Major-General General Officer Commanding AIF, Malaya 1941-1942

Lieutenant-General , the General Officer Commanding Malaya, was a controversial figure for his part in the Fall of Singapore. But equally, so was Major-General (later to be Lieutenant-General) Henry Gordon (Gordon) Bennett. With a near contempt for British senior officers gained from WW1, an outspoken nature and a confidence in his own ability, Bennett clashed with Percival and the other generals of the Allied High Command in Singapore. But, unlike the other generals, Bennett escaped from Singapore, just hours after Percival had signed the surrender.

At the outbreak of WW1, Bennett was 26 and had worked in civilian life. He also served part-time in the militia, a volunteer army reserve in which in only five years, he had risen to the rank of major. Bennett enlisted in the full-time army and became second-in-command of the 6th , 2nd of the 1st Australian Division.

The was initially despatched to the United Kingdom for training. However, overcrowding at training camps resulted in the division being diverted to Egypt. As a result, the 1st Division joined the and, on the 25th April Major-General Gordon Bennett 1915, Bennett and the rest of the 1st Division landed at .

Luck would be with Bennett. On the first day, while leading 300 men from his battalion, to an advance position on Pine Ridge, he was wounded and was forced to retire to the beach for treatment. Later that evening, the Turkish forces made a counter-attack, retaking the Pine Ridge and killing all the Australians. In May, in the , Bennett advanced his battalion in impossible conditions. As he led the charge, a bullet hit his ammunition pouch and exploded the ammunition. He was knocked to the ground but was otherwise unharmed. He then continued to lead a handful of men and achieved the furthest advance. He was the only officer of the 6th Battalion and one of only a few of the , to survive. He was given command of the 6th Battalion and promoted to lieutenant-colonel.

As the Gallipoli Campaign became bogged down, the 6th Battalion was still on the front line. In August, the 1st Division was involved in an attack on a position known as German Officers’ Trench. After several unsuccessful attempts, the ever-ambitious Bennett wanted to lead another attack. However, the attacked was abandoned before he could do so. For his service in the Gallipoli Campaign, Bennett was appointed a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George and was twice mentioned in despatches.

In March 1916, after spending several months in Egypt after the failed Gallipoli Campaign, the 1st Division moved to France and the Western Front. Bennett led the 6th Battalion in the Battle of Pozieres. In December 1916, he was given command of the and promoted to brigadier-general. Being only 29, Bennett became the Page 1 of 4

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Major-General Gordon Bennett General Officer Commanding AIF, Malaya 1941-1942

youngest general in the . He commanded the brigade for the rest of the war in battles at Bullecourt, Menin Road and Passchendaele in 1917 and against the in 1918.

For his service on the Western Front, Bennett was appointed Companion of the , the Distinguished Service Order and was mentioned in despatches a further six times.

After WW1, Bennett returned to a successful civilian life holding senior positions in industry in . Australian troops arriving in Singapore He maintained his links with the military, again serving with the militia being appointed major-general of the 2nd Australian Division in 1930.

With the outbreak of WW2 in 1939, Bennett returned to full-time service but was passed over for command of the Second Australian Imperial Force. It was cited that his temperament was unsuitable for a semi-diplomatic command and one that would be subordinate to British generals. Bennett had not helped his cause prior to WW2, by being scathing of the actions of British officers and Australian regular officers during WW1. Bennett was given command of the Volunteer Defence , an Australian version of the British Home Guard. But, in August 1940, he was appointed commander of the newly formed 8th Australian Division.

Amid growing concerns over Japanese expansion and as part of ’s commitment to bolster numbers for the defence of the Malayan Peninsula, Bennett’s headquarters and the were sent to Singapore in February 1941 to be followed by the in August. The division’s third brigade, the , would remain in Australia at that time.

Initially, Bennett’s relationship with the 22nd Brigade commander, Brigadier Harold Taylor, was not good. But this would improve. However, Bennett’s dealings with senior British officers were less than harmonious, especially with Lieutenant-General Arthur Percival, the General Officer Commanding Malaya. The relationship between Bennett and Percival was made even more difficult in that Bennett had the option to discuss his orders from Percival, with the Australian government if he (Bennett) disagreed with them. (This was the case for all Australian division commanders in all theatres of war.) This gave Bennett considerable freedom, much to

Australian soldiers in action in Malaya

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Major-General Gordon Bennett General Officer Commanding AIF, Malaya 1941-1942

Percival’s frustration. But Bennett was not alone, Percival had an acrimonious relationship with Lieutenant-General Lewis Heath, the commander of the 3rd Indian Corps.

In December 1941, the Japanese invaded Malaya. The Australians were not engaged with the Japanese until early in January 1942. By that time, with overwhelming numbers, greater mobility and air superiority, the Japanese had pushed the defenders down into southern Malaya. The Australians fought in several actions around Gemas and Muar where they had some success against the Japanese. But were forced to withdraw to Singapore along with the Major-General Bennett addresses the military press corps after other allied forces. successes by Australian troops in Malaya Bennett’s two were given the defence of the north-west side of Singapore. On the night of the 8th February 1942, 14,000 Japanese invaded an area defended by only 3,000 Australians of the 22nd Brigade. Within a few hours, the 22nd Brigade was overrun, and was forced to withdraw. The following day, another 10,000 Japanese landed in the area defended by the 27th Brigade and although able to hold back this invasion, the Japanese were able to regroup and attack once more. This time, fearing they would be cut off by the Japanese who had overrun the 22nd Brigade’s position, the 27th Brigade withdrew to the centre of the island.

On the 15th February, Percival signed a surrender agreement with the Japanese. That night, after completing all formalities regarding the surrender, Bennett handed over command of the 8th Division to Brigadier and with some others, took the opportunity (and risk) of escaping from Singapore finally arriving in in March 1942.

Although praised publicly, within the senior officer ranks of the military, Bennett was criticised for leaving his troops. In what would seem as a contradictory move, Bennett was promoted to lieutenant-general and given command of the 3rd in .

After the war, Percival who had never got on with Bennett, wrote a letter accusing Bennett of relinquishing his command without permission. A military court of enquiry was held and found that Bennett was not justified in handing over his command, or, in leaving Singapore. In November 1945, a Royal Commission was Recreation of the final Command Conference at the Battlebox before conducted also finding that Bennett’s actions were the allied surrender (Bennett sitting to Percival’s (standing centre) right) unjustified allowing his prejudice against regular officers and his ambition, to cloud his professional judgement. But in 1948, Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Fry, a military lawyer, found that the Royal Commission’s report was based on international law and did not consider Bennett’s Page 3 of 4

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Major-General Gordon Bennett General Officer Commanding AIF, Malaya 1941-1942

action from the viewpoint of Australian military law by which Bennett was bound. Australian military law did not place Bennett under any obligation to remain in Singapore.

Bennett retired from the military and continued his successful civilian career. He maintained his links with the 8th Division veterans and returned to Singapore in 1957 for the opening of the Kranji War Memorial. Gordon Bennett died in August 1962.

As a personal comment, Bennett’s time with the 8th Division was as contradictory as the Fall of Singapore itself. At the start of WW2, Australia as was the Australian military, was in step with the British. Bennett had developed a near contempt for British senior officers as result of his involvement in WW1. An attitude that was clearly known to the Australian military. Yet, he was promoted to major-general pre- WW2 and ultimately given command of the 8th Division. A position that would bring him into direct contact with senior British officers.

Kranji War Memorial, Singapore As far as the vexed issue of whether Bennett should have escaped from Singapore, Percival was never going to agree with Bennett’s position because of his dislike for Bennett. And, nor was Callaghan who no doubt, was happy to take over command of the 8th Division from Bennett but then had to endure three and half years of captivity under the Japanese. And then, after Bennett’s return to Australia, the Australian military promoted Bennett to lieutenant-general. There are so many ‘mixed signals’!!

Perhaps, the decision on Bennett should be given to the veterans of the 8th Division, the majority of which supported Bennett’s actions to escape Singapore and always remained loyal to him.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordon_Bennett_(general) https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/2016/06/17/general-percival-a-convenient-scapegoat https://ww2db.com/person_bio.php?person_id=470

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