WWII Tours: Battle Box

The Battle Box is a popular name of the underground command centre constructed under Fort Canning, Singapore as an emergency, bomb-proof command centre during the Malayan campaign and the Battle of Singapore. The decision to surrender Singapore was taken in this bunker on the morning of February 15, 1942, four days after Lt. Gen. Percival's Combined Operations Headquarters (COH) was moved here from Sime Road during the Battle of Kranji. It was later occupied by Japanese forces during the Japanese Occupation of Singapore. After the wall, the Battle Box was sealed off and its exact location forgotten. It was rediscovered in 1988, and converted into a tourist attraction.

For a price of S$5 for children and S$8 for adults, visitors can attend a guided tour of the location. The tickets are designed to look like security passes issued during the Second World War.

The tour begins with the screening of a historical filmstrip-style video about the events leading up to the Japanese invasion of Singapore, held in the ticketing office pictured above. From there, visitors are led by the tour guide to the actual bunker located about a hundred metres away from the ticketing office. A wax figure of a British soldier, one of many in the bunker, points the way.

The underground bunker has been refurbished with an air-conditioning system installed, though with the historical value still greatly preserved. Besides a tour guide, the tour is also facilitated by an audio tour program. Wireless headsets are issued to the participants. The headsets can be set to seven different languages.

The participants are lead to the switchboard room, which was the communications centre during the time. Notes scrawled in chalk are still faintly visible on the bunker door. Participants are then treated to an audio presentation through their headsets, with a synchronised animatronics display (the animatronic switchboard operator plugs and unplugs switches).

Next on the tour are the rooms where the other communications methods such as morse code and telegram are used. Through individual viewing posts, participants watch a short video presentation showing the operators hard at work, accompanied by another audio track.

Next, actual Japanese script written by the soldiers, with translation texts pasted above, are displayed.

After that, participants visit General Percival's actual office. A meeting between him and Simmons is in progress. The impending surrender is the topic. The two are actually animatronic figures whose mouth movements are synchronised with the audio tour segment.

A planning room with a simulated military strategy table and maps pasted on the walls follows. This was where the British would plan sea and air operations around the Asia-Pacific area. Wall charts depict developments in other parts of the world at that time.

The last room is the bunker where the final decision to surrender unconditionally to the Japanese was made. The crucial final command conference is portrayed as accurately as possible. Wax figures of Percival, and all the major officials with him at the time, are combined with a video presentation projected behind Percival's wax figure.

The tour ends, and participants are free to explore the small museum and the gift shop at the end of the underground bunker.