When Japan Conquered Singapore In World War II, Britain's Asia Empire Had Come To An End

Yahoo News ^ | 06/12/2020 | Michael Peck

[L.A.Justice]

Here's What You Need To Remember: Perhaps the biggest consequence of the fall of Singapore was the destruction of Britain’s Asian empire. Depleted by the First World War and then squeezed dry by the Second, Britain would have lost its empire eventually. But the photos of British generals and soldiers marching into captivity under Asian guns left their mark on colonial subjects.

In the darkest days of World War II, when disaster after disaster almost overwhelmed the Allies, it took a lot to shake a leader like Winston Churchill.

But when the news arrived that the fortress of Singapore had surrendered to the Japanese on February 15, 1942, along with eighty thousand British troops, even Churchill was stunned.

[L.A.Justice]

That didn’t daunt Gen. Tomoyuki Yamashita, the Japanese commander later dubbed the “Tiger of Malaya.” As Yamashita said later, “My attack on Singapore was a bluff, a bluff that worked. I had 30,000 men and was outnumbered more then three to one. I knew if I had to fight long for Singapore I would be beaten. That is why the surrender had to be at once. I was very frightened all the time that the British would discover our numerical weakness and lack of supplies and force me into disastrous street fighting.”

General Yamashita was executed for war crimes after the end of the war...

February 15 was the 79th anniversary of the fall of Singapore...

British, Indian, Australian troops outnumbered Japanese troops...

British defense against Japanese attacks did not work out too well...

PRINCE OF WALES and REPULSE were sank by Japanese air attacks...

General Percival got the blame...

[alexander_busek]

PRINCE OF WALES and REPULSE were sank sunk by Japanese air attacks...

Regards,

[Starcitizen]

Good video here:

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/video-on-demand/rememberthefall

[BluH2o]

Considering the ultimate fate of many of those taken as POW by the Japanese … fighting to the last man for Singapore was the better option. I’ve visited Singapore and toured the bunkers where the British commanding officers conducted the defense of the island … pathetic as it was.

[BobL]

“Here’s What You Need To Remember”

I don’t need a Leftist telling me what I ‘need’ to remember, or what I ‘need’ to know. I’m not a 2 year old.

[Chainmail]

Singapore fell because Britain didn't believe that they would have to fight another war after WWI. They reduced military spending and cut back on defense planning - like most everyone else during the interwar years.

Singapore and the rest of the far-flung empire didn't have the resources needed to defend them and the Japanese had developed the technologies to strike quickly and effectively.

The loss of the Prince of Wales and the Repulse were due to inadequate air cover, which was due to shoestring budgets and not paying attention to the enemy's advances in air power.

We were guilty of the same thing then - and 2,000 men paid the price on December 7th.

We are guilty of the same thing now, as we watch (and assist) our enemy as it builds it power all over the world and focus on idiot stuff like ladies and cross-dressers in the infantry and searching for "white supremacists" in the service.

[Fiji Hill]

Considering the ultimate fate of many of those taken as POW by the Japanese … fighting to the last man for Singapore was the better option.

Indeed, it would have. After they took Singapore, the Japanese murdered about 25,000 of its civilian inhabitnts.

[AppyPappy]

Seven months after starting the war, Japan was on the ropes.