Draft:Fall of Penang

The fall of Penang, also referred to as the Japanese invasion of Penang (Japanese: ペナン爆撃; ), was fought between 8 to 19 December 1941 during the opening stages in the Malayan campaign of the Pacific War. The battle took place over Penang, a maritime port in Southeast Asia that had been of British military importance as a fortress defending northern Malaya. It concluded in the capitulation of Penang Island and Province Wellesley to Japanese forces, which would not be liberated until August 1945.

During the battle, Penang was the scene of intense dogfights between Allied and Japanese aircraft. George Town was subjected to intense dive bombings for several days from the 3rd Air Group of the Imperial Japanese Navy, causing significant destruction in the city. Influenced by the decisive defeat in the Battle of Jitra north of Penang, the Malaya Command under Arthur Percival ordered a controversial withdrawal and evacuation of all forces from the state. Surprised by the British retreat, soldiers of the 5th Division under Tomoyuki Yamashita's 25th Army would occupy the island and nearby regions unopposed.

The abandonment of Penang, which was evacuated without much military action, was described as a "military humiliation" and proved to be a setback for the British in the defense of Gurun and Kampar. The defeat, coinciding with the sinking of Prince of Wales and Repulse the same week, became a major embarrassment to the British military, even though its notability and importance were quickly overshadowed following Singapore's capitulation in February 1942.

Penang as a maritime port
Throughout the late 19th and early 20th century, Penang was the second largest city in British Malaya behind Singapore. The Port of Penang served as a major entrepôt in the Straits Settlements, becoming among the largest tin exporters in the world. It was also the first port of call east of the Indian subcontinent. During World War I in 1914, the port became subject to a surprise attack by the German cruiser SMS Emden, which led to the sinking of two French and Russian warships.

By the interwar years, Penang's capital, George Town, was a hub of Chinese political activities, which became a hot spot of anti-Japanese demonstrations and boycotts responding to the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War in China.

British interwar military strategy in Malaya
British defense policies in Malaya during the interwar period primarily revolved around the Singapore strategy, which dictated for British naval supremacy in the Far East. To achieve this objective, Singapore was selected as the principal base of operations for the Royal Navy, which required the island's defenses to be made "impregnable".

Malaya was allocated a small garrison under the assumption that a potential invasion of the peninsula would be responded by immediate British naval action, thus any ground forces left were only meant to hold the invasion until reinforcements arrive. It was also expected that an invasion from the peninsular rear would be difficult as its terrain was mostly dense jungle country. Furthermore, due to Singapore's strategic importance, the majority of troops in Malaya – two British battalions, were stationed in Singapore, while one Indian battalion garrisoned in Taiping, leaving Penang and Malacca with a volunteers-only battalion each through the Straits Settlements Volunteer Force (SSVF).

Military situation in Malaya, 1939–1941
By mid-1939, as naval conflict emerged in the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, it was recognised that the British naval fleet could not reach the Far East to respond against an invasion, especially in a then-hypothetical conflict against Japan, thereby weakening Malaya's military position. However, minimal action was taken to remedy this disadvantage. Cuts in defense expenditures further impaired the Malaya Command's plans on constructing defenses, a factor that its commander Arthur Percival highlighted that contributed in Malaya's subsequent military ineffectiveness against Japan.

Airpower was a serious issue throughout the Malaya Command's military planning prior to 1941. As early as 1931, the Royal Air Force (RAF) identified the need for 336 operational aircraft in Malaya, but such targets were never met. There was also a lack of cohesion between the Army's tactical requirements and the RAF's placements of military airfields across the Malay Peninsula to extend operational range of aircraft from Malaya, which were made vulnerable due to a lack of anti-aircraft guns to defend them. The RAF severely underestimated Japanese fighter capabilities, and were also allocated outdated equipment, notably the Brewster F2A Buffalo, which underperformed and suffered from improper maintenance.

A military tactical report prepared in October 1939 revised the figures to 566 aircraft and 26 battalions for defense in Malaya, although the Chiefs of Staff only approved the new army estimate. Reinforcements of any kind would not arrive until late-1940, and by May 1941, two divisions (9th Indian Infantry and 11th Indian Infantry), three battalions, and four volunteer battalions were stationed at various parts of Malaya. By 7 December 1941, during the onset of the Japanese invasion, Malaya had an operational strength of only 164 aircraft with 88 in reserves.

War preparations in Penang
Although Malayan defenses concentrated in Singapore, the vulnerability of the Port of Penang and northern Malaya in a military attack, as demonstrated by SMS Emden 's raid in 1914, pressured the Malaya Command to build a fortress in Penang in early 1937. This decision made Penang the second fortress in British Malaya, forming an isosceles triangle of defense along with Singapore and Kota Bharu, covering the western approaches of the Malay Peninsula. The fortress was purposed to become one of the strongest British outposts in Asia, fitted with heavy and medium caliber guns and modern anti-aircraft units.

Construction of Penang Fortress began in late 1937 over an 259 acre site at Batu Maung, 8 km south of George Town, and was to be completed in 18 months. A garrison was established at the fortress with five officers and 130 troops of the Royal Artillery in Singapore on 1 March 1939, commanded by brigadier Cyril Arthur Lyon. The War Office in Penang moved from the Malayan Railway Building to the newly constructed Glugor Barracks at Gelugor, which accommodated the garrison. In May 1939, the garrison was stationed by four volunteer battalions of the Royal Malay Regiment. In August, it received Indian soldiers as part of reinforcements from the British Raj. Similarly, the road connecting Glugor Barracks and the Bayan Lepas Aerodrome was widened.

Following the outbreak of World War II in Europe, barbed wires and pillboxes were built across the state's beaches, while the island held its first blackout exercises in July 1939. Throughout 1940, blackout exercises became more frequent and widespread, as coverage was expanded to Prai and Butterworth. Calls for military volunteers rose meanwhile, with an Royal Air Force Reserves branch established in Penang in April 1939 and increased enrollment and training for the Penang Volunteer Corps (PVC), the third battalion for the SSVF. A second battalion was stationed at Penang for accommodation after 1941, but was not part of the garrison, and was planned to advance to Kroh for an possible offensive as planned in Operation Matador. Thus, by mid-1941, the Penang garrison only consisted of the PVC with 916 men, a field company, and two 6-inch guns accompanied by several searchlights, even though the garrison was intended to be larger and equipped with anti-aircraft guns.

On 22 December 1940, Shenton Thomas, governor of the Straits Settlements, announced on radio that Malaya and Singapore is "in a state of defense", urging for civilian contributions and heightened awareness of the war effort. In February 1941, a formation of twelve Bristol Blenheim or Brewster Buffaloes of the No. 21 Squadron RAAF were sent to RAF Sungai Petani. Similarly, in May 1941 the No. 27 Squadron RAF moved to Butterworth, before relocating to RAF Sungai Petani in August. As late as September, British and Australian journalists visiting northern Malaya reported defenses there to be "as formidable as those of Singapore," In October, facing imminent threats of a Japanese invasion, RAF Butterworth was officially inaugurated as the second military airbase in Penang.

Japanese invasion of Malaya
At on 8 December 1941, the Pacific War begun with Japanese forces invading Kota Bharu. Thailand was invaded by Japan at the same day but brokered a ceasefire within several hours, leading to free passage of Japanese troops invading Malaya and Burma. Japanese bombers attacked Kota Bharu, Sungai Petani, Butterworth, and Singapore in a near-simultaneous strike. In the first day alone, the RAF suffered unrecoverable losses across northern Malaya as 60 of the 110 operational aircraft based in the region were destroyed. Penang received its first air raid warning at on 8 December 1941, when eight Japanese aircraft were spotted across George Town and machine gunned the Bayan Lepas Aerodrome. As a response, five planes were shot down by Allied anti-aircraft guns.

Despite fierce resistance at Kelantan centered around Kota Bharu, all three airfields at the state were lost during the night between 8 to 9 December. On 9 December, an air raid over the Bayan Lepas Aerodrome destroyed four aircraft from the Malayan Volunteers Air Force (MVAF).

Engagements by the 453 Squadron
On 13 December, two formations of No. 453 Squadron RAAF from Ipoh engaged in several dogfights over Penang, shooting down six to nine Japanese aircraft with a loss of three aircraft. The first formation of three Brewster Buffaloes of the squadron intercepted a formation of Japanese bombers over Penang, shooting down two Mitsubishi Ki-21 heavy bombers and three Mitsubishi Ki-51 light bombers. A second formation of the 453 Squadron at Ipoh scrambled and joined the first formation amidst warnings of another incoming enemy bombing raid on Penang. With thirteen Buffaloes engaging over forty Japanese fighters in several dogfights, they were overwhelmed but managed to destroy one to four Japanese aircraft, losing three aircraft and a pilot killed. An RAAF pilot bailed out from his exploding aircraft and landed on Penang Hill, badly burnt from the encounter, while another pilot crash-landed his damaged aircraft at Butterworth.

Immediate reaction
The sinking of Prince of Wales and Repulse on 10 December gave Japan naval supremacy in Malaya from then on.

Other?
The last surviving Malaysian veteran of the Second World War, James Jeremiah, fought in the battle as a soldier of the Eurasian 'E' Company of the SSVF. He died on 2 July 2022, aged 97.