Fort Canning Hill is located
right in the very heart of
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downtown Singapore. And you
travel back in time as you walk
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through the Fort gates and along
the adjoining wall in Visually
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Port all part of the fortress
that occupied this hill. This
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iconic hilltop landmark has
witnessed many of Singapore's
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historical historical
milestones. It was from here
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that Malay royalty ruled in
medieval times. Nearby was the
Forbidden Spring where
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the women of the
ruler's household used to bathe.
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On its slopes is
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a sacred place where the kings
of ancient Singapore were laid
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to rest. Here you can trace the
rise and fall of great empires.
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You can hear stories of rulers
and governors that commanded
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from this hill and the empire
builders who are buried here.
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The British built a colonial
fort here and then in World War
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II hidden away underneath this
hill they built their secret
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underground command center. And
it was here deep underground in
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The Battlebox that the
momentous decision was made to
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surrender Singapore to the
Japanese, the decision that
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marked the beginning of the end
of the mighty British Empire.
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The battle for Singapore
provides insight into the
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universal battle, the great
controversy that involves all
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of us. Yes, even you and me.
So stay tuned to hear all about
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it in our new
program The Battle Box.
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¤ ¤
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Singapore is a modern day wonder
It's a wealthy city-state in
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southeast Asia sometimes
referred to as the Lion's city.
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Once it was just a simple
British colonial trading post,
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but today it's morphed
into a thriving global finance,
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commerce and transport hub.
It's described as one of Asia's
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economic tigers. In just over 50
years since gaining independence
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from Britain in 1963, Singapore
has become one of the most
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prosperous countries in the
world. No wonder it's all action
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here and such a bustling
metropolis. But amongst all the
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hustle and bustle this green
oasis Fort Canning Hill is found
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right in the very heart of
Singapore. This green park area
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offers residents and visitors
a moment of calm as well as the
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insight into Singapore's
rich past. Here it's possible to
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escape much of the busy city and
journey back 700 years into the
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past to the era of the five
kings and the golden age of 14th
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century Singapore. Here you can
replace the sounds of the city
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with the sounds of nature.
In ancient times Fort Canning
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Hill was
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known as Bukit Larangan or the
Forbidden Hill. This is where
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the Malay kings built
their palaces and only the royal
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family and their attendants
were allowed in this area.
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For everyone else, this was
a forbidden hill. Archeologists
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have excavated here and found
Japanese artifacts dating from
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the 14th century when Singapore
was part of the Malay empire.
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Farther along the pathway this
small bridge used to overlook a
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fresh water stream. The stream
has now completely disappeared.
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According to ancient Malayan/
Chinese sources Singapore had a
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mote and a wall. It ran along
this stream that was probably
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the parat Singapore or the
Mote of Singapore. The British
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arrived in Singapore in 1819.
At the time they were extending
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their dominion in India and
expanding their trade with China
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and they needed a port of
call in this region to refit,
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revitalize and protect their
merchant ships that were sailing
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the India/China sea route. They
also wanted to forestall any
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advance and competition by the
Dutch in this region. So they
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sent for Stamford Raffles
to establish a British presence
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here. When he
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arrived to develop colonial
Singapore as a trading post of
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the East India Company he
quickly recognized the strategic
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significance of the Forbidden
Hill and took advantage of its
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resources and location. And
it was here on this hilltop that
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Raffles built his first
government mansion. Subsequent
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governors enlarged the house and
it became known as Government
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House while the hill was
known as Government Hill. But
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Government House was demolished
in 1859 and the hill was
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converted into a fort and
renamed Fort Canning. The fort
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protected Singapore from attack
by sea and gave the European
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population a refuge in the event
of local disturbances. There was
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even a Sally Port, a secret
small door leading in and out of
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the fort. Originally there
were three of these doors that
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allowed people to slip unnoticed
in and out of the fort. Around
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the 1920s and 30s the hill was
transformed into an auxiliary
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fort overlooking the town
and harbor that would have been
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bustling with horses and
carriages, carts, and trishaws
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and people plying their wares
along the shoreline. Now it was
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such a long and fascinating
history reaching back more than
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700 years. It shouldn't come
as a surprise to find that Fort
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Canning Hill, The Forbidden Hill
has its share of hidden secrets.
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And one of the biggest is right
here. Hidden away behind this
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door is a secret underground
command center called The
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Battlebox. As World War II
became more of a reality the
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British decided to construct
this bomb proof shelter nine
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meters below Fort Canning Hill.
It was started in 1936 and was
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the largest military operations
complex in Singapore. It was
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used by the British military
as a nerve center for their
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operations in southeast Asia
and was the combined operations
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headquarters during the Malayan
campaign and the battle for
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Singapore. It's got one meter
thick reinforced concrete walls
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that were constructed to
withstand direct hits from bombs
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and shells. The Battlebox is
made up of 29 rooms. There's a
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telephone exchange that
connected all military and most
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civilian switchboards in Malaya
and Singapore. Then farther
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along is a signal room and
a signal control room where
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messages were picked up or sent
off. It was linked to bases in
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Malaya, Hong Kong, India,
Indonesia and Laos. The cipher
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room was where all these
messages were decoded and
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encoded using the
various military code books and
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enciphering equipment. Then in
the gun operations room is where
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air attacks and details were
plotted from data provided by
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signals and by telephone links.
Here commanders bunkered The
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Battlebox found out what was
happening on the battlefield and
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passed out orders to
units in the field. And the most
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important room of all, the
conference room or commander
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anti-aircraft defense room. This
is where the leading military
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personnel met to make the most
important decisions and it was
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here deep underground in
The Battlebox that a momentous
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decision was made in World War
II that marked the beginning of
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the end of the mighty British
empire. Here's what happened.
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In the years leading up to the
Second World War Singapore was
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considered an impregnable island
fortress. It was a strategic
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stronghold in the eastern part
of the mighty British empire. In
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fact, Winston Churchill,
Britain's wartime prime minister
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called Singapore the Gibraltar
of the east. Singapore was
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considered well protected and
safe. It had an impressive naval
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defense system consisting of
huge guns facing south out to
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sea and in the north lay
hundreds of kilometers of dense
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jungle that the British
considered impenetrable.
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Also stationed on the island
were almost 100,000 British,
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Canadian, Australian and Indian
troops and the situation seemed
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even more secure with two
British war ships the HMS Prince
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of Wales and Repulse along
with four destroyers birthed in
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Singapore's harbor. But in
reality Singapore was far from
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secure. On the 8th of December
1941 just hours before the
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Japanese air force attacked the
American fleet in Pearl Harbor,
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the Japanese invaded the Malay
peninsula. They moved troops
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south through Thailand,
then known as Siam as well as
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making landings
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under cover of darkness Japanese
troops crossed the Straits
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of Jahal and invaded Singapore.
They were supported by
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intense ground and
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air bombardment. By morning
thousands more troops had landed
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The well trained and battle
hardened Japanese forces moved
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swiftly across the island. Soon
Singapore was under constant
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aerial bomb attacks resulting
in shocking civilian casualties.
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Allied troops were retreating
and the lack of food, water,
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petrol, ammunition, and other
essential supplies was causing
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insurmountable problems.
On the 15th of February 1942,
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Lieutenant-General Arthur
Percival, commander of the
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British Commonwealth forces
in Malaya called a meeting of
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senior officers here in
the commander anti-aircraft
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defense room in The Battlebox.
They met here to decide the fate
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of Singapore and of 100,000
British and Commonwealth troops
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stationed here. Percival advised
the officers that there were no
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viable options for launching a
counter attack. They had limited
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ammunition, little fuel and
the Japanese now controlled the
00:11:50.41\00:11:54.88
city's water supply. A counter
attack just wasn't possible.
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So that left only two options:
fight to the death or surrender.
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It took just 15 minutes for
the British officers to make the
00:12:07.39\00:12:13.50
momentous decision to surrender
Singapore to the Japanese. Here
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in this room the pain of defeat
became reality. Percival and his
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team of military officers
hunkered around the table as
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they planned their next
grim move. Later that day a four
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man delegation left The
Battlebox at 4:10 at Fort
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Canning Hill to
meet the Japanese at
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the Ford factory in Bukit
Timah The delegation was led by
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Percival and he was accompanied
by Captain Ciril Wilde carrying
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the huge white surrender flag
and Brigadier Nubriging carrying
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the Union Jack and Brigadier
Torrence. The Ford factory was
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built-in 1941 and became Ford's
first motor car assembly plant
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in southeast Asia. However at
the start of the war the factory
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modern assembly equipment was
used by the Royal Air Force to
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assemble fighter planes. But
after the Japanese crossed the
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straits and entered Singapore,
Lieutenant General Yamashita and
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his staff officers established
their military headquarters
00:13:24.13\00:13:27.84
right here at the Ford Motor
Factory. When Lieutenant-General
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Percival and the British
delegation arrived here, they
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were met by Japanese
propaganda units who filmed and
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photographed them. Captain Wilde
was still carrying the large
00:13:39.91\00:13:44.09
white flag and Brigadier
Nubriging had the Union Jack.
00:13:44.12\00:13:48.49
Captain Wilde
00:13:48.52\00:13:49.86
was so incensed by
the Japanese filming their
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humiliation that he threw down
the white flag. The delegation
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was met on the driveway
by Colonel Sugita and ushered
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toward the Ford factory. The
surrender party was led to the
00:14:02.34\00:14:09.21
factory's conference room.
Here Lieutenant General Arthur
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Percival, commander of
the British forces, met with
00:14:13.62\00:14:16.45
Lieutenant General Tomoyuki
Yamashita, commander of the
00:14:16.48\00:14:20.99
Japanese forces. They sat here
to negotiate the surrender terms
00:14:21.02\00:14:25.69
The board room remains intact
and is preserved to provide an
00:14:25.73\00:14:31.50
insight into how the meeting
unfolded. It contains the four
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original chairs and a replica of
the original table. The original
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is now in the Australian War
Memorial. The clock, set at the
00:14:41.11\00:14:45.31
exact time of the surrender and
a map of Malaya. Copies of the
00:14:45.35\00:14:52.45
surrender documents are also on
display. Percival tried to stall
00:14:52.49\00:14:57.29
for time. But Yamashita demanded
an immediate, unconditional
00:14:57.33\00:15:02.96
surrender and pressed
insistently for a cease fire.
00:15:03.00\00:15:06.17
Percival wanted to wait until
the next morning before giving
00:15:06.20\00:15:11.57
an answer but Yamashita
threatened to launch a massive
00:15:11.61\00:15:14.61
attack on the city that
very night. This would have been
00:15:14.64\00:15:17.91
disastrous for Singapore and
the civilian population. Faced
00:15:17.95\00:15:23.28
with no alternative Percival
signed the unconditional
00:15:23.32\00:15:27.16
surrender terms at 6:20 p.m. on
the 15th of February 1942. The
00:15:27.19\00:15:35.73
battle for Singapore was over.
It had lasted just seven days.
00:15:35.76\00:15:39.43
It was Britain's greatest
military defeat and the largest
00:15:39.47\00:15:43.87
surrender of troops in British
history. One hundred and forty
00:15:43.91\00:15:48.14
thousand troops and civilians in
Singapore were captured, wounded
00:15:48.18\00:15:52.41
or killed. Around 80,000 British
Indian and Australian troops
00:15:52.45\00:15:57.99
based in Singapore became
prisoners of war. The surrender
00:15:58.02\00:16:03.76
of Singapore marked the
beginning of the end of the
00:16:03.79\00:16:07.23
mighty British empire. Britain
lost its foothold in the east
00:16:07.26\00:16:10.83
and the idea of the invincible
European soldier was gone
00:16:10.87\00:16:18.11
forever. After the surrender,
the Japanese wanted the Union
00:16:18.14\00:16:25.38
Jack as a war trophy but
Wilde wouldn't give them that
00:16:25.41\00:16:27.68
satisfaction. At the risk of his
life he hid the flag and took
00:16:27.72\00:16:32.55
it with him when he was
imprisoned in the notorious
00:16:32.59\00:16:36.96
Chaney prisoner of war
camp. Wilde and other prisoners
00:16:36.99\00:16:39.09
courageously managed to
conceal the flag from the guards
00:16:39.13\00:16:42.66
throughout the period of
captivity. They only brought it
00:16:42.70\00:16:47.34
out of hiding during the
funerals of British and empire
00:16:47.37\00:16:49.84
soldiers who died as a result
of Japanese brutality. Only a
00:16:49.87\00:16:56.14
handful of men knew the flag's
history. The British surrender
00:16:56.18\00:17:01.32
to Japan marked the start of
one of the darkest chapters in
00:17:01.35\00:17:06.96
Singapore's history. The island
endured three and a half years
00:17:06.99\00:17:09.82
of brutal Japanese occupation
which included a massacre of the
00:17:09.86\00:17:13.80
Chinese population, a massacre
that was to claim up to 70,000
00:17:13.83\00:17:19.63
lives. Lieutenant-General
Arthur Percival was briefly held
00:17:19.67\00:17:24.04
prisoner here in Chaney
Prison along with 55,000 Allied
00:17:24.07\00:17:28.71
prisoners and civilians. Then
along with other senior British
00:17:28.74\00:17:33.52
captives he was removed from
Singapore in August 1942. First
00:17:33.55\00:17:38.45
he was imprisoned in Formosa,
now known as Taiwan, then sent
00:17:38.49\00:17:44.73
to Manchuria where he was held
in a high security prisoner of
00:17:44.76\00:17:47.83
war camp for VIP captives
including the American General
00:17:47.86\00:17:51.47
Johnathan Wainwright. After the
fall of Singapore the Japanese
00:17:51.50\00:18:00.24
advance continued on through the
Pacific to the Philippines and
00:18:00.28\00:18:03.51
was only finally halted when all
four of its aircraft carriers
00:18:03.55\00:18:07.62
were destroyed by the U.S.
in the battle of Midway. Japan
00:18:07.65\00:18:12.09
eventually agreed to surrender
after the Americans dropped
00:18:12.12\00:18:17.29
atomic bombs on Hiroshima
and Nagasaki. The signing of the
00:18:17.33\00:18:21.30
Japanese surrender took place
aboard the U.S.S. Missouri in
00:18:21.33\00:18:26.30
Tokyo Bay on the 2nd
of September 1945. Before
00:18:26.33\00:18:30.81
confirming the terms of
the Japanese surrender General
00:18:30.84\00:18:35.54
Douglas MacArthur requested
that two men be present, the two
00:18:35.58\00:18:40.02
freed prisoners from Manchuria,
Percival and Wainwright. And
00:18:40.05\00:18:45.95
Lieutenant-General Percival
and General Wainwright stood
00:18:45.99\00:18:49.06
immediately behind General
MacArthur for the signing of the
00:18:49.09\00:18:54.06
Japanese surrender. Afterward
MacArthur gave Percival a pen he
00:18:54.10\00:18:57.77
had used to sign the treaty.
Percival and Wainwright then
00:18:57.80\00:19:02.10
returned together to the
Philippines to witness the full
00:19:02.14\00:19:05.57
surrender of the Japanese army
there. At the surrender ceremony
00:19:05.61\00:19:11.08
in the Philippines when the
Japanese commander arrived to
00:19:11.11\00:19:14.78
sign the surrender treaty, in
a strange twist of fate and to
00:19:14.82\00:19:19.72
General Percival's utter
amazement he was none other than
00:19:19.75\00:19:25.29
General Yamashita, the very same
man who accepted the British
00:19:25.33\00:19:29.43
surrender at the Ford factory
in Singapore. Now the tables had
00:19:29.46\00:19:34.24
turned. The roles were reversed.
The victor had become the
00:19:34.27\00:19:40.24
vanquished and the vanquished
the victor. Now Lieutenant
00:19:40.28\00:19:44.58
General Percival accepted the
surrender documents from General
00:19:44.61\00:19:49.62
Yamashita. And even
more astonishing, when Lord
00:19:49.65\00:19:53.66
Mountbatten accepted the
formal Japanese surrender in
00:19:53.69\00:19:58.06
Singapore, the flag, the
Union Jack carried by Percival's
00:19:58.09\00:20:01.50
delegation to the surrender
meeting at the Ford Motor
00:20:01.53\00:20:05.60
factory also witnessed a
reversal of fortunes. This same
00:20:05.63\00:20:10.81
flag hidden by Colonel Wilde
at Chaney Prison was now hoisted
00:20:10.84\00:20:15.34
by Colonel Wilde over the
surrender of the Japanese in
00:20:15.38\00:20:18.91
Singapore. The surrender
of Singapore in 1942 was the
00:20:18.95\00:20:24.19
British Army's greatest defeat.
But three and a half years later
00:20:24.22\00:20:28.86
it was the turn of the Japanese
to surrender the city. Yes, the
00:20:28.89\00:20:34.26
war had come full circle. And
that reminds me of another war
00:20:34.30\00:20:41.84
the universal war, the war
behind all wars. It's a cosmic
00:20:41.87\00:20:47.74
conflict between right and wrong
between light and darkness,
00:20:47.78\00:20:52.75
between God and a rebel angel
Lucifer. Surprisingly this war
00:20:52.78\00:20:58.29
war started in heaven of all
places. You can read about it in
00:20:58.32\00:21:02.82
the Bible book of Revelation:
00:21:02.86\00:21:04.19
So Lucifer who became Satan
though pride and jealousy wanted
00:21:34.99\00:21:39.76
to take the place of God.
He wanted to take over. So he
00:21:39.79\00:21:44.00
started a rebellion, a war in
heaven, the universal war, but
00:21:44.03\00:21:49.60
Satan lost the battle against
God and he and his army of rebel
00:21:49.64\00:21:54.88
angels were cast to this world
and so planet Earth became the
00:21:54.91\00:22:00.25
arena of the universal war, the
war between good and evil, God
00:22:00.28\00:22:05.65
and Satan. Now God had created
a perfect world for our first
00:22:05.69\00:22:10.36
parents, Adam and Eve. But
Satan deceived them into joining
00:22:10.39\00:22:14.96
his rebellion against God. Sin
entered the world and it seemed
00:22:15.00\00:22:20.44
that Satan had won the battle
for planet Earth in the great
00:22:20.47\00:22:23.64
universal war. In this universal
war, the war between good and
00:22:23.67\00:22:28.88
evil, between God and Satan, the
entire human race has sinned and
00:22:28.91\00:22:35.18
rebelled against God. Sin,
rebellion separates us from God
00:22:35.22\00:22:40.86
and life:
00:22:40.89\00:22:42.22
Men and women were made for
fellowship with God, to be in
00:22:51.53\00:22:55.94
harmony with their Maker. When
humans sinned, they turned away
00:22:55.97\00:23:00.71
from God. They rejected God.
They rebelled against God and
00:23:00.74\00:23:05.85
there are consequences
associated with rebelling
00:23:05.88\00:23:08.98
against God. Listen to what
the Bible says in Romans 6:23:
00:23:09.02\00:23:15.62
So because we've all sinned
and rebelled against God we're
00:23:19.89\00:23:24.90
doomed. But there's good news.
In this universal battle between
00:23:24.93\00:23:30.01
God and Satan God has a solution
God sent his Son Jesus to pay
00:23:30.04\00:23:37.71
the penalty for our sins,
to die in our place. He's our
00:23:37.75\00:23:43.05
substitute. Yes, he died in our
place. On a hill called Golgotha
00:23:43.08\00:23:51.29
the critical battle in the great
universal war took place and
00:23:51.33\00:23:55.53
when Jesus died on the cross it
appeared that Satan had defeated
00:23:55.56\00:24:00.84
God and won the war. All the
forces of the evil one watched
00:24:00.87\00:24:05.51
with glee as Jesus breathed
his last. But then as the light
00:24:05.54\00:24:10.28
broke on the resurrection
morning Jesus overcame death and
00:24:10.31\00:24:15.18
emerged victorious from the
grave. He's our Savior and if we
00:24:15.22\00:24:19.82
accept him and believe in him,
our sins are forgiven and we
00:24:19.85\00:24:24.29
have eternal life:
00:24:24.33\00:24:25.69
The same Jesus who died on the
cross is soon to return as King
00:24:37.51\00:24:43.48
of kings and Lord of lords. The
great controversy between good
00:24:43.51\00:24:47.62
and evil will be over forever.
Sin and evil will be destroyed
00:24:47.65\00:24:53.96
and this earth will be
restored to its original perfect
00:24:53.99\00:24:58.69
condition:
00:24:58.73\00:25:00.06
That's the kind of world I'm
looking forward to. How about
00:25:18.18\00:25:23.39
you? Does the idea of living in
perfect peace and harmony appeal
00:25:23.42\00:25:27.66
to you? If it does, why not
decide right now as we pray to
00:25:27.69\00:25:33.73
be ready to meet
Jesus when he comes?
00:25:33.76\00:25:36.43
Dear Heavenly Father, we're all
soldiers in the battle of life.
00:25:36.46\00:25:43.10
We're living behind enemy lines.
Please give us strength to
00:25:43.14\00:25:48.48
endure the struggles and
challenges of the universal war.
00:25:48.51\00:25:54.12
Lord we know the outcome of this
great controversy and we want to
00:25:54.15\00:25:57.42
be on the winning side. We know
that Jesus will be victorious
00:25:57.45\00:26:01.66
and that he is coming to make
all things new. May we be ready
00:26:01.69\00:26:06.66
meet Jesus when he comes.
We pray in Jesus' name, Amen.
00:26:06.70\00:26:12.93
If you're battling with the
trials and temptations of life
00:26:12.97\00:26:18.07
and are looking for support
in your journey through life and
00:26:18.11\00:26:22.21
would like God to guide you,
then I'd like to recommend a
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free gift we have for all
our viewers today. It's the
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inspiring book The Great Hope.
this book is our gift to you and
00:26:30.22\00:26:36.29
is absolutely free. There are no
costs or obligations whatsoever.
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Thousands have been blessed and
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00:26:41.76\00:26:46.23
Hope. So please don't miss this
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Here's the information you need:
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Phone us now on 0481315101 or
text us on 0491222999 or visit
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our website
theincrediblejourney.tv
00:27:10.96\00:27:14.40
to request today's free offer.
So don't delay. Contact us right
00:27:14.43\00:27:20.57
now. If you've enjoyed today's
journey to Singapore and our
00:27:20.60\00:27:28.78
reflections on the universal war
be sure to join us again next
00:27:28.81\00:27:34.02
week when we will share another
of life's journeys together and
00:27:34.05\00:27:37.95
experience another new and
thought provoking perspective
00:27:37.99\00:27:41.19
of the peace, insight,
understanding and hope that only
00:27:41.22\00:27:45.83
the Bible can give
us. The Journey truly is
00:27:45.86\00:27:51.07
television that changes lives.
Until next week remember the
00:27:51.10\00:27:55.34
ultimate destination of life's
journey. Now I saw a new heaven
00:27:55.37\00:27:59.74
and a new earth. And God will
wipe away every tear from their
00:27:59.77\00:28:03.75
eyes and there shall be no more
death nor sorrow nor crying.
00:28:03.78\00:28:07.88
There shall be no more
pain for the former things have
00:28:07.92\00:28:12.19
passed away.
00:28:12.22\00:28:13.56
¤ ¤
00:28:13.59\00:28:25.97