to the war, Thailand initially resisted, but soon had to yield. The Japanese then proceeded overland across the Thai–Malayan border to attack Malaya, at this time, the Japanese began bombing strategic sites in Singapore. The Japanese 25th Army was resisted in northern Malaya by III Corps of the British Indian Army, although the 25th Army was outnumbered by Allied forces in Malaya and Singapore, Japanese commanders concentrated their forces. The Japanese were superior in close air support, armour, co-ordination, tactics, prior to the Battle of Singapore the most resistance was met at the Battle of Muar, which involved the Australian 8th Division and the Indian 45th Brigade. At the start of the campaign, the Allied forces had only 164 first-line aircraft on hand in Malaya and Singapore, and these aircraft were operated by two Royal Australian Air Force, two Royal Air Force, and one Royal New Zealand Air Force squadron. Major shortcomings included a slow rate of climb and the fuel system which required the pilot to hand pump fuel if flying above 6,000 feet. Their fighter aircraft were superior to the Allied fighters, which helped the Japanese to gain air supremacy, Japanese forces quickly isolated, surrounded, and forced the surrender of Indian units defending the coast. They advanced down the Malayan peninsula overwhelming the defences, despite their numerical inferiority, the Japanese forces also used bicycle infantry and light tanks, allowing swift movement through the jungle. The Allies, however, having thought the terrain made them impractical, had no tanks, and only a few armoured vehicles, although more Allied units—including some from the Australian 8th Division—joined the campaign, the Japanese prevented the Allied forces from regrouping. They also overran cities and advanced toward Singapore, the city was an anchor for the operations of the American-British-Dutch-Australian Command, the first Allied joint command of the Second World War
7.
Arthur Percival
–
Lieutenant-General Arthur Ernest Percival, CB, DSO & Bar, OBE, MC, OStJ, DL was a senior British Army officer. Percivals surrender to the invading Imperial Japanese Army force, the largest capitulation in British military history, Arthur Ernest Percival was born on 26 December 1887 in Aspenden Lodge, Aspenden near Buntingford in Hertfordshire, England, the second son of Alfred Reginald and Edith Percival. His father was the Land Agent of the Hamels Park estate, Percival was initially schooled locally in Bengeo. Then in 1901, he was sent to Rugby with his more successful brother. A moderate pupil, he studied Greek and Latin but was described by a teacher as not a good classic, Percivals only qualification on leaving in 1906 was a higher school certificate. He was a successful sportsman, playing cricket and tennis. He also rose to sergeant in the schools Volunteer Rifle Corps. Nearly one third of his fellow recruits would be dead by the end of the war, by November Percival had been promoted to captain. The following year he was dispatched to France with the newly formed 7th Battalion of the Bedfordshire Regiment, Percival took a regular commission as a captain with the Essex Regiment in October 1916, whilst recovering from his injuries in hospital. He was appointed a major in his original regiment. In 1917, he became battalion commander with the rank of lieutenant-colonel. During Germanys Spring Offensive, Percival led a counter-attack that saved a unit of French artillery from capture, for a short period in May 1918, he acted as commander of the 54th Brigade. He was given promotion to major, and awarded the Distinguished Service Order, with his citation noting his power of command. He ended the war as a soldier, described as very efficient and was recommended for the Staff College. Percivals studies were delayed in 1919 when he decided to volunteer for service with the Archangel Command of the British Military Mission during the North Russia Campaign of the Russian Civil War. Acting as second-in-command of the 45th Royal Fusiliers, he earned a bar to his DSO in August, during the enemy counter-attack from Selmenga on Gorodok he handled his men excellently. The enemy were repulsed with loss, leaving 400 prisoners in our hands. Percival proved himself an energetic and effective counter-guerrilla, noted for his aptitude for intelligence gathering, enemies in the Irish Republican Army and others accused him of brutality towards prisoners, among them Tom Barry, leader of the West Cork Flying Column
8.
Royal Navy
–
The Royal Navy is the United Kingdoms naval warfare force. Although warships were used by the English kings from the medieval period. The modern Royal Navy traces its origins to the early 16th century, from the middle decades of the 17th century and through the 18th century, the Royal Navy vied with the Dutch Navy and later with the French Navy for maritime supremacy. From the mid 18th century it was the worlds most powerful navy until surpassed by the United States Navy during the Second World War. The Royal Navy played a key part in establishing the British Empire as the world power during the 19th. Due to this historical prominence, it is common, even among non-Britons, following World War I, the Royal Navy was significantly reduced in size, although at the onset of the Second World War it was still the worlds largest. By the end of the war, however, the United States Navy had emerged as the worlds largest, during the Cold War, the Royal Navy transformed into a primarily anti-submarine force, hunting for Soviet submarines, mostly active in the GIUK gap. The Royal Navy is part of Her Majestys Naval Service, which includes the Royal Marines. The professional head of the Naval Service is the First Sea Lord, the Defence Council delegates management of the Naval Service to the Admiralty Board, chaired by the Secretary of State for Defence. The strength of the fleet of the Kingdom of England was an important element in the power in the 10th century. English naval power declined as a result of the Norman conquest. Medieval fleets, in England as elsewhere, were almost entirely composed of merchant ships enlisted into service in time of war. Englands naval organisation was haphazard and the mobilisation of fleets when war broke out was slow, early in the war French plans for an invasion of England failed when Edward III of England destroyed the French fleet in the Battle of Sluys in 1340. Major fighting was confined to French soil and Englands naval capabilities sufficed to transport armies and supplies safely to their continental destinations. Such raids halted finally only with the occupation of northern France by Henry V. Henry VII deserves a large share of credit in the establishment of a standing navy and he embarked on a program of building ships larger than heretofore. He also invested in dockyards, and commissioned the oldest surviving dry dock in 1495 at Portsmouth, a standing Navy Royal, with its own secretariat, dockyards and a permanent core of purpose-built warships, emerged during the reign of Henry VIII. Under Elizabeth I England became involved in a war with Spain, the new regimes introduction of Navigation Acts, providing that all merchant shipping to and from England or her colonies should be carried out by English ships, led to war with the Dutch Republic. In the early stages of this First Anglo-Dutch War, the superiority of the large, heavily armed English ships was offset by superior Dutch tactical organisation and the fighting was inconclusive
9.
Admiralty
–
The new Admiralty Board meets only twice a year, and the day-to-day running of the Royal Navy is controlled by a Navy Board. It is common for the authorities now in charge of the Royal Navy to be referred to as simply The Admiralty. The title of Lord High Admiral of the United Kingdom was vested in the monarch from 1964 to 2011, the title was awarded to Philip, Duke of Edinburgh by Queen Elizabeth II on his 90th birthday. There also continues to be a Vice-Admiral of the United Kingdom, the office of Admiral of England was created around 1400 although there had already been Admirals of the Northern and Western Seas. In 1546, King Henry VIII established the Council of the Marine, later to become the Navy Board, operational control of the Royal Navy remained the responsibility of the Lord High Admiral, who was one of the nine Great Officers of State. In 1628, Charles I put the office of Lord High Admiral into commission, the office of Lord High Admiral passed a number of times in and out of commission until 1709 after which the office was almost permanently in commission. In 1831, the first Navy Board was abolished as a separate entity, in 1964, the Admiralty along with the War Office and the Air Ministry as separate departments of state were abolished, and re-emerged under one single new Ministry of Defence. Within the expanded Ministry of Defence are the new Admiralty Board which has a separate Navy Board responsible for the running of the Royal Navy. The Army Board and the Air Force Board, each headed by the Secretary of State for Defence, the Board of Admiralty consisted of a number of Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty. The Lords Commissioners were always a mixture of admirals, known as Naval Lords or Sea Lords and Civil Lords, the quorum of the Board was two commissioners and a secretary. The president of the Board was known as the First Lord of the Admiralty, after 1806, the First Lord of the Admiralty was always a civilian while the professional head of the navy came to be known as the First Sea Lord. The first real concerted effort to organise the Admiralty was started by Henry VIII. Between 1860 and 1908 there was no study of strategy and of staff work conducted within the naval service. All the navys talent flowed to the great technical universitys and it was perceived by officials within the Admiralty at this time that the running of war was quite a simple matter for any flag officer who required no formal training. The new War Staff had hardly found its feet and it struggled with the opposition to its existence by senior officers they were categorically opposed to a staff. The deficiencies of the system within this department of state could be seen in the conduct of the Dardanelles campaign, there was no mechanisms in place to answer the big strategic questions in 1914 a Trade Division was created. In 1916, Sir John Jellicoe came to the Admiralty, he organized the staff as following, Chief of War Staff, Operations, Intelligence, Signal Section, Mobilization, Trade. This for the first time gave the naval staff direct representation on the Board, the would direct all operations and movements of the fleet, while the would be responsible for mercantile movements and anti-submarine operations
10.
Singapore strategy
–
The Singapore strategy was a naval defence policy of the British Empire that evolved in a series of war plans from 1919 to 1941. The idea of invading Japan was rejected as impractical, but British planners did not expect that the Japanese would willingly fight a naval battle against the odds. Aware of the impact of a blockade on a nation at the heart of a maritime empire. The Singapore strategy was the cornerstone of British Imperial defence policy in the Far East during the 1920s and 1930s. By 1937, according to Captain Stephen Roskill, the concept of the Main Fleet to Singapore had, perhaps through constant repetition, a combination of financial, political and practical difficulties ensured that it could not be successfully implemented. During the 1930s, the strategy came under sustained criticism in Britain and abroad, particularly in Australia, the strategy ultimately led to the despatch of Force Z to Singapore and the sinking of the Prince of Wales and Repulse by Japanese air attack on 10 December 1941. The subsequent ignominious fall of Singapore was described by Winston Churchill as the worst disaster, the United States determination to create what Admiral of the Navy George Dewey called a navy second to none presaged a new maritime arms race. The two-power standard of 1889 called for a Royal Navy strong enough to take on any two other powers, in 1909, this was scaled back to a policy of 60% superiority in dreadnoughts. This decision was reaffirmed by Cabinet in August 1919 in order to preclude the U. S. Navys building program from becoming a justification for the Admiralty initiating one of its own. In 1920, the First Lord of the Admiralty Sir Walter Long announced a one-power standard, inferior in strength to the Navy of any other power. The one-power standard became official when it was announced at the 1921 Imperial Conference. The Washington Naval Treaty of 1922 reinforced this policy, the most urgent issue was that of whether or not to renew the Anglo-Japanese Alliance, which was due to expire on 13 July 1921. On one side were the Prime Minister of Australia Billy Hughes and the Prime Minister of New Zealand Bill Massey, the British Empire, declared Hughes, must have a reliable friend in the Pacific. As a result, no decision to renew was reached, the Washington Naval Treaty in 1922 provided for a 5,5,3 ratio of capital ships of the British, United States and Japanese navies. Throughout the 1920s, the Royal Navy remained the worlds largest navy, with a margin of superiority over Japan. The Washington Naval Treaty also prohibited the fortification of islands in the Pacific, the provisions of the London Naval Treaty of 1930, however, restricted naval construction, resulting in a serious decline in the British shipbuilding industry. Germanys willingness to limit the size of its navy led to the Anglo-German Naval Agreement of 1935 and this was seen as signalling a sincere desire to avoid conflict with Britain. In 1934, the First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir Ernle Chatfield, the Singapore strategy was a series of war plans that evolved over a twenty-year period in which the basing of a fleet at Singapore was a common but not a defining aspect
11.
Singapore Naval Base
–
After the Great War, the British government devoted significant resources into building a naval base in Singapore, as a deterrent to the increasingly ambitious Japanese Empire. Originally announced in 1923, the construction of the base proceeded slowly at Sembawang until the Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931 and it was completed in 1939, at a staggering cost of £60 million – equivalent to £2½ billion in 2006. The base covered 21 square miles and had what was then the largest dry dock in the world, the third-largest floating dock and it was defended by heavy 15-inch naval guns stationed at Johore battery, Changi, and at Buona Vista Battery. Other important batteries of smaller calibre were located at Fort Siloso, Fort Canning, Air defence relied on the Royal Air Force airfields at RAF Tengah and RAF Sembawang. Winston Churchill touted it as the Gibraltar of the East, the base was subsequently captured, largely intact, by units of the advancing Japanese Army and remained in Japanese control through the end of World War II. Since 1972, part of the compound is now occupied by the Republic of Singapore Navys Naval Diving Unit. With the complete withdrawal of British forces from Singapore in 1971, the Naval Base has since handed over to the Singapore government. After the short term ANZUK arrangement was terminated, New Zealand Force South East Asia was created with the HQ being sited at the Stores Basin area adjacent to the current Sembawang Naval Basin and it should be noted this was the last major foreign military presence based in Singapore. Total military strength at the time stood at 850 with some 700 dependents and this security blanket covered the British, UK and Australian facilities and personnel. As part of a 1990 agreement between Singapore and the United States, American military forces have been making use of Sembawangs base facilities. Since 2002, Singapore has granted the Indian Navy in principle access to Sembawang Port, a large floating dry dock, the third-largest in the world at the time of its construction, was located at the base. The graving dock was completed in February 1938 and was more than 300 meters in length and was the largest dry dock in the world at the time. With the impending capture of Singapore by the Imperial Japanese Army in 1942, the dock was subsequently repaired and used throughout the war and was subjected to Allied air attacks to disable the dry dock in late 1944 and early 1945
12.
Royal Air Force
–
The Royal Air Force is the United Kingdoms aerial warfare force. Formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, following victory over the Central Powers in 1918 the RAF emerged as, at the time, the largest air force in the world. The RAF describe its mission statement as, an agile, adaptable and capable Air Force that, person for person, is second to none, and that makes a decisive air power contribution in support of the UK Defence Mission. The mission statement is supported by the RAFs definition of air power, Air power is defined as the ability to project power from the air and space to influence the behaviour of people or the course of events. Today the Royal Air Force maintains a fleet of various types of aircraft. The majority of the RAFs rotary-wing aircraft form part of the tri-service Joint Helicopter Command in support of ground forces, most of the RAFs aircraft and personnel are based in the UK, with many others serving on operations or at long-established overseas bases. It was founded on 1 April 1918, with headquarters located in the former Hotel Cecil, during the First World War, by the amalgamation of the Royal Flying Corps, at that time it was the largest air force in the world. The RAFs naval aviation branch, the Fleet Air Arm, was founded in 1924, the RAF developed the doctrine of strategic bombing which led to the construction of long-range bombers and became its main bombing strategy in the Second World War. The RAF underwent rapid expansion prior to and during the Second World War, under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan of December 1939, the air forces of British Commonwealth countries trained and formed Article XV squadrons for service with RAF formations. Many individual personnel from countries, and exiles from occupied Europe. By the end of the war the Royal Canadian Air Force had contributed more than 30 squadrons to serve in RAF formations, additionally, the Royal Australian Air Force represented around nine percent of all RAF personnel who served in the European and Mediterranean theatres. In the Battle of Britain in 1940, the RAF defended the skies over Britain against the numerically superior German Luftwaffe, the largest RAF effort during the war was the strategic bombing campaign against Germany by Bomber Command. Following victory in the Second World War, the RAF underwent significant re-organisation, during the early stages of the Cold War, one of the first major operations undertaken by the Royal Air Force was in 1948 and the Berlin Airlift, codenamed Operation Plainfire. Before Britain developed its own nuclear weapons the RAF was provided with American nuclear weapons under Project E and these were initially armed with nuclear gravity bombs, later being equipped with the Blue Steel missile. Following the development of the Royal Navys Polaris submarines, the nuclear deterrent passed to the navys submarines on 30 June 1969. With the introduction of Polaris, the RAFs strategic nuclear role was reduced to a tactical one and this tactical role was continued by the V bombers into the 1980s and until 1998 by Tornado GR1s. For much of the Cold War the primary role of the RAF was the defence of Western Europe against potential attack by the Soviet Union, with many squadrons based in West Germany. With the decline of the British Empire, global operations were scaled back, despite this, the RAF fought in many battles in the Cold War period
13.
William Dobbie
–
Lieutenant General Sir William George Shedden Dobbie, GCMG, KCB, DSO was a British Army veteran of the Second Boer War and the First and Second World Wars. William was born in Madras to a civil servant father, W. H. Dobbie of the Indian Civil Service – and to a family with a long military lineage. When he was nine months old, his parents left him in the care of relatives in England. At thirteen, young William won a scholarship to Charterhouse School and became a classical scholar. Upon graduation, he proved to be qualified for a career at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, from which, in due course. He was commissioned a lieutenant in the Royal Engineers on 6 August 1899. Dobbie joined the Second Boer War shortly after the funeral of Queen Victoria in February 1901 and he was wounded, and returned to the United Kingdom shortly after the end of hostilities, arriving in Southampton in July 1902. He later opined that the Second Boer War was a rather unjust war, following his return he was stationed at Chatham in late 1902, and was promoted to captain on 6 August 1908. Dobbie was appointed a Knight of the Legion of Honour in November 1914, during the First World War, Dobbie happened to have been the staff officer on duty in November 1918 and his is the only signature on the cease-fire telegram that was sent to all troops. In later years, when asked what he did during the war, after the War Dobbie was appointed an Officer of the Order of Leopold on 21 August 1919. He was graded a temporary lieutenant colonel on 18 April 1920 and he was promoted to lieutenant colonel on 1 January 1925 and to colonel on 18 January 1926. On 29 June 1928, he was appointed commander of the Cairo Brigade with the rank of brigadier and he was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath in the 1930 New Year Honours List. He reverted to his permanent rank of colonel and ceased to be employed from 15 July 1932, on 18 February 1933, he was promoted to major general and appointed Commandant of the School of Military Engineers. He was appointed General Officer Commanding Malaya Command on 8 November 1935, Dobbie, then holding the rank of major general, was informed that after Malaya he would be retired, because new War Office regulations deemed him too old for a further position. As acting governor-general, he was granted the rank of lieutenant-general on 27 April 1940. Promoted to temporary lieutenant general on 27 April, he was confirmed as Governor of Malta on 19 May and he remained Governor of Malta until May 1942, and retired with the honorary rank of lieutenant-general on 10 November 1942. When he arrived on Malta, its defensibility was in question because of the ease with which Italy could overrun it. There were only 4 planes on the island and these had probably been overlooked, few other than Churchill saw any strategic value in maintaining it and the commitment of the Maltese to the British cause was also questioned
14.
Central Area, Singapore
–
The Central Area, also called the City Area, and informally The City, is the city centre of Singapore. The term Central Business District has also used to describe most of the Central Area as well. The Central Area surrounds the banks of the Singapore River and Marina Bay where the first settlements on the island were established shortly after the arrival of Raffles in 1819, surrounding the Central Area is the rest of the Central Region. The south-easternmost limits of the city is enclosed in by Marina Barrage, the Central Area is one of the most densely developed places in Singapore, with a large mix of commercial and residential developments packed into a space of only 1784 hectares. A great number of Mass Rapid Transit stations tend to be concentrated in this area as well, each of the districts within the Central Area have a heavy and dense commercial presence, especially in the Downtown Core, Orchard and Singapore River districts. Rochor, Newton, River Valley and Outram are commercially thriving, schools, condominiums and Housing Development Board apartments are located in these areas, albeit at higher prices. Since the 1970s, the Singapore government and the Urban Redevelopment Authority have reclaimed land portions from Marina Bay in an attempt to expand the Central Area, newly created portions of land surrounding Marina Bay have been organised and labelled into Marina East, Marina South and Straits View. Many construction projects have completed in these districts since their creation. Much of the area bounded by Telok Ayer Road, which has a high concentration of skyscrapers is built on reclaimed land. Therefore, the Thian Hock Keng Temple built in 1839 along Telok Ayer Road used to face the sea, prior to 1839, the temple served as a joss-house for the Hokkien immigrants. The clan’s office was housed there and this temple was used as a meeting venue. The temple comprises an architectural masterpiece of stone, tiles and wood, dragons and phoenixes, amazing cravings, sculptures, the Thian Hock Keng temple has been gazetted as a national monument in 1973. At Church Street is the Yueh Hai Ching Temple, one of the oldest Taoist temples and this temple was established by a group of Teochew settlers from Guangzhou in China when they dedicated a shrine to Tian Hou. This temple faced the sea and was therefore a place where newly arrived Chinese immigrants came to offer their thanks to the Goddess for their voyage across the seas. The renovation to the temple was undertaken by the Ngee Ann Kongsi and this temple served as a meeting place for the people of the Teochew community in the late 19th century when the Teochews became the second largest Chinese Dialect group in Singapore. The temple was honoured with an e, an imperial signboard from Emperor Guang Xu of the Qing Dynasty in 1907. In 1996 it was gazetted as a monument and it underwent repairs. This temple is a silent testimony to the faith and gratitude of many people in Singapore, the background contrast between the old temples and the new modern buildings indicate the juxtaposition and coexistence of new and old
15.
Stamford Raffles
–
Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, FRS was a British statesman, Lieutenant-Governor of British Java and Governor-General of Bencoolen, best known for his founding of Singapore. He was also involved in the conquest of the Indonesian island of Java from Dutch and French military forces during the Napoleonic Wars. He was also a writer and wrote a book titled The History of Java. Raffles was born on the ship Ann off the coast of Port Morant, Jamaica, to Captain Benjamin Raffles and his father was a Yorkshireman who had a burgeoning family and little luck in the West Indies trade during the American Revolution, sending the family into debt. The little money the family had went into schooling Raffles, in 1795, at the age of 14, Raffles started working as a clerk in London for the British East India Company, the trading company that shaped many of Britains overseas conquests. In 1805 he was sent to what is now Penang in the country of Malaysia, then called the Prince of Wales Island and he started with a post under the Honourable Philip Dundas, the Governor of Penang. At this time he made the acquaintance of Thomas Otho Travers. His knowledge of the Malay language, as well as his wit and ability, gained him favour with Lord Minto, Governor-General of India, and he was sent to Malacca. Then, in 1811, after the invasion and annexation of the Kingdom of Holland by France during Napoleons war, Raffles had no choice and he mounted a military expedition against the Dutch and French in Java, Indonesia. The British, led by Colonel Gillespie, stormed the fort, janssens attempted to escape inland but was captured. The British invasion of Java took a total of forty-five days and he took his residence at Buitenzorg and despite having a small subset of Britons as his senior staff, he kept many of the Dutch civil servants in the governmental structure. During the relatively brief British rule in Java, Raffles negotiated peace, Most significant of these was the 21 June 1812 assault on Yogyakarta, one of the two most powerful indigenous polities in Java. During the attack the Yogyakarta kraton was badly damaged and extensively looted by British troops, Raffles seized much of the contents of the court archive. The event was unprecedented in Javanese history and it was the first time an indigenous court had been taken by storm by a European army, and the humiliation of the local aristocracy was profound. Under Raffless aegis, a number of ancient monuments in Java were systematically catalogued for the first time. The first detailed English-language account of Prambanan was prepared by Colin Mackenzie while Borobudur was surveyed and cleared of vegetation by H. C, under the harsh conditions of the island, his wife, Olivia, died on 26 November 1814, an event that devastated Raffles. In 1815, he left again for England shortly before the island of Java was returned to control of the Netherlands following the Napoleonic Wars, under the terms of the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814. He sailed to England in early 1816 to clear his name and, en route, visited Napoleon, who was in exile at St. Helena, but found him unpleasant and unimpressive
16.
Straits Settlements
–
The Straits Settlements were a group of British territories located in Southeast Asia. Originally established in 1826 as part of the controlled by the British East India Company. The colony was dissolved in 1946 as part of the British reorganisation of its Southeast Asian dependencies following the end of the Second World War, the Straits Settlements originally consisted of the four individual settlements of Malacca, Dinding, Penang and Singapore. The Penang territory included Penang Island, formerly known as Prince of Wales Island, christmas Island and the Cocos Islands were also included. The island of Labuan, off the coast of Borneo, was incorporated into the colony with effect from 1 January 1907. Most of the territories now form part of Malaysia, from which Singapore separated in 1965, the Cocos Islands were transferred to Australian control in 1955. Christmas Island was transferred in 1958 and their administration was combined in 1996 to form the Australian Indian Ocean Territories. This resulted in the exchange of the British settlement of Bencoolen for the Dutch colony of Malacca, the Settlements were largely Chinese in population, with a tiny but important European minority. Their capital was moved from Penang to Singapore in 1832 and their scattered nature proved to be difficult and, after the company lost its monopoly in the china trade in 1833, expensive to administer. During their control by the East India Company, the Settlements were used as penal settlements for Indian civilian and military prisoners, the years 1852 and 1853 saw minor uprisings by convicts in Singapore and Penang. As there was little or no vernacular press in the Settlements, such an act seemed irrelevant, earlier, on 4 February 1867, Letters Patent had granted the Settlements a colonial constitution. Penang and Malacca were administered, directly under the governor, by resident councillors, the Dindings, which included Pangkor Island as well as the towns of Lumut, and Sitiawan, were ceded by Perak to the British government under the Pangkor Treaty of 1874. Province Wellesley, on the mainland opposite the island of Penang, was ceded to Great Britain in 1800 by the Sultan of Kedah, on its northern and eastern border, the boundary with Kedah was rectified by treaty with Siam in 1867. It was administered by an officer, with some assistants. About a tenth of the area was covered by low hills with thick jungle. Large quantities of rice were grown by the Malay inhabitants, the governor of the Straits Settlements was also High Commissioner for the Federated Malay States on the peninsula, for British North Borneo, the sultanate of Brunei and Sarawak in Borneo. Since the administration of the colony of Labuan, which for a period was vested in the British North Borneo Company, was resumed by the British government he was governor of Labuan. During World War II, the Japanese invaded Malaya and the Straits Settlements by landing on Kelantan on 8 December 1941, on 16 December Penang became the first Straits Settlement to fall into Japanese hands
17.
Major general
–
Major general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the rank of sergeant major general. In the Commonwealth, major general is equivalent to the rank of rear admiral. In some countries, including much of Eastern Europe, major general is the lowest of the officer ranks. In the old Austro-Hungarian Army, the general was called a Generalmajor. Todays Austrian Federal Army still uses the same term, see also Rank insignias of the Austro-Hungarian armed forces General de Brigade is the lowest rank amongst general officers in the Brazilian Army. AGeneral de Brigada wears two-stars as this is the level for general officers in the Brazilian Army. In tha Brazilian Air Force, the two-star, three-star and four-star rank are known as Brigadeiro, Major-Brigadeiro, see Military ranks of Brazil and Brigadier for more information. In the Canadian Armed Forces, the rank of major-general is both a Canadian Army and Royal Canadian Air Force rank equivalent to the Royal Canadian Navys rank of rear-admiral, a major-general is a general officer, the equivalent of a naval flag officer. The major-general rank is senior to the ranks of brigadier-general and commodore, prior to 1968, the Air Force used the rank of air vice-marshal, instead. In the Canadian Army, the insignia is a wide braid on the cuff. It is worn on the straps of the service dress tunic. On the visor of the cap are two rows of gold oak leaves. Major-generals are initially addressed as general and name, as are all general officers, major-generals are normally entitled to staff cars. In the Estonian military, the general rank is called kindralmajor. The Finnish military equivalent is kenraalimajuri in Finnish, and generalmajor in Swedish and Danish, the French equivalent to the rank of major general is général de division. In the French military, major général is not a rank but an appointment conferred on some generals, usually of général de corps darmée rank, the position of major général can be considered the equivalent of a deputy chief of staff. In the French Army, Major General is a position and the general is normally of the rank of corps general
18.
Thailand
–
Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand, formerly known as Siam, is a country at the centre of the Indochinese peninsula in Southeast Asia. With a total area of approximately 513,000 km2, Thailand is the worlds 51st-largest country and it is the 20th-most-populous country in the world, with around 66 million people. The capital and largest city is Bangkok, Thailand is a constitutional monarchy and has switched between parliamentary democracy and military junta for decades, the latest coup being in May 2014 by the National Council for Peace and Order. Its capital and most populous city is Bangkok and its maritime boundaries include Vietnam in the Gulf of Thailand to the southeast, and Indonesia and India on the Andaman Sea to the southwest. The Thai economy is the worlds 20th largest by GDP at PPP and it became a newly industrialised country and a major exporter in the 1990s. Manufacturing, agriculture, and tourism are leading sectors of the economy and it is considered a middle power in the region and around the world. The country has always been called Mueang Thai by its citizens, by outsiders prior to 1949, it was usually known by the exonym Siam. The word Siam has been identified with the Sanskrit Śyāma, the names Shan and A-hom seem to be variants of the same word. The word Śyâma is possibly not its origin, but a learned, another theory is the name derives from Chinese, Ayutthaya emerged as a dominant centre in the late fourteenth century. The Chinese called this region Xian, which the Portuguese converted into Siam, the signature of King Mongkut reads SPPM Mongkut King of the Siamese, giving the name Siam official status until 24 June 1939 when it was changed to Thailand. Thailand was renamed Siam from 1945 to 11 May 1949, after which it reverted to Thailand. According to George Cœdès, the word Thai means free man in the Thai language, ratcha Anachak Thai means kingdom of Thailand or kingdom of Thai. Etymologically, its components are, ratcha, -ana- -chak, the Thai National Anthem, written by Luang Saranupraphan during the extremely patriotic 1930s, refers to the Thai nation as, prathet Thai. The first line of the anthem is, prathet thai ruam lueat nuea chat chuea thai, Thailand is the unity of Thai flesh. There is evidence of habitation in Thailand that has been dated at 40,000 years before the present. Similar to other regions in Southeast Asia, Thailand was heavily influenced by the culture and religions of India, Thailand in its earliest days was under the rule of the Khmer Empire, which had strong Hindu roots, and the influence among Thais remains even today. Voretzsch believes that Buddhism must have been flowing into Siam from India in the time of the Indian Emperor Ashoka of the Maurya Empire, later Thailand was influenced by the south Indian Pallava dynasty and north Indian Gupta Empire. The Menam Basin was originally populated by the Mons, and the location of Dvaravati in the 7th century, the History of the Yuan mentions an embassy from the kingdom of Sukhothai in 1282
19.
Kota Bharu
–
Kota Bharu is a city in Malaysia that serves as the state capital and royal seat of Kelantan. It is also the name of the territory or district in which Kota Bharu City is situated, the name means new city or new castle/fort in Malay. Kota Bharu is situated in the part of Peninsular Malaysia. The northeastern Malaysian city is close to the Thailand border, Kota Bharu is home to many mosques, various museums, the unique architecture of the old royal palaces and former royal buildings in the centre of town. Kota Bharu was founded during the late 19th century, prior to this, Kota Bharu was known as Kuala Kelantan. Before Kota Bharu assumed the role, the Kelantanese capital was divided into two which were Kota Kubang Labu and Kota Pengkalan Datu. During the 19th century, Kelantan was a prosperous and populous state which holds a population of around 30,000 to 50,000 people including a thousands of Chinese. One of the production from the state are gold, tin ore, black pepper, areca nut, rice, rattan, bamboo, agarwood, Kota Bharu act as entepot for goods due to its strategic location on the beside the Kelantan River. Besides that, there are also minority Tamil, Siamese and Orang Asli that resides in the city, the total population of Kota Bharu as at 2010 is 491,237. Ranking Population Kota Bharu District Kota Bharus population is 70% Muslim with the remainder consisting of Buddhists, the indigenous peoples that reside in the citys outskirts are generally practicing Christians. The predominantly urban local Chinese community mainly practices Buddhism, morality police are common and apprehend people who engaged in acts perceived as immoral. The Jawi script is used in names and restaurants. Social activities that do not contradict Islamic norms are allowed, government offices and many stores are closed on Fridays and Saturdays, but the vibrant markets remain open except for Islamic prayer times. The conservative Kelantanese state government under PAS has implemented some Islamic laws, however, these regulations apply only to Muslims. The Kota Bharu Municipal Council, the government authority, discourages the use of indecent attire by female employees in retail outlets and restaurants. Those who are caught for dressing indecently may be fined up to RM500, the definition of indecent dressing includes body hugging outfits which show off the body, blouses which show the navel, see through blouses, mini-skirts and tight pants. The Kelantanese culture is influenced by Thai culture because of its geographical proximity to Thailand. The Chinese are much more assimilated to local culture than those in parts of Malaysia
20.
Straits of Johor
–
The Johore Strait, is an international strait in Southeast Asia, between Singapore and mainland Malaysia. The strait separates the Malaysian state of Johor on the mainland Malay Peninsula to the north, from Singapore and it connects to the Strait of Malacca on the west, and the Singapore Strait on the southeast. The mouth and delta of the Johur River is on its northeast side in Malaysia, there are currently two bridges crossing the strait. The Johor-Singapore Causeway, known simply as The Causeway, links Johor Bahru, the Malaysia-Singapore Second Link bridge is further west over the strait, links Gelang Patah in Malaysia and Tuas in Singapore. In 2003, Malaysia wanted to build a bridge across the strait to replace the existing causeway, but negotiations with Singapore were not successful. The main reasons cited for the change were, a bridge would allow flow of water across both sides of the strait which were artificially cut in two with the building of the causeway before. A bridge would help ease congestion in Johor Bahru, in August 2003, Malaysia announced that it was going ahead with a plan to build a gently sloping, curved bridge that would join up with Singapores half of the existing causeway. The plans included a bridge for the railway line. However, plans to build the bridge have been called off as of 2006, major tributaries which empty into the Strait of Johore include, In the Malay language, Sungai is the word for river. Pollution along the Johore Strait is notable, the area is also a source of environmental contention between Malaysia and Singapore, due to land reclamation projects on both sides of the Causeway. There have been suggestions that the land reclamation projects may impact the maritime boundary, shipping lanes. Environmental Impact Assessments are requested before any reclamation is carried out such as the Forest City project, reclamation projects may also endanger the habitat and food source of dugongs, which are native to the strait. The Johore Strait is the location of two Victoria Cross deeds, the award was for Lieutenant Ian Edward Fraser and Acting Leading Seaman James Joseph Magennis for the sinking of the 9, 850-tonne Japanese cruiser Takao on 31 July 1945. Former Wakefield professional heavyweight boxer Paul Sykes claims to be the person to have swum across the straits to avoid arrest. A well known tourist attraction of the Strait of Johores is Lido Beach, here, visitors can walk or cycle along the 2 km stretch of the beach. There are numerous restaurants and food stalls
21.
Battle of Sarimbun Beach
–
The Battle of Sarimbun Beach was the first stage of the Japanese assault on Singapore in February 1942 during World War II. Sarimbun Beach, in the west of Singapore Island, was the area in which Japanese troops, under the direction of Lieutenant General Tomoyuki Yamashita. The main Japanese objective to the rear of Sarimbun Beach was Tengah Airfield. The terrain was primarily mangrove swamp and tropical forest, broken up by rivers, brigadier Harold Taylors 22nd Infantry Brigade, augmented by most of the Australian 2/4th Machine Gun Battalion, was assigned a 10-mile wide sector centred on Sarimbun Beach. The Jind Infantry Battalion of the Indian States Forces, which was guarding Tengah, and a company from Dalforce, the 27th Infantry Brigade was assigned an adjoining 4,000 yard wide zone to the north, adjoining the causeway. The Australian 2/4th Machine Gun Battalion was distributed among the infantry units, at 8. 30pm on 8 February, Australian machine gunners opened fire on vessels carrying a first wave of 4,000 troops from the 5th and 18th Divisions towards Singapore island. The Japanese assaulted Sarimbun Beach, which was held by the 22nd Brigade, fierce fighting raged all day but eventually the increasing Japanese numbers — as well as their superiority in artillery, planes and military intelligence — began to take their toll. The Japanese exploited gaps in the thinly-spread Allied lines such as rivers, by midnight, the two Australian brigades had lost communications with each other and the 22nd Brigade was forced to retreat. At 1am, further Japanese troops were landed and the last Australian reserves went in. Towards dawn on 9 February, some elements of the 22nd Brigade had been overrun or surrounded, the 2/20th Australian Infantry Battalion, on the right flank was also heavily committed. At the same time, the 2/19th Australian Infantry Battalion, on the left, was being outflanked, percival maintained a belief that further landings would occur in the northeast and did not agree to reinforce the 22nd Brigade until Tengah Airfield itself was threatened. Tengah Airfield was taken by the Japanese at around midday on 9 February, shortly after dark on 9 February, three British Fairmile B motor launches were sent on a raid up the western channel of the Straits of Johor, adjoining Sarimbun Beach. Their objective was to attack Japanese landing craft and communications and they came under fire from enemy forces on both shores, but pressed on almost as far as the causeway. A few Japanese landing craft were sunk before the launches returned down the channel, reaching Singapore safely, some Allied soldiers saw this as an example of effective defensive tactics that were used too little and/or too late by their senior commanders. Malayan Campaign Japanese order of battle during the Malayan Campaign Lionel Wigmore,1957, Australia in the War of 1939–1945, Volume IV — The Japanese Thrust
22.
Battle of Kranji
–
The Battle of Kranji was the second stage of the Empire of Japans plan for the invasion of Singapore during the Second World War. On 9 February 1942 the Imperial Japanese Army assaulted the front of the British colony of Singapore. Defending the shoreline between the Kranji River and the Johor–Singapore Causeway was the Australian 27th Brigade, led by Brigadier Duncan Maxwell, on 10 February the Japanese forces suffered their heaviest losses while moving up the Kranji River, which caused them to panic and nearly aborted the operation. The terrain around Kranji was primarily mangrove swamps and tropical forest intersected by streams, the shoreline between the Kranji River and the Johor–Singapore Causeway, nearly four kilometers long, was defended by the Australian 27th Brigade, led by Australian Brigadier Duncan Maxwell. They were supported by one company from Dalforce, a local Chinese militia consisting of Communists, Nationalist supporters, as the war intensified, the Dalforce volunteers were given only three to four days of training and sent to the war front with elementary weapons. Lacking uniforms, the improvised by wearing a red triangle on their blue shirts to avoid being mistaken for Japanese by the Australians. The Allied forces at Kranji were to be assaulted by the Imperial Guards Division led by Major General Takuma Nishimura. 400 Imperial Guards had landed and taken Pulau Ubin, an island in the north-east of Singapore, in a feint attack on 7 February, sultan Ibrahims palace was not fired upon by the British because any damage caused would have extensive repercussions for British-Johor ties. Once the leading wave of Japanese was safely ashore, the massed Japanese artillery switched their fire to the positions at Kranji. Telegraph and telephone communications were destroyed in the bombardment and communications between the front line and command HQ were broken, at 8, 30pm that night, the men of the Imperial Guards Division began the crossing from Johor in special armoured landing-crafts, collapsible boats and by swimming. In the early hours of 10 February, Japanese forces suffered their heaviest losses during the Battle of Singapore, while moving up the Kranji River, advance landing parties from the 4th Regiment of the Imperial Guard Division found themselves under heavy fire from Australian machine gunners and mortar teams. They also found themselves surrounded by oil slicks, which had created by Allied personnel emptying the nearby Woodlands oil depot. A scenario feared by Yamashita came to pass by accident, the oil was set alight by Allied small arms fire, sustaining heavy losses, Nishimura requested permission to abandon the operation. Maxwells force consequently withdrew from the seafront and this allowed the Japanese to land in increasing strength and take control of Kranji village. They also captured Woodlands, and began repairing the causeway, without encountering any Allied attacks, Japanese light tanks, which had good buoyancy, were towed across the straits to Lim Chu Kang Road where they joined the battle at dusk. With reinforced troops and tanks advancing down Choa Chua Kang Road, the 5th Division captured Bukit Timah village by the evening of 11 February. The troops were to defend this Line strongly against the invading Japanese force, the 15th Indian Infantry Brigade was re-positioned near Bukit Timah Road to guard the islands vital food and petrol supplies. A secret instruction to protect this area was issued to Percivals generals, Percivals secret orders to withdraw to the last defence line around the city only if necessary were misunderstood by Maxwell, who took this to be an order for an immediate withdrawal to the Line
23.
Gordon Bennett (general)
–
Lieutenant General Henry Gordon Bennett CB, CMG, DSO, VD was a senior Australian Army officer who served in both World War I and World War II. As commander of the 8th Australian Division, he escaped while his men became prisoners of the Imperial Japanese Army, after this, Bennetts military career waned and, although he rose to command a corps, he never again commanded troops in battle. In 1945, his escape caused controversy and resulted in a Royal Commission and he retired from the Army after World War II and turned to farming in the Blue Mountains. He remained active in the world of business and as a military commentator, Bennett was born in Balwyn, Melbourne, on 15 April 1887, to George Bennett, a South African-born school teacher, and his Australian-born wife, Harriet. He was the sixth of nine children and attended Balwyn State School, where his father taught, and then Hawthorn College as a teenager having been given a three-year scholarship. While at Hawthorn, he did well at mathematics and in 1903, as a 16-year-old, in May 1908, just after he turned 21, Bennett volunteered to serve in the Militia, Australias reserve military force, joining the 5th Australian Infantry Regiment as a recruit officer. After completing a six-month part-time course, he was appointed as a second lieutenant. After a short period of training, the 1st Division began to embark for Europe, just prior to his departure overseas, Bennett became engaged to Bess Buchanan, who he had met at a dance in Canterbury. As an engagement gift, Bess bought her betrothed a miniature photo of herself, Bennett carried the picture in his jacket pocket while serving overseas and it later saved his life on the Western Front, deflecting a German bullet. The decision by the Allies to force a passage through the Dardanelles interrupted this process, during the landing at Anzac Cove on 25 April 1915, Bennett fought on the southern flank of the Anzac beachhead. He led 300 men of his battalion to a position on Pine Ridge. While directing the defence of this position, Bennett was wounded in the shoulder and wrist, when the Turkish forces counter-attacked in the evening, the 6th Battalion force on Pine Ridge was isolated and killed to the last man, including Bennetts younger brother, Godfrey. Instead of accepting evacuation on a ship, after having his wounds treated. In early May, the 2nd Brigade was selected to move to Cape Helles to reinforce the British forces for the Second Battle of Krithia, after being transferred by boat, on 8 May, Bennett advanced with his battalion in impossible conditions. He was knocked off his feet, but otherwise unharmed, with a handful of men, he achieved the furthest advance of the attack. He became commander of the 6th Battalion the next day, the battalion was then returned to Anzac by a trawler, and shortly afterwards, Bennetts command of the battalion was confirmed and he was promoted to lieutenant colonel. Throughout June and July, Bennetts battalion occupied the front line during a period of reduced tempo fighting as a stalemate developed. On 7 August, when the Allies launched their August Offensive to break the stalemate, Two attempts to capture the trench failed
