Reflections at Bukit Chandu

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Reflections at Bukit Chandu
ReflectionsatBukitChandu-Singapore-20070809.jpg
Reflections at Bukit Chandu
Established15 February 2002;17 years ago (2002-02-15)
LocationBukit Chandu, Singapore
Website Official website

Reflections at Bukit Chandu is a World War II interpretive centre developed and managed by the National Archives of Singapore, located on Bukit Chandu (Malay for "Opium Hill") off Pasir Panjang Road in Singapore.

World War II 1939–1945, between Axis and Allies

World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. The vast majority of the world's countries—including all the great powers—eventually formed two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. A state of total war emerged, directly involving more than 100 million people from more than 30 countries. The major participants threw their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind the war effort, blurring the distinction between civilian and military resources. World War II was the deadliest conflict in human history, marked by 70 to 85 million fatalities, most of whom were civilians in the Soviet Union and China. It included massacres, the genocide of the Holocaust, strategic bombing, premeditated death from starvation and disease, and the only use of nuclear weapons in war.

National Archives of Singapore The national archives of Singapore

The National Archives of Singapore (NAS) is the national archives of Singapore. It was formed in August 1993 with the merging of the National Archives and the Oral History Department. The NAS is responsible for the collection and management of records relating to the nation's political, social and economic history. NAS also identifies and collects records of historical significance from local and overseas private sources. In 1993, both NAS and the National Museum of Singapore were brought under the administration of the National Heritage Board.

Bukit Chandu is a hill located in Kent Ridge in Singapore where the Battle of Bukit Chandu took place on 14 February 1942 during the Battle of Singapore in World War II.

Contents

The centre was officially opened by Singapore's Deputy Prime Minister Tony Tan on 15 February 2002. This date also marks the 60th anniversary of the fall of Singapore in 1942. [1]

Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore

The Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore is the deputy head of the government of the Republic of Singapore. The role of Deputy Prime Minister is the second highest post and senior Cabinet Minister in Singapore. The holder will sometimes assume the role of Acting Prime Minister when the PM is temporarily absent from Singapore. Since the mid-1980s, Singapore has usually had two Deputy Prime Ministers at a time. Only Ong Teng Cheong and Tony Tan served under more than one Prime Minister during their time as Deputy Prime Minister.

Building

The building in which the exhibition is housed is a colonial-era black and white bungalow located near the site of the Battle of Pasir Panjang in February 1942. [2] It was built at the turn of the 20th century for senior British officers.

Black and white bungalows are white-painted bungalows, in a style once commonly used to house European colonial and expatriate families in tropical climate colonies, typically the Southeast Asian colonies of the British Empire in the nineteenth century. The term 'black and white' refers to the dark timber beams and whitewashed walls usually found in these buildings.

Battle of Pasir Panjang Final battle in Singapore during World War 2 against the Japanese

The Battle of Pasir Panjang, which took place between 12 and 15 February 1942, was part of the final stage of the Empire of Japan's invasion of Singapore during World War II. The battle was initiated upon the advancement of elite Imperial Japanese Army forces towards Pasir Panjang Ridge on 13 February.

The building was restored to preserve its original structure and design, retaining the original style of arches and windows but altering the roof.

History

Sculpture of a Malay mortar crew displayed at Bukit Chandu In Memory of the Malay regiment at Bukit Chandu.jpg
Sculpture of a Malay mortar crew displayed at Bukit Chandu

Bukit Chandu was one of the sites of the Battle of Pasir Panjang in February 1942 before the British surrendered Singapore to the Japanese on 15 February. The battle took place just two days before the surrender. The battle saw soldiers from the Malay Regiment led by British and Malay officers defending western Singapore, being forced to retreat onto the hill. For 48 hours, the Malay Regiment C Company and remnants from the 1st and 2nd Battalions engaged in one of the fiercest battles fought in Singapore. They were greatly outnumbered, and when they ran out of ammunition, they resorted to hand-to-hand combat to defend this hill. Many soldiers died on the hill. Those who survived were captured and massacred by the Japanese including 7th platoon, C Company, and 1st Battalion commander Lieutenant Adnan bin Saidi. [3]

Adnan Saidi Malayan soldier

Adnan bin Saidi was a Malayan military officer of the 1st Infantry Brigade who fought the Japanese at the Battle of Pasir Panjang in Singapore during World War II. He is considered a national hero in Singapore and Malaysia for his actions during the battle. His name is also the namesake for the Malaysian Infantry Fighting Vehicle (MIFV).

The museum's exhibition gallery covers the history of World War II in Malaya, detailing the late 1930s socio-political climate of the Malay Peninsula, the Japanese's plans for invasion, and the British strategy for defending Malaya and Singapore. There are exhibits of photographs, maps and artefacts. The recruitment, training, principles, and values of the Malay Regiment are represented, including through documentaries commissioned by the National Archives of Singapore, World War II paraphernalia, and witness testimony from survivors.

Malay Peninsula peninsula in Southeast Asia

The Malay Peninsula is a peninsula in Southeast Asia. The land mass runs approximately north-south and, at its terminus, is the southernmost point of the Asian mainland. The area contains Peninsular Malaysia, Southern Thailand, and the southernmost tip of Myanmar (Kawthaung) as well as the city state Singapore, indigenous to or historically inhabited by the Malays, an Austronesian people.

Nearby attractions

The centre is connected to Kent Ridge Park via a canopy walk at tree-top level.

Kent Ridge Park

Kent Ridge Park is a 47-hectare public park located in Kent Ridge, Singapore, between the National University of Singapore and the Singapore Science Park. Due to its undisturbed habitat and abundant plant life, it is a popular venue for bird-watchers and eco-tourists.

Related Research Articles

Bukit Timah Planning Area and HDB Estate in Central Region -----, Singapore

Bukit Timah, often abbreviated as Bt Timah, is a planning area and residential estate located in the westernmost part of the Central Region of Singapore. Bukit Timah lies roughly 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from the Central Business District, bordering the Central Water Catchment to the north, Bukit Panjang to the northwest, Queenstown to the south, Tanglin to the southeast, Clementi to the southwest, Novena to the east and Bukit Batok to the west.

Battle of Singapore World War II battle

The Battle of Singapore, also known as the Fall of Singapore, was fought in the South-East Asian theatre of World War II when the Empire of Japan invaded the British stronghold of Singapore—nicknamed the "Gibraltar of the East". Singapore was the major British military base in South-East Asia and was the key to British imperial interwar defence planning for South-East Asia and the South-West Pacific. The fighting in Singapore lasted from 8 to 15 February 1942, after the two months during which Japanese forces had advanced down the Malayan Peninsula.

Fort Siloso fort

Fort Siloso is the sole restored coastal gun battery from the 12 such batteries which made up "Fortress Singapore" at the start of World War II. The fort is situated on Pulau Blakang Mati, an island south of mainland Singapore. The fort is now a military museum open to the public. The Surrender Chambers in Fort Siloso reopened in June 2017 with a refreshed exhibition and free admission.

Royal Malay Regiment infantry regiment of the Malaysian Army

The Royal Malay Regiment is the premier unit of the Malaysian Army's two infantry regiments. At its largest, the Malay Regiment comprised 27 battalions. At present, three battalions are parachute trained and form part of the Malaysian Army Rapid Deployment Force. Another battalion has been converted into a mechanised infantry battalion while the remaining battalions are standard light infantry. The 1st Battalion Royal Malay Regiment acts as the ceremonial foot guards battalion for the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, and is usually accompanied by the Central Band of the Royal Malay Regiment. As its name suggests, the regiment only recruits ethnic Malays.

Pasir Panjang Subzone of Queenstown Planning Area

Pasir Panjang is an area located at the southern part of Queenstown in Singapore. Kent Ridge Park is a topographical feature which runs adjacent to Pasir Panjang.

Pasir Panjang MRT station MRT station in Singapore

Pasir Panjang MRT station (CC26) is an underground Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) station on the Circle Line, located in Queenstown planning area, Singapore.

Former Ford Factory

The Former Ford Factory is located along Upper Bukit Timah Road at Bukit Timah in Singapore. It is the place where British forces under Lieutenant-General Arthur Percival surrendered to Japanese forces under Lieutenant-General Yamashita Tomoyuki on 15 February 1942 after the Battle of Singapore. The Old Ford Motor Factory had since been gazetted as a National Monument in 2006, and converted into an exhibition gallery and archive named Memories at Old Ford Factory.

<i>Leftenan Adnan</i> 2000 film by Aziz M. Osman

Leftenan Adnan is a 2000 Malaysian war film directed by Aziz M. Osman and co-produced by both Grand Brilliance Sdn Bhd, Paradigmfilm Sdn Bhd, and the Malaysian Army. The film chronicles the actions of Adnan bin Saidi who had been involved as a Lieutenant of the Malay Regiment fending against the invasion of the Japanese army during the Second World War.

Japanese occupation of Malaya Empire of Japan military rule in contemporary Singapore and Malaysia

Malaya was gradually occupied by the Japanese between 8 December 1941 and the Allied surrender at Singapore on 16 February 1942. The Japanese remained in occupation until their surrender to the Allies in 1945. The first Japanese garrison in Malaya to lay down their arms was in Penang on 2 September 1945 aboard HMS Nelson.

1st Malaya Infantry Brigade

The 1st Malaya Infantry Brigade was a regular infantry brigade formed in 1939 with its headquarters in Singapore immediately after the outbreak of hostilities in Europe. The Brigade participated in the Battle of Singapore against the Japanese until the surrender of the garrison in February 1942.

Pasir Panjang Pillbox

Pasir Panjang Pillbox is a strengthened-concrete defensive structure from WWII, located in Pasir Panjang in the southwestern area of Singapore.

Poh Ern Shih Temple

Poh Ern Shih is located on a small hilltop at Chwee Chian Road, off Pasir Panjang Road, on Singapore's southern coast. The Buddhist temple was built as a memorial to those who lost their lives during the Battle of Pasir Panjang in 1942, villagers as well as Allied and Japanese soldiers. The temple's first abbot, Sumangalo, an American Theravadin monk, was the first Westerner to be appointed abbot of a Buddhist temple in Singapore.

Malaysia's armed forces, which encompasses three major branches, originate from the formation of local military forces in the first half of the 20th century, during British colonial rule of Malaya and Singapore prior to Malaya's independence in 1957. The branches have undergone several restructuring, but fundamentally includes the army, navy and air force.

Fort Pasir Panjang

Fort Pasir Panjang or Labrador Battery is located within the lush Labrador Park at the southern tip of Singapore island. It was one of the 11 coastal artillery forts built by the British in the 19th century to defend the western passageway into Keppel Harbour against piracy and foreign naval powers. During the 1942 Battle of Pasir Panjang, the fort played a supporting role but a limited one in defending the Malay Regiments against the Japanese invasion at Bukit Chandu. In 1995, the site was gazetted by the National Heritage Board as one of the 11 World War II sites in Singapore.

Battle of Kranji battle

The Battle of Kranji was the second stage of the Empire of Japan's plan for the invasion of Singapore during the Second World War. On 9 February 1942 the Imperial Japanese Army assaulted the north-western front of the British colony of Singapore. Their primary objective was to secure a second beachhead after their successful assault at Sarimbun Beach on 8 February, in order to breach the Jurong-Kranji defence line as part of their southward thrust towards the heart of Singapore City. Defending the shoreline between the Kranji River and the Johor–Singapore Causeway was the Australian 27th Brigade, led by Brigadier Duncan Maxwell, and one irregular company. On 10 February the Japanese forces suffered their heaviest losses while moving up the Kranji River, which caused them to panic and nearly aborted the operation. However, a series of miscommunications and withdrawals by Allied forces in the ensuing battles allowed the Japanese to swiftly gain strategic footholds, which eventually led to the fall of Singapore on 15 February 1942.

References

  1. "How S'pore marks the day". 8 February 2002. p. 50 via NewspaperSG.
  2. "Reflections at Bukit Chandu". National Heritage Board. Archived from the original on 2015-11-08. Retrieved 2015-11-22.
  3. Bay, Kristin (11 November 2006). "The Day Freedom Died". Today. Retrieved 6 April 2016 via NewspaperSG.