The Malaya Command was a formation of the British Army formed in the 1920s for the coordination of the defences of British Malaya, which comprised the Straits Settlements, the Federated Malay States and the Unfederated Malay States. It consisted mainly of small garrison forces in Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Taiping, Seremban and Singapore.
With the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, the command reinforced its strength in anticipation. With the bulk of British forces being tied down in the war in Europe and the Near East, the command was mainly augmented by units from India.
On 18 November 1940, the command was placed under the command of the British Far East Command and later on 7 January 1942 under the short-lived South West Pacific Command or ABDACOM which was tasked to maintain control of the "Malay Barrier" (or "East Indies Barrier"), a notional line running down the Malayan Peninsula, through Singapore and the southernmost islands of the Dutch East Indies.
The command was disbanded on 15 February 1942 with the surrender of all Commonwealth forces in the conclusion of the Battle of Singapore.
With the Surrender of Japan, the command was re-formed from the 14th Army with its HQ based in Singapore on 1 November 1945. The command was divided and downgraded to two separate military districts; the Malaya District and Singapore District in August 1947 but was upgraded again into a full command in August 1950 due to the Malayan Emergency.
With the independence of Malaya on 31 August 1957 the command was disbanded and succeeded by Overseas Commonwealth Land Forces (Malaya).
Formation and Structure
In November 1940, the total strength of Malaya Command was at 17 battalions. The Indian Army contingent was mainly organised as III Corps with their HQ based in Kuala Lumpur.
When Japanese forces invaded Malaya on 8 December 1941, Lieutenant-General Arthur Percival, the General Officer Commanding (GOC) Malaya in charge of Malaya Command, with a force of 88,600 faced the 70,000 strong Twenty Fifth Army of the Imperial Japanese Army under the command of General Tomoyuki Yamashita.
Allied Land Forces (8 December 1941)
As of 8 December 1941
Indian III Corps
As of 7 December 1941
Commanding Officer Indian III Corps – Lt Gen Lewis Macclesfield Heath
Indian 9th Infantry Division
Maj-Gen Arthur Edward Barstow ( †, 28 January 1942 at Layang-Layang near Bota)
HQ : Kuala Lumpur
53rd Infantry Brigade – Brig. Cecil Leonard Basil Duke
5th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment – Lt. Col. Eric Charles Prattley
6th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment – Lt. Col. Ian Conway Gilford Lywood ( † at Alexandra Hospital Massacre)
2nd Battalion, Cambridgeshire Regiment – Lt. Col. Gordon Calthorpe Thorne (Died, Indian Ocean while attempting to escape)
Allied Air Force units in Malaya December 1941
There were 161 front line aircraft, including 3 Royal Netherlands Air Force Catalina flying boats, based in Malaya and on Singapore Island on 8 December 1941. These units came under the control of Far East Air Force (Royal Air Force) under the command of Air Vice Marshal C.W.H.Pulford until February 1942 when Air Vice Marshal P.C.Maltby took command.
Based on Singapore Island
RAF Selatar;
No. 36 Squadron RAF – 6x Vickers Vildebeest
No. 100 Squadron RAF – 12x Vickers Vildebeest
No. 205 Squadron RAF – 3x PBY Catalina
RAF Tengah;
No. 34 Squadron RAF – 16x Bristol Blenheim IV
RAF Sembawang;
No. 453 Squadron RAAF – 16x Brewster Buffalo
RAF Kallang;
No. 243 Squadron RAF – 14x Brewster Buffalo
No. 488 Squadron RNZAF – 16x Brewster Buffalo
Based in Northern Malaya
Sungei Patani;
No. 21 Squadron RAAF – 12x Brewster Buffalo
No. 27 Squadron RAF – 12x Bristol Blenheim I
RAF Kota Bharu;
No. 1 Squadron RAAF – 12x Lockheed Hudson
Detachment from No. 243 Squadron RAF – 2x Brewster Buffalo
Gong Kedak;
Detachment from No. 36 Squadron RAF – 6x Vickers Videbeest
RAF Kuantan;
No. 8 Squadron RAAF – 12x Lockheed Hudsons
No. 60 Squadron RAF – 8x Bristol Blenheims
Alor Star;
No. 62 Squadron RAF – 11x Bristol Blenheims
Commanders-in-Chief
Commanders-in-Chief have included: GOC Troops in the Straits Settlements
1903–1905 Major-General Arthur Dorward
1905–1907 Major-General Inigo Jones
1907–1910 Major-General Thomas Perrott
1910–1914 Major-General Theodore Stephenson
1914–1915 Major-General Raymond Reade
1915–1921 Major-General Sir Dudley Ridout
1921–1924 Major-General Sir Neill Malcolm
GOC Malaya Command
1924–1927 Major-General Sir Theodore Fraser
1927–1929 Major-General Sir Casimir van Straubenzee
1929–1931 Major-General Harry Pritchard
1931–1934 Major-General Sir Louis Oldfield
1934–1935 Major-General Ernest Lewin
1935–1939 Major-General Sir William Dobbie
1939–1941 Lieutenant-General Sir Lionel Bond
1941–1942 Lieutenant-General Arthur Percival
Note from 1943 to 1945 Malaya was under Japanese control
Nov–Dec 1945 Lieutenant-General Sir Miles Dempsey
1945–1946 Lieutenant-General Sir Frank Messervy
1946–1947 Lieutenant-General Sir Alexander Galloway
