Unit 2: Japanese Invasion and Malayan Communist

Party in Malaya

1) Why and How Japan invade Malaya and Singapore?

 WHY (Singapore):
o British Naval base in Asia is located in Singapore.
o Trading port.
 WHY (Malaya):
o Natural resources
 60% of world rubber
 40% of world tin
 HOW (Singapore):
o Japanese troops entered via northwestern coastline
 Using ‘bicycle blitzkrieg’
 Crossed Johor straights and captured the Bukit Timah heights.
 HOW (Malaya):
o Japanese launched amphibious assault on the northern coast of Malaya, and
advanced down the eastern coast of Malaya.

2) When did Japan start and end the invasion?

 Start:
 8 December, 1941 (entered Malaya)
 8 February, 1942 (entered Singapore)
 End:
 15 February, 1942 (Singapore surrendered)
 2 September, 1945 (Japanese left/ WW2 ended)

3) Why did Japan surrender?

 Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
o Emperor Hirohito decided to set aside traditional imperial nonintervention in
political support and declared his support for the acceptance of the terms of
the Potsdam Declaration on August 10

4) What Japan did to Malaya before they left?

 Destroyed infrastructure in Malaya.
o Caused Malaya’s economy to drop.]
***(When making the slides, please do not write down all the information in this
document. Try to simplify it, so we won’t be ‘’reading the slides’’. Please add extra
information if you can find anything)
***(I personally don’t want to find pictures so yeaaaaa)