Surrender of The Empire of Japan

Surrender Of The Empire Of Japan

The Surrender of the Empire of Japan on September 2, 1945, brought World War Two to an end. On July 1945, the Empire Of Japan was not capable of conducting operations. The surrender of the Japanese was due to the destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki using two different atomic bombs, Little Boy and Fat Man respectively. These two bombs are a deadly kind of nuclear bombs which destroyed both cities , just by using a single bomb.

On August 6 1945, the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima. Late in the evening of August 8 1945, the Soviet Union declared war with the Empire of Japan, and on midnight of August 9 1945, the Soviet Union invaded Japan's Manchukuo. Later that day, the United States dropped another atomic bomb, this time on the city of Nagasaki.The Emperor Of Japan announced the surrender of the Empire of Japan to the Allies soon after.

Throughout the day, confused reports reached Tokyo that Hiroshima had been the target of an air raid, which had leveled the city with a "blinding flash and violent blast" when news of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima.

U.S Flag

Some found it hard to believe that the United States had built an atomic bomb. The Chief of the Naval General Staff, argued that even if the United States had made one, they could not have many more. American strategists, having anticipated a reaction like that, dropped a second bomb shortly, to convince the Japanese that the U.S. had a large supply of these bombs.

Mushroom Shaped Fog
 when Atomic Bomb was dropped

Official surrender of the Japanese taking place.

MacArthur arrived in Tokyo on August 30 to state several rules such as no Allied personnel were to assault Japanese people, no Allied personnel were to eat the scarce amount of Japanese food and flying the Hinomaru  flag was severely restricted.

The formal surrender occurred on September 2, 1945 when representatives from the Imperial Of Japan signed the Japanese Instrument Of Surrender in Tokyo Bay aboard the USS Missouri.

USS Missouri

The state of war between the United States and Japan officially ended when the Treaty Of San Francisco took effect on April 28, 1952. Japan and the Soviet Union formally made peace four years later, when they signed the Soviet-Japanese Joint Declaration of 1956.


Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surrender_of_Japan ( Date Found: 18 February 2013 )
Video URL : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4EqRTWMVqMY ( Date Found: 18 February 2013 )
Images from Google Image ( Date Found: 18 February 2013 )

The Battle Of Bukit Timah

Japanese soldiers at Bukit Timah

The Battle Of Bukit Timah

The Battle of Bukit Timah, which took place on the 11 February 1942, was part of the final stage of the Japan Imperial of Singapore during World War Two. By 10 February, the Japanese had landed on Singapore. They controlled the entire western region of Singapore and much of the north. Their next target was Bukit Timah and the capture of vital water, food, ammunition, and vehicles, machine parts and other supplies. Now, full with success, the Japanese again advanced in full strength.

Japanese troops assaulting Bukit Timah hill

On the night of 11 February 1942, the Japanese 5th Division, supported by tanks, advanced down Choa Chu Kang Road. The 12th Indian Brigade and some British troops under Major Angus MacDonald and Captain Mike Blackwood blocked the road and opened fire with an anti-tank gun, destroying one Japanese tank, but this was merely one of 40 tanks.

There followed some hand-to-hand combat, as well as bayonet charges from both sides. The poorly trained and equipped members of Dalforce were armed only with parangs, grenades, rifles and shotguns normally used for hunting, and suffered heavy injuries. By midnight, the Japanese had defeated the defenders and conquered Bukit Timah.

The British launched an attack the following morning with two brigades.However, faced with strong Japanese resistance, the attack failed.

The next day, the Japanese Imperial Guards advanced from the north, outflanking the British defenders and forcing them to retreat. In the ensuing battle, the Chinese members of Dalforce fought bravely, some to their deaths. Here, the Japanese suffered some of their heaviest casualties in the campaign to occupy Singapore.For revenge, they massacred Chinese men, women and children living in a nearby village.


Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Bukit_Timah( Date accessed: 17 February 2013 )
Images from Google Image ( Date Found: 17 February 2013 )

Life During The Japanese Occupation

Life During The Japanese Occupation
 
15 February 1942 marked the beginning of suffering for all Singaporeans, rich or poor. People all around was devastated when they heard about the surrender of the British to Japan. The Japanese introduced lots of changes to Singapore's system such as the currency, law and order and also the name of our beloved country.

Back then during that period, Singapore was known as Syonan To which means " The Light Of The South ". Not only did the name of our beloved country changed, we were also forced to sing Japan's national anthem at that time. It was called Kimigayo. We had to face towards the direction of Japan while singing the national anthem. It was a new thing for us and it took us some time to adapt with the new national anthem as it was hard to pronounce the words.

Another change which took place during the Japanese Occupation was the currency of our money. The currency changed drastically from Singapore Dollars to Japanese ' banana notes '. It is called banana notes as there is a picture of a banana tree at every single piece of notes. A disadvantage about these notes is that these notes are unlimited. These means that whenever the Japanese had a shortage of these notes, all they had to do was to print out more of these notes. There was also no serial numbers on these notes which makes it easier to forge it.Due to that, the value of these 'banana notes' dropped and prices began to soar. This makes life harder for us.

Banana Notes

Ration Cards

We were also forced to take up Japanese subjects in our school. All subject's in our school was thought in Japanese. It was hard for we students to adapt to these changes as we could not understand Japanese. Some parents resorted to finding a tuition teacher who teaches English or even Mother Tounge to their child to avoid their child from losing out.

Movies in cinemas and the radio station broadcasting in Singapore was played in Japanese. Most movies on the cinema was about the Japanese winning the war one by one.They would also show propaganda films to influence we Singaporeans in working together with them.Those caught listening to foreign radio stations were severely punished.

Lastly, the Japanese rationed out food when they were experiencing food shortage as all resources were distributed to the Japanese in effort to help the Japanese in conquering other parts of Asia. Hence , each household was given a number of ration cards to help them purchase essential goods. This resulted in a huge queue when collecting rations and at times, supplies were not sufficient to distribute throughout the crowd.

We were waiting for the time when the Japanese surrenders, we waited and waited till the day finally came...



Source: 2007) Singapore From Settlement To Nation Pre-1819 to 1971 (Second Edition), Times Centre,1 New Industrial Road, Singapore 536196, Marshall Cavendish Education
Images from Google Images( Date Found: 17 February 2013 )

Operation Rimau

Operation Rimau

Operation Rimau was an assault on Japanese ships in Singapore Harbour. It was carried out by an Allied Commando Unit Z Special Unit, during World War Two using Australian built MKIII folboats. It was a follow-up mission of the successful Operation Jaywick, which took place in 1943. It was led by Lieutenant Colonel Ivan Lyon of the Gordon Highlanders. Originally named Operation Hornbill the aim of Operation Rimau was to sink Japanese ships by paddling the folboats in the dark and placing limpet mineson ships. It was originally intended that Motorised semi-submersible canoes would be used to gain access to the harbour. However, they resorted to folboats.

Ivan Lyon

Thirteen soldiers, including Ivan Lyon, were killed. The ten captured commandos were took to court for espionage  and executed on 7 July 1945.

Lyon led  Z Special Unit which contains of twenty-one men for this operation. They left their base in Australia on the British submarine HMS Porpoise on 11 September 1944. When they reached the island of Merapas, it was discovered to be inhabited. To ensure that their stores would remain undiscovered by the natives, one of the officers from Porpoise remained on Merapas as a guard.

Plague Outside Kranji War Memorial
Commemorating Force Z

The force commandeered a Malay junk named the Mustika. Taking the Malay crew aboard the submarine, Z Special Unit transferred their equipment to the junk and the Porpoise departed. Lyon decided to drop four more men with Carey off.

The crew of  Unit Z

Meanwhile, the Mustika neared its target. On the day of the planned attack, 10 October 1944, disaster struck. A patrol boat challenged the Mustika and someone on board opened fire. Lyon had no option but to abort the mission as their cover were blown. After blowing up the junk, he ordered his men to paddle back to Merapas by use of the folboats that they had stored on Mustika. However, Lyon led a small force of six other men into Singapore Harbour by folboat, where they are believed to have sunk three ships with limpet mines.

While the main party returned safely to Merapas, the raiding party did not fare so well. The Japanese caught up with Lyon and his party on Soreh Island. A battle ensued and two of the men were severely wounded. Lyon and three other men stayed on Soreh to hold off the Japanese in order for the wounded duo to escape. After a battle, Lyon and one of his men were killed by a grenade on 16 October 1944. The wounded duo made it by folboat to Tapai Island where they died on 18 October, either from their wounds or by swallowing suicide pills. 

In all, ten members of the contingent were captured. They were brought to Singapore and held at Outram Road Prison. On 3 July 1945, they were send to court for espionage and were executed. The ten men were decapitated on 7 July 1945.

Source: 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Rimau ( Date accessed: 17 February 2013 )

Images From Google Image ( Date Found: 17 February 2013 )

Battle Of Sarimbun Beach

Tomoyuki Yamashita

Arthur Percival

Battle Of Sarimbun Beach

The Battle of Sarimbun Beach was the first stage of the Japanese attack on Singapore in February 1942 during World War Two. Sarimbun was the area in which Japanese troops, under the command of Lieutenant General Tomoyuki Yamashita, first attacked the Allied forces. The commander of the Allied Forces in Singapore, Lieutenant General Arthur Percival, did not expect the Japanese to make their attack in the west, and failed to reinforce the Australian 22nd Brigade. The main Japanese objective was Tengah Airfield..

 On 8 February, Australian gunners opened fire on vessels carrying a number of 4,000 soldiers from the 5th and 18th Japanese Divisions towards Singapore. The Japanese attacked Sarimbun Beach.

The positions of Allied forces in the Sarimbun area of Singapore

Fierce fighting went on all day and the number of Japanese kept on increasing. The Japanese made gaps in the thinly-spread Allied lines such as rivers. By midnight, the two Australian brigades had lost communications with one another and the 22nd Brigade was forced to retreat.More Japanese soldiers landed and the last Australian reserves went in.

The 2/18th Australian Infantry Battalion had lost more than half of its personnel. The 20th Australian Infantry Battalion was also heavily committed. At the same time, the 19th Australian Infantry Battalion was being outflanked, and only "B" Company faced the initial landings by the Japanese.

Percival believed that further landings would occur in the northeast region and did not agree to reinforce the 22nd Brigade until Tengah Airfield itself was threatened. However, before limited British and Indian infantry reinforcements arrived, the badly-battered Australian and Singaporean units had retreated to take up positions on the " Jurong Line", stretching south from the village of Bulim. Tengah Airfield was conquered by the Japanese at 9 February.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Sarimbun_Beach(Date accessed: 17 February 2013)
Images From Google Image( Date Found: 17 February 2013)

The Battle Of Pasir Panjang

The Battle Of Pasir Panjang

Pls note that the video later on is just an illustration of what happened. It is not actual

The Battle of Pasir Panjang took place between 13 February 1942 to 14 February 1942. It was part of the final stage of the Japanese Imperial's invasion of Singapore during World War Two. The battle was initiated upon the advancement of elite Imperial Japanese aRMY forces towards Pasir Panjang Ridge on the 13 February 1942.

13,000 Japanese soldiers had made landed in the northwest part of Singapore near Sarimbun and had started to advance south towards Pasir Panjang. They had already conquered Tengah Airfield on the way. The 13,000 soldiers played a huge part of the total strength of 36,000 Japanese troops deployed in the invasion of Singapore.

The 1st Malaya Infantry Brigade, which compromises of British 2nd Loyal Regiment under Lieutenant Colonel Mordaunt Elrington, the 1st Malaya Regiment commanded by Lieutenant Colonel J. R. G. Andre. They were tasked with defending the approach of the Japanese to Pasir Panjang .

The Malay Regiment which consisted of 42 men and commanded by 2nd Lieutenant Adnan Bin Saidi, was one of those defenses of Pasir Panjang.

The first battle between the Malay Regiment and Japanese soldiers took place on the 13 February 1942. The Japanese 18th Division started to attack the southwest coast along Pasir Panjang Ridge and Ayer Rajah Road. The Japanese 56th Infantry Regiment under Colonel Yoshio Nasu attacked the ridge during the morning.

 B Company of the Malay Regiment was one of the units defense the line. Under heavy fire from the Japanese, B Company was forced to retreat to the rear. However, the Japanese managed to broke through B Unit's position. In the battle, the troops fought hand-to-hand against the Japanese. A few from B Company managed to save themselves while others were captured as prisoners-of-war.

After finishing off B Company Of The Malay Regiment, The Japanese targeted C Company of The Malay Regiment, which was the company Lieutenant Adnan Bin Saidi was in.

Adnan Bin Saidi

Royal Malay Regiment

The Japanese launched in great numbers. The attack surprised the Malay Regiment, and the defence line shattered. Despite being greatly outnumbered and short of ammunition and supplies, the Malay Regiment continued to oppose the Japanese. Both sides engaged in a fierce hand-to-hand combat. Adnan Bin Saidi was seriously injured but refused to give up and instead encouraged his men to continue fighting.

Examples Of Bayonets

Soon after, Pasir Panjang was under Japanese control.  Adnan Bin Saidi was wounded and unable to fight. He was captured by the Japanese. The Japanese continuously kicked, punched and beat him before tying him to a cherry tree and stabbing him to death with their bayonets.


Source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Pasir_Panjang(Date accessed: 17 February 2013)

Images from Google Image(Date Found: 17 February 2013 )

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2zqutIpVGw(Date Found: 17 February 2013 )

Operation Clean Up ( Operation Sook Ching )

Operation Clean Up ( Operation Sook Ching )

The Sook Ching Massacre  was a systematic extermination of perceived hostile elements among the Chinese in Singapore  by the Japanese Imperial Army during the Japanese Occupation Of Singapore.The massacre took place from 18 February to 4 March 1942 at various places in Singapore.

The Kempeitai introduced the system of " Sook Ching ", which means "purge through purification", to get rid of those deemed as anti-Japanese. The Massacre claimed the lives of about 25,000 to 50,000 Chinese in Singapore and Malaya. These men were rounded up and taken to deserted spots around the island and killed.

The Japanese military authorities targeted the following people

• Activists in the China Relief Fund
• Rich men who had contributed generously to the China Relief Fund
• Supporters of Tan Kah Kee, leader of the Nanyang National Salvation Movement
• Hainanese which were predicted to be communists
• Chinese who came to Malaya after the Second Sino-Japanese War
• Men with tattoos which were predicted to be triad members
• Chinese who joined the Singapore Overseas Chinese Anti-Japanese Volunteer Army 
• Those who were likely to sympathise with the British.
• Those who possessed weapons and were likely to disrupt public security
  
   The Japanese set up designated "screening centers" all over Singapore to gather and "screen" all Chinese males of age 18 and 50. Those who were predicted to be "anti-Japanese" would be executed. Sometimes, women and children were also sent for inspection as well.

  

  Sook Ching Screening Centres

  
  

  

  Execution Taking Place

  The ones who passed the "screening"  would get a piece of paper bearing the word "examined" or have a square ink mark stamped on them. Those who failed would be stamped with triangular marks instead. They would be separated from the others and packed into trucks near the centers and sent to the killing sites such as  Changi Beach, Punggol Beach and Sentosa ( previously called Pulau Blakang Mati)
  
  
  The number of death every single day varies. Official Japanese statistics shows that fewer than 5,000 were executed while the Singaporean Chinese community claims the numbers to be around 100,000.
  
  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sook_Ching_massacre(Date accessed:16 February 2013)
  Images from Google Images( Date accessed::16 February 2013)

The Sinking Of HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse

The Sinking of HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse

Admiral Sir Tom Phillips (right)

Prince Of Wales

The Sinking of Prince Of Wales and Repulse was a Second World War naval engagement which occurred at the North of Singapore, near Kuantan,Pahang. The British Royal Navy Ship HMS Prince Of Wales and  HMS Repulse were sunk by bombers of the Imperial Japanese Navy on the 10 December 1941. 

Repulse

The objective of Force Z, which consisted of only one battleship, one battlecruiser and four destroyers, was to intercept the Japanese invasion fleet north of Malaya. However, it sailed without any support from air, which had been declined by Admiral Sir Thomas Phillips, the commander of Force Z, in favor of maintaining radio silence.  However,the force failed to find and destroy the main convoy. On their return to Singapore, they were attacked in the waters and sunk by long-range bombers.

 It is believed that these four factors influenced his decision: he thought that Japanese planes could not operate so far from land, he thought that his ships were relatively immune from fatal damage via air attack, he was unaware of the quality of Japanese bombing and torpedo aircraft, and lastly, Phillips underestimated the fighting abilities of the Japanese.

No. 453 Squadron RAAF was to provide air cover for Force Z. No request for air cover was sent until an hour after the Japanese attack began. Flight Lieutenant Tim Vigors planned to order six aircraft over Force Z , but this was not approved by Phillips.They were later bombed down together with their ships at a later date.

 The sinking of the two ships severely weakened the Eastern Fleet in Singapore, and the Japanese invasion fleet was only engaged by submarines until the Battle Of Endau on the 27 January 1942.

Destroyers Electra and Vampire  rescued the survivors of Repulse, while Express rescued those from the Prince Of Wales. 840 sailors were lost, 513 from Repulse and 327 from Prince Of Wales.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinking_of_Prince_of_Wales_and_Repulse(Date accessed:16 February 2013)
Images: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinking_of_Prince_of_Wales_and_Repulse(Date found:16 February 2013)
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRMLFy67VEw(Date found:16 February 2013)

The Battle Of Singapore

THE BATTLE OF SINGAPORE 

The Japanese Occupation Of Singapore in World War Two took place between 1942 and 1945 after the surrender of the British on 15 February 1942, the first day of Chinese New Year. Military forces of the Japan Emperor conquered Singapore after defeating the Australian, British, Indian and Malayan troops. The occupation made a drastic change in the history of several nations such as Japan, Britain and Singapore back then.

Singapore was then renamed Syonan to, which means "Light of the South". The troops defending Singapore surrendered on the 15 February 1942, just a week after the invasion of Singapore started. It was the worst disaster in British history and one of the British worse combat ever.

Surrender Of The British At Old Ford Motor Factory

The fighting in Singapore only lasted from 8 February 1942 to 15 February 1942.

About 80,000 soldiers became Prisoners Of Wars (POW). In just a week, Singapore, the "Impregnable Fortress", had fallen.

In Total, The Battle Of Singapore lasted for less than 70 days.The Japanese started bombing Singapore on the 8 December 1941.The British eventually surrendered Singapore to the Japanese on 15 February 1942 after lots of bloodshed.The surrender took place at Old Ford Motor Factory.

The Allied Forces were then forced to the Selarang Barracks from the Padang by the Japanese.The Allied Forces marched for a total of 22 kilometres.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_occupation_of_Singapore(Date accessed:16 Feb 2013)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Singapore(Date accessed:16 Feb 2013)
(2007) Singapore From Settlement To Nation Pre-1819 to 1971 (Second Edition), Times Centre,1 New Industrial Road, Singapore 536196, Marshall Cavendish Education
Images from Google Image ( Date Found : 16 February 2013)