THIS IS THE STORY OF of ALAN (BENNY) IRVING VX60959 F FORCE HQ COY. 2nd/29th BATTALION, 8th DIVISION, AIF.
My name is Luke Oakley DePaul, I am 16 years of age, and I am currently completing Year 9 at Bayswater Secondary College.
I am the Great Grandson of Alan (Benny) Irving VX60959 F Force HQ Coy. 2nd/29th Battalion, 8th Division, AIF.
Below is a song which has been handed down through the generations of our family, my Nana and her brothers and sister used to sing it with their Dad, Benny, when they were children and have kept up the tradition.
They still sing this song at family gatherings.
I try to imagine my Great Grandfather as an 18 year old young man standing on the Harbour in Singapore singing this song.
IF WE ONLY HAD AUSTRALIA OVER HERE
I was standing on the Harbour, a showcase of first choice
Quietly reminiscing, listening to my sweetheart’s voice
In a fancy I suggested, in a vision which seemed clear
Of what strange things might happen, if we had Australia here.
If the Harbour Bridge was spanned across the Causeway
And old Freemantle came to Singapore
If Adelaide bells rang out in Bukit Timah
And Bondi Beach was lined across the shore.
If the River Yarra flowed into the Harbour
And Rockhampton on this island did appear
We would never have to roam, we would always feel at home
If we only had Australia over here….
I am very proud of my Great Grandfather and I have been studying WW1 and WW2 at school. I have a particular interest in the mental and physical health of our POW’s after they returned home from Changi.
I have used information found in the book “Heroes of F Force” collated by Don Wall in 1993, it is very informative and contains personal accounts from POW’s regarding their health and the various medical conditions at the camps. I have also gathered information on the internet from the Government Anzac portal and the 2nd/29th Battalion history.
ENLISTMENT
Benny was born on 30th June 1923.
Army Records show his Birth date as 30th June 1920.
As he was under the minimum enlistment age, Benny put his age forward and along with his mates, he enlisted at Richmond on 4th August 1941 when he was only 18 years old, he had forged his mother’s signature, as parental consent was required for anyone under the age of 21.
The thought of adventure was exciting, and he and his mates were very happy to be receiving a brand-new pair of leather boots!
After Benny was sent to Training camp for the 2/29th, his girlfriend Joan, aged 16, visited.
According to Benny, when they boarded the ships in Sydney to leave for the War, his brother Walter and brother-in-law Bill were put on one ship and Benny and mates were on another. After they set sail, Churchill was told that more troops were needed to help defend Singapore, so Churchill changed plans and split the fleet, sending ships to both Tobruk and Malaya.
Subsequently Benny then found himself on a ship bound for Singapore, while Walter and Bill were headed for Tobruk.
The following are recollections told by Benny to my grandmother Cheryl:
“After the war, Benny had a dislike for Churchill, as after being told of the desperate need for troops in Singapore, Churchill decided to keep and send the bulk of the troops, including Australians, to Europe, as he needed to defend England, the concerns for Malaya and Australia were less important to Churchill.
In Benny’s words “the Yanks saved Australia…not bloody Churchill”
Benny was forever grateful that the Americans entered the War in the South Pacific and ultimately ended it by bombing Japan, as he reckoned that there was no way that he would have survived another few years or more in Changi.
DURING CAPTIVITY.
F FORCE
Camps: Benny’s Camp was Ni Thea (Nieke) There were four major camps all located in Thailand, east of the Pagoda Pass. H.Q. was established at Nieke and there were three other camps that were named, “Songkurai, Kami and Konkoita” that were not too far away from Nieke.
F Force was comprised of 3600 Australian and 3400 British prisoners of war (POW) who marched three hundred kilometres into the absolute hell that is the Thailand jungle as part of the Construction force of the Burma-Thailand Railway. They eventually arrived there on May 1943. The Imperial Japanese Government made a policy towards the allied prisons of war which was “No work, No food.”
Conditions in the railway camps were primitive and horrific. Food was totally inadequate, beatings were frequent and severe, there were no medical supplies. Tropical diseases were rampant, and the Japanese required a level of productivity that would have been difficult for fully fit men to achieve.
In November 1943, they came out of the jungle on the railway they had helped to build. Over 2000 British and 1000 Australians died while building the railway.
Illness and death were very constant on the Burma Railway and 12,800 of more than 60,000 allied prisoners of war died due to the harsh conditions they had to go through.
The three main causes of these deaths were attributed to malnutrition, tropical diseases and being overworked, this massive death toll was caused mainly by the brutality and indifference of the Japanese soldiers.
The Aussie mateship was definitely a huge factor in helping the 2nd/29th soldier’s morale and helping them to survive all the very harsh and deadly conditions of the Burma Railway and Changi, that the Japanese enforced upon them.
CHANGI
Most Starving prisoners turned to scrounging. Snakes, fish, clams, and rodents were caught and usually shared with an inner group of friends. Medical personnel would experiment with vegetation such as weeds as a potential source of vitamins.
The diseases that the soldiers in Changi faced were tropical diseases such as malaria, dengue fever and tropical ulcers; diseases caused by overcrowding and lack of hygiene, such as dysentery and cholera; and diseases caused by a limited diet and vitamin deficiencies, such as malnutrition and beriberi.
On 26 February 1942, Sir Weary Dunlop was promoted to temporary lieutenant-colonel, Dunlop became a Japanese prisoner of war in 1942 when he was captured in Bandung, Java, Indonesia together with the hospital he was commanding.
Because of his leadership skills, he was placed in charge of prisoner of war camps in Java, and was later transferred briefly to Changi, and in January 1943 he commanded the first Australians sent to work on the Burma Railway. Dunlop’s pure dedication and heroism became a legend among other prisoners of war. They thought of him as a courageous leader and a compassionate doctor. He restored the morale of fellow prisoners of war who were trapped in the Japanese prisoner camps and helped them get through all the tough times that they had to face while they were forcefully imprisoned by the Japanese. In the words of one of his fellow friends, author Donald Stuart “He was a lighthouse of sanity in a universe of endless madness and suffering.”
My Great Grandfather held Weary Dunlop in the highest esteem. Weary attended many of the 2nd/29th Battalion POW Picnics over the years. He used to arrive in a colourful summer shirt and shorts, which resembled ‘summer pyjamas’.
HEALTH: After the War
It appears that not enough was done by the Australian Government of the time to help these men recover after being held captive for 3 years by one of the most brutal perpetrators of war crimes in modern history.
They were told not to speak of their experiences in Changi or of the horrors that they endured whilst working on the Burma Railway.
For many former POWs, post war physical and psychological problems took a significant toll on their families. Depression and moodiness required a lot of emotional support and understanding. Their wives were very strong and devoted women indeed, by supporting their husbands who had just came from hell and back.
When Benny returned home to Australia, having been “fattened up” before he left Singapore, he was a very ill young man both physically and mentally.
On 12th January 1946, Benny and Joan got married in Richmond.
Shortly after arriving in Lorne for their honeymoon, Benny was rushed back to Melbourne urgently and admitted to the Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital for a lifesaving treatment.
He was to have many more stays at this superb Hospital over the years.
Benny also suffered for decades from the effects of Tropical Ulcers and Strongyloides Worms.
“Distinctive characteristics of this Strongyloides parasite are its ability to persist and replicate within a host for decades. They are caused by poor sanitation conditions“
Benny unfortunately suffered from this condition on and off for the rest of his life.
MATESHIP
Benny kept in touch with his mates from the 2nd/29th Battalion, particularly John McFarlane who had moved to Dunkeld to work with Harry Rowbottem, the whole family spent many extended holidays there with John and June and their 13 children, even attending school there for 2 months during one of Benny’s “bad times”,
The time that John and Benny spent together was the best mental therapy and emotional support for both of them.
John McFarlane would come down from Dunkeld every Anzac Eve. Apparently, after attending the March and the Reunion, John and Benny would not arrive back at Benny’s until 2 days later.
For many years, our family attended the annual POW’s Picnic held at Keast Park in Carrum on the last Sunday in November, it was a wonderful day attended by many of the 2nd/29th men, all enjoying the time they were spending with each other, talking about all the things that happened in the past which only they were there to actually experience and fully understand.
The family also had regular social visits to see “the Mouse” Gordon Cowling and “Goldy” Peter Goulden, again this was the best type of therapy that they could ever ask for.
Benny worked at the Government Aircraft Factory in Fisherman’s Bend for many decades until he had to eventually retire due to multiple complicated health reasons, most of which were a direct result of the illnesses and diseases that he developed during his time being in Changi and on the Burma Railroad.
By the early 50s, Benny would still not allow anything that was made in Japan to be purchased, he refused to support any Japanese company.
In later years, a Fighting Fund was set up by the 2nd/29th Battalion in an effort to raise funds for legal representation to gain compensation from the Japanese for the work carried out on the Burma Railroad.
The men of the Battalion all contributed $100 yearly for many years.
Benny was very proud of his one and only 21st birthday card which he received whilst he was in Changi. His mates had scrounged some paper and coloured pencils to make him a personal birthday card just for him which also had a small key cut out of cardboard with a piece of string and a end of a wooden match stick.
Benny kept this card and was able to bring it back home with him to Australia. The family still has the birthday card which has been handed down to his Grandson, Ben Irving Jr who is now the custodian of the birthday card. The card is now 79 years old.
Years ago, Benny was asked if he wanted the birthday card to be kept in the Australian War Museum in Canberra. His ultimate reply was “Why would I do that? It’s my Birthday card, not theirs.”
Together with his wife Joan, they were able to raise 4 children and were happily married for 50 years up until his eventual passing in 1996. The 2nd/29th Battalion helped Benny with medical supplies needed during his final fight with his illness. Benny was very grateful for the assistance that he received from his Battalion and the visits he received from them.
LUKE OAKLEY DEPAUL