British Far East Command
| British Far East Command | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1940 to 1942; 1963 to 1971 |
| Country |  United Kingdom |
| Type | Command |
| Garrison/HQ | Singapore |
TheFar East Commandwas a British militarycommandwhich had 2 distinct periods. These were firstly, 18 November 1940 – 7 January 1942 succeeded by theAmerican-British-Dutch-Australian Command(ABDACOM), and secondly, 1963–1971 succeeded by Australia,New Zealand,and United Kingdom Force (ANZUK Force)
1940–1942
[edit]The British had several commands with responsibilities East of Suez. General SirArchibald Wavell,theCommander-in-Chief, India,directed army forces in India. Air force and naval forces in India had separate commanders. TheFar East Commandunder Air MarshalRobert Brooke-Pophamand from 23 December 1941 by Lieutenant-General SirHenry Royds Pownall.[1]
The C-in-C Far East Command was responsible directly to the Chiefs of Staff for the operational control and general direction of training of all British land and air forces inMalaya,Burma,and Hong Kong, and for the co-ordination of plans for the defence of those territories. But the CinC exercised no command or control over any naval forces.
It was intended that C-in-C should deal primarily with matters of major military policy and strategy, but it was not the intention that the C-in-C should assume any administrative or financial responsibilities or take over any of the day-to-day functions at that time exercised by the General (or Air) Officers Commanding (GOC) of the different areas. The degree of "operational control" of British land and air forces, which the Commander-in-Chief Far East should assume, was defined as meaning "the higher direction and control" as distinct from "detailed operational control". To complicate matters, the GOCs correspond with theWar Office,Air Ministry,Colonial Officeand Local Governor's Offices on all matters on which they had previously dealt with those departments. But the GOCs had to keep the C-in-C informed if he wished.
To enable the Commander-in-Chief Far East to carry out his functions, he was allowed a small staff, initially consisting of seven officers drawn from all three Services with the necessary clerical and cipher staff. For intelligence purposes, he had at his disposal theFar East Combined Bureau,though it remained underAdmiraltycontrol. Although the establishment of his staff was later increased to fifteen it was never large enough. The Naval Base was a considerable distance across Singapore from theMalaya ArmyHeadquarters which discouraged frequent meetings.
On 5 December 1941 London gave permission for C-in-C Far East Command to decide ifOperation Matadorshould be activated. The chief strategic decision to be decided was whetherSiamshould be invaded in a pre-emptive move, before any Japanese landings took place. TheMalaya Commandwas responsible for the planning of Operation Matador.
When the Allied governments appointed General SirArchibald Wavellas supreme commander ofAmerican-British-Dutch-Australian Command(ABDACOM), British Far East Command became redundant because its functions would in future be carried out by ABDACOM. So when Wavell arrived in Singapore, where the British Far East Command was based, on 7 January 1942, ABDACOM absorbed the British command in its entirety and C-in-C Far East CommandHenry Royds Pownallbecame Wavell's Chief of Staff. On 15 January, Wavell moved his headquarters toLembangnearBandungonJavaand assumed control of Allied operations.[2][3]
Commanders-in-Chief
[edit]Commanders-in-Chief have included:[4][5][6]
| Command | Headquarters | Rank | Name | Appointed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Far East Command | Singapore Naval Base | Commander-in-Chief | Air Chief MarshalR. Brooke-Popham | 18 November 1940 |
| Lieutenant-General SirH. R. Pownall[7] | 23 December 1941 | |||
| Far East Air Force (Royal Air Force) | Seletar Field, Singapore | Air Officer Commanding | Air Vice MarshalJ.T. Babington | 12 August 1938 |
| Air Vice MarshalC.W.H. Pulford | 6 May 1941 | |||
| Air Vice MarshalP.C. Maltby[8] | 11–14 February 1942 | |||
| Burma Command | Rangoon,Burma | General Officer Commanding | Major GeneralD.K. McLeod | 1939 |
| Lieutenant GeneralT.J. Hutton | 29 December 1941 | |||
| Malaya Command | Army HQ, Singapore | General Officer Commanding | Lieutenant GeneralA.E. Percival[9] | May 1941 |
| British Forces Overseas Hong Kong | Flagstaff House,Hong Kong | General Officer Commanding | Major GeneralC.M. Maltby | August 1941 |
After the Far East came under the jurisdiction, from August 1943, ofSouth East Asia Command('SEAC'). The initial land forces operational area for SEAC had beenIndia,Burma,Ceylon,British Malaya,Sumatra,and, for offensive operations,Siam(Thailand) and French Indochina. On 15 August 1945 this was expanded to include theDutch East Indiesand French Indochina. SEAC was disbanded in 1946 and in 1947 the Army Command was reformed under the nameFar East Land Forces.
General Officers Commanding included:
- 1947 – 1948 General SirNeil Ritchie
- 1948 – 1951 General SirJohn Harding
- 1951 – 1953 General SirCharles Keightley
- 1953 – 1956 General SirCharles Loewen
- 1956 – 1958 General SirFrancis Festing
- 1958 – 1961 General SirRichard Hull
- 1961 – 1963 Lieutenant General SirNigel Poett
1963–1971
[edit]1963Far East Commandwas established, covering the region covered China, Hong Kong,British Commonwealth Occupation Force, Japanand Singapore. Major bases included Hong Kong (HMSTamar) and Singapore. It was organised as an interservice command:
- Far East Fleet
- Far East Land Forces (FARELF) [British]
- Australian Army Force
- Far East Air Force
On 11 January 1971, Far East Command was disbanded at Singapore, succeeded byANZUKForce.
Commanders-in-Chief
[edit]Commanders-in-Chief have included:[5][6][10]
British Commander-in-Chief, Far East Command
- 24 April 1963 Admiral SirVaryl Begg
- 28 May 1965 Air Chief Marshal SirJohn Grandy
- 1 February 1967 General SirMichael Carver
- 7 March 1969 Admiral SirPeter Hill-Norton
- 1970 Air Chief Marshal SirBrian Burnett
Commander, British Far East Land Forces
- 10 April 1963 Lieutenant General SirReginald Hewetson
- 8 June 1964 Lieutenant General SirAlan Jolly
- 28 July 1966 Lieutenant General SirMichael Carver
- 31 January 1967 Lieutenant General SirThomas Pearson
- 16 November 1968 Lieutenant General SirPeter Hunt
- 10 October 1970 until 30 October 1971 Major GeneralSandy Thomas
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^Britain at War
- ^L, Klemen (1999–2000)."The conquest of Java Island, March 1942".Forgotten Campaign: The Dutch East Indies Campaign 1941–1942.
- ^L, Klemen (1999–2000)."General Sir Archibald Percival Wavell".Forgotten Campaign: The Dutch East Indies Campaign 1941–1942.
- ^Whitaker's Almanacks 1940 – 1963
- ^abFar East Command at Regiments.org
- ^abArmy CommandsArchived5 July 2015 at theWayback Machine
- ^L, Klemen (1999–2000)."Lieutenant-General Sir Henry Royds Pownall".Forgotten Campaign: The Dutch East Indies Campaign 1941–1942.Archivedfrom the original on 25 March 2012.
- ^L, Klemen (1999–2000)."Air Vice-Marshal Sir Paul (Copeland) Maltby".Forgotten Campaign: The Dutch East Indies Campaign 1941–1942.Archivedfrom the original on 25 March 2012.
- ^L, Klemen (1999–2000)."Lieutenant-General Arthur Ernest Percival".Forgotten Campaign: The Dutch East Indies Campaign 1941–1942.Archivedfrom the original on 24 September 2011.
- ^Whitaker's Almanacks 1963 – 1972