In the midst of darkness, on the night of 8 February 1942, Japanese invasion forces crossed the Straits of Johore and landed on the shores of Sarimbun on the northwestern coast of Singapore. They had struck at the weakest link in the British defense of Singapore.
Initial contact was made with the 22nd Australian Brigade, a force of just 750 men defending the area. The small defense force was thinly stretched over too wide an area which, in the morning, had already been bombed and strafed by Japanese planes and artillery. The defense force was disadvantaged, not only by its inferior numbers, but also by the mangrove swamps and heavy jungle, which hampered the construction of defense obstacles. Under heavy fire from the enemy, the 22nd Australian Brigade lost the battle.
Following their successful landing at Sarimbun, the Japanese sent star shell flares into the night sky, signaling to Japanese Command Headquarters at the Sultan of Johore's palace, that full-scale landings of the Japanese divisional troops could begin.
2. Battle for Pasir Panjang
Pasir Panjang Ridge - the scene of one of the last battles fought in the defense of Singapore against the Japanese.
As the threat of the determined Japanese forces loomed ever closer to the city and the nerve centre of the Malaya Command, defense forces put up a desperate fight to prevent the enemy from advancing.
From the 12th to 14th of February 1942, the 1st and 2nd Battalions of the Malay Regiment staged a tenacious and courageous 48-hour stand against the Japanese. Led by 2nd Lieutenant Adnan, the Malay Regiment fought to the death, leaving only a few survivors behind. Only then was the ridge given up.
3. Battle for Bukit Timah
On 11 February 1942, three short days after the initial invasion of Singapore, the Japanese forces had reached Bukit Timah. This was a critical juncture in the Japanese drive towards capturing Singapore: it stood on the road that led directly into the heart of the city, and lay on the last defense perimeter erected by the British.
Lieutenant-General Yamashita issued his first demand for British surrender, but Lieutenant-General Percival decided to fight on with every available resource.
British forces defended the area with the help of the Special Reserves Battalion, Tomforce, the Argylls and a small Chinese volunteer unit of lightly-armed and partially-trained men, code-named Dalforce.
A bloody confrontation took place at Bukit Timah as Japanese soldiers charged up the hill to engage and destroy the enemy. Despite attempts to hold the invaders, defense forces were unable to stop the Japanese from pushing through and seizing food, fuel and supply depots at Bukit Timah, and advancing yet further to the heart of the city.
4. Pulau Ubin
Wishing to give the impression that an attack would come from the northeast sector of the island, the Japanese landed a 400-man detachment on Pulau Ubin past midnight on the morning of 8 February 1942. There was no resistance, and the force proceeded to set up gun emplacements. In the morning, they opened fire on the northeast sector of Singapore to give the appearance that an attack was pending from that direction. They sought to draw the attention away from the northwest where the bulk of the Japanese army would land.
Although the loss of Pulau Ubin deprived the defenders of an important observation post, it did relatively little in drawing British forces further east, as the British themselves had mistakenly anticipated an attack from the northeast and had concentrated most of their troops in that area of the island. Only a small defense force was stationed on the northwest coast.
5. Tengah Airfield
Having overrun defenses at the northwestern coastline, Japanese troops of the 5th Division reached Tengah Airfield on the morning of 9 February 1942. Remnants of the 22nd Australian Brigade, which had defended the northwestern coastline against the initial Japanese assault, joined the 29th and Special Reserve Battalions in defending Tengah Airfield. However, by afternoon, under increasing pressure from the enemy, the defenders withdrew to the Jurong-Kranji line, where a more effective stand could be made.
By evening of 9 February, Tengah Airfield, which was a strategic point for the capture of Singapore, was firmly in Japanese hands.
6. Labrador
Labrador battery - a scene of unusual serenity in the midst of war. Its 6" guns stood silent as Singapore was attacked by the Japanese.
It was one of the batteries of 6", 9.2" and 15" guns, scattered primarily about the south and east of Singapore, which stood ready to defend Singapore from any seaward attack. Many of the guns were not put into action against the Japanese as they faced "the wrong way." Many of the smaller guns could not rotate sufficiently in order to face the threat of the invaders. Some of the 9.2" and 15" guns were used but to a limited effect.
The fortification of Singapore hinged on the assumption that any external attack would come from the seaward face of the island, since Malaya was perceived as an insurmountable obstacle on the landward side. When the attack did come, it was from the least expected quarter of the island, and the "fixed defenses" of the Gibraltar of the East, of which so much had been written and said, were unable to prevent the Fall of Singapore. ^^^
