The invasion and lightning defeat of Singapore-the

"Gibraltar of the Far East"mwas a catastrophe and a

disgrace, but like most military disasters there were

shades of glory, too. Looking back over the twenty-six

years since those tragic days it is perhaps significant that

the courage and desperate determination of the few

overshadow the crav~en incompetence and foolish

optimism of th~c,many.

Today, the frue weight and meaning of that defeat are

still showing themselves, for with the fall of Singapore an

enduring and respected link between East and West was

broken. It has never been, and ~y never be, repaired.

The reasons for the swift success of the Japanese

invasion have been stated many times. The ill-founded

belief that an enemy would attack by sea and never

through the Malayan jungles. The confidence in naval

and air power, which because of other commitments and

crushing losses, as well as shortsighted planning, were not

available when they were most needed.

But there were other reasons of a more personal

nature, for which there was no quick solution. While far-

off Europe had endured two years of anguish and war,

Singapore had retained a remote, colonial existence,

where segregation was the rule rather than the exception,

and the bravery and value of fighting men were not

considered until too late.

When the blow fell, morale crumbled with it, because

danger, like affluence, cannot be shared unequally.