Arlene Bennett: The Fall of Singapore and the Fate of the Last 65 Australian Nurses in 1942

The 8^th Division Australian Army nurses of the 2/10 AGH, 2/13 AGH and 2/4^th Casualty Clearing Station were stationed in Malaya. As the Japanese proceeded with great speed down the Malayan Peninsula the nurses were ordered to transfer to Singapore. They were working at St Patrick’s School and the ACS Oldham Hall School until they were to be evacuated.

On the 10^th of February 6 members of the AANS were sent on the WAH SUI with wounded soldiers bound for Australia. It was decided that all the nurses should be evacuated from Singapore because of what had happened in Hong Kong. The nurses were asked for volunteers to leave on the first ship available. No one volunteered to leave so Matron Paschke and Matron Drummond decided who would leave Singapore first. Fifty-nine nurses were selected to leave first on the EMPIRE STAR and later on the 12^th of February the SS VYNER BROOKE would be one of the last ships to leave Singapore. Those on the Empire Star were bombed but they made it back to Australia even though fourteen people on the ship were killed. The nurses flung themselves over the passengers to shield them from the bombing. The nurses received the George Cross for their bravery. The SS VYNER BROOKE had a very different story filled with tragedy.

For the 65 nurses on SS VYNER BROOKE there was still much work to be done on the way home. They helped with the food that was on board as most people didn’t think to carry food with them.

SS Vyner Brooke

 Sister Clarice Halligan had written home to her sister in Melbourne, “Thank you very much for the parcel. I was glad to get it. We are carefully packing all tinned foods in the bottom of our kit bags in case we are in for a siege which is quite likely, however we are ready what may come, we can make it and a bit more, as long as we keep the Japs out of Australia anything that may happenhere is worthwhile.” Clarice would be one of twenty-one nurses massacred on Banka Island.

The ship travelled during the night and kept close to the shoreline hoping not to be detected. This worked for a while but on the 14^th of May their luck would run out. The ship was bombed and machine guns strafed those who were in the water or in lifeboats. The nurses assisted the passengers to abandon the ship prior to leaving the ship themselves with some emergency supplies of medicines and bandages in their pockets. Twelve nurses were lost either at the time of the bombing, in the water or floating off and away from land.

Up to 100 boats were lost in the bombing of the ships in the Banka Strait and up to 5000 people were lost.

A group of 22 Australian Nurses washed up on Radji Beach near Muntok in Indonesia. Matron Drummond suggested that a bonfire should be lit to act as a beacon for those who were still at sea. About 60 men also washed up on the beach. The nurses cared for those who were injured with what little they had. Eventually it was decided that a party of men should walk into the town and alert the Japanese that the women and injured had remained on the beach. Matron Drummond also suggested that the civilian women and children should begin the long walk into town. This single act saved so many lives. The women and children passed the Japanese who would ultimately go to Radji Beach.

When the Japanese soldiers arrived at Radji Beach they ordered the men around the bluff in two groups where they were shot and bayonetted to death. Once they had finished dealing with the men they returned to the women wiping their bloodied bayonets. What happened next was shocking. The nurses were allegedly raped and then they were lined up and urged to walk into the sea. A machine gun began to fire upon them. Matron Drummond said to her nurses, ‘Chin up girls….. I am proud of you….I love you all.” She was brutally shot as were all of the nurses. All but one of the nurses died. Vivian Bullwinkel who was taller than average was shot just above the hip but no vital organs were hit. She feigned death in the water and was gradually washed back to the shore. She could no see sign of life in any of the nurses who were washed up on the beach. The Japanese had left the beach. Vivian crept into the jungle behind the beach and hid. She slept for about 24 hours. A voice from within the jungle called to her. It was Private Kinsley, a British soldier who had been badly injured. Vivian, who had been shot, managed to look after him. She walked to a nearby village to ask for assistance but the men of the village offered none because they we afraid of reprisals from the Japanese. As she began to return to the jungle, the women called to her and they left her some food. She and Private Kinsley lived in the jungle for 12 days. Vivian decided that they should give themselves up. Private Kinsley begged for one day more of freedom. When asked why he told Vivian that it was his birthday and that he wanted to be free one last time. They waited.

Betty Jeffrey and Vivian Bullwinkel

The next day they set off into Muntok and were met by a passing car of a Japanese officer. They were treated kindly and were taken into camp.

Meanwhile 31 more of the Australian Nurses had come ashore all along Banka Island. They were initially held in the Customs House and moved a few doors up to the picture theatre. After a few days they were moved to the Coolie Lines and the men went to the Muntok Gaol next door. Betty Jeffrey and Iole Harper would take three days to reach land having swum into the mangrove swamps. Eventually all the nurses would be together. Thirty-two of the sixty-five had survived. Vivian retold her story but the nurses agreed to never speak of it again until they were at home. Private Kinsley died a few days after he was imprisoned.

Most of the nurses had discarded their shoes as they left the ship so they bound the feet in rags or found shoes and used them and some made trompers- wooden scuffs.

The nurses would soon be moved to Palembang in Sumatra. They would be taken in a dirty coal carrying ship out to sea and then up the Musi River to Palembang. The nurses would briefly be settled into a camp at Bukit Besar which was inhabited by various soldiers as well as civilian men and women.

The nurses were then sent to a camp which was referred to as Irenelaan. The men’s camp was the Palembang Gaol. Behind the women’s camp the men were building a new camp in which to be housed. The women’s houses were hopelessly cramped with little space within for the women housed there. The women had few items and two of the nurses had found a used toothbrush which they shared throughout the war. There was little firewood to burn to do the cooking. There were no medications to use as the women became ill. A used tin would become a valuable item for the women. Life was monotonous for them but they soon developed ways of improving their lot. Margaret Dryburgh , a missionary from England and Norah Chambers would start the vocal orchestra.There were lectures given to the women on a variety of subjects. The food was cooked by groups of women. The amount of food was limited. The rice was dirty, the vegetables were left by the Japanese in the sun to rot and there were small amounts of meat left for the women. The women had to clean the latrines with coconut shells or similar. During the rainy season this task was made even worse.

As Christmas Eve 1942 approached the women saw the men passing by to go to work. The woman began to sing Silent Night and Oh Come All Ye Faithful to them as they passed by. The following day the men would return this favour. It was the closest that they would get to be with each other.

The women lost condition as each day passed. During their time in Palembang they could go to the Charitas Hospital for some extra treatment. During these visits to the hospital some of the women could meet with the men from the men’s camp to discover how the men were doing. Sr Mavis Hannah was caught by the Japanese with messages in a sanitary pad to be relayed to wives in the women’s camp. She was left to stand in the sun for hours as punishment. The nuns from Charitas were also imprisoned by the Japanese becauses they appeared to be on the side of the prisoners. They hid medicines in their robes which would give some hope to those who were ill. They too joined the camp.

The women moved once again, this time to the men’s camp Palembang. The men had left the camp but before they left they had trashed much of the camp. They didn’t know that the women would be taken there. Some of the women would die in Palembang

Eventually the women’s camp was moved back to Muntok. They were taken by boat. The camp was very primitive. The women were deteriorating and so many died. Disease was rampant in Muntok. There was malaria, Dengue fever, Banka  Fever alongside malnutrition, beri-beri and dysentery. The nurses took care of the sick as well as doing their other tasks but gradually they were becoming sick too. Four nurses would die in the camp in Muntok during 1945. This was terrible for the nurses to endure but they needed to carry on as best they could. They had very little access to medication. The amounts that were left would have almost been useless.

By April 1945 the internees were to be moved again. This time they were taken in two groups back to Sumatra. Women were dying and so many did not make it to their final destination. They were taken on a ship to Palmembang. Conditions were appalling. They arrived late at night and were loaded into the   cattle carriages of a train. These airless carriages were cramped and the women spent the night in them. The following day the travelled the many hours to Loebok Lingau. So many people did not live to reach their destination.

Sr Betty Jeffrey described their journey as dreadful. Everyone was weakened.

The camp was in an abandoned rubber plantation. High on a hill. There was a creek running through the two halves of the women’s camp. The accommodation was in a dirty rat-infested state. The creek soon became contaminated. The health of the inhabitants deteriorated significantly due to the small amount of food and illness leading to high death rates.

The nurses were weakened due to lack of food and the constant threat of disease. Despite this they managed to offer some succour to those in the camp. They could bathe the patients and give them a drink or perhaps assist them to eat a small amount of rice. They had nothing but care and compassion to offer  and some words of encouragement.

It is thought that approximately 89 women died in the camp at Belalau. Another four nurses would die at this camp. One died after the war had finished.

The end of the war came but the nurses did not know that it had ended. They wouldn’t know until Captain Seki Kazuo addressed the women. On the 24^th of August he climbed onto a table and announced that the war was over and that we could now be friends. He never said who the victors of the war were.

The Japanese would throw open the doors of the store room which held Red Cross packages with food and medicine in them. The nurses had suffered the deprivation of these items as had everyone in the camp. Undoubtedly the death rate could have been less significant.

Because the camp was well hidden amongst the trees in a place where the allies hadn’t been able to find the nurses. Finally, Gideon Jacob had flown over the camp and saw fabric moving amongst the trees. Major Tebbutt who had been on the SS VYNER BROOKE with the nurses had insisted that they must be somewhere in Sumatra. Indeed they were.

Food was parachuted into the camps. The nurses enjoyed Vegemite on bread!

Liberation on 16^th September 1945
Still wearing their uniforms.

On the 24^th of September Matron Annie Sage and Sister Floyd , one of the nurses who had belonged to the 2/10th and was evacuated on the EMPIRE STAR, and Sister Chandler arrived by plane to collect the nurses. Matron Sage had taken sixty-five lipsticks for the nurses. When she arrived she saw the small number of nurses and she asked of the nurses, “where are you all?” She realised that this was all that was left of the 65 nurses. She declared that she was the mother of them all. A profound moment. Only 24 nurses had survived the war.

They left for Singapore by plane with Sister Chandler. The nurses arrived and were taken to St Patricks Hospital – the place where so many of them had been before they left Singapore. They gradually gained weight but the soft beds were too much for some of them who slept on the hard floor. They were befriended by Lady Edwina Mountbatten who had a keen interest in their story and wellbeing. She would visit the Nurses Memorial Centre in Melbourne when she visited the nurses in Australia.

The nurses travelled home on the AHS Manunda and arrived in Freemantle, Western Australia on the 23^rd of October. The nurses would finally be home on Australian soil.

The nurses had a special bond. They would talk to each other often and would meet up often. They would speak of what had happened to them and how they had survived to each other but they didn’t talk of their ordeal to others. Many returned to nursing and others married. Others were never well enough to go back to nursing. Vivian Bullwinkel went to the War Crimes Tribunal in Tokyo.

She was a notable nurse who returned home. She had a full career. She worked at the Repatriation Hospital in Melbourne and she resigned her post as Lieutenant in 1947 and later became the Matron of Fairfield Infectious Diseases Hospital. She was the president of the Victorian College of Nursing (precursor of the Australian College of Nursing).

She was a decorated nurse who was awarded the Royal Red Cross Medal 2^nd class, the Florence Nightingale Medal, an MBE and an AO.

She contacted and kept in touch with all of the families of the nurses who were massacred on Banka Island writing to them all at Christmas and special occasions when she knew that it would have been tough for them.

She was a most revered nurse who will this year have a statue unveiled at the Australian War Memorial in not only her honour but for all the nurses who were lost on Banka Island.

This is an Australian story, a story of women, a story of war, and it is a story that we must never forget.

Lest we forget.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

WHITE COOLIES by Betty Jeffrey

J.P.L Kickhefer – Illustrations from White Coolies

The Muntok Peace Museum- muntokpeacemuseum.org

Australian War Museum – www.awm.gov.au

National Archives of Australia – www.naa.gov.au

The Australian Nurses Memorial Centre, Melbourne – admin@nmc.org.au

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Appendix 1

AUSTRALIAN NURSES KILLED AT THE TIME OF BOMBING OF SS VYNER BROOKE OR SHORTLY AFTER:

Matron Olive Paschke – Victoria, aged 37

Kathleen Kinsella – Victoria, aged 37

Louvima Bates – Western Australia, aged 32

Ellenour Calnan – Queensland, aged 29

Mary Clarke -NSW, aged 30

Millicent Dorsch -South Australia, aged 29

Caroline Ennis –Victoria, aged 28

Gladys McDonald – Queensland, aged 32

Lavinia Russell – NSW, aged 32

Marjory Schuman – NSW, aged 31

Merle Trennery -South Australia, aged 32

Mona Wilton – Victoria, aged 28

AUSTRALIAN NURSES MASSACRED ON RADJI BEACH, BANKA ISLAND

Matron Irene Drummond – South Australia, 36

Alma Beard – Western Australia, aged 29

Elaine Balfour-Ogilvy – South Australia, aged 30

Joyce Bridge – NSW, aged 34

Florence Casson – South Australia, aged 38

Mary (Beth) Cuthbertson – Victoria, aged 31

Dorothy (Bud) Elmes – NSW, aged 28

Lorna Fairweather – South Australia, aged 29

Peggy Farmaner – Western Australia, aged 28

Clarice Halligan – Victoria, aged 37

Nancy Harris – NSW, aged 31

Minnie Hodgson- Western Australia, aged 33

Ellen (Nell) Keats – South Australia, aged 26

Janet Kerr – NSW – aged 31

Eleanor McGlade – NSW, aged 38

Kathleen Neuss – NSW, aged 30

Florence Salmon – NSW, aged 26

Esther Jean Stewart – NSW, aged 37

Mona Tait – NSW, aged 27

Rosetta Wight – Victoria, aged 33

Bessie Wilmott – Western Australia, aged 28

AUSTRALIAN NURSES WHO DIED IN MUNTOK, BANKA ISLAND

Wilhelmina Raymont – Tasmania, aged 33

Irene ‘Rene’ Singleton – Victoria, aged 36

Pauline Blanche Hempstead – Queensland, aged 36

Dora Shirley Gardam – Tasmania, aged 34

AUSTRALIAN NURSES WHO DIED IN BELALAU, SUMATRA

Gladys Hughes – Victoria, aged 36

Winnie May Davis – NSW, aged 30

Pearl Mittleheuser – Queensland, aged 41 (died 18/08/1945)

NURSES WHO RETURNED HOME TO AUSTRALIA

Vivian Bullwinkel

Betty Jeffrey

Nesta James

Carrie (Jean) Ashton

Kathleen (Pat) Blake

Jessie Blanch

Veronica Clancy

Cecilia Delforce

Jess Doyle

Jean (Jenny) Greer

Janet (Pat) Gunther

Ellen (Mavis) Hannah

Iole Harper

Violet McElna

Sylvia Muir

Wilma Young

Christian Oxley

Eileen Short

Jessie Simon

Valerie Smith

Ada Syer

Florence Trotter

Joyce Tweddell

Beryl Woodbridge

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Appendix 2

NURSING AND MEDICAL STAFF IN SUMATRAN PRISON CAMPS, NOT INCLUDING AUSTRALIAN ARMY NURSES 

Edith Florence Bedell, Nurse *

Frank Bell, Nursing orderly (Padang Men’s Camp)

Catherine Boudville, Singapore General Hospital (Padang Camp)

Phyllis Briggs, Nurse *

Rachel Brooks, Nurse

Edith Castle, Colonial Nursing Sister *

Mary Charman, QA Nursing Sister  (Padang and Bankinang Camps )

Harley Clark, Dentist (Men’s Camp)

Marjorie Hindaugh Cocke, St John’s Ambulance Volunteer *

Marjorie Cooke, Nurse *

Mary Cooper, QA Nursing Sister*

Jessie Coupland, Nurse, Malayan Nursing Service *

Elsie Crowe, Gynaecologist  (Padang internee)

Naomi Davies, QA Nursing Sister, (Padang Camp)

Joy Dexter, Health visitor, Women and Children’s clinic *

Ruth Dickson, QA Nursing Sister *

M. Dlish, Nurse *

Ethel Eveling, 12^th Indian General Hospital, (Padang and Bankinang Camps)

Heather Fisher, Australian Nurse, Malayan Nursing Service, (Padang Camp)

Phyllis Fonseca, Combined Singapore General Hospital (Padang and Bankinang Camps)

Dr Annamaria Goldberg-Curth ?neurologist *

Louisa Harley, QA Nursing Sister  (Padang Camp)

Hilda Hobbs, Nurse  (Padang Camp)

Kathleen Homer, Nurse *

Mary Jenkin, Medical Auxiliary Service *

Kathleen Jenkins, QA Nursing Sister  (Padang Camp)

Marjorie Jennings, Nurse *

K.E. Kong, Nurse *

Beatrice Lazar, Indian General Hospital, Singapore, (Padang and Bankinang Camps )

Dr Lentze (former director Pangkalpinang Hospital) (Men’s Camp)

Doreen Lewis, Indian General Hospital, Singapore, (Padang and Bankinang Camps

Marjorie Lyon, Doctor (Padang Camp)

Janet Macalister, Nurse *

Brenda Macduff, Nurse (Padang Camp)

Helen Mackenzie, Nurse *

Freda Mackinnon, Assistant Matron, Penang General Hospital

Lydia Maclean, QA Nursing Service (Padang Camp)

Marjory Malmanche, Nurse (Padang Camp)

Mary McCallum, Nurse *

Jean McDowell, Doctor *

Rennie McFie, Nurse *

Albert McKern Doctor (Men’s Camp )

Nell McMillan, Nurse (Padang and Bankinang Camps)

Laura Mepham, Nurse  (Padang Camp)

Olga Neubronner, Colonial Service Nursing Sister, St John’s Ambulance, Singapore *

Sally Oldham, Nurse *

Joan Powell, Nurse*

Violet Pulford, Nurse *

Alice Rossie, Nurse *

Ruth Russell Roberts, MAS Ambulance driver *

Hyda Scott-Eames, MAS Nurse *

Agnes Service, Nurse  (Padang Camp)

Constance Smith, Doctor, Women and Children’s welfare officer *

Jean Smith, Nurse (Padang Camp)

Netta Smith, Nurse *

Violet Spedding, QA Matron (Padang and Bankinang Camps )

Hugh Stubbs, Doctor  (Men’s Camp )

Dr Tay (Men’s Camp)

C.P. (Phyllis) Thane, VAD Nurse *

Margaret Thompson, Doctor *

Margot Turner, QA Nursing Sister *

Mabel Waugh, Matron, Kuala Lipis, (Padang Camp)

George West, Doctor (Men’s Camp )

Kathleen Woodman, QA Nursing Sister  (Padang and Bankinang Camps )

Also 40 Catholic Nuns and a large number of Catholic brothers who cared for dysentery patients in the Men’s camp (11 brothers died doing this work)

* Denotes those British medical /nursing personnel who were in camp with the Australian Nurses 1942-1945

Terry Smyth: Captive Fathers, Captive Children

Captive Fathers, Captive Children:Legacies of the War in the Far East

Terry Smyth, PhD
Community Fellow, Department of History, University of Essex

We now know a great deal about the hardships suffered by the
POWs, but the children’s stories have been rarely heard. I wrote
my book to redress this situation.

Inevitably, the story starts with my father, Edwin Smyth, who was a
gunner in the Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment Royal Artillery. This is a
studio portrait taken before he left for the Far East.

And these are photos taken in the camp, Hiroshima 6b. The story
lies in the eyes, that haunted look.

From my earliest days, I began to wonder how my childhood
experiences compared with those of other children of FEPOWs.
So, the research began with nagging questions. How did other
children experience their childhoods? What was their family life
like? Did they get to know much about their father’s wartime
experiences? Did their fathers talk about it?

The basic research for the book was undertaken as part of a
PhD that I completed in 2017 at the University of Essex. I collected
my data through a series of forty mainly face-to-face interviews
with children of FEPOWs, plus follow-up emails. All interviews
were lengthy, unstructured, and in-depth, and used a
‘psychosocial’ approach.

Some of the accounts were difficult to listen to because they
described behaviours and family crises that in some cases were
felt to be embarrassing or even shameful. Despite this, families
displayed great resilience and courage in the face of hugely
challenging circumstances. All family situations are unique, of
course, but in the book I do my best to throw light on these
complex dynamics.

The book was published in 2023 by Bloomsbury Academic in their
Social and Cultural History series, and is also out in paperback.
There is a discount code – GLR BD8UK – if ordered via the Bloomsbury website but I don’t know how long this will be valid for.

I wrote the book for people like me – like us – to encourage
reflection on our individual and family experiences, to show how
the children of FEPOWs have remembered and commemorated
their fathers’ lives, and how different memory practices were
rooted in the experience of captivity.

Equally importantly, I wanted to share my research findings
with readers whose academic, professional or personal interests
lay in the long-term effects of war trauma, or were curious about
the psychosocial research methodology. I also drew on my
personal experiences when they complemented or extended the
research. In doing so, I came to feel an integral part of the
research process, more a partner and less of an observer.

The book comprises seven main chapters, with a Foreword by Sir
Tim Hitchens who was the British Ambassador to Japan between
2012 and 2016. I was lucky enough to meet him at a memorial
event in Japan in 2014.

These are the chapter headings:

Chapter 1 Life In Captivity
Where it all began: the fathers’ experiences in the Far East.

Chapter 2 Bringing War into the Home
The repatriation process and the transition from captivity to
domesticity. The wide-ranging impact of the fathers’ return on the
families, and how the children remembered their childhoods.

Chapter 3 Remembering and Commemorating
The complex nature of individual and collective memory and
forgetting; the process of remembrance and commemoration.

Chapter 4 Finding Meaning in Memories
How we work with our memories and the idea of ‘memory
practice’, i.e. any activity designed to give meaning to our
memories. This chapter forms a bridge between childhood
memories and the memory practices of adulthood.

Chapter 5 Home as a Site of Remembrance
How memories are expressed and commemorated in the home.

Chapter 6 The Search for Military Family Histories
The search for the facts of our fathers’ captivity, and the links with
wider family history.

Chapter 7 Place and Pilgrimage
The desire to ‘walk where they walked’. The emotional, intellectual
and ethical impacts of journeys to places associated with the
father’s war.

Inevitably, many words are left unsaid in the main body of the text.
Loose ends abound, as do voids that couldn’t be filled along the
way. In response to this, I wrote an Afterword that is in three
discrete sections: I reflect further on, firstly, the personal sources
of this research; secondly, on the exciting unpredictability of
fieldwork, and thirdly, the discomfort implicit in acknowledging the
humanity of the ‘other’ (in this case, the Japanese people). My aim
has been to keep the door ajar and to smooth the path for
empathy, imagination and further research.

Gautam Hazarika: Far East Issues of POW Journal

“The Prisoner of War” was The Official Journal of the Prisoners of the War Department of the Red Cross and St John Ambulance, published at St. James Palace, London during the war.  This Journal aimed to inform family members (in the banner it says FREE TO NEXT OF KIN) & the general public about the condition of Prisoners of War & internees, and how best to send them letters and parcels. Initially it had one page on the Far East on occasion as there was no information available, or whatever was, was scraps and unverifiable. 6 of these pages are below (these are just from Jun/ Sep/Oct 1943 and there probably are more). 

The Far East Special Monthly editions started in February 1944, once enough information was available to warrant one. There were 12 issues in total and I’ve not found online records of a complete set anywhere. They are an incredible research resource and I was fortunate to find a complete set and am delighted to be able to share them with as many people as possible.

The first issue starts with an editorial describing efforts so far and continues with News From the Camps, Letters Home (sections that occur in all issues), Life in Stanley Camp Hong Kong, How to Address Your Letters.

The other issues were: 

• No.2 March 44 (adds a section on Questions), 
• No.3 April 44 (includes 2 pages on civilians, though reports from the camps also covers civilian camps), 
• No. 4 Aug 44 (including an article on the Mysterious Japanese
• No. 5 Jan 45 (including article on Siam-Burma Railway – by now Burma was being recoved and detailed news of this was filtering in, including account from survivors + Civilian news)
• No. 6 March 45, includes a note on the Japanese date system, an article on how cables are sent and bottlenecks, survivor from Siam (F.Wilson, Sherwood Forresters), Christmas in Wampo Camp Siam, conditions in Java camps, Rescued in the Philippines, Civilian news, a wonderful sketch map of Stanley Camp Hong Kong)
• No. 7 May 45 – there is no ref to VE Day, so may have been published before May 8, 1945. Includes articles – Home from the Philippines, How the mail goes, Conditions in Hong Kong, a page on HK with pictures,  civilian news, Japanese politics, 
• No. 8, Jun 45 – war in Asia seemed to have a long hard slog ahead as Japan was expected to oppose the expected Allied invasion. Article on Lifting the Curtain in Japan, Burma Freedom at Last, Civilian News, Internment in Malaya, Last Days at Santo Tomas, Volunteer Forces Liberated
• No. 9 Aug 45: was likely published between August 12 when news first came out of Japan accepting the Potsdam Declaration, and August 15 when surrender was announced. Includes A Word to Relatives, cartoons of Siam Camps, Conditions in Shamshuipo, Rangoon Christmas an article by Cap J.H. Bunten, Cameronians, Planning their Food, pictures of life in Taiwan camps, report by Red Cross delegates visiting camps, lots of Civilian news, article Last days in Rangoon Jail
• No. 10 Sep 45 – Repatriation News, every day meals and recipes for Repatriates, Red Cross Reports, full page map of Far East Camps, Three Years in Rangoon Gaol by H. Born, article on When He Arrives
• No. 11 Nov 45 – Repatriation news, message from The King, civilian news, Liverpool welcome, Free At Last by Major F.E. Grazdoke, R.E. (Article on Taiwan) Red Cross article, Bridging the Gap (article on gap b/w prisoner life & civilian life, ie on being home as a civilian, not POW vs civilian internee),  more recipes, 
• No. 12 Dec 45 – FINAL ISSUE printed, Welcome in the West (travel back via US/ Canada), In Middle East India and Beyond, Red Cross, Sketch map of Burma railway camps, Far Eastern Broadcasts (forced on POWs), Far East Section at work, letter from Mountbatten.

All the 12 issues total 135 pages and are an incredible research resource

Stephen Walton: IWM Update

Stephen Walton, Senior Curator IWM

Since the previous RFHG Liverpool conference the Imperial War Museums (as the various IWM sites are now collectively called) were, along with the rest of the country, severely impacted by the Covid
pandemic and national lockdown. Our sites were closed to the public (and to most staff) for severalmonths, and our survival was due in large part to emergency funding from government. It has taken the IWM a long time to recover fully from this disaster, thankfully we are now essentially back to where we were before March 2020. Our on-line offer in some ways benefitted from lockdown, in that it forced us to put much more on our website to engage our audiences than would otherwise
have been the case. A highly popular series of YouTube videos on a variety of historical subjects (including the dropping of the atomic bombs on Japan in 1945 and the fall of Singapore in 1942) is just one of these innovations.

Less fortunately, our public on-site research offer has lagged behind this general recovery. The Research Room at IWM London was one of the last areas of the museum’s operations to open up again, and it has been functioning on a very restricted basis. A three day per week opening, and
strict limits on desk occupancy and number of archived collection items that can be viewed or consulted on any one day, have inevitably resulted in high levels of frustration in the wider research community. This has been due mainly to the prioritisation of those aspects of IWM’s activities that bring in the most revenue to replenish the coffers post-Covid – which public access to our collections in the Research Room does not. On a happier note, from August this year onwards, the Research
Room will be increasing its opening hours, desk numbers and daily collection items once again. In the longer term, there are ambitious plans to create a much larger public research facility which will open up our collections even more, and fundraising for this has already begun.

We are continuing to add to our large and varied FEPOW collections, mainly through donations of material from members of the public. Due to pressures on storage and associated resources, and collecting priorities in other areas, this is at a much lower rate than in previous years. There is also still much work to be done on uncatalogued FEPOW material that we have not had the time to deal with fully. Backlogs of this nature are common to most museums, the approach being that it is important to secure valuable historical material whilst it is still there, even if it cannot be immediately documented to the desired standard.

Lastly, if there are any lines of enquiry with your own FEPOW research that you think IWM might be able to assist with, do feel free to contact me (swalton@iwm.org.uk) and I will do my best to help.

Gautam Hazarika: Researching Indian FEPOWs

This story was unknown to me 8 months ago & I’ve been on it full time only for 2 months, hence it’s an early attempt. It’s select, as the Australian records are too vast to list entirely. The 5 books here seem to be the only ones on Indian FEPOWs & the rest of the biblio are primary records and a handful of articles I found useful to introduce me to the topic.

Some highlights:

• Sergeant Crasta called New Britain “Torture island” and in his little-known memoir Eaten by the Japanese he describes so much so well. From the title I knew he had not chosen it – in fact his son had. Somehow POWs seem to have less bitterness than one would expect.
• Lt Pillai’s escape, his MC in 5 days after reaching Delhi and his 32- page report gave India HQ the first news of the POWs, internees & civilian morale – a thrilling read.
• Major Dhillon, after a 6-month verification of his debrief of double crossing the Japanese, was awarded the MBE. Though nothing happened, had he planned a Triple Cross all long?
• Lt BP Singh’s MBE recommendation highlights him being the only Indian with the British in Changi. He had been captured in Arakan 1943 & to prevent him “infecting” the other Indians with his spirit, sent to Changi. 
• In his memoir, Lt Col Gurbaksh Singh recounts how he learns much later of his DSO, as it was awarded just before surrender. When Bose tries to recruit him into the INA he says, “if I could betray one master, I could betray another”. CinC India recommends a CBE for his POW days, he gets “just” an OBE.
• The interrogation of Maj Kogi Kazuo when he justifies the beheading of Captain Ansari, George Cross, based on the Japanese military code that he produces.
• Jemadar Chint Singh joined the INA & then left it to spend 30 months in New Guinea. At liberation, he was 1 of 13 survivors out of 2500 (fortunately 191 more had been rescued earlier), provided evidence for many trials & returned to give evidence vs Lt Gen Adachi.
• The Last Word: The illiterate Cook Shaikh Madar’s thumbprint on his testimony to ensure his voice is heard, and it is.

Chap 1: In WWII in the Far East, the Indian Army served in all the campaigns – Burma, Malaya/ Singapore, Hong Kong and Borneo, extensively covered by historians and British/ Australian participants. These are rare accounts by Indians participants (3 of these are in the highlights but I’ve given different details here):

1. Three Thousand Miles to Freedom by Brig MM Pillai, MC, Lancer Publications 2009. Lt Pillai was in the Bombay Sappers and was in KROH COL at the start, Slim River, & later escaped in May 1942.
2. Escape from Singapore by Brig Jasbir Singh SM (his son), Lancer Publications 2010. Captain Balbir Singh of 4/19 Hyderabad Regiment – sent to reinforce Kotah Bahru & then the retreat down the Malay peninsula and escaped in May 1942. 
3. Indelible Reminiscences, Lancer Publications 2013, published by his wife after his death. Lt Col Gurbaksh Singh Commanding Jind State Forces – guarding Tengah & Kallang airfields in Singapore, June 1942 sent to construct Kluang airfield in Johore, Malaya (3,000 men) where they remained for rest of the war.
4. Eaten by The Japanese, by John Baptist Crasta, published by Invisible Man Books 1998. Sergeant Crasta, RIASC wasn’t in the front line but witnessed the chaos in Singapore on Dec 8, 1941, in KL later & back again in Singapore. Describes post surrender Singapore, “Torture ship” journey to New Britain, his horrific time there, terrors of Allied air raids starting Oct 12, 1943, liberation & repatriation – a vivid account of his time in captivity and possibly the only complete manuscript published as is. 

Besides these memoirs, some of which cover the campaign, there are many well-known histories such as Singapore Burning by Colin Smith etc. that give an idea of what their unit was doing/ facing during the campaign.

Ch2: Singapore in 1942 

Was rife with the launch of the Japanese sponsored Indian National Army (INA) to expel Britain from India, propaganda & torture to make Indians join & some dramatic escapes. 

(Indian POW Annexure 1 is a short historical note on this).

Start with Feb 17, 1942, surrender ceremony in Farrer Park where the Indians were “handed over” to Japan by Lt Col Hunt (5). This created great controversy post war when senior INA officers were tried for treason – the handover was taken by Nehru & the defense team as absolving Indians from their allegiance (6). Hear from those who did not join the INA see 1-4, 8-14 

Malaya War Record: A Record of the Onward March (1942)

Feb 1942: Settling down into various camps across Singapore. See 8, 11

March 1942: the first shipments of troops for labour:

• March 21, units of HKSAR (HK and Singapore Artillery) shipped to Philippines (see 7)
• Gurbaksh Singh told in March to leave for Borneo, that gets delayed & he with 3,000 men go instead to Johore in June (3 pg96). 
• Balbir Singh almost marching off for Andaman’s when its cancelled (2, pg67).
• Pillai says 9,000 troops shipped out by April to Andamans, Hanoi & Thailand. He says HKSAR sent to Andamans, though it went to Phils. However as seen in Balbir & Gurbaksh Singh’s cases, things change. Am verifying other details (11, App A).

May 4 Escape by Cap Balbir & Gangaram Parab of 4/19 Hyderabad and Cap Pritam Singh 5/6 Punjab. Balbir & Parab reach early Oct 1942. Pritam Singh reaches end October helped by Dhillon (see Double Cross below). See 8,9,10.

May 7 Escape by Lts Pillai & Radhakrishnan (a Volunteer who had not been interned) and Cap Natarjan, IMS. Though they leave 3 days later, they arrive 2 months earlier on Aug 2. While in hospital, Gandhi, Nehru & entire Congress leadership is arrested, India is in chaos & they are suspects. 5 days after reaching Delhi on Aug 26, CinC recommends MC. See 11, 12

May onwards

• INA propaganda (see 1-4, 8-15) and in August, tortures (see 16, 17)

• Syonan Times (English language paper in Singapore to replace Straits Times) reports on India (see 22)
• September 1942 about 20k POWs join INA, wearing badges (see 17)
• Late October 1942 Double Cross by Major Dhillon, RIASC and 2^nd Lt Bakhtawar, Bengal sappers. See 13,14, 15. Nothing happened later, but was it a planned triple cross?
• 29^th December 1942 – 1^st INA disbanded by its commander, Cap Mohan Singh, 1/14^th Punjab (see 18-21)
• Early 1943 attempts to get recruits back again, see 17.

References (AWM/ some WO at National Archives online, IOR or India Office Records at British Library are not)

5. Hunt: In most books he’s ref to as Lt Col Hunt Malaya Command or HQ. He is in fact Lt William Shapter Hunt, Commander of the 2^nd Echelon of Hodsons Horse, Indian Armored Corps (courtesy Jonathan Moffat)

Hunt, William Shapter

6. INA Trial IOR-L/WS/1/1579
7. HKSAR sent to Philippines on March 21 (post-war debriefs AWM54 1010/4/164 pgs 73-5, 88-93 etc) 
8. CSDIC (Combined Services Detailed Interrogation Centre – it worked with MI9 to debrief escaped POWs) report on Cap Balbir debrief & MC recommendation WO-373-62-600
9. CSDIC report on Cap Parab debrief & MC recommendation WO-373-62-601
10. CSDIC report on Cap Pritam Singh debrief & MC recommendation WO-373-62-662
11. Lt Pillai’s 32-page report AWM 54-779-10-4 deserves special mention. He brings the 1^st news of conditions in Singapore, Malaya, Thailand & Burma to India HQ. Besides his escape, the debrief covers:

• Changi civilians, Australians at Seletar, Indians at Bidadari, Nee Soon, Tengah, Tyersall, Buller
• Shipment of 9k Indian POWs for labour 
• Other escapes
• Assessment of chance of escape for British/Aus (nil), Indians, good
• Suggestions on propaganda in Southeast Asia & India
• Names of those who helped them. 
• Attitude of locals before, during the war & after surrender, assessment of loyalty

12. India HQ Report on Pillai / Radhakrishnan debrief & MC recommendation WO-373-61-980. Gazetted 29 Sep 1942. Note Natarajan stayed behind in Burma.
13. MBE recommendation for Major Dhillon WO-373-62-605
14. Major Dhillons own account IOR-L/WS/1/1576
15. CSDIC report on Lt Bakhtawar debrief & MBE recommendation WO-373-62-598.
16. Major James report AWM 54 1010-4-152 (p3-5 of pdf)
17. Jemader Chint Singh affidavit AWM 54 1010-3-108 (pg 25-6 of pdf)
18. Report on Cap Mohan Singh WO-325-51
19. Major Fujiwara Interrogation WO-203-6314
20. CSDIC INA History IOR-L/WS/2/45
21. INA History by Historical Section IOR-L/WS/2/46
22. Syonan Times various articles if you search on The Syonan Shimbun or Syonan Shimbun Fornightly with relevant date range and key words eg Maru (for ship), Indian etc https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/advanced

Sarawak/Borneo (only 1 battalion 2/15 Punjab). 

Well documented example of how units get split up and shipped from place to place. 2/15 Punjab Reg surrendered in Sarawak Apr 3 1942. 700 sent to Java, then Singapore, where some remained, some sent back to Java, some remaining in Singapore & some came to New Britain. 

23. Havildar Major Maula Baksh detailed account (AWM 54 1010/4/164, pg9),
24. From this group, Captain Sher Dil Khan, MBE for fortitude in captivity in New Britain WO 373-87-347 
25. Looking for some evidence from him, found an affidavit verified by him AWM 54 1010/4/170 PG 77
26. For those who stayed behind in Borneo, battalion gets 2nd wartime MBE, Subedar Mhd Hasham at Kuching WO 373-87-344
27. Sekhon’s account of Kuching/Sarawak crimes See AWM 54 1010/4/130 pg 11-12
28. Sekhons Questionnaire – beatings to make them join INA in Miri/ Lutong – NAA Series No MP742/1 Control Symbol 336/1/2018 (courtesy Moffat)
29. LABUAN crimes Sepoy Chuni Ram AWM 54 1010/4/120 p80-85
30. Trial held in Singapore for crimes at Lutong Jun 1945 during Allied invasion. https://singaporewarcrimestrials.com/case-summaries/detail/092

My coverage of Hong Kong has been brief so far: 

Captain Ansari, nephew of Nizam of Hyderabad, was singled out due to his royal blood. He was beheaded 20 Oct 1943. George Cross gazetted 18 April 1946

31. WO 325/ 167 has details of the trial Japan held when he was sentenced.
32. His CWGC grave https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2815107/mateen-ahmed-ansari/
33. Write-up on him – https://vcgca.org/our-people/profile/155/MATEEN-AHMED-ANSARI

HK Escape narratives

34. Multiple escape narratives and award recommendations WO-373-64-702
35. Sepoy Manga Khan escaped 1942, caught & escaped 1944 leading 3 others. WO-373-47-418
36. Jemadar Sher Singh escape narrative WO 373-64-65
37. Akbar Ali + 4 escape narrative WO 373-64-66
38. Numerous other awards in GAZETTE 18 Apr 46 

Click to access data.pdf

39. Hong Kong Indian Camp Argyle Street WO 361/2048 

Burma references are limited:

See 33. From Burma in April 1942, Jemadar Padam Bahadur Thapa and Subedar Tekbahadur Limbu started an escape together, then split up. Thapa’s team splits further & he finally reaches India with 4 soldiers. The other part of his team is headed by Sepoy Ganga Bahadur Khettri who has 2 soldiers with him & also reach India. All are awarded. Meanwhile Limbu also reaches India with his team & gets the MC. 

34. Escape by Sub Tekbahadur Limbu in 1943, awarded MC, WO 373-62-499

34. Trial vs COL SUGASAWA summary Burma Railway

https://singaporewarcrimestrials.com/case-summaries/detail/095

35. Trial transcripts

https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=30297583

The Japanese start shipping Indian POWs to New Britain/ Guinea in Dec 1942. 

Good Articles to get the big picture:

36. Prof Stanley https://www.awm.gov.au/articles/journal/j37/indians

37. Maj-General Hamid   https://tribune.com.pk/story/2402061/could-inferno-be-worse?fbclid=IwAR2T-mpKMwDY_041sEXwr3VoU2T2qZDnu_hMsDMA2IpjqmJLI_eIIFcj2qw

Hell-Ship Journeys

38. Pulau Trial Case Summary 

https://singaporewarcrimestrials.com/case-summaries/detail/001

39. Went in Thames Maru to Pulau, (also carried 1500 Malay Chinese Javanese labourers? Trial says 2k Indian http://www.combinedfleet.com/Thames_t.htm
40. Sinking of Buyo Maru Jan 27, 1943 by a US sub USS Wahoo with 194/500 people dying. See 45 (Sen)
41. USS Wahoo patrol reports US National Archives NAID 74859023, and NAID 278490254
42. http://combinedfleet.com/googlesearch.php?cx=004186240537787039759%3Abhyjuw5taag&channel=2324678199&cof=FORID%3A10&ie=UTF-8&q=BUYO&sa=Search
43. Photo from US Naval History and Heritage Command – view from periscope of USS Wahoo of Buyo Maru sinking- public domain

https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/nhhc/our-collections/photography/numerical-list-of-images/nara-series/80-g/80-G-30000/80-G-39746.html

44. Hibi Maru (AWM 54 1010/4/170 Pg 91-2 CAP AMS CHARMARETTE 1HYD http://www.combinedfleet.com/Hibi_t.htm
45. Other journey description, see 4.
46. Singapore Keppel Harbour conditions Op Jaywick Debrief NAA – Item ID 235230

On their experience once they reached

They were liberated by Australia and AWM contains archives of their evidence. After giving them time to recuperate, they made each answer a questionnaire on their time in captivity (this is the document to be used to verify IWPs, hell ship dates). if war crimes were mentioned, then a separate statement needed to be made. 

Navigating AWM54 – World War II

AWM54 779 on POWs and Internees

AWM54 1010 on War Crimes Trials

As few Indian POWs are mentioned by name, best way is to search Indian POW 

From vast archives, these documents are good examples of the 100s of questionnaires & specific statements. The highlighted pages are by officers who provide a big picture narrative of their captivity  (also see 16 and 17 for big picture):

47. AWM54 1010/4/164

Major Rasheed, Bahawalpur State Forces, AWM 54 1010/4/164, pg 24-32

Jemadar Diwan Singh of 1st Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regt AWM 54 1010/4/164 p94-7

48. AWM54 1010/4/170

Captain Sen 5/2 Punjab Rifles AWM 54 1010/4/170 p47-53 (sunk by sub)

Lt Dr Saksena AWM 54 1010/4/170 pg 59-62 

Lt Col Syed Mohd Ishaq Hyderabad State Forces, AWM 54 1010/4/170, p63, p65-9

LT A.K.DAW Med Officer for SEN AWM 170 pg 156-7 

49. AWM54 1010/3/109
50. AWM54 1010/4/179
51. AWM54 1010/4/130
52. AWM54 1010/4/152
53. AWM 54 779/3/102
54. AWM54 1010/9/94 (cannibalism)

In 1944, Allies landed on New Guinea/ Bougainville in 1944 and this prompts escapes eg:

• Cap JH Patel in New Guinea with 27 others
• Gopal Prasad Jha, Bougainville, Aug 1944
• Cap Pillay, Bougainville in Sep 1944. 

55. WO 373-64-76: 

Meanwhile in Singapore 

56. Captain DURRANI Bahawalpur State Forces, George Cross

Click to access data.pdf

57. Rifleman Mehraj Din, Rajputana Rifles, escaped from Singapore to KL and set up a tailor shop. He supplied Indian POWs secretly & remaining undetected for the rest of the war. Awarded BEM. WO 373-104-170. 
58. There were many others who blended into Singapore and Malaya after escape (interview with Lt Pillai’s son, Admiral Pillai)
59. Captains Sudame & Jayaram, RIASC escaped from Singapore separately, and caught in Bangkok, brought back. Both awarded MBE WO 373-104-56 and WO 373-104-54
60. Lt Ismail oral history IWM who had remained here. Marvellous tape. 3RD tape, Min 14:00 onwards on Malaya https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/80011491
61. Lt BP Singh, captured at Arakan campaign, staunch anti-Japan, so segregated & the only Indian in Changi with British POWs. Set up radio & found his way out of Changi to pass war news regularly into Indian POW camp to keep their spirits up. WO 373-104-140 and his Changi record WO 367/1

https://search.findmypast.co.uk/record?id=GBM%2FPOW-GALLIP%2F101684752%2F00181&parentid=GBM%2FPOW-FAREAST%2F01395467

62. How doctors are managing https://fepowhistory.com/tag/indian-pows/

After liberation

How Many were shipped? 13-14k men shipped from Singapore, 550 to Pulau, 2.5k to New Guinea, 10-11k to New Britain.

How Many Survived? Pulau, 337/550, New Guinea 204/2.5k, not sure about New Britain (Crasta says out of 11k, 5.3k survivors including 1k hospital cases)

Indian POW Annexure Note has details of how this is calculated.

After rest & once questionnaires answered & specific statements made on war crimes, courts of inquiry were held. 

63. AWM54 1010/4/170 has examples on pg 42-6, and 70-74

Subsequently 100 war crimes trials were held by Australia solely on atrocities against Indian POWs. In 66 of these all or some of the accused were convicted to death or prison. 

Inidan POW Annexure has a note on Legal aspects/ defense by Japanese . 

A good starting point are these articles:

64. Sissons, D.C.S. The Australian War Crimes Trials and Investigations (1942-51). 

Click to access Sissons%20Final%20War%20Crimes%20Text%2018-3-06.pdf

65. Article on Australian War Crimes Trials with focus on Rabaul  

https://academic.oup.com/book/26719/chapter/195551727

66. TOKYO WAR CRIMES TRIALS – MARK FELTON YOUTUBE

Trials archives:

67. AWM226 items 15, 16, 17 
68. AWM54 1010
69. Singapore war crimes trial portal with summary https://singaporewarcrimestrials.com
70. It has Links to details in UNs ICWC, search by name of defendant. This has records of all trials across countries, but mainly summaries & judgements, not the transcripts and evidence  https://www.legal-tools.org/

Some representative examples of trials

71. Beheading of Cap Nirpal Singh without Trial AWM54 1010/6/100
72. Trial of Captain Taura (said to be the cruelest unit commander on New Britain) AWM54 1010/3/81
73. Based on Taura’s conviction, his C/o Col Negishi was tried as well but found not guilty AWM54 1010/6/4
74. Lt Gen Adachi – convicted & committed suicide while serving his sentence AWM54 1010/3/8
75. Trial of Gozawa Odaichi & others for atrocities on Hell Ship & on Palua island WO235/813. 

Chint Singh was prolific. He gave vast amounts of testimony, used in at least 6 trials and was 1 of the few who was brought back to give evidence in court such as at the trail of Lt-Gen Adachi.

76. Chint Singh The Man Who Should Have Died by his son Narender Singh Parmar was published in 2021 
77. His 61 page record of New Guinea and liberation- A brief sketch of the fate of 3000 Indian POWs in New Guinea. 1943-1945.  Pacific Manuscript Bureau. 

https://asiapacific.anu.edu.au/pambu/catalogue/index.php/396y-mwfd-fm7w

78. Multiple affidavits as evidence in AWM 54 1010/9/79
79. And AWM 54 1010/4/31
80. Chint Singhs handwritten letter thanking 6th Australian division AWM 54-779-1-20

The Other Side of the Hill

A good place to find this in the trial transcripts. In addition, see

81. AWM 54 1010/9/22 Affidavits by Japanese at Rabual, New Britain
82. AWM 54 1010/9/23 Roll of Japanese units at Rabaul, statement by Gen adachi
83. Unpublished manuscript by Japanese commander at Rabaul General Imamura AWM MSS1098
84. Oral History of a Japanese now POW Iwao Muranaka in Changi post war

https://www.nas.gov.sg/archivesonline/oral_history_interviews/record-details/cc2774af-115e-11e3-83d5-0050568939ad?keywords=indian%20POW&keywords-type=all

In Japanese  with a transcript – a pilot with Navy Air For& comes to Singapore, they were ready to fight off invasion, as POW, labour works in Singapore,  says British guards cried when they left for Japan.

Awards for Indian FEPOWs

2 George Crosses, at least 6 OBEs, over 30 MBEs, numerous MCs, MMs, BEMs, Mentions were awarded to Indian FEPOWs. Following gazette’s include multiple awards:

85. April 18, 1946: Ansari GC, 6 OBEs, many MBEs

Click to access data.pdf

86. May 9, 1946: 15 MBEs https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/37558/data.pdf
87. Sep 25, 1947: over 20 MBEs, 14 BEMs, Mentions etc 

Click to access data.pdf

POWs return home:

• Crasta (4) names his repatriation ship and many others. 
• Dr Stanley suggested looking at NAA & National Library of Australia’s Trove database of newspaper articles many of which cover repatriation of POWs

https://trove.nla.gov.au/search/category/newspapers?keyword=

• Chint Singhs book (72) gives an account of his return to New Guinea in 1970 to commemorate 25 years of the end of war.
• Cap Balbir Singh (2) who retired as a Brigadier retraced his escape route in 1988
• Their post-war feelings/ impact – we don’t know as none of the 5 memoirs cover this. This is the gap I’m trying to bridge through interviews. Have spoken to sons of 2 POWs and working on more.

You have to read my (hopeful) book to know the story properly & find out what the POWs felt and how it impacted the Family. I’m very new to this and welcome any guidance/ help.

Thanks, Gautam Hazarika, ghazarika70@yahoo.com

Annexure 1 HISTORICAL BACKGROUND INDIAN ARMY & INDIAN NATIONAL ARMY

When looking into the Indian Army, one comes across terms like KCO/ KCIO/ VCO/ ICO/ ECO. 

• VCO: till the early 1920s, all officers were British. The senior most rank for Indians was Viceroy Commissioned Officers, senior to warrant officers but below commissioned officers.

• KCO/KCIO: early 1920s, Indians commissioned from Sandhurst (Kings or Kings Indian CO)
• ICO: when graduation training shifted from Sandhurst to India, they were called Indian CO.
• ECO were Emergency CO when WWII started.

There were very few Indian officers in Singapore – I’ve come across mainly Lieutenant’s, some Captains, very few Majors and only 2 Lt Cols. 

Besides the Indian Army, there were also units belonging to the princely states, called Indian State Forces. 

• There were 5 such units in Singapore – Hyderabad State Forces (different from Hyderabad Regiment which was Indian Army), Mysore, Bahawalpur, Jind, Kapurthala. 
• Many of the people mentioned here, like Waheed (Annexure2), Rasheed (45), Ishaq (46), Gurbaksh (4) served there.

INDIAN NATIONAL ARMY

In creating their Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere and “Asia for the Asians”, before the war began, Japan Army HQ reached out to the local political groups in Southeast Asia. This unit was headed by Major Fujiwara and was known as Fujiwara Kikan. They found that there were Indians everywhere and each colony (and Siam) had an Indian Independence League (IIL), a political organization meant to galvanize the local population to support Indian independence in any practical way. Fujiwara went to Bangkok as Siam/Thailand was the only independent country (all the rest were British/French/ Dutch colonies) and met Giani Pritam Singh, the Head of IIL Thailand. The Giani decided to join hands with Fujiwara to expel Britain from India and the 2 headed to Malaya when the invasion began and around Dec 10, 1941, met one of the captured Indian officers Captain Mohan Singh, 1/14 Punjab. He too decided to work with the Japanese and formed the kernel of what was to become the Indian National Army (INA).

Annexure 2 How Many went to New Britain/ New Guinea? How Many survived?

New Guinea: 

Chint Singh wrote a 61 page narrative on New Guinea with a lot of detail (73). His heading is 3000 people. However, on pg 33 & 34, he finds that:

IWP 16 has 1 survivor out of 560 (a more reliable source, Jemader Nand Singh says 547) 

IWP 17 has 0 survivors out of 500

IWP 18 has 2 survivors out of 565

IWP 26 has 2 survivors out of 309

IWP 19 (his own) has 8 survivors out of 539 

Total 13 survivors out of 1,979 men.

There are no figures for IWP 17 (also in NG) and using the average of all the groups c 525, taking total in New Guinea of 2,500.

Later he finds that 191 men had been rescued before the war ended. So a total of 191 + 13 = 204 survive.

Sadly, 2 of the 13 survivors die on Sep 20, leaving 11. Chint Singh stays back to give more evidence and the remaining 10 fly back to India. They all die when the plane crashes. He remains the sole survivor of the 13 liberated after the war ended.

For when they sailed to NG, see below.

New Britain (NB):

When the Japanese start shipping Indian POWs in Dec 1942, they were organized into 26 Indian Worker Parties (IWP) of 500-600 men each, headed by an Indian officer. They normally sailed in a convoy of 2-2.2k men. Based on this, and the different pieces of archive information, the voyages and number of men are:

Voyage 1: One group sailing in December 1942 to New Britain (NB) – there are 2 refs to this. The stated Commander was in NB. This may have been a sole group as it was the start. So 500 went to NB.

Voyage2: On Jan 5, 2000 men sail to NB – 4 groups

Leave Jan 5, 1943, Buyo Maru with Sen’s 500 gets torpedoed and 1500 are on tanker Pacific Maru. Reaches Feb 19. All in AWM.

Voyage 3: On Jan 12, evidence of 1 group (James) sailing for NB. There are refs to this voyage in AWM. Likely to be 4-5 groups totaling 2-2.5k men.

Voyage 4: On May 1, several groups sail to NB (many refs in AWM), likely 4-5 groups of 2-2.5k men. Reach Jun 28.

Till now, we have 13-15 groups shipped.

Voyage 5: On May 5, 4 groups of 2.2k men sail to New Guinea (IWP 16-19). Reached May 16. Detailed a/c by Chint Singh in AWM.

Voyage 6: On May 5, 2000 men set sail in Thames Maru, 520 get dropped off at Pulau on Jun 8 (IWP 15) and the rest go to NB (IWP 20 + likely IWP 21 & 22). Reach July5. Complete details in AWM.

Voyage 7: 

• ICWC archives say 30 men dropped off later at Pulau after Voyage 6, so there must have been another voyage.
• Other hints from archives – IWP 26 arrives in NG in Jun 43. In Voyages 5/6 we have identified IWP 16-20 from archives, so there was likely Voyage 7 that included as usual c4 groups of c2k men. 
• Hence likely this voyage had IWP 26 with 309 men to NG, IWP 23-5 of 1.5k men to NB and on the way dropped off 30 men at Pulau. 
• This ties up a loose end as we had not accounted for IWP 23-5 yet. The total to NB would also tally with the 11k figure mentioned by Crasta. This last point may be a stretch and aI wouldn’t have done it had we not had the other evidence.

From this we have 13-14k men shipped from Singapore of whom 550 went to Pulau, 2.5k to New Guinea, 10-11k to New Britain.

How Many Survived? Pulau, 337/550, New Guinea 204/2.5k, not sure about New Britain (Crasta says 5.3k survivors including 1k hospital cases)

Annexure 3 War Crimes Trials

Tokyo trials was for high-ranking ones like PM Tojo. Besides this US, Australia, UK, China, Holland, Phils conducted over 2000 trials, on atrocities in territories controlled by them.  

Courts of inquiry were held as preliminary investigations – were the allegations specific, were witnesses alive, were the accused identified & alive? If so they were interrogated and eventually 100 war crimes trials were held to prosecute the Japanese. A basic tenet of English law is being able to cross-examine a witness. However it was realized that if this was to be followed, then many Japanese could not be tried as their accusers had either died after giving testimony or would have gone home, so a special act was passed that allowed written evidence to be admitted. For some trials, the accusers were brought back from India, as Chint Singh was. 

From the trial records one can see that the Japanese defence was well organized. Japanese officers with legal training formed the defence. The accused seemed well trained on how to answer questions – be brief and to the point. Instead of flatly denying accusations such as having beaten POWs, they would admit having pushed them on the shoulder. Senior officers came to provide evidence in court in support of their juniors. In many cases, defense was by Allied officers & they gave it their best.

The official Japanese view was that the Indians were not POWs but sub-soldiers as they had joined the INA (most of those in PNG had not) and were under Japanese military law where any command must be obeyed, and no one is to complain (the reason they gave for senior Japanese officers not knowing conditions were bad). Besides the conditions for the Japanese was as bad. Many POWs were beheaded, shot or bayoneted to death without trial. The Japanese commander General Imamura took responsibility for it all & offered to stand trial for all cases if his men were released. That offer was not taken. Eventually, 100 trials were held and in 66 of them, all or some of the Japanese were found guilty and sentenced to death or a jail sentence ranging from life down to 2 years.

Jan Slimming: Captured at Singapore

CAPTURED AT SINGAPORE – A Diary of a Far East Prisoner of War.

Jan Slimming gave an outline of her father’s story during the conference dinner and read a passage from the book about the British Army’s fateful day of surrender, “the worst in British history,” February 15^th , 1942. The book was published in 2022 with her twin sister and co-author, Jill
Robertson, who conducted most of the extensive research. Jill was unable to attend the conference as she was in New Zealand, expecting the birth of her first grandchild.

Jan asked the audience, “What would it be like to keep a secret for 50 years, never tell your parents or your children – not even your spouse!?” After the deathly silence and a moment of reflection, we heard how their parents were reluctant to speak about their war years.

Their father’s prisoner of war experience under the Japanese, was too painful to remember and besides the British government told him and his equals to forget their dreadful days of captivity, and their mother was sworn to secrecy via the Official Secrets Act, being one of the Bletchley Park codebreakers integral to winning the war and shortening it by
two years.

Imagine. Their story began in England, when they were six and started asking questions about why their father watched horrific black and white war movies on Sunday afternoon TV. It was then he explained he had been a prisoner during the war. “A Prisoner!” This news was shocking to their young ears. They thought he had committed a crime, but he explained a prisoner of war was different. “Anyway, it was a long time ago,” he said, “and not something for little girls to worry about.” War was something he didn’t want them to ever experience. Over the decades they learned limited amounts about his 3½ year incarceration in Changi Jail, Singapore, the shared the experiences, those who did not come back, and that his family back in London did not know if he was dead or alive for nearly two years.

The idea for the books came about in 2012 when Jan met an American Codebreaker – Janice Martin Benario – a WAVE who was born in Baltimore, worked in Washington DC and lived in Atlanta, close to where Jan and her family reside. Jan recorded her story and this became the catalyst and framework for research into her parents’ war years, alongside a few snippets of information they revealed, and mysterious papers and photographs hidden in a blanket box at the foot of
their bed.

Jill had also met a Royal Engineer POW, Fergus Anckorn, and was gathering more about his Changi experience as their father was no longer alive to tell them, except for the tiny address book he’d kept hidden as a secret diary and the recording he made for Jan on her small tape cassette in 1990.

Well organized, with lighter and serious moments, their interlinked books are chronological for the most part. Robertson and Slimming also believe, ironically, that the Atom Bomb saved their father’s life, since an enemy plan was afoot to kill all POWs soon after the Japanese surrendered, August 15^th , 1945. “We might never have existed.” Jan lamented.

---

CAPTURED AT SINGAPORE: A Diary of a Far East Prisoner of War
Foreword by Terry Waite (Prisoner of War in the Gulf War)

CODEBREAKER GIRLS: A Secret Life at Bletchley Park
Foreword by Sir Dermot Turing (Nephew of Alan Turing)

CODEBREAKER GIRLS: The Secret Life of an American Codebreaker
Foreword by Paul Reid (Author (with William Manchester) of The Last Lion, Vol.3 Winston Spencer Churchill Defender of the Realm 1940-1965

Published by Pen & Sword Books.com

Edgar Jones: Psychological Resilience and Coping

Edgar Jones
Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience,
King’s College London

Today, prisoners-of-war are recognised a group of veterans particularly at risk of persisting or severe psychological illness. Recent studies of American and Israeli prisoners-of-war report elevated rates
(20% to 30%) of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Stressors include: 1. The act of surrender which may involve physical violence and the threat of death. 2. The experience of privation and brutality during imprisonment with elevated rates of illness and death. 3. Feelings of guilt, shame and anger at having been captured, and 4. Heightened challenges of reintegration into civilian society.

The high mortality experienced by Far Eastern prisoners of war would inevitably have led to elevated rates of psychological illness because of the enduring association between physical and psychological casualties. Generally held in captivity for over three years, prisoners who survived had several common features: a chance event with a positive outcome during captivity; an intense focus on survival; and skills or attributes from their pre-war life that given them an advantage; these
included a strong sense of family, professional, language or technical skills, faith, physical strength, earlier experiences of adversity.

Research suggests that there is no one method to cope, though adaptability, pre-captivity skills and a focus on survival seem common to many survivors. These qualities were needed no less for transition and reintegration into civilian life than they were for the challenges of captivity.

Recognition of the psychological trauma that Far Eastern prisoners of war experienced was slow and only gathered pace after the formal acceptance of PTSD in 1980. Arguably it is still being refined as
reflected by the recognition of complex PTSD in 2019 and on-going research into moral injury.

Ken Hewitt: When your luck runs out

When your luck runs out – The story of Pte Edwin Trapp
By Ken Hewitt

Pte Edwin Trapp (photo courtesy of Aileen Prendergast)

The story of Pte Edwin Trapp is just one of the many interesting
stories that came out of Ken Hewitt’s research into the 1 st
Battalion Leicestershire Regiment during WWII. Pte Trapp was
just one of the 936 men of the battalion who fought in the Malaya
Campaign, just one of the 694 who became POWs and just one
of the 354 who never returned home. His story typifies how luck
played a part in the survival of these men and the atrocious
conditions experienced by those who travelled to Japan on the
appropriately named ‘hellships’.

Ken Hewitt presenting the story of Pte Edwin Trapp (photo courtesy of Richard Brown)

Ken explained that Edwin Trapp was born in Cheltenham in February 1914 and, that at the age of twenty, he enlisted with the King’s Regiment (Liverpool). In 1936 he was posted to India and in 1941 was transferred to Malaya where he joined the 1^st Battalion Leicestershire Regiment. He fought against the Japanese in the Malaya Campaign only to become a prisoner of war when Singapore fell in February 1942. Precisely how lucky he was to survive the fighting we’ll never know, but 180 of the battalion were not so fortunate.

Thai-Burma Railway

Then in June 1942 he was sent to Thailand as part of an advance party to prepare for the arrival of the masses later that year. By December 1942 he was at Chungkai camp where he had rejoined the core of the battalion who had arrived from Singapore in early November. With No.6 Battalion of Group II he initially worked on the railway construction between Chungkai and Wampo. In early May 1943 they were forced to trek 100km north to Tha Khanun and camps beyond where they continued to work on the railway construction. After its completion they were moved back to Chungkai in February 1944. We all know what hardships they faced while working on the railway and other projects in Thailand. 107 men of the 1^st Leicesters died in Thailand so Pte Trapp must have had some luck in surviving the ordeal, but then he was unlucky to be selected for transportation to Japan.

Asaka Maru to Manila 

After a repeat of that awful railway journey back to Singapore he awaited embarkation as part of Japan Party 2. The convoy left Singapore in early July 1944 bound first for Miri in Borneo. Trapp was one of 53 Leicesters men in Japan Party 2 and they were split between two ships – 26 aboard the Asaka Maru and 27 aboard the Hofuku Maru. Pte Trapp was lucky to have been on the Asaka Maru because 17 of the Leicesters men aboard the Hofuku Maru died before reaching Japan – 3 of illness, 13 in the sinking of the ship by allied aircraft on 21^st September and 1 on a subsequent hellship voyage. 

Bilibid prison hospital, Manila

By the time the ships reached Manila in the Philippines most of the POWs were suffering from one illness or another but the Japanese initially refused to allow the men ashore even though the ships were held there for a number of weeks. Conditions on board were unbearable and men began to die in the hot and humid conditions, with no adequate sanitary arrangements and with little food and water.  Eventually the Japanese relented and allowed the more seriously ill ashore for treatment at the Bilibid prison hospital. Edwin Trapp was lucky to be one of them but perhaps unlucky to have recovered quickly enough to continue on his journey to Japan in December 1944. Two other Leicesters men who were also taken ashore at Manila remained there and were liberated by US troops in February 1945.

Oryoku Maru / Enoura Maru /Brazil Maru

Edwin Trapp boarded the Oryoku Maru on 13^th December 1944 and his journey from that point on was packed with incident. A day out of Manila near Olongapo in Subic Bay the Oryoku Maru was bombed by US aircraft and many POWs were killed. The survivors, including Trapp, were able to swim ashore to safety and were then transported north to the Lingayen Gulf. Here, two ships, the Enoura Maru and the Brazil Maru, were waiting to load their cargo of POWs. Trapp was aboard the Enoura Maru and was lucky not to be one of the 16 men who died on the voyage to Takao in Taiwan.

While in Takao harbour sugar was loaded into one of the holds. It was too much of a temptation for the seriously under-nourished POWs and the guards soon noticed that some was going missing. The POWs were threatened with no food or water until the culprits owned up. Two men volunteered to take the rap – a US Trooper Sgt Max Hanenkrat and our Eddie Trapp. Fortunately, they were lucky to escape serious punishment and were returned to the hold.

Next, the ex-Hofuku Maru POWs were taken ashore to join other survivors of the sinking who had departed Manila in October and were now located at the Heito camp on Taiwan. Being an ex-Asaka Maru man Trapp remained on board to continue his journey to Japan to join the original Asaka Maru party members, now at Amagasaki near Osaka. Remaining on board was not so lucky for Trapp though because the next day the POWs experienced their second bombing by US aircraft. Once again many were killed and those who died were taken ashore for burial. After the war their bodies were exhumed and taken to Hawaii for reburial at the Punchbowl Military Cemetery. Those who survived the bombing were transferred to the Brazil Maru to continue their journey to Japan.

Trapp’s date of death    

Ken went on to explain that there was some degree of uncertainty about Trapp’s date of death, three different dates having been found. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission give a date of between 1^st and 31^st December 1944 which is most unlikely. Trapp’s Japanese Index Card gives a date of death as 11^th January 1945 and states that his death was caused by injuries sustained in the bomb attack. Whilst this is a possibility Ken expressed his doubts about the accuracy of the dates of death recorded by the Japanese for men who died on the hellships. Furthermore, there was never any positive identification of Trapp’s body, either at the time of burial or subsequent exhumation. A third date of death of 21^st January 1945 was found on in Jim Erickson’s Oryoku Maru roster on Roger Mansell’s POW website. This date would suggest that Trapp survived the bombing of the Enoura Maru, was transferred to the Brazil Maru and died during the next leg of his voyage to Japan. In an exchange of emails with Jim Erickson he explained that the dates of death on his roster originated from records maintained by US Capt Robert Conn. He had taken on the role of Graves Registration Officer at Cabanatuan camp in the Philippines and continued in that role on the Oryoku, Enoura and Brazil Marus. The 21^st January date of death is also supported by an article published in the Chicago Daily News in November 1945 (see Roger Mansell website) which states that both Trapp and Hanenkrat boarded the ship that was to take them to Japan. Ken said that he shares Jim Erickson’s view that the 21^st January date of death is the most likely.

In the horrendous conditions which the POWs experienced aboard the Brazil Maru, 440 of the 890 POWs died before reaching Japan and were buried at sea. It is thought that Pte Edwin Trapp was one of them and he is today remembered on the Singapore Memorial at Kranji War Cemetery as having no known grave. As with many of the other 24,000 plus names on that memorial, Trapp’s name alone does not begin to tell the story of what he had to endure in conflict and captivity. 

Pte Edwin Trapp is remembered in Col 66 of the Singapore Memorial, Kranji

His story, however, has now been told, not only in this talk today but in Ken’s recently published book, Tigers in Captivity. Edwin Trapp’s name will live on together with all the other men of the 1^st Battalion Leicestershire Regiment who fought in the Malaya Campaign many of whom became Far East prisoners of war. Hopefully they will never be forgotten.  

For further information  on Tigers in Captivity please visit  www.tigersincaptivity.co.uk 

Ken Hewitt: Researching Tigers in Captivity

In July 2022 Ken Hewitt published his book, Tigers in Captivity,
detailing the fate of all 936 men of the 1 st Battalion Leicestershire
Regiment during the Malaya Campaign and subsequent captivity.
He opened his talk by saying that when he first started his research
back in 2006 he had no thoughts at all of writing a book on all the
men of the Battalion but was only interested in his father’s military
career. The idea of publishing a book just evolved over his many
years of research.

Early Research

His early research took him to the National Archives (TNA) at Kew, to the Imperial War Museum (IWM) at Lambeth and to the Leicester Records Office (LRO) in Wigston where the regimental archives are kept. After three years of research he had a much better understanding of his father’s service with the Leicestershire Regiment. Inevitably, this research resulted in the gathering of information on other men of the battalion and the research bug began to bite. During his first visit to the IWM he had found a copy of the battalion nominal roll as at the start of the Malaya Campaign, but which was drawn up in September 1942 while POWs in Changi. It enabled Ken to identify those killed in action during the Malaya Campaign, those who escaped or were evacuated from Singapore around the time of surrender, and those who became prisoners of war. This nominal roll was to provide the foundation on which his research into the men of the battalion was based. It was this nominal roll that was used by Capt. David Nelson’s Bureau of Records and Enquiry (BRE) in Changi to generate their own nominal roll and which included other valuable information on the fate of men during the Campaign and captivity. (TNA doc ref WO 361 /2116).

Later research took Ken to Singapore, visiting the various WWII sites and to retrace his father’s steps as a POW. He took the rail journey from Singapore to Thailand where he visited the camps where his father toiled all those years ago. As a guest of the Thai-Burma Railway Centre he undertook a five-day tour of the railway, war cemeteries and museums with Rod Beattie and Andrew Snow. Research even continued in Australia with visits to the Australia War Memorial in Canberra and the Western Australia State Library in Perth.

Sources of information

Ken went on to explain the major sources of information which provided key information on each of the men. These included:

• The War Diaries of the 1st Leicesters and the 2^nd East Surreys (TNA doc ref  WO 172 / 120 & 100).
  • Liberations Questionnaires (TNA – WO 344 / **)
• Japanese Index Cards (TNA -WO 345 /***)
• The records of the Bureau of Records and Enquiry (TNA – WO/361/****) which were released to the public in April 2011.
• Personal accounts of captivity by officers of the 1^st Leicesters (Lt Chippington papers at the IWM and the diaries of Majors Harvey and Kennedy at the LRO).
• Many books on the Malaya Campaign and the period of captivity. Three were specifically mentioned. Singapore  – The Inexcusable Betrayal by Lt George Chippington, The British Battalion in the Malaya Campaign by Chye Kooi Loong and Death on the Hellships by Greg Michno. These were just some of the 55 books listed in the bibliography to his book.
• The internet – in particular Roger Mansell’s website on Far East POWs, the COFEPOW and FEPOW Community websites with personal accounts of FEPOWs, the Commonwealth War Graves Commission website for confirmation of those who died, and the Regiment’s database of ‘Tiger’ veterans.

The sharing of research findings

He next spoke about being inspired by Roger Mansell and his philosophy of sharing research information. As a result, in 2014, Ken published a summary of his research findings on the COFEPOW website (https://www.cofepow.org.uk/armed-forces-stories-list/1st-btn-leicestershire-reg ).  Included was a list of the 936 men involved and an invitation to relatives to get in touch for further specific information on their FEPOW relative. Over subsequent years Ken received enquiries from 180 relatives with whom he was happy to share his research findings and, with their approval, added details to the Regiment’s online database. 

2015 presentation of research findings in Leicester to commemorate VJ70

Then in 2015, to commemorate VJ70, Ken gave an illustrated talk in Leicester on his research findings to relatives, regimental veterans and other interested parties. It was only after this talk that Ken was encouraged to document his research more formally for the benefit of the Regiment’s history archive and the relatives of these men.

Identifying need for further research

Having considered the two options of developing a website or writing a book, Ken decided on the latter, believing it would provide a more lasting and tangible family memorial to these men. In considering the structure and content of the book he decided that those men who died in conflict and in captivity should be remembered by name at the appropriate point in the text, necessitating the whole story being told. This identified areas where further research was necessary, e.g. detail of the Malaya Campaign, the later Thailand POW camps such as Ubon, Pratchai, Petchaburi, Takuri and the road projects to Mergui and Tavoy, and the nature of the work the POWs were forced to carry out in the many Japan POW camps.

Research issues

Ken then talked of other issues that he experienced during his research. The frustration of not being able to find any information in some areas, for example, the precise whereabouts of men during the Campaign and the lack of embarkation lists for ships leaving Singapore around the time of surrender, the hellships carrying POWs to Japan and even the repatriation ships bringing the men home. The shortcomings of the information contained on liberation questionnaires was perfectly understandable considering they were completed during repatriation nearly, two years after being held in some of these camps. The incomplete questionnaires were frustrating nevertheless. Even more frustrating was conflicting information found in books, archive materials and on the internet. All conflicting information, especially dates of death, needed to be investigated further in an attempt to establish the truth. 

He explained how he resisted the temptation to present speculation as the truth and likened his research to a 10,000 piece jigsaw with pieces missing. It was always tempting to cut out a piece of card to replace the missing piece and to paint a picture on it to match the surrounding image. If it is just one piece missing you may not be too far from the truth, he said, but if it is a group of 6 pieces that are missing it’s a different story.

In publishing a book such as Tigers in Captivity – primarily for relatives of these men –  it is important to spell names correctly, quote the correct army number and use the correct rank. With archive records themselves containing misspelt names, transposed digits in army numbers and ranks changing throughout the period they all had to be checked and double checked. Together with reconciling numbers of men in various parties, ensuring that totals tallied, it was a time-consuming process.

Lessons learnt

Ken expressed his amazement at just how much information there is to be found. You just need to know where to look and have the time to find, photograph, read and digest it all. You can go on researching forever but to share your research findings in a published book you have to draw the line somewhere otherwise it never gets shared.

Another lesson learnt, he said,  was to be methodical in your filing and the recording of archive document references. It is surprising how many times you will need to refer back to material and, if you are planning to write a book, you need to be able to quote your sources. Ken also emphasised the need to revisit websites and previously reference material. Websites are continually being added to and, with your own growing knowledge base, connections can be made with information given in books that previously were not apparent.

Ken went on to issue a word of warning on how research can become addictive. To sit at your PC for long periods at a time, downloading research material, reading it, editing photos, creating maps and writing books can be unhealthy. Take frequent breaks, he advised.

Publication of Tigers in Captivity

After many years of research Tigers in Captivity Ken was finally in a position to publish. He opted for the self-publishing route, which was an education in itself, and the book was published in July 2022. It summarised the fate and movements of the 936 men of the 1^st Leicesters during the Malaya Campaign and throughout captivity. He presented a slide showing the final reckoning – 936 men involved at the start of the Malaya Campaign; 197 were killed in action; 694 became POWs; 157 died in captivity and 582 returned home.

Tribute to Roger Mansell

In conclusion Ken paid tribute to Roger Mansell who before he died in 2010 sent a video recording to an earlier RFHG conference strongly advocating the sharing of information. His legacy was the website he created and which, since his death, has continued to grow and remains a valuable research aid for those researching the Far East prisoners of war. Roger Mansell was an inspiration to all.

For further information on Tigers in Captivity please visit:
www.tigersincaptivity.co.uk

Mary Monro: Major John Monro’s War in Hong Kong and China

Major John Monro RA MC, 1942

I began my exploration of my long deceased father’s story when I realised that I am not an individual but a community of my forebears. Their DNA lives on in me, but it remains dormant if it is unrecognised. Most of what I then learned came from reaching out to others, whether they were fellow descendents, researchers, archivists or people I met when I retraced my father’s escape route across China. Without this generous and supportive community I could not have made sense of my father’s wartime experiences and their context within the Far East war.

I had a good start on this journey when my mother gave me a large manila envelope full of Dad’s letters, reports and photos. After transcribing them I visited archives (e.g. TNA, IWM, FD Roosevelt presidential library), connecting with researchers in UK and US to help me. I used Ancestry to track down descendants of men who fought with Dad or who escaped from Hong Kong PoW camps. 

The Battle of Hong Kong started on 8 December 1941, six hours after the Japanese assault on Pearl Harbor and alongside attacks on the Philippines, Malaya and Thailand. Allied forces were unprepared for a land attack on Hong Kong and Japanese forces quickly took the mainland. A fierce and sustained battle followed to hold Hong Kong island, but surrender was declared on Christmas Day 1941.

About 6000 troops were interned at Sham Shui Po camp on the mainland. From my father’s point of view this meant that one obstacle to escape was behind him – the crossing from the island. Conditions at the camp were shambolic and it was clear from the start that the prisoners were in for a poor time. Anything of use or value had been looted and the Japanese quickly stopped food, medicines and messages from coming into the camp by shooting Chinese traders. My father was keen to escape but was advised against it by senior officers. After all, the risks were significant:

• Recapture likely with Japanese troops swarming the mainland
• Execution would follow if recaptured
• Chinese 5^th Columnists might hand you to the Japanese
• Reprisals against fellow PoWs were threatened by the camp commandant
• Unknown territory once the border with China was crossed
• Even if you spoke some Cantonese, you would soon be out of Canton
• Disguise impossible for tall, white men
• Japanese movements in China unknown as they advanced south-westwards 

But:

• Easy to get out of camp in the early days with poor fencing and disorganized roll calls
• Unknown duration of internment
• Poor conditions would likely worsen for PoWs
• Disease outbreaks, such as dysentery and diptheria, increasingly likely with weak and undernourished men
• Morale boost for PoWs if anyone successfully escaped
• News of camp conditions could be reported to authorities

On the night of 1^st February 1942, my father and two colleagues made their escape. They were supported by fellow PoWs who shared with them food for the journey, a compass, some medicines and enough wood and rope to make a raft. They waded along a breakwater and then swam, dragging and pushing the raft carrying their belongings until at last they landed, cold, wet and exhausted but free. They crossed the New Territories by night to evade recapture and were helped across the border by Chinese Communist guerrillas. From Dad’s letter home to his parents, I was able to trace their route on a map. It’s a crazy zig-zag across China, dictated by topography, transport links and the presence of Japanese troops.

I was becoming frustrated by the written word and decided that I would retrace Dad’s escape route. First I spent some time learning Mandarin and sought out a Chinese tour operator who could meet my unusual demands. I contacted Tony Banham, the leading expert on Hong Kong’s wartime history. When at last I landed there I felt an immediate connection with my father and his world. I walked the battle trail and a Black Kite glided lazily over my head as I studied the view. Dad’s favourite bird. Hello Dad. 

Retracing his journey, at the same time of year, gave me a much deeper sense of this stranger called Dad. In Shaoguan I visited the river confluence where he’d stayed on a houseboat for ten days. In Guilin I walked through Seven Star Cave that had been used as an air raid shelter in the war. In Chongqing I visited General Joe Stilwell’s offices. Dad was made Assistant Military Attaché after his escape, liaising between the political and military leaderships of the American, Chinese and British Governments. He would have been to Stilwell’s offices for meetings. 

His main role there concerned supporting the Hong Kong PoWs, working with Col Lindsay Ride and the British Army Aid Group (BAAG). Dad had what he called his ‘Great Thought’, a plan to liberate the PoWs with the aid of the US Air Force. By this time the PoWs were unfit to escape or to rejoin the fighting, so their liberation was not a priority. However, if their freedom was a co-benefit of a strategic plan to retake Hong Kong and other Japanese held ports and to disrupt Japanese supply lines, that might win support. Dad, Col Ride, Col Merian Cooper and General Claire Chennault developed the idea and the plan was presented at the Trident Conference in May 1943. It was approved by Roosevelt and Churchill. It failed because of infighting and personality clashes – General Joe Stilwell used his friendships with the US Chiefs of Staff to support his plan for a land war in Burma, starving the approved plan of the resources needed for success. The PoWs in Hong Kong suffered to the end of the war.

In the autumn of 1944 Dad was sent to the blood and sweat stained hell of Burma to repel the Japanese after Allied successes at Imphal and Kohima. I only know what he did every day thanks to meeting the current Commanding Officer of Dad’s regiment. He had the wartime Battery Diary in his office and invited me to read it. 

I owe my close relationship with my father to everyone who helped me. I’m not only a community of my forebears but part of a wider community of supportive connections.

Signed paperback copies of Stranger In My Heart by Mary Monro (Unbound 2018) can be obtained from https://strangerinmyheart.co.uk/