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| Tomoyuki Yamashita |
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| 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)
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| The positions of Allied forces in the Sarimbun area of Singapore |
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.
Images From Google Image( Date Found: 17 February 2013)
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