Malaya holds in WW2.

What if the British managed to keep the Japanese from taking over Malaya?Losing the area made the Australians feels that the British didn't care and looked to the Americans for protection.
 
Given the forces at hand, Malaya was doomed from the start. Now, Singapore could have been saved, at least for a considerable time, but that is another story.
 
Given the forces at hand, Malaya was doomed from the start. Now, Singapore could have been saved, at least for a considerable time, but that is another story.

The British were pretty much stuck in a Catch-22 situation on Singapore. By 14th February, the Japanese forces were at breaking point. A counterattack or fierce urban fighting would have stopped them. However, the British could not carry on fighting because they lacked water. To get more water, they had to counterattack but because they lacked water, they could not counterattack. Surrender was therefore seen as the lesser of the two evils as it prevented the potential needless destruction of the weary soldiers at the hands of the Japanese.

If you wanted to prevent Singapore from falling, remove Percival and butterfly someone else useful into the position of GOC Malaya Command. Assuming that the POD butterflies away the storm that prevented the HMS Indomitable from coming over, you may have a better chance at holding Malaya.

Answering the OP, the British holding Malaya would seriously screw over the Japanese invasion timetable. It would most definitely be used as a staging point for the reconquest of Southeast Asia. Of course, it would be good if the Riau Islands were also held with Singapore. Expect the Kido Butai or a part of it to turn up and bomb Singapore back to the Stone Age though.
 
Malaya could have been held if the forces there had been properly equipped and/or decently led. Most definietly if it had received even a decent fraction of the promised modern a/c and a couple of tank battalions. Furthermore, unlike Singapore it would have considerable economic and strategic benefits. Given how overstretched the Japanese were in their strikes to the south.

The key point would be whether the allies could also hold Sumatra and at least western Java. Without that supplying Malaya would be difficult while those islands have their own resources it would be useful to deny Japan. Sumatra should be OK as long as Malaya and western Java are held as the Japanese can't reliable reach it and supply any landing force there.

It should be possible for the allies to support Java and at least tie the Japanese down there presuming Malaya holds and the allies realise the island's importance. You may see the battle for Java becoming a combined Midway and Guadacanal for the Japanese, straining their navy and related forces until they are forced to concede.

Steve
 

Markus

Banned
What if the British managed to keep the Japanese from taking over Malaya?Losing the area made the Australians feels that the British didn't care and looked to the Americans for protection.

I agree with the other users that the quality of the troops and the leadership makes that VERY hard, much harder than I thought but not impossible.(see below)

Anyway, if southern Malaya and Sumatra are held, the Japanese would be utterly screwed. There were a lot of allied reinforcements on the way, while the Japanese had next to no reserves at hand. The IJN would have a hard time interfering as Sumatra and Java would literally be in the way of their fleet. They would have to sail from Celebes and go back the same way. That´s 1,700 nm one way with the enemy knowing where you go.
 

Cook

Banned
Malaya could have been held if the forces there had been properly equipped and/or decently led. Most definietly if it had received even a decent fraction of the promised modern a/c and a couple of tank battalions.

It would have required a different mindset at the top too. Europe had their total focus.

Even when war with Japan was becoming an almost inevitable certainty, with only the timing still in doubt, South East Asia’s defences were not only being neglected but being further reduced; in November 1941 the 8th A.I.F. division was notified that it would be sent to North Africa. Only the Japanese attacks on 8th of December prevented their departure.
 

Markus

Banned
You are going way OT. The OP did ask What if the British managed to keep the Japanese from taking over Malaya? not Why didn´t the British manage to keep the Japanese from taking over Malaya?
 

Cook

Banned
You are going way OT. The OP did ask What if the British managed to keep the Japanese from taking over Malaya? not Why didn´t the British manage to keep the Japanese from taking over Malaya?

No, it’s relevant.

At the time in mid 1941 when the Malaya/Singapore command was desperately asking for aircraft in anticipation of a Japanese attack and not receiving any, the British were sent 200 Hurricanes to Russia in a single month.

Not only does holding Malaya give the allies far more resources for the war effort but the mindset required to bring it about means some serious changes to both the Pacific as a whole and Europe as well.
 

Markus

Banned
No, it’s relevant.

At the time in mid 1941 when the Malaya/Singapore command was desperately asking for aircraft in anticipation of a Japanese attack and not receiving any, the British were sent 200 Hurricanes to Russia in a single month.

See, there is your POD. Throw in the destruction of depots and the Japanese logistics would have collapsed before they reached Singapore.


It would be great if someone had written a very detailed time line about something like this.

He is kidding, isn´t he?
 

Cook

Banned
See, there is your POD. Throw in the destruction of depots and the Japanese logistics would have collapsed before they reached Singapore.

The problem is that if you have Malaya/Singapore properly defended they Japanese may have reconsidered even heading south.

They saw a window of opportunity and acted; no window and quite possibly not war.
 
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