The Anniversary of the Fall of Singapore 15th February 1942

During World War II, Singapore was known as the ‘Gibraltar of the East’, one of the most important fortified military outposts in the Empire. The Japanese knew though that it was under-prepared for any potential conflict, with Britain seeing Europe and North Africa as the more important theatres.

On the same day as the bombing in Pearl Harbour, the Japanese had started their invasion of the Malayan peninsular, threatening Singapore. The 118th Field Regiment Royal Artillery, part of the newly formed 18th Division, departed the UK late in 1941 bound for the War in the Middle East. However during their journey Churchill decided to send them to the Far East, the war was not going well there at his point, and Churchill had decided to send additional troops to bolster the defences and hold off any invading forces.

As with the rest of the 18th Division, the 118th were not prepared, trained nor did they have the correct equipment for war in the Far East, nevertheless they landed on 29th January 1942 during Japanese bombing raids of the harbour and , little did they know at the time, just days before the British Surrender on the 15th February 1942.  My Great Grandfather Lt R G Read (QM) was in the 118th Field Regiment Royal Artillery who were sent to train in India prior to posting to Singapore. Two weeks of ‘intensive training’ was all the preparation that they had for War in the Far East.

 

Royal Artillery on Elephants in India

My Great Grandfather arrived in Singapore on the USS Westpoint disembarking with the rest of the 118th Field Regiment RA on 29th January at Keppel Harbour. He kept a diary and he somehow managed to continue to keep these diaries during his imprisonment too. During those days before the surrender, the Japanese carried out intensive bombing missions on the  troops as they disembarked and unloaded their equipment. Here my Great Grandfather writes of the relentless bombing by the Japanese, including the sinking of a troop ship by Japanese dive bombers and the resulting rescue:

5th Feb 1942
'Empress of Asia bombed. 6 miles out. Dealt with about 600 survivors as rescued. 'Q' 125 badly injured looks as though he will loose his sight. Later! he has.'
Diary entry dated 6th Feb 1942
‘We loose 5 at docks whilst unloading by 27 bombers, no resistance from RAF’
Diary entry 14th February 1942
‘Casualties amount to 20 odd dead+many wounded, Capt Martin 259 killed’

 

Here is my Great Grandfather in Singapore, just after his arrival in January 1942.

As my Great Grandfather was the Regimental Quartermaster, he had access to communications received by the Regimental HQ.  Below is a Telegram written by General Wavell (Commander in Chief at the time),  and his last order before the surrender sent on the 10th February 1942, just days before the surrender on the 15th Feb, containing the instruction:  'Commanders and Senior Officers must lead their troops and, if necessary, die with them. There must be no thought of surrender and every unit must fight it out to the end and in close contact with the enemy.'

Telegram from General Wavell, Commander in Chief, Southern Pacific, dated 10th February 1942

As the Japanese invasion reached the final stages, communications were sent offering terms for the surrender of the Garrison.  This telegram presenting an ‘Admonition of Peace’ inviting the Allied forces to an ‘honourable’ surrender. It also attempts to give assurances as to how well that they will treat them upon their surrender:  ‘Upon my word we won’t kill you, treat you as officers and soldiers if you come to us, But if you resist against us we will give swords.’

 

Telegram from the ‘Nippon Army’ inviting the surrender of the allied troops in Singapore, dated 13th February 1942

On the 15th February 1942, the British and Commonwealth troops finally surrendered to the invading Japanese troops. The Japanese Commander, Lieutenant-General Yamashita had successfully led his 30,000 troops to overcome the 85,000 defending allied troops on Singapore. To this day, it was the largest surrender of British led forces in history. Winston Churchill called it ‘the worst disaster’ in British Military History.

Transcript of the Invitation of surrender of Allied Forces, on the 15th February 1942 at 5.30pm, written by Lieut-General Tomoyuki Yamashita, ‘High Commander of Nippon Army’

Here is the diary entry from the date of the Surrender to the Japanese on the 15th February 1942:
‘The Surrender of Singapore to Japan. “B” Echelon to report to RHQ at Thompson Road.’

 

Diary entry by Lt. R G  Read dated 15th February 1942

Telegram written by Lieut-General A. E. Percival (General Officer Commanding (GOC) Malaya) , explaining the reasons for surrender to Japanese Forces:  ‘The essential of War have run short, In a few days we shall have neither Petrol nor Food. Many types of ammunition are short, and the water supply, on which the vast civilian population and many of the fighting troops are dependent, threatens to fail.’

 

Telegram written by Lt. Gen. Percival

And so started three and a half years as a prisoner of war for my Great Grandfather along with 140,000 Commonwealth troops. The Japanese had refused to sign up to the Geneva convention and many of the camp guards were notorious for their acts of cruelty to their prisoners. The Japanese used the prisoners as slave labour, either on the infamous ‘Death Railway’ built by the POWs between Burma and Thailand or in Japan or their invaded territories.

My Great Grandfather was fortunate to survive the ordeal and was shipped back after the Japanese surrendered in August 1945. Upon his return to the UK in late November 1945, he caught the train home to Aberystwyth. I have an original Cambrian News Article dated 7th December 1945 containing an article about my Great Grandfathers return and his time as a POW. He was given a heroes welcome by the town and dignitaries.

He had never really recovered from his ordeal as a Prisoner though, and in August 1946, he was rushed to Chester Military Hospital again,  suffering from what was later found out to be stomach cancer. He died there on the 26th September 1946 and is commemorated on Llanbadarn Fawr War Memorial.

Blog by Simon Burgess

Author's website: www.richardgeorgeread.com/