My interest is in the battle for Singapore and Malaya and I continue to research stories of the 8th Division in general and the 2/20 Battalion in particular. I have recently published a history of the 2/20 (in book form) but want to keep adding to their story for an eventual online version. Caroline Gaden
A shame that the third brigade of 8th Division was wasted as garrison troops on Islands they could not defend. This brigade became POW's without contributing anything to the defence of SE Asia (not their fault). Adding a third brigade in Malaya would not have altered the eventual outcome, but may have made a huge difference regarding the Japanese assault on Singapore Island.
I agree an extra brigade would have helped but also the reluctance to instigate Operation Matador was probably significant too. I'd also be curious to know what proportion of the civilian population were 5th columnists as the Japanese seemed to have such good maps of local areas.
There was a significant number of Japanese living and working in Malaya and Singapore prior to hostilities starting. Most were "sleeper" agents who provided lots of intelligence for the Japanese. In the book "Moon over Malaya" it states that British maps of the Slim river area showed the new recently built main road but did not show the old disused road and it's loop roads. The Japanese maps showed old and new, thanks the the recce carried out by the "sleepers". Slim river was the biggest disaster the British suffered on the Malay mainland. Everything I have read would indicate that chinese/malay 5th columists were very few and far between., although the allied forces seem to have believed (incorrectly) that they were very active at the time.
