After an entire month of fighting, and with both Malaya and the Philippines thrown against
the ropes, the time had finally come for the final step of the Japanese advance.
Now, the Dutch East Indies, the final link in their planned defensive chain across the
Pacific, stood open for a Japanese attack.
And as the Japanese prepared to execute one of their most bold and brilliant plans of
invasion, the Malayan and Philippinean fronts saw the start of strong Allied resistance.
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The year of 1942 didn’t start as a normal and regular year for the Dutch.
Their homeland, ravaged by war, was under the occupation of the enemy Germans; their
government and their queen were in exile, helping the Allies in any manner they could;
and their most important colony had become a target for Japanese expansion.
But this colony was not defenseless at all, as Lieutenant-General Hein ter Poorten counted
with around 85000 soldiers, with most of them concentrated at the island of Java.
The Dutch also counted with a sizable naval force of 5 cruisers, 8 destroyers, 12 submarines
and 56 other ships, under the command of Lieutenant-Admiral Conrad Helfrich, nicknamed "Ship-a-day Helfrich",
because he sank more Japanese ships in the first weeks of the war than the entire British
or American Navies together.
It’s worth mentioning that Helfrich’s small force of submarines was a formidable
opponent for the Japanese navy, sinking several of their ships as we’ve seen in the previous
weeks.
Dutch air power was an important threat as well, having around 500 aircraft at their
disposal, from which some 300 were frontline aircraft.
These were based on several secret airfields scattered around the East Indies, such as
Samarinda II or Singkawang II, to where the Dutch planes would be transferred in case
of war, trying to prevent their destruction by a Japanese air attack.
These airfields were, however, quickly discovered by the invaders, then becoming vital strategic
objectives and easy prey for Japanese bombers.
For the invasion of the Dutch East Indies, the Japanese plan stipulated that they first
needed to secure footholds on Malaya and the Philippines . After this was achieved, the
Japanese would then launch an amphibious invasion of Borneo, making it the stepping stone from
which to launch the invasion of the East Indies.
Absolute coordination was essential for this operation, especially since the Indies were
the most important target of the Japanese offensives due to its richness in petroleum
oil, rubber, nickel, tin, scrap iron and other strategic resources . The 16th Army under
Lieutenant-General Imamura Hitoshi was appointed by the commander of the Southern Expeditionary
Army Group General Hisaichi Terauchi, to carry out the invasion of the East Indies, supported
by the 3rd Air Force once their operations in Malaya had concluded.
Originally, this army was composed by the 2nd Division and the Sakaguchi Detachment,
which took part in the conquests of Davao and Jolo; but Tokyo had also already planned
for the 38th and 48th Divisions, as well as the South Seas Detachment and many other units,
to be assigned to the 16th Army as the capture of Hong Kong, the Philippines, Malaya, Guam
and Rabaul progressed.
Initially supporting the invasion of the Philippines, the 3rd Fleet of Admiral Takahashi and its
11th Air Fleet were also appointed to support the Dutch East Indies campaign.
The plan for the 16th Army was to launch a series of naval invasions against key points
in the Dutch East Indies, namely some of the secret airfields that we’ve discussed, as
the Japanese would need air support from these points for their planned invasion of Java.
This plan, drafted by the leading commanders of the 3rd Fleet, was very specific about
where and when each unit would carry out the invasion operations.
After securing Davao and Jolo, the Sakaguchi Detachment would land on Tarakan Island around
the 33rd day after the start of the war, then launching an invasion of Balikpapan ten days
later.
Once Balikpapan was under Japanese hands, General Sakaguchi would naval invade Banjarmasin
around the 53rd day before finally landing on Bali some 16 days later.
Meanwhile, after taking Hong Kong, two battalions of the 38th Division would assemble in Palau
to seize Ambon and then attack Kupang in Timor Island; while the rest of the division would
be appointed to launch the invasion of southern Sumatra.
Finally, the main force of this army would execute the invasion of the island of Java.
The 2nd Division would be responsible for the landings in western Java, while the 48th
Division would take charge of the invasion of eastern Java.
The 3rd Fleet’s Sasebo Force of SNLF marines and Yokosuka Force of paratroopers would also
be responsible for the subsequent capture of Manado, Kendari and Makassar in the Celebes,
while also assisting in the operations against Timor.
By January 3, with the rapid advances in the Malayan and Philippinean fronts and with the
successful capture of British Borneo, the Japanese command finally felt ready to start
the Dutch East Indies campaign.
On January 6, Takahashi’s fleet arrived at Davao, where the Sakaguchi Detachment had
already concentrated.
The following day, the invasion force departed Malalag Bay heading towards Tarakan Island
in Dutch Borneo.
They were escorted by a fleet consisting of 9 destroyers and a light-cruiser, under the
command of Rear-Admiral Nishimura Shoji.
Meanwhile, the Dutch had a garrison of around 1400 men in Tarakan, led by Lieutenant-Colonel
Simon de Waal.
This force had prepared defensive positions expecting a Japanese attack to the west, yet
they were to be surprised.
On January 10, Dutch reconnaissance detected the Japanese convoy en route to Tarakan, so
de Waal ordered the destruction of all oil installations in the island.
He also sent some bombers to disrupt the landings, but to no avail, as by the early hours of
January 11 after the official declaration of war on the Netherlands, some SNLF marines
and Sakaguchi’s main force had already landed north of the Amal River.
They then marched south to the mouth of the river under a burning red sky, where they
stormed and outflanked some Dutch pillboxes.
That morning, a battalion of the Sakaguchi Detachment also landed further south at Tandjoeng
Batoe to capture the Lingkas oil fields.
This unit tried to advance through the jungle, but was slowed down by the extremely dense
vegetation.
Sakaguchi also lost communications with them, so the Japanese general didn’t know of their
whereabouts.
At the same time, aided by a Japanese guide who knew the area, Sakaguchi’s main force
broke through the jungle and got to the north side of the Tarakan oil field by midday.
As the Japanese advanced north of the Tarakan Oil field the Dutch bombarded them with artillery
and motor [mortars?]
far from Saraber's support point.
The Dutch and Japanese made several simultaneous offensives against another, but eventually
the Japanese launched a series of night raids and Yamamoto's troops managed to capture both
lines of Dutch Barracks.
The defenders had also lost many men, and their communications with the coastal batteries
were breaking down.
This left de Waal with no choice but to capitulate on the morning of January 12.
Yet without communications, some Dutch units were still fighting on.
One of these units was the Karoengan Battery, which came into contact with the Japanese
battalion that had lost communications around noon.
Yet despite the sustained attack, the Karoengan Battery accurately shot and sunk two Japanese
minesweepers and one landing craft.
The battery was finally captured on January 13, subjected to the Japanese vengeance for
the loss of their minesweepers, who then executed most of its crew.
Sakaguchi had lost only 7 men in the entire battle, while the IJN lost around 250 men,
mainly in the destroyed minesweepers.
In contrast, the Dutch lost around 300 men, with the rest ending up captured.
The same day that the Sakaguchi Detachment was landing on Tarakan, Rear-Admiral Takagi
Takeo started the IJN operation in the Celebes.
An invasion fleet under Rear-Admiral Tanaka Raizo, consisting of 3 cruisers and 11 destroyers,
escorted the Sasebo Force, consisting of 3200 SNLF marines, while some 762 paratroopers
from the Yokosuka Force prepared to be dropped on the Langoan airfield.
The main force of Sasebo would land around Manado to envelop the Dutch defenders and
capture the town, with another force of 1400 SNLF marines also landing at Kema to help
the paratroopers secure the airfield.
In the Celebes, Colonel Marinus Vooren had substantial forces under his command, spread
across three major areas: Manado, Kendari and Makassar.
Manado was defended by around 1500 men under Major Ben Schillmöller, mainly from the National
Reserve battalion.
In the early morning of January 11, the Sasebo Force came ashore at Manado and Kume, repulsing
a small number of Dutch units and heading towards the Langoan airfield.
A couple of hours later, the Yokosuka Force was dropped on Langoan, where the paratroopers
managed to completely seize the airfield.
In response to the strong Japanese attack, the defenders retreated to Tinoör, where
they were finally crushed by the SNLF marines by noon.
With the fall of Manado, Tomohon and Tondano, Schillmöller had decided by night to retreat
with most of his forces to the west towards Amoerang, where he would commence guerrilla
warfare.
The following day, the Japanese parachuted a company of reinforcements at Manado.
Soon, all the Japanese forces made contact at Langoan and captured the city.
With Schillmöller’s retreat, some scattered Dutch units also started to wage guerrilla
warfare, so the Dutch formed in total five guerrilla groups operating separately.
This paratroop operation at Manado was the first ever carried out by Japanese forces,
and it was a complete success.
The Sasebo Force would finally remain in Manado until January 16 to carry out mopping-up operations,
although most of the guerrilla groups would manage to escape them.
The successful capture of Tarakan and Manado signified the start of the Dutch East Indies
campaign, and this was something that deeply concerned the ABDA Command.
Yet this week, the Allies had their hands already full in some other regions.
In the Philippines, for instance, fighting started in the Abucay Line back on January
9, when General Homma sent the 65th Independent Mixed Brigade and the 7th Tank Regiment to
push south on the East Road and break through the 2nd Corps’ positions.
Facing the Japanese attack were General Parker’s 41st and 51st Divisions, as well as the elite
57th Regiment of Philippine Scouts.
These defenders quickly rushed to rain heavy artillery fire over the Japanese advance,
inflicting heavy casualties on the enemy.
At the same time, the Japanese 122nd Regiment moved west towards the 1st Corps’ area and
captured the town of Olangopo.
The following day, the main attack began against the Abucay Line, as the Japanese forces advanced
upon the western sector of the line.
To bolster the morale of his troops, General MacArthur himself decided to visit the frontlines,
although this would be his only trip to Bataan during the battle . Despite the progress of
the Japanese advance, the heavy bombardment carried out by the American defenders forced
Lieutenant-General Nara Akira of the 65th Independent Mixed Brigade to push his forces
further west.
On the night of January 11, the first Japanese units started to cross the Calaguiman River
against the positions of the 57th Regiment.
The Philippine Scouts resisted attack after attack of Nara’s forces, executing well-planned
counterattacks that always managed to regain most of the lost territory.
Parker also saw the difficult situation in which his troops were and so, he decided to
reinforce them with his reserves.
Elsewhere in the center of the line though, the Japanese had successfully pushed back
the 41st Division; and in the far western sector, the battered 51st Division was being
attacked repeatedly, which left it very close to completely crumbling.
Furthermore, on January 15, Nara found a seam between the 41st and 51st Divisions and quickly
set out to exploit his newfound opportunity.
Parker ordered a counterattack early on January 16, which managed to push back the Japanese
a little bit, yet Nara saw this coming and planned to envelop the Filipino troops once
they had advanced.
This left the 51st completely exposed and rapidly collapsing.
That same day, the 122nd Regiment moved south towards Morong, where its advance was finally
stopped by the 26th Cavalry Regiment.
Despite their successful horse-mounted charge, which would be the last US cavalry regiment
to engage in horse-mounted warfare, General Wainwright had no other choice but to withdraw
on January 17 . Due to lack of food, they would end up butchering their mounts to survive
and convert into two squadrons, one motorized rifle squadron and a mechanized squadron.
Back on the Abucay Line, MacArthur sent the Philippine Division and his last reserves
to plug the gap left by the 51st Division.
If this position fell, then his entire main battle position might disintegrate in the
blink of an eye.
But would the Americans be successful?
We’ll have to wait until next week to see.
For now, we turn to Malaya, where the Indian defenders were still retreating towards Johor
to establish new defensive positions.
The 8th Australian Division of General Bennett had already moved to the area around Segamat,
and they would be joined by the 9th Indian Division and the recently-arrived 45th Brigade
to form Westforce, under the command of Bennett himself.
Their task was to stop the Japanese advance at Johor while at the same time giving the
Indian forces enough time to rest and replenish.
Meanwhile, General Yamashita planned to threaten the British defense by landing a strong force
at Endau on the southeastern coast of Malaya.
He also wanted to give his tired 5th Division enough time to rest at Seremban while maintaining
the Imperial Guards Division’s advance along the coast.
On the evening of January 11, Kuala Lumpur was occupied by the Japanese; and by January
13, the Indians were withdrawing through Westforce.
The following day, the Australians were planning to execute an ambush led by Lt Colonel Frederick
"Black Jack" Galleghan west of Gemas to finally stop the Japanese momentum.
Bennett had placed his Australian brigades on the expected main area of Japanese advance,
supported by anti-tank units and four artillery regiments.
On the afternoon of January 14, an advance unit of the 5th Division fell into the trap.
As a result, the Japanese suffered heavy casualties and were forced to retreat.
Yet despite the success of the Australian ambush, by dawn on the next day, the Imperial
Guards Division of Lieutenant-General Nishimura Takuma was approaching the Muar area on the
coast, which was protected by the 45th Brigade.
Nishimura sent one battalion through the Muar River to flank both the town and the Indian
defenders, while his main force was advancing from the north.
On the night of January 15, Japanese soldiers landed on the south bank of the river facing
almost no resistance; and by January 16, they had outflanked and routed an entire Indian
company . The remaining Indian defenders were then cut off and captured by Nishimura’s
forces, who then continued upstream towards the town of Muar.
Australian artillery managed to stop their advance there, but some Japanese soldiers
had already crossed the river and were decimating the remaining Indian defenders.
By night, the 45th Brigade had been virtually destroyed and both Muar and its harbour had
fallen into Japanese hands . Australian forces at Gemas had also been attacked
again by the Japanese on January 15, repulsing three attacks before finally being flanked
and forced to retreat by the 17th.
The loss of Gemas had deprived the Australians of much equipment, while the fall of Muar
had left a critical hole in the communications of Westforce.
The Allied command knew that they needed to hold the Japanese advance there if they wanted
to have a real chance at holding Johor.
Back on January 13, the British had received their second reinforcement: the 53rd Brigade
of the still-coming 18th British Division.
This brigade didn’t have sufficient time for recuperating after being at sea for eleven
weeks, yet General Percival decided to send it anyway to stop the Japanese at Muar . This
was a critical point in the battle and in the defense of Malaya, but this is also the
end of the week, so we have to leave you here for now.
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Next week we are going to talk about the continuation of the battles at Abucay and Muar, as well
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