Changi chapel, built by Australian POWs in 1944, later relocated to Duntroon, Canberra

Changi Prison (Simplified Chinese: 樟宜监狱) is a prison located in Changi in the eastern part of Singapore. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1184x888, 286 KB)Changi Chapel at Duntroon dedicated to Australian POWs. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1184x888, 286 KB)Changi Chapel at Duntroon dedicated to Australian POWs. ... Robert Campbells property Duntroon was situated on the limestone plains of New South Wales in the area that is now covered by the Australian Capital Territory. ... For other uses, see Canberra (disambiguation). ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Changi is an area to the east of Singapore. ...

History

First prison and POW camp

Changi Prison was constructed by the British administration of the Straits Settlements as a civilian prison, in 1936. The Straits Settlements were a collection of territories of the British East India Company in Southeast Asia, which were given collective administration in 1826. ... 1936 (MCMXXXVI) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ...

During World War II, following the Fall of Singapore in February 1942, the Japanese military detained about 3,000 civilians in Changi Prison, which was built to house only 600 prisoners. The Japanese used the British Army's Selarang Barracks, near the prison, as a prisoner of war camp, holding some 50,000 Allied — predominantly British and Australian soldiers.[1] Although POWs were rarely if ever held in the civilian prison, the name Changi became synonymous in the UK, Australia and elsewhere with the POW camp. Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... Combatants Allied forces: Indian Army; British Army; Australian Army; Malayan forces; Straits Settlements forces Imperial Japanese Army Commanders Arthur Percival Tomoyuki Yamashita Strength 85,000 36,000 Casualties about 5,000 killed; about 80,000 POWs 1,715 dead, 3,500 wounded The Battle of Singapore was a battle fought... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1942 calendar). ... The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. ... A barracks housing conscripts of Norrbottens regemente in Boden, Sweden. ... Geneva Convention definition A prisoner of war (POW) is a soldier, sailor, airman, or marine who is imprisoned by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict. ... The Allies of World War II were the countries officially opposed to the Axis powers during the Second World War. ...

A Christmas card sent by Sparrow Force members while they were prisoners of war in Changi Prison, in 1944. The card shows the uniform patches of the units that made up Sparrow Force, which surrendered to the Japanese in Netherlands Timor, on February 23, 1942, during the Battle of Timor (1942-43).

About 850 POWs died during their internment in Changi during the Japanese occupation [2], a relatively low rate compared to the overall death rate of 27% for POWs in Japanese camps.[3] However, many more prisoners died after being transferred to notorious Japanese labour camps, including the Burma Railway and Sandakan airfield. Image File history File links Sparrow_Force_badges2. ... Image File history File links Sparrow_Force_badges2. ... Sparrow Force was a detachment formed mostly from Australian 8th Division units, during World War II. The force was formed to defend the island of Timor, strategically located 400 miles from Darwin and the location of Penfui Airfield outside the capital of Netherlands Timor, Kupang. ... West Timor (in yellow) Map of the islands of East Nusa Tenggara, including West Timor. ... The Battle of Timor (1942–43) occurred on the island of Timor, in the Pacific theatre of World War II. It involved forces from the Empire of Japan, which invaded on February 20, 1942, on one side and Allied personnel, predominantly from Australia and the Netherlands, on the other. ... The Japanese Occupation of Singapore was to become a major turning point in the history of several nations, including that of the Japanese, who rampaged down the Malay Peninsula with the singular intent of occupying Singapore to gain greater control over her war-time resource gathering efforts, the British, with... A labor camp is a simplified detention facility where inmates are engaged in forced labor. ... The Bridge over the river Kwai Map of the Death Railway The Death Railway (known also as Thai-Burma Railway or Burma Railway) was a railway built from Thailand to Burma (now Myanmar) by the Japanese during World War II to complete the route from Bangkok to Rangoon and support... The Sandakan Death Marches are the most infamous incident in series of events which resulted in the deaths of more than 6,000 Javanese civilian slave labourers and Allied prisoners of war, held by the Empire of Japan during the Pacific campaign of World War II, at prison camps in...

Allied POWs, mainly Australians, built a chapel at the prison in 1944 using simple tools and found materials. British airman Stanley Warren painted a series of murals at the chapel. Another British POW, Sgt. Harry Stodgen built a Christian cross out of a used artillery shell. After the war, the Chapel was dismantled and shipped to Australia, while the cross was sent to the UK. The chapel was reconstructed in 1988, and is now at the National Prisoner of War Memorial in Duntroon, Canberra. 1944 (MCMXLIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... Stanley Warren (1917-1992), art teacher in the RAF, taken prisoner by the Japanese in World War 2. ... The traditional form of the Western Christian cross, known as the Latin cross. ... Robert Campbells property Duntroon was situated on the limestone plains of New South Wales in the area that is now covered by the Australian Capital Territory. ... For other uses, see Canberra (disambiguation). ...

Second prison

In 2000, the prison was demolished and its inmates were relocated to a new consolidated prison complex in a neighbouring site. In view of its historical significance, the Preservation of Monuments Board worked with the Singapore Prison Service and the Urban Redevelopment Authority to allow the front gates of the old prison to be preserved and moved to the new prison. The Singapore Prison Service (Chinese: 新加坡监狱部门; Malay: Perkhidmatan Penjara Singapura) is an agency of the Government of Singapore under the hierarchy of the Ministry of Home Affairs. ... The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) is the national urban planning authority of Singapore, and one of the departments under the Government of Singapore. ...

Presently, the new Changi Prison houses the most serious criminal offenders in the country, including criminal offenders who are serving long sentences and those who have been sentenced to death. It serves as the detention site for death row inmates at Changi, before they are executed by hanging, traditionally on a Friday morning. For information about the Record company see Death Row Records For information about the computer game see Deathrow (game) Death Row is a term which refers to the section of a prison that houses individuals awaiting execution. ... // This page is about death by hanging. ...

Changi Chapel and Museum

In 1988, Singapore built a replica Chapel and Museum next to the Changi Prison. When Changi Prison was expanded in 2001, the Chapel and Museum was relocated to a new site 1 km away and the Changi Chapel and Museum was officially established on 15 Febrary 2001. Bernard Stogden, the son of Sgt. Harry Stogden, was invited to place the cross that his father made onto the wreathed altar in the new Chapel.

The Museum has a collection of paintings, photographs and personal effects donated by former POWs. Among the collection is a series of paintings and sketches by a POW named William Haxworth which provide valuable insight on the daily life of the internees during the occupation. In 1986, Haxworth's wife donated a collection of over 400 paintings and sketches to the National Archives of Singapore.

Also in the museum is a collection of watercolour paintings by Mary Angela Bateman who was among the thousands of women and children held at Changi Prison for more than three years during the war.^[1]

Prominent detainees

• Lieutenant-General Arthur Ernest Percival, commander of Allied forces in Singapore, following his surrender to the Japanese. Percival was moved to a camp in China in late 1942.
• James Clavell is one of the most famous survivors. He wrote about his experiences in the book King Rat.
• Sir Alexander Oppenheim, mathematician. In 1984, he published "The prisoner's walk: an exercise in number theory", based in part of his experiences at Changi.
• English cartoonist Ronald Searle
• Michael Woodruff, surgeon and scientist

Lieutenant-General Arthur Ernest Percival, CB, DSO and Bar, OBE, MC, OStJ, DL (December 26, 1887 - January 31, 1966) was a British Army officer and World War I hero. ... James Clavell in 1986 James Clavell (10 October 1924 – 7 September 1994) was a novelist, screenwriter, and World War II POW, who was famous for books such as Shogun, and such films as The Great Escape and To Sir, with Love. ... King Rat is a 1962 novel by James Clavell. ... Sir Alexander Oppenheim Ph. ... Motto (French) God and my right Anthem God Save the King (Queen) England() – on the European continent() – in the United Kingdom() Capital (and largest city) London (de facto) Official languages English (de facto) Government Constitutional monarchy  -  Queen Queen Elizabeth II  -  Prime Minister Tony Blair MP Unification  -  by Athelstan 967  Area... Ronald William Fordham Searle (born March 3, 1920) is a British cartoonist. ... Sir Michael Woodruff Sir Michael Francis Addison Woodruff FRS (3 April 1911 – 10 March 2001) was a British surgeon and scientist principally remembered for his contribtions to organ transplantation. ...

Changi in popular culture

• King Rat (1962 novel), by James Clavell
• King Rat (1965 film), based on the novel
• Changi The fortunes of a fictional group of Australian POWS were dramatised in this television miniseries, screened by Australian Broadcasting Corporation in 2001.

King Rat is a 1962 novel by James Clavell. ... King Rat is a 1965 film version of the James Clavell novel King Rat. ... Changi is a critically acclaimed six-part Australian television miniseries broadcast by the ABC TV in 2001. ... The Australian Broadcasting Corporation or ABC (formerly the Australian Broadcasting Commission) is Australias national non-profit public broadcaster. ...

References

1. ^ Nick Meo. "Singapore war internee's art on show", BBC, 2006-08-23. 

• Fong, Tanya. "New Changi Prison goes high-tech." The Straits Times: August 16, 2004. [4]
• Choo, Johnson. "New technology at Changi Prison Complex allows focus on rehabilitation." Channel News Asia: August 16, 2004. [5]

The Straits Times is an English-language broadsheet newspaper based in Singapore, currently owned by the Singapore Press Holdings (SPH). ...

External links

• Changi drawings (1942-1945) / John Noel Douglas Harrison (1911-1980)

• Changi Chapel and Museum Official Website