ABSTRACT
This volume represents the collaborative work of five British-based and five Japanese scholars, who have reappraised the leadership of the two sides in the Malaya and Burma campaigns. In these operations the ebb and flow of military fortunes could scarcely be more dramatically illustrated. In December 1941 and the early months of 1942, Japanese forces overran Malaya, captured Singapore and occupied most of Burma. These remarkable conquests were achieved against heavy numerical odds and with very few casualties. Our critical attention consequently focuses first on the reasons for the Japanese forces’ unexpectedly rapid and devastating advances, as compared with the extremely poor performance of British, Indian and Australian units. On both sides, we are primarily concerned with leadership, but clearly other factors such as intelligence, equipment, logistics and morale have to be taken into account.
