Rabaul, a township on the island of New Britain, was a strategically important port. In 1942, it was the administrative capital of the Australian Mandated Territory of New Guinea. Many Australians, Europeans and other expats had settled there.
In April 1941, the Australian Army sent the 2/22nd Battalion of the 23rd Brigade to Rabaul. This was due to increasing concern about Japanese expansion. The 2/22nd would become part of the combined Lark Force. Lark Force was supported by aircraft from No 24 Squadron RAAF.
Japan entered the war with a surprise attack on Pearl Harbour on 7 December 1941. This was followed by rapid expansion into South-East Asia and the Pacific.
Japanese ground forces attacked Rabaul on 22 January 1942, after weeks of aerial bombing. The troops of Lark Force fought to defend Rabaul but were hugely outnumbered by the Japanese invasion force. Many troops from Lark Force were killed or taken prisoner, others fled into the jungle. Many civilians also died.
Around 1,000 prisoners of war and civilians were killed when their transport ship, the Montevideo Maru was sunk in July 1942.
Strategic situation
From late 1941, Japanese forces had rapidly expanded into the Pacific, attacking islands and territories. There were very few Allied victories. In December 1941, the Japanese invaded Thailand, the Philippines, Guam, Burma, Borneo and Hong Kong. In January 1942, the Japanese continued their action in the Philippines, Burma and Borneo and invaded the Dutch East Indies (Indonesia).
Japan's strategy was to gain control of:
- sea routes
- strategic ports and airfields
- critical natural resources, including oil from Borneo.
Rabaul was attractive to the Japanese because it had a large, deep and sheltered harbour and airfields, and it was close to Port Moresby in Papua.
Relative strength
The Japanese had naval and air superiority in the Pacific with a substantial fleet and a large, modern air force.
The Allies didn't have as many ships and aircraft to fight back, and many of their planes were old. Some, like the A20 Wirraway, were not designed for combat. Australian airmen still fought in such aircraft, and many were injured or killed.
Rabaul
Rabaul's population was around 5,000 in 1937. This included many Australian civilians and administrators, as well as civilians of other nationalities.
At the time, Rabaul was a thriving trade and colonial government centre. Most economic activity came from copra (coconut) and other plantations. Many civilians living in Rabaul were well established, with families and homes.
Surrounded by volcanoes, Rabaul had been damaged by eruptions several times. It often suffered from falls of volcanic ash and smoke.
Lark Force garrison
A small garrison, known as Lark Force, arrived in Rabaul in March and April 1941. It had a combined force of about 1,400 troops for the defence of Rabaul:
- the 2/22nd Infantry Battalion
- the local unit of the New Guinea Volunteer Rifles
- a coastal defence battery
- an anti-aircraft battery
- elements of the 2/10th Field Ambulance
- elements of the 17th Anti-tank Battery.
The force included 6 Australian Army Nursing Service (AANS) nurses.
Lark Force was supported by aircraft from No 24 Squadron RAAF. The squadron flew 4 Hudson bombers and 10 Wirraway general-purpose aircraft.
The Coastwatchers network across New Britain and neighbouring islands provided information on enemy movements. Coastwatchers were a non-military observer network, although they were later given a rank for protection.
In October 1941, the Australian War Cabinet accepted a recommendation to protect and expand Rabaul harbour. This would make it suitable as a base for the United States (US) and British fleets. The plans included minefields, anti-aircraft guns, radar and anti-submarine nets.
In December 1941, the Australian Chiefs of Staff advised the War Cabinet that the proposal would be unlikely to proceed. They recommended keeping Rabaul as an observation line. Reinforcement of the garrison would not be possible due to the difficulty of transporting and maintaining troops from the mainland.
The Australian Chiefs of Staff understood that Lark Force was a small garrison that could not defend Rabaul against an invasion.
Daily life in Rabaul
The 2/22nd Battalion was the main Australian Army unit on Rabaul.
For many of the 2/22nd, the challenging conditions started before they had even left Australia. The battalion had to march 235 km from its training base at Trawool in central Victoria to Bonegilla, near Albury-Wodonga on the border with New South Wales, for further training.
Many of the soldiers thought they were going to the Middle East because important battles involving Australians had already taken place there and were widely reported in the newspapers. Instead, they caught a train to Sydney and then left by sea for Rabaul on 17 April 1941.
The 2/22nd Battalion arrived in Rabaul on 26 April 1941. This was months before the Japanese attacks on Malaya and the US base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, which began on 7 and 8 December 1941.
Travelling to different lands was a new experience for most of the soldiers. One Australian observed the diversity of people in the islands:
Natives are of a different type to those at our other port of call and have not had any diving for pennies although the boats are tied up alongside and bananas, coconuts, pineapples, and pawpaws have been hoisted up over the side.
[Peter Stone et al (2004), Little Hell: The Story of the 2/22nd Battalion and Lark Force.]
Daily life was uncomfortable in the tropics. It was hot and humid. The threat of mosquito-borne malaria was high. Soldiers had to sleep under mosquito netting. Tinea, a fungal infection, irritated their feet.
The volcanic activity around Rabaul also brought challenges. When No 24 Squadron RAAF arrived in December 1941, the men had to coat their aircraft in lanolin to prevent damage from the ash.
One Australian soldier observed:
It was throwing up a tall column of black smoke and pumice dust ... A strong smell of sulphur pervaded the town the whole time I was there.
[Johnson and Threlfall (1985), Volcano Town: The 1937-43 Eruptions at Rabaul.]
A civilian noted:
Dust is everywhere, so, our lungs, and eyes are sure to suffer someday. If this goes on, Rabaul will no longer be a place to live in.
[Johnson and Threlfall (1985), Volcano Town: The 1937-43 Eruptions at Rabaul.]
When the Lark Force soldiers arrived, Rabaul had an Australian settlement, a Han Chinese community and a racetrack.
The Australian colonial government had already interned members of the small Japanese community in the local jail for security reasons. After the Japanese invasion, the prisoners of war (POWs) were moved to internment camps in Australia.
The 2/22nd Battalion band provided concerts for the troops and locals. The troops saw films in the local cinema and organised a baseball competition. There were rugby games too.
Memories of World War I were apparent in local memorials and events. German outposts on New Britain had been captured by Australian troops at the Battle of Bita Paka in 1914. Locals and troops attended an Armistice Day church service in November 1941. There were also Christmas celebrations.
The inactivity of their war service affected some of the soldiers. One wrote to his sister that:
nothing ever happens in this dump.
[Peter Stone et al (2004), Little Hell: The Story of the 2/22nd Battalion and Lark Force.]
Another soldier wrote home that:
we are the legion of the lost.
[Peter Stone et al (2004), Little Hell: The Story of the 2/22nd Battalion and Lark Force.]
But after Christmas, everything changed when the war came swiftly to Rabaul.
Glossary
- expat
- garrison