Bailey-Herbert-Christopher

To honour those who served their country

“In this their finest hour”

5933122

Private

Herbert Christopher Bailey

1915/10/20 - Born Lakenheath, Suffolk

Occupation Artistic Decorator

1938/11/17 - Enlisted

Cambridgeshire Regiment

1st Battalion

Service

The Cambridgeshire Regiments had a fighting reputation and were nicknamed ‘The Fen Tigers’.

1941/10/30 - Left Britain in ‘Orcades’ with Convoy CT.5 from Liverpool to Halifax

Final Destination Unknown

1941/11/08 - Arrived Halifax

1941/11/10 - Transferred to USS West Point and departed Halifax in Convoy William Sail 12X

Convoy William Sail 12X continued with six American troopships, two cruisers, eight destroyers and the aircraft carrier Ranger, the Convoy William Sail 12X was under way, destination still unknown.

The convoy passed through the Mona Passage between Puerto Rico and St Domingo.

1941/11/17 - Arrived at Trinidad in glorious sunshine so troops changed to tropical kit, but no shore-leave, left Trinidad after two days of taking on supplies.

1941/11/24 - The equator was crossed, there was a crossing the line ceremony.

After a month the convoy arrived at Cape Town, South Africa. By this time the Americans were in the war as the Japanese had bombed Pearl Harbour and attacked Malaya and the rumours were that they were heading for the Far East and not the Middle East as first thought.

1941/12/08 - Japan attacked Pearl Harbour and Malaya

1941/12/13 - The convoy left Cape Town and sailed along the coast of East Africa past Madagascar and into the Indian Ocean heading for Bombay.

1941/12/27 - After 17,011 miles at sea Bombay was reached.

1942/01/18 - The convoy sailed with a British escort, the H.M.S. Exeter and H.M.S. Glasgow with British and Australian destroyers. Destination was the far East. Passing Colombo, (Ceylon), crossing the equator for the third time, the convoy passed through the Sundra Straits between Java and Samatra and then the Banka Straits. The convoy was then bombed by Japanese Planes, there was no damage.

1942/01/29 - The convoy reached the safety of Keppel Harbour, Singapore. Ships were ablaze in the harbour, clouds of smoke drifted across the sky and the smell of fumes was overpowering, this was not the best of greetings. The Japanese had taken most of Malaya in the last three weeks and were only thirty miles away from Singapore.

The day after the 1st Battalion arrived the causeway over the Strait of Jahore which linked Singapore to Malaya was destroyed. This did not delay the Japanese who landed at the North West of Singapore Island on the 8th February.

The Battalion fought at the Sime Road Camp in Singapore defending Adam Park . For three days ‘The Fen Tigers’ held up the Japanese 41st Fukuyama, Regiment, which was part of the Japanese 5th Division. The fighting was intense but on the 15th February the 1st Battalion CO, Lt-Col. Carpenter, finding the Japanese bypassing his position, requested permission to withdraw from Brigade HQ. he was told to hold the position and lay down their arms as Singapore had surrendered.

1942/02/15 - Singapore Surrendered

1942/04/17 - WO 417/41, Casualty List No. 800. Reported ‘Missing’.

1943/07/27 - WO 417/64, Casualty List No. 1197. Previously reported Missing on Casualty List No. 800, 15/02/1942 now reported Prisoner of War.

Japanese PoW

1942/02/15 - Captured Singapore

PoW No. M-5546

Changi

19421/02/25 - River Valley Camp

1942/06/27 - Roberts Hospital, Changi

1942/07/03 - Left hospital

Japanese Index Card - Side One

Japanese Index Card - Side Two

1942/11/02 - Transported overland to Thailand in ‘P’ Letter Party, train 9

27th train to Thailand with 650 PoWs

Lt-Col. H.A. Fitt, Recce Corps, 18th Division

New PoW No. IV 4397

Work Group 2

Thailand Camps:-

Worked up to Tha Khanun

1943/08/ - Kanchanaburi Hospital

1943/10/ - Burma-Thailand Lines joined near Konkoita 262.87km from Nong Pladuk, track laying completed.

1943/12/ - Chungkai to late 1944

New PoW No. 2290

1945/08/30 - Liberated

Liberation Questionnaire

1945/10/27 - WO417/98, Casualty List No. 1895. Previously reported on Casualty List No. 1197 as Prisoner of War now Not Prisoner of War. Previous Theatre of War, Malaya.