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12 May 2012 [BRITISH TROOPS IN BORNEO & N.E.I.]

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British Troops in Borneo

British Troops in Borneo

2nd Bn. 15th Punjab Regiment (1)



British Troops in Netherlands East Indies

Armoured Troops

‘B’ Squadron, 3rd King’s Royal Hussars (2)

16th Anti-Aircraft Brigade (3)

6th Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery (4)

(H.Q., 12th & 15th Heavy Anti-Aircraft Batteries, Royal Artillery)

77th (Welsh) Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery (5)

(H.Q., 239th (Glamorgan), 240th (Glamorgan) & 241st (Glamorgan) Heavy Anti- Aircraft Batteries, Royal Artillery)

21st Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery (6)

(H.Q., 48th, 69th & 79th Light Anti-Aircraft Batteries, Royal Artillery)

48th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery (7)

(H.Q., 49th, 95th & 242nd Light Anti-Aircraft Batteries, Royal Artillery)

78th Light Anti-Aircraft Battery, Royal Artillery (8)

89th Light Anti-Aircraft Battery, Royal Artillery (8)

Royal Engineers

Detachment, 287th Field Company, Royal Engineers (9)

Field Survey Section, Royal Engineers (9)

Royal Corps of Signals (10)

General Headquarters, British Troops on Java Signals, Royal Corps of Signals 44th Technical Maintenance Section, Royal Corps of Signals 79th Dispatch Rider Section, Royal Corps of Signals 51st Telephone Operator Section, Royal Corps of Signals 48th Operator Section, Royal Corps of Signals 3rd Company, Malaya Command Signals (Special Wireless),

Royal Corps of Signals 62nd Line Maintenance Section, Royal Corps of Signals 65th Line Maintenance Section, Royal Corps of Signals 28th Wing Signal Section, Royal Corps of Signals

Infantry (11)

Details from the Leicestershire Regiment, East Surrey Regiment, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders



Supply and Transport (12)

Headquarters, Java Supply Company, Royal Army Service Corps Java Supply Section, Royal Army Service Corps 68th Petrol, Oil and Lubricants Section, Royal Army Service Corps 206th Petrol Section, Royal Army Service Corps 68th Detail Issue Section, Royal Army Service Corps 23rd Field Bakery, Royal Army Service Corps 1st Base Supply Depot, Royal Army Service Corps

Ordnance (13)

5th Port Workshop Detachment, Royal Army Ordnance Corps 20th Base Ordnance Depot, Royal Army ORdance Corps

Medical (14)

‘K’ Field Hospital, Royal Army Medical Corps

Pioneer Units (15)

No. 4 Group Headquarters, Pioneer Corps 175th Pioneer Company, Pioneer Corps

Miscellaneous (16)

Detachment, Corps of Military Police Detachments, Movement Control (Batavia, Tjilatjap and Sourabaya).



United States Forces (17)

26th Field Artillery Brigade

2nd Bn. 131st Field Artillery Regiment



Australian Forces (18)

Headquarters, ‘Blackforce’

2nd/3rd Machine Gun Battalion 2nd/2nd Pioneer Battalion Composite Australian Imperial Force Battalion

2nd/6th Field Company, Royal Australian Engineers

2nd/2nd Casualty Clearing Station, Australian Medical Corps ‘A’ Field Ambulance, Australian Medical Corps

105th General Transport Company 2nd/3rd Reserve Motor Transport Company



NOTES: 1. This battalion a pre-war Regular Indian Army unit. It was part of the 6th Indian

Infantry Brigade, which moved to Malaya from India in November 1940; from where it was posted to Borneo in February 1941. Lieutenant Colonel C. M LANE was the commanding officer of the battalion, being designated as the Officer Commanding British Troops in Borneo. The Japanese landed at Kuching on the 24th December 1941, and despite fierce resistance by the Punjabis, the Allied forces were forced back. The remaining members of the battalion surrendered on the 1st April 1942.

2. This squadron was detached from the 3rd King’s Royal Hussars which were then serving in Egypt as part of the 7th Armoured Brigade. Seven officers and one-hundred and thirty men under the command of Major William POWLETT were selected and they left Egypt on the 7th January 1942. Bound originally for Singapore with eighteen Vickers light tanks, as the island was close to defeat they were diverted to Sumatra. They landed on the 13th February 1942, and were then directed to Palembang. As the dockers had fled, the men had to unload the tanks and equipment themselves. On the 15th, having unloaded and prepared their tanks, they were ordered to re-embark and transfer to Java due to the sizable landings by Japanese forces in Sumatra. As their freighter had already sailed, the soldiers had to load their tanks and equipment onto a small steamship and a lighter towed by a tug. They landed at Batavia, and spent a couple of days acclimatizing. On the 28th March, they came under command of ‘BlackForce’ and moved to the outskirts of Buitenzorg. Despite holding up the Japanese advance, the force had to withdraw to Bandoeng. With the Dutch decision to surrender being made on the 8th March, the squadron withdrew to the coast. The last entry in the war diary was made on the 10th March, as most of the men tried to escape. None succeeded

3. This brigade was formed in the United Kingdom. The Commanding Officer was Brigadier H. D. W. SITWELL. The Brigade Headquarters, with the 77th H.A.A. Regiment and 21st & 48th L.A.A. Regiment arrived at Batavia from the United Kingdom on the 4th February 1942. The brigade headquarters was established at Bandoeng.

4. This was a Regular Army unit. The 3rd H.A.A. Battery was detached, so only the Headquarters with the 12th and 15th H.A.A. Batteries were deployed to Sumatra. The regiment guarded P1 and P2 Airfields on the island, but with the invasion of the Japanese troops, it was withdrawn to Java where it served as infantry without its guns.

5. This regiment was a Territorial Army unit, which had been formed in 1939. It comprised four batteries; the 239th and 240th Batteries were based in Cardiff, with the 241st and 242nd Batteries being based in the Rhondda. The regiment formed part of the 45th Anti-Aircraft Brigade in South Wales at the outbreak of the Second World War. It was deployed to Singapore in December 1941, but was diverted to Java with the brigade. The regiment was equipped with 24 x 3.7” anti-aircraft guns. The Headquarters, 240th and 241st Batteries were located at Sourabaya with sixteen 3’7” guns; whilst 239th Battery was stationed at Batavia with eight guns.

6. In the December 1938, this regiment was formed in the United Kingdom. Its headquarters were located in Liverpool, with the 67th Battery based at Bromborough on the Wirral, 68th Battery at Ellesmere Port, 69th Battery at Northwich, and the 80th Battery at Kearsley at Manchester. At the outbreak of the Second World War, it was under command of the 53rd Light Anti-Aircraft Brigade based in the North West of England. It left the United Kingdom in December 1941 bound for Singapore, but was diverted to Java. The Headquarters Battery, plus one Troop each from the 69th and



79th Battery were based in Malang with eight 40 mm Bofors guns. The 48th Battery was stationed at Sourabaya, the 69th Battery was based at Madioen, and the 79th Battery based at Koepang. The first battery had twelve Bofors guns, the latter two had eight guns.

7. In November 1940, batteries from the 17th and 19th Anti-Aircraft Regiments were used to form a new regiment, the 48th Anti-Aircraft Regiment. It left the United Kingdom in December 1941. The 242nd and Headquarters Batteries were based at Batavia, the 95th Battery was based at Bandoeng, and the 49th Battery at Kalidjati. Each battery was equipped with ten 40 mm Bofors guns.

8. These two batteries were detached from the 35th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, which had landed at Singapore. They were deployed to Sumatra to guard Palembang and P1 airfield. Following the Japanese air and sea landings on Sumatra, the batteries withdrew to Java. Their 40 mm guns had to be left on Sumatra, so on Java they were employed as infantry together with soldiers from the 6th Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment. Together they numbered about 50 officers and 1,100 men. They were deployed at Tjimahi on the western side of Bandoeng.

9. This detachment, which only numbered 9 other ranks, was detached from the field company which had arrived at Singapore as part of the 18th Infantry Division. The field survey section had 1 officer and 15 other ranks. They were based at Batavia. In addition, there were another 13 Royal Engineers officers and 13 other ranks stationed on Java in various roles.

10. The total number of members of the Royal Corps of Signals deployed on Java number 17 officers and 334 other ranks, plus another 14 officers and 63 other ranks who were members of the signal sections of the anti-aircraft regiments on the island. The G.H.Q. Signals were based at Bandoeng, together with the 51st Telephone Operator Section, the 48th Operator Section, 3rd Company Malaya Command Signals. The rest of the unis were based in Batavia, with the exception of the Technical Maintenance Section and Dispatch Rider Section which were based at Tjimahi.

11. These details from regiments stationed in Singapore were the only British trained infantry personnel on the island, and only number 32 other ranks. They were all based at Batavia.

12. The Pioneer Corps Group consisted of 4 officers and 41 other ranks. They were all located at Batavia.

13. The R.A.S.C. contingent on the island comprised 27 officers and 765 other ranks. Most of the units were based in Batavia, but the Detail Issue Section was based at Tjitoeroeg and the field bakery at Poerwakerta to the east of Batava.

14. Both Ordnance units were based at Batavia and comprised 6 officers and 120 other ranks.

15. The Field Hospital was understaffed as it only comprised 2 officers and 18 other ranks. It was located at Batavia.

16. The Military Police detached was of 32 other ranks, and the Movement Control personnel numbered 15 officers and 16 other ranks, and were mainly based at Batavia.

17. The United States forces on Java comprised about 750 men under the command of Major General J. F. BARNES. For a time, the 26th Field Artillery Brigade was deployed on Java as the headquarters unit. It departed San Francisco on the 21st November 1941, and arrived in Australia on the 22nd December 1941. It was sent to Java on the 11th January 1942, but left on the 27th February to return to Australia. The 2nd Bn. 131st Field Artillery Regiment was part of this brigade, and arrived on Java with its



superior formation. It remained on Java however providing valuable field artillery support to ‘BlackForce’ and surrendered on the 8th March 1942 to Japanese forces.

18. The Australian forces on Java were units from the 7th Australian Infantry Division, which had served in Syria and Lebanon before returning to Australia when the Japanese entered the Second World War. These units were hastily landed on Java, where Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Seaforth BLACKBURN, V.C., the commanding officer of the 2nd/3rd Australian Machine Gun Battalion was promoted to the rank of Acting Brigadier to assume command of all Australian forces on Java. Hence the reason why this force became known as ‘Blackforce’. In the end, there were about 3,000 Australian troops deployed on Java, including the Composite A.I.F. Battalion which comprised 100 reinforcement en-route to Singapore and 175 soldiers that had escaped from Singapore. They were based in western Java, and together with the American artillery and British armour successfully held up the Japanese advance for four days. All were captured following the surrender of Allied forces on the 10th March.

SOURCES: The History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery – Anti-Aircraft Artillery 1914 – 55 By: Brigadier N. W. ROUTLEDGE, O.B.E., T.D.

Published by: Brassey’s, 33 John Street, LONDON (1994)

[ISBN 1 85753 099 3]

Regiments of the British Army 1939 – 1945 (Artillery) By: Malcolm A BELLIS

Published by: Military Press International (1995)

[ISBN 0 85420 110 6]

The Royal Artillery 1939 – 45 Available on-line at: http://www.ra39-45.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/

[Accessed 23rd May 2011]

The War History of the Royal Pioneer Corps 1939 – 1945

By: Major E. H. RHODES-WOOD. Published by: Gale and Polden, Aldershot (1960)

Aivailable on-line at: http://www.dutcheastindies.webs.com/index.html

[Accessed 11th May 2012]