Chapter 124: The Pursuit of the South Indian Ocean (I)

Governor-General's House, Singapore, 1 May 1947

Under the scorching equatorial sun all year round, to the melody of "God Save the Queen" played by the band, Lord Mountbatten, the haggard Governor of the Straits Settlements, slowly lowered the rice flag on the flagpole in front of the Governor's Palace building. Pen, fun, and www.biquge.info

As he folded the flag, the British admirals and colonial officials who were present covered their faces with their hands and sobbed to themselves.

-- It was only a year and a half since the British Empire returned to Singapore, and they were about to say goodbye to the city once again.

And the deadline for this parting is likely to be forever......

One last look at the palatial Victorian-style buildings of the Governor's Palace in Singapore, as well as the wide streets lined with palm trees and flower beds on both sides of the Governor's Palace, the commander of the Royal Navy's Eastern Fleet in full military uniform, Bruce Brown. Austin. Admiral Fraser sighed helplessly, turned around and got into the jeep he had been allotted, and ordered the driver to drive straight to Janggi Naval Base.

At this moment, the city of Singapore has fallen into a lot of noise and restlessness, with shops of all sizes closed and the streets and alleys overcrowded, full of refugees carrying large bags and small bags, as well as thieves and robbers trying to take advantage of the chaos, provoking all kinds of fights and making the market more chaotic...... Even on the streets of the city, the rumbling of artillery fire could be heard from afar, further exacerbating the panic in the city. The field artillery unit under the command of General Wingate is engaged in an artillery battle with the MCP guerrillas who have landed on Singapore Island.

All of these scenes are so similar to the last time Singapore was captured by the Japanese army.

Moreover, to this day, Singapore, the cornerstone of the British Empire on the Oriental Sea, is indeed doomed.

-- In fact, even the British Empire itself has become a historical term that no longer exists......

Beginning four months ago, after receiving all-round and vigorous support from the red camp, the Communist Party of Malaysia guerrillas, with overseas Chinese and ethnic Chinese as the backbone core, broke out of the deep mountains and old forests of the interior of the Malay Peninsula in one fell swoop, and in just two weeks, easily swept away thousands of British troops (basically Indians) scattered on the Malay Peninsula, and planted the red flag on the north shore of the Straits of Johor, across the sea from Singapore Island.

Over the next few months, the British and CPM guerrillas engaged in a series of fierce exchanges of fire along the Straits of Johor. Relying on the artillery bombardment of the Royal Navy ships, the American troops retreating from the Philippines one after another, and the "friendly help" of the Chinese government troops withdrawing from Taiwan, Governor Mountbatten barely stabilized the situation for a time, and made several beautiful counterattacks, expelling the enemy 50 kilometers away from the northern shore of the strait. However, with the departure of the Philippine American forces and the rapid depletion of ammunition and supplies, the combat effectiveness of the Singaporean defenders weakened again.

On the other hand, while fierce fighting was raging on the frontal battlefield, the situation in Singapore was also not stable, and all kinds of arson, looting, and assassination incidents emerged one after another -- because millions of refugees, or "reactionary exploiting class bad elements" in the eyes of the socialist camp, have been pouring into Singapore as a transit point from the Philippines, China, southern Vietnam, Indonesia, and Thailand since last year, and as a result, the pressure on law and order in the city has been greatly increased. Every day, drunken deserters from all over the world can be seen roaming the streets, looting houses, looting shops and warehouses with open fire, and even exchanging fierce fire with the British military police. There are several shootings in the urban area of Singapore every hour.

The secret service team of the red camp also took the opportunity to infiltrate the city in large numbers, fanning the flames everywhere, trying to make some big moves on the front behind enemy lines. The more than 10,000 Japanese prisoners of war who had surrendered with General Terauchi Shouichi, commander of the Nanyang Army of the old Japanese Empire, also regretted it, and they were all in tandem in the prisoner of war camps, ready to move, trying to cooperate with the Ma-Communist guerrillas outside the city, but unfortunately they accidentally leaked the news...... After hearing the news, the angry Governor Mountbatten simply ordered the massacre, dragged these Japanese prisoners of war who were on the wrong side to the Zhangyi Naval Base and shot them en masse, and threw their bodies into the sea to feed the sharks.

Then, under the strict orders of Governor Mountbatten, Singapore's police and gendarmes went on a daily hunt for spies and rebels, and then took advantage of the opportunity to make a fortune by raiding their homes legally, while indiscriminately arresting citizens and hanging them on the gallows on the streets...... However, the situation in Singapore is still very bad, and the millions of war refugees from various countries who continue to pour in and leave the city have snapped up the food and daily necessities in the city.

In late March, a coup d'état broke out in Thailand, announcing the expulsion of the king, a peaceful withdrawal from the war, and an armistice and peace talks with the socialist camp. Next, a Japanese naval aviation unit was invited to Johor and bombed the city of Singapore. Although the scale of the bombing was small, and the total number of bombs dropped was less than 300 tons from beginning to end, it further exacerbated the atmosphere of panic in the city and hastened the collapse of the market order. Not only foreign refugees who have temporarily settled in Singapore, but also local Singaporeans have crowded into the queue to grab tickets and take a boat to escape, forming a long snake formation at the pier.

In mid-April, the Philippine American troops followed Marshal MacArthur away, the King of Thailand left with a group of monks, and Chairman Chiang from Taiwan left Singapore with a vote of his followers, leaving only the British on the island to stand their last post for their queen.

Seven days ago, the final moment finally came, when a group of about 6,000 Malay guerrillas and a Soviet special forces force of about 300 men forced their way across the Straits of Johor in rubber boats under the cover of darkness -- like the Japanese troops under the command of General Yamashita Fumi, they chose not to attack the strongly fortified open coastal positions on the east side of the island head-on, but to go ashore on the swampy land to the west of the island.

Although the route of attack was a little more difficult, and it was necessary to cross swamps and woods and walk a long way into the city of Singapore, but it was difficult for the British to set up defenses, and even if they had the experience of the previous Japanese attack, they could not have enough troops to fill every beachhead.

-- At this time, in charge of the ground defense of Singapore Island, Ode. In the hands of General Wingate, there were six divisions on paper, but the actual total strength was only 13,000 men, and each division was only the size of a regiment of the American army. The island of Singapore is ten times the size of Manhattan in New York, 26 miles from east to west and 14 miles from south to north, and most of its inhabitants live in the city of Singapore in the southeast of the island. With the exception of Singapore City and a few other towns and villages, most of the rest of the island is rubber plantations and jungle. The coastline of the whole island is more than 70 miles long. The small number of troops in the hands of General Wingate was simply not enough to hold every beach on the entire island of Singapore. In 1942, General Percival commanded an army of 85,000 to defend Singapore, but could not stop the 30,000 Japanese attack on the beachhead. Five years later, on the same battlefield and facing the same situation, General Wingate, with a mere force of 13,000 men, was even more unable to defend the enemy on the beachhead.

Therefore, on the beachhead where the MCP guerrillas landed, the British army deployed only a few hundred demoralized Indians......

As a result, the vanguard elite troops who crossed the sea easily gained a foothold on the desolate west coast of Singapore Island, and then launched a short-range assault, successfully crushing more than 1,000 British troops who were rushing back in chaos. Then, in just forty-eight hours, they swept half of the island of Singapore to the west - in the midst of the earth-shattering trumpets and shouts, the ma-communist guerrillas charged with bayonets in their hands were overwhelmed, and the British colonial troops who had rushed to the battle were crushed at the touch of a button, each abandoning all his burdens, throwing away his rifles and bullets, wading through the river, through the swamps overgrown with tropical vegetation, through the bushes, onto the road, and running in haphazard trotting...... They even stepped on a minefield planted by the British themselves!

It was only after advancing to the island's strategically important vantage point, Bukit Chimah (meaning "Sishan"), that the offensive was halted by the British, where General Wingate had repaired strong fortifications and trenches, and used them as a fulcrum to prop up a core line of defense around the city of Singapore.

Over the next few days, the two sides fought back and forth in the middle of the island of Singapore. The MCP guerrillas were thwarted several times in their attacks on Bukit Chi Ma, and then tried to bypass the fortifications, breaking through in a roundabout way, and at one point approaching the racecourse on the edge of Singapore's urban area, but were eventually driven back.

At first glance, according to the current situation, it seems that the battle of Singapore can continue, after all, the combat effectiveness of the MCP guerrillas cannot be compared with the combat effectiveness of the elite divisions of the Japanese Nanyang Army in those years. Moreover, as long as the Royal Navy's Eastern Fleet at Janggi Military Port takes the initiative to attack and blockade the Strait of Johor, it can easily cut off the logistical supply lines of the enemy troops who have landed on the island, and they will quickly fall into the predicament of running out of ammunition and food.

However, from Governor Mountbatten, Admiral Fraser, to Army Admiral Wingate, who is commanding the defensive battle of Singapore, it is actually very clear that Singapore is destined to be unable to hold on, and must retreat as soon as possible, otherwise if it continues to grind, I am afraid that it will not even be able to withdraw!

-- Because, the main force of the combined fleet of the Japanese Navy is coming soon!

And Admiral Frazier, who had only one battle cruiser and two destroyers left in his hands and did not even have a converted aircraft carrier, was afraid that he would not even be able to take a face-to-face with the combined fleet of the Japanese Navy, and he would be directly blown up and sunk by the enemy's naval aviation units!

So, having received accurate information that the main force of the Japanese Navy's Combined Fleet had appeared in the waters of the Gulf of Thailand, the British troops in Singapore no longer had the courage to fight, and immediately began to prepare to pack their bags and retreat - although Prime Minister Churchill radioed an impassioned order from Guyana, the seat of the British government-in-exile, declaring: "...... The battle for Singapore must be fought to the end. Each and every one of you must fight to the end to defend the island until every army and every stronghold is destroyed. Field commanders and senior officers should die with soldiers. The honor of the British Empire is here! In the end, the city of Singapore must become the strongest fortress possible. Surrender and retreat are not allowed to be considered at all! ”

However, on the war-torn island of Singapore, no one wants to listen to the stupid nonsense of this fat man hiding tens of thousands of kilometers away.

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Due to the frequent riots in the streets of Singapore, the constant sound of gunfire, the occasional explosions, and the bombing and strafing of enemy planes, Admiral Fraser's jeep had to stop and stop, and it took more than three hours to arrive at the Janggi Naval Base and board the flagship Prestige.

Compared with the chaotic situation outside, the Zhangyi Naval Base finally maintained the most basic order. All the sailors and port crews were racing against the clock to carry out the replenishment operations before the voyage - on the docks, huge booms bobbing back and forth, huge nets filled with ammunition and food, hoisted onto the deck of the battlecruiser Prestige again and again, and then, with the efforts of the sailors, slowly sent heavy shells into the ammunition depot under heavy armor, and all kinds of vegetables, fruits, and canned flour were pushed into the kitchen in small carts. Heavy oil stored in the underground oil depot is also continuously injected into the ship's hull through thick pipelines by pressure pumps at the docks...... All of this at the moment indicates that the battleship is about to anchor and sail away.

It wasn't an exciting expedition, but a modest escape...... But we still have to deal with it with all our spirits.

“…… Reporting to the general, the boiler has begun to be warmed up, and the replenishment work will take about half an hour to complete. ”

Seeing the commander on board, the captain of the battlecruiser Prestige hurriedly stepped forward to report on the preparations, "...... It is expected to be ready for departure in one hour. ”

“…… Well. Admiral Fraser nodded, "...... What about the other ships? Have all the people at the base packed their bags and boarded the ship? ”

“…… In addition to the staff on duty, the rest of the Marines and logistics maintenance personnel at the base have already boarded the Queen Mary cruise ship. The destroyer Vixen was also ready, but the problem of water seepage on the side of another destroyer, the Jutland, had not been well solved - when it entered the port at the end of its patrol yesterday, it brushed off with a passenger liner and almost sank if it had not been rescued in time......"

A naval staff officer next reported that "...... Captain Scott asked for twenty-four hours to be given emergency repairs, otherwise he would not be able to go to sea......"

“…… The fleet can't wait that long, let them open the bottom of the ship and sink themselves! Now it's all about time! ”

Admiral Fraser interrupted the staff officer with a big wave of his hand, "...... The crew of the destroyer Jutland moved to the Queen Mary cruise ship after abandoning the ship, not to mention any stupid things about running out of seats, as long as I lost some extra luggage, I would definitely be able to squeeze in. Today's old seafarers are more precious than warships...... Also, how well are preparations for the destruction of the remaining supplies? ”

“…… Time bombs have been deployed at the ammunition depot and supply warehouse, and aviation fuel and heavy fuel oil are already being discharged into the sea at the oil depot......"

……

On the evening of May 1, 1947, the Royal Navy's Eastern Fleet sounded its whistle for the last time and sailed out of the battle-torn port of Singapore.

-- Although it claims to be the Royal Navy's Eastern Fleet, the only combat ships in the real sense of the word in the entire fleet are the flagship Prestige Cruiser and the last remaining destroyer, the Vixen, and the rest are a hodgepodge of supply ships, hospital ships, cruise ships, merchant ships, maintenance ships, minelayers, and even tugboats...... Despite this, the scene of so many ships going to sea together is still as spectacular as a forest of steel. The ship's side and deck glow orange-red in the sunset, showing both a bit of solemnity and a hint of desolation......

Shortly after the hodgepodge of fugitive fleets sailed out of port, the wharf behind them was filled with deafening explosions -- the flames of aviation fuel incineration and twilight competed with each other, the mushroom-shaped plumes of smoke from the explosion of the ammunition depot soared into the sky, and occasionally steel parts could be seen blown up more than a hundred meters high, and then thrown far into the sea, splashing water columns and waves.

Looking at the fire and smoke behind them, some passengers couldn't help but lie down by the portholes, beating their chests and bursting into tears. But as the commander of this fleet, Admiral Fraser still had a sinking face...... Because, he knew very well that the journey of nine deaths and one life had just begun!

-- According to the last report before the water reconnaissance plane was shot down, the main force of the Japanese Navy's Combined Fleet was more than 100 nautical miles behind him! (To be continued.) )