📅 On December 8th, 1941, Japanese forces initiated their invasion of British Malaya, leading to the eventual fall of Singapore and Britain's loss in the Far East.
🛡️ The British had been preparing for a Japanese attack on Malaya to safeguard their naval base in Singapore, but they were understaffed and lacked communication personnel and armor.
🗺️ The British forces in Malaya consisted of troops from across the empire, including fresh recruits with minimal training in jungle warfare.
👥 Under-trained and under-equipped British troops faced well-prepared Japanese invasion forces in Malaya.
🛩️🚢 Both sides recognized the strategic importance of the air battle over Malaya and received support from their respective air and navy divisions.
🇬🇧🇯🇵 The British RAF in Malaya had a shortage of aircraft, with outdated models that were inferior to the Japanese fighters.
📍 The Australian Eighth Infantry Division and Ninth Indian Division were stationed in Malaya to guard against Japanese landings.
🚢 On December 4th, a Japanese convoy of 19 ships set off towards Malaya.
⚔️ The key decision for British officers was whether or not to launch Operation Matador, a preemptive strike into Thailand to prevent a Japanese invasion.
🔑 The decision to attack Thailand before Japan invaded Malaya was controversial and required authorization from Britain and the US.
⚔️ Air Chief Marshal Robert Brooke Popham was cautious about declaring war on Japan and waited for certain evidence of a Japanese invasion.
🚩 The Indian Third Corps was skeptical about the success of the attack and faced challenges due to time constraints and poor weather conditions.
🌊 The British planned to launch an offensive called Matador, but it was canceled due to the Japanese advancing faster.
⏰ The Indian third corps was ordered to remain in position for Matador, causing them to be exposed to the pouring monsoon rains and unable to strengthen defenses at Jitra.
🏖️ The first blows of the Malayan campaign were struck by the Japanese on the beaches of Kota Baru, where they encountered resistance from the Indian brigade.
🔥 The defenders initially inflicted heavy casualties on the first Japanese wave but couldn't prevent some landing craft from launching attacks on their rear.
✈️ The local RAF airfield launched successful air attacks on the Japanese transports, damaging two ships and sinking one.
⚔️ A counter-attack was ordered to repel the invasion, but the Japanese slowly gained the upper hand with the help of air attacks.
🌊 The British retreat to the town of Kotaburu as the Japanese gain a foothold in Eastern Malaya.
⚔️ General Lewis Heath advocates for a substantial retreat, surrendering a large part of northeastern Malaya to Japan.
🚂 General Percival initially blocks the retreat plan, but the deteriorating situation in West Malaya leaves the British with no choice.
Only Males Watch This Video, Please..
Addio ai Link nei Top 3 Fattori di Ranking per Google?
وصفة مجانية لعلاج الامساك نهائيا في دقائق والتخلص من الفضلات المتحجرة و التهابات القولون و الغازات
8 tips to delivering excellent customer service
Drug Abuse, Causes, Signs and Symptoms, Diagnosis and Treatment.
do THIS instead of "low content" books on Amazon KDP