Winston Churchill’s “worst disaster” in British military history On 15 Feb 1942, a British deputation set off in a motorcar for the Japanese military headquarters in Singapore. They brought with them a Union Jack and a white flag of truce. In the evening, Lieutenant-General Arthur Percival would sign for the unconditional surrender of Singapore. Prior to that, Japanese forces had been able to completely overwhelm British, Indian, and Australian troops in Singapore in just eight days. Then-British Prime Minister Winston Churchill later called the Battle of Singapore the “worst disaster” and the “largest capitulation” in British military history. We recount five key battles leading up to the fall of Singapore. 1. Battle of Sarimbun Beach The very first battle leading up to the fall of Singapore took place in the North West, in what is now Serimbun Reservoir. Source Lieutenant-General Arthur Percival did not expect the assault to come from the north-west as Japanese troops had been deliberately moved to the north-east as a decoy. As a result, only around 3000 soliders defended the Sarimbun entry point from over 10,000 Japanese troops. It wasn’t a surprise that the Japanese were able to take Tengah airfield, situated behind Sarimbun beach, within […]
8 years ago
