2025 Battle of Muar Commemoration
The 2/29th Battalion AIF Association Battle of Muar Commemoration Service was held at the Shrine on Sunday 12 January 2025.
This year we were fortunate to have the services of Cadets from the Australian Army Victoria Brigade Unit who undertook flag bearing duties.
The address given by Janine Shottle is as follows:
The 2/29th Battalion AIF first saw action on 17 January 1942. Ever since, on the Sunday falling on or near the 17th of January, the Battalion and its Association have commemorated the Battle of Muar, and honoured its war dead of Muar. This is the 82nd of those services.
The 2/29th Battalion of the 8th Australian Division was formed in 1940 as a completely Victorian unit under Lieutenant Colonel J.C. Robinson.
The battalion did its initial training at Bonegilla before travelling to Bathurst at the end of February 1941. The 2/29th remained at Bathurst for the next five months. At the end of July it sailed with the rest of the brigade to Singapore, arriving on 15 August. In the second week of September the 2/29th travelled to Segament in Malaya, where it continued its training.
Japanese forces landed in Thailand and northern Malaya, just before midnight on 7 December. By 15 January they had reached Muar River, in northern Johore. The 2/29th and the 2/19th Battalions were sent to Muar as reinforcements to the Inian bridage.
The 2/29th reached Bakri on 17 January and assumed defensive positions. The Japanese attacked the next day. The fighting was fierce but the battalion and the 2/4th Anti-Tank Regiment destroyed several Japanese tanks. In the meantime, the 2/19th had arrived at Parit Sulong, south of Bakri, having fought its way through the Japanese beginning to encircle the 2/29th.
On 19 January 1942, the situation for the 2/29th Battalion became dire. Having successfully repelled Japanese assaults the previous day, the battalion faced a new and grave reality: during the night, the Japanese forces had outflanked them through the jungle to the west, cutting off their communication and supply lines. The battalion, deployed across the Muar road at the 101-mile post, found themselves surrounded by jungle and swamp, facing constant attacks, artillery, aerial bombardments, and mortar fire. By afternoon, it was clear that they could no longer hold their position.
The battalion was ordered to withdraw to the 2/19th Battalion’s position after dark, via jungle and swamp to the east of the road. This withdrawal was complicated by Japanese machine gun fire and the abandonment of vehicles. Some soldiers, including Captain Brand’s group, made it through, but the majority had to leave behind the seriously wounded, whose fate was uncertain. Around one-third of the battalion reached the 2/19th's position that night, with 38 or 39 men killed on 19 January alone.
Over the following days, the fate of the remaining soldiers varied. Some were captured, executed, or went missing, while others managed to escape. A small group commandeered a boat and reached Sumatra, where they were forced to work on the railway, while another group made it all the way back to Australia.
By 24 January, only about 130 men of the 600 who fought at Bakri mustered at Yong Peng. The battalion’s official roll records that 163 men were killed in action between 17 and 24 January, with many still missing. The survivors, along with reinforcements, would endure further hardships as prisoners of war, including forced labour on the Thai-Burma Railway.
The Battle of Muar is remembered for the courage, heroism, and determination of the men of the 2/29th Battalion, who fought valiantly despite overwhelming odds. Their story is one of sacrifice and survival, and today, we honour their memory.
Today we honour the memory of the brave men of the 2/29th.
Lest We Forget
