Brother to Dorothy, Lilly, Ivy, Edna, William Edward and Kitty
Occupation Clerk
1939/05/16 - Enlisted
Suffolk Regiment
5th Battalion
18th Division
Service
The 5th Battalion were formed with territorials from the Suffolk area. After some basic training at North Walsham they were put on guard duty in coastal Villages which included the seaside villages of Hemsby and Caister both on the Norfolk Coast, where they occupied holiday accommodation.
They also patrolled the dry docks where Allied submarines were serviced. Further moves were to Fulbourn near Cambridge, Hawick, Scotland, Liverpool, Isle of Anglesey and then Leominster in Herefordshire.
Reina del Pacifico
Once more they were on the moved by train from Leominster to Liverpool where they boarded the Reina del Pacifico, it was believed their destination was the Middle East as they had been equipped with khaki drill tunics for desert use.
The Reina del Pacifico passage was to Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, across a very rough sea.
USS Wakefield
The 5th battalion, being part of the 54 Infantry Brigade, then changed ship to the American liner ‘USS Wakefield’ and became part of the Convoy William Sail 12X.
The convoy sailed to Trinidad and then on to Cape Town in South Africa, berthing on the 9th December for a three stay, shore leave was granted. The Japanese had invaded Malaya the day before the convoy reached Cape Town.
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.
Convoy William Sail 12X
Above Photo supplied by the late Maurice Rooney
Detailed Account by Thomas M. Allison
A reproduction of an account by Thomas M. Allison who is understood to be serving as an American Naval officer in the convoy.
Aircraft
Vought SB 2U Vindicator Scout Bomber - USS Ranger which was flying an Anti Submarine patrol over the convoy.
Ships Front Line, Top to Bottom:-
USS West Point - USS Mount Vernon - USS Wakefield - USS Quincy (Heavy Cruiser)
Ships Back Line Top to Bottom:-
USAT Leonard Wood - USS Vincennes (Heavy Cruiser) - USS Joseph T Dickman
The convoy passed through the Mona Passage between Puerto Rico and St Domingo.
Arrived at Trinidad 17th November in glorious sunshine so troops changed to tropical kit, but no shore-leave, left Trinidad after two days of taking on supplies. The equator was crossed soon after leaving Trinidad on the 24th, there was a crossing the line ceremony.
After a month the convoy arrived at Cape Town, and soon after on the 8th December news reached the regiment that Japan had attacked Pearl Harbour and Malaya.
Britain and America were now at war with Japan and the rumours were that the convoy was now heading for the Far East and not the Middle East as first thought.
At this point the convoy was split with one part going to Mombassa and then on to Malaya and the Wakefield going to India, arriving at Bombay on the 5th January 1942, then on by train to Ahmenager, which was inland from Bombay where more training took place for the Far eastern climate. The 54th Infantry, which included the 5th Suffolks stayed at Ahmenager for three weeks, then back to Bombay where the Wakefield had waited, sailing once again this time to Singapore arriving 29th January, just two days before the causeway was blown between Malaya and Singapore.
Singapore by this time was under siege and the battalion found themselves in old tents in a rubber plantation along Tampines Road. With the departure of the RAF to Sumatra and Java there was very little air cover and slit trenches were a necessity.
The 5th Battalion were moved to take up positions along with other regiments of the 18th Division along the North-East Coastline overlooking the Straits of Johore between Singapore and the South Coast of Malaya at Ponggol Point. The Japanese attack on Singapore was suspected to be made in this area, the assumption was thought to be correct as the Japanese had these regiments under constant Mortar and air attacks.
This was a Japanese bluff as they attacked the North-East Coast and not the North-West Coast. Being of little use in these positions the 5th Battalion was moved by the RASC bus company on the 10th February to Thomson Road, taking over positions of the 1st Cambridgeshires who moved further along towards the Japanese attack positions on Bukit Timah Road.
On the 15th February from their positions at Battalion HQ, near Raffles College clouds of smoke could be seen as the oil tanks of Singapore were destroyed. To the Battalion it seemed just a matter of time before a surrender was called and in late afternoon they were told to destroy their weapons.
Surrender of Singapore
by Leo Rawlings
Percival surrendered, just 18 days after the USS Wakefield had docked at Singapore.
1942/05/01 - WO 417/42, Casualty List No. 812. Reported ‘Missing’.
1944/07/31 - WO417/79, Casualty List No. 1512. Previously shown Missing Casualty List No. 812, 15/02/19??. Now reported a ‘Prisoner of War in Japanese Hands’.
Japanese PoW
1942/02/15 - Captured Singapore
PoW No. M-2498
Japanese Index Card - Side One
Japanese Index Card - Side Two
1942/10/17 - Transported overland to Thailand with ‘Sime Road Party’, train 1
13th train to Thailand
PoW No. I 26818
Group I
Camps in Thailand:-
1942/10/26 - Chungkai - 60 Km from Nong Pladuk
1943/01/10 - Wang Takhian- 81 Km from Nong Pladuk
1943/03/02 - Ban Khao - 87 Km from Nong Pladuk
1943/09/20 - Kanchanaburi Hospital - 52 Km from Nong Pladuk
1943/10/25 - Rail tracks from Thailand and Burma joined near Konkoita
1943/11/01 - Nong Pladuk,
15th July 1944 Newspaper Ciipping
Haverhill Echo
1944/06/05 - Left Thailand for Japan under Major Seekings. The Japanese were worried about their convoys were being attacked by the American blockade, so they were found work on the Singapore docks, working from River Valley Camp. Conditions in Singapore were very bad, even the rice ration was cut down to the absolute minimum, the PoWs even had to boil and eat leaves from the hedges to survive.
1945/02/02 - When things couldn't get any worse, they were moved to Saigon, French Indo China in the Haruyasa Maru under Major Seekings and Captain Spooner with 218 other English POWs, it was like heaven compared with the last two years.
Camp 8
New PoW No. I 43721
In mid August 1945 the guards started to go missing and the PoWs heard the Americans had dropped two atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the Japanese surrender was close.
1945/10/26 - WO417/98, Casualty List No. 1894. Previously reported on Casualty List No. 1512 as Prisoner of War now Not Prisoner of War. Previous Theatre of War, Malaya.
Pacific Star
War Medal
1939-1945 Star
Far East Medals
Post War
On Archie’s return he was well known for his sporting activities, playing football for Haverhill Rovers and cricket for Haverhill Cricket Club.
In 1950 Archie married Jean Jobson at Newmarket in Cambridgeshire
They were blessed with daughter Marilyn Ann in 1953
16th August 1984 Newspaper Clipping
Haverhill Echo
Archie passed away in 1993, leaving Jean, Marilyn and two grandsons whom he idolised.
