In February 1942, when the Japanese Imperial Army launched its assault on Singapore, 880 Australians would die in just four days—not in the surrender that followed, but in the desperate battle to defend the island.
In this episode, Mat McLachlan reveals the forgotten story of the invasion of Singapore—four days in February 1942 that have been overshadowed by the surrender and the horrors of captivity that followed. Through authentic accounts and personal testimonies, we follow the opening days of the Japanese assault: the night of February 8th when 88,000 shells rained down on Australian positions; the 2/20th Battalion losing 548 men in twenty-four hours; and the burning oil at Kranji that sent the Imperial Guards through flames.
From Lieutenant-General Percival's catastrophic refusal to build defenses because they were \"bad for morale\" to General Yamashita's stunning post-war admission that his entire attack was \"a bluff—a bluff that worked,\" from Private Ray Colenso writing poetry about duty before dying on a northwestern beach to thirteen-year-old Soh Guan Bee surviving on sardines in a trauma that lasts eighty years, these soldiers and civilians faced an impossible situation with courage that has been largely forgotten.
Why did Australian casualties make up seventy-three percent of battle deaths while forming only thirteen percent of the forces? How did the 2/20th Battalion hold a coastline they couldn't possibly defend? What happened when two million gallons of burning petrol sluiced into the Johore Strait? Mat explores these questions through the actual words of those who were there.
A sobering testament to the Australians and civilians who fought during Singapore's opening days—and a reminder that before there were prisoners, there was a battle. Before there was defeat, there was courage.
\"My attack on Singapore was a bluff—a bluff that worked. I had 30,000 men and was outnumbered more than three to one. I knew that if I had to fight for long for Singapore, I would be beaten.\" - General Tomoyuki Yamashita
Episode Length: 35 minutes
Features: Accounts from the 2/18th, 2/19th, and 2/20th Battalions' war diaries, civilian testimonies from Singapore National Archives, General Yamashita's post-war admissions, and insights into the battle that history has quietly set aside.
Presenter: Mat McLachlan
Producer: Jess Stebnicki
Ready to walk in the footsteps of those who fought at Singapore? Join Mat McLachlan on an exclusive tour to Singapore and the battlefields of Southeast Asia: https://battlefields.com.au/
Find out everything Mat is doing with books, tours and media at https://linktr.ee/matmclachlan
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