Shenton of Singapore: Governor and Prisoner-of-War – Brian Montgomery (1st ed)

S$69.00

Shenton of Singapore: Governor and Prisoner-of-War – Brian Montgomery (1st ed)

S$69.00

Title: Shenton of Singapore

Author: Brian Montgomery

Publisher: Leo Cooper, London, 1984. First edition.

Condition: Hardcover, with dust jacket. Very good. Dust jacket price-clipped, with some creasing to the top and slight fading to spine. Slight foxing to top edge. With numerous black-and-white photos.

SKU: shentonofsingapore Categories: , , , Tag:

About the book:

A biography of the unfortunate Sir Shenton Thomas (who gave rise to the name “Shenton Way”), who became a prisoner-of-war when the Japanese invaded Singapore. Written by a distant relative of his, who had access to some of his private documents.

About Shenton Thomas (from Wikipedia):

Sir Thomas Shenton Whitelegge Thomas GCMG GCStJ (October 10, 1879 – January 15, 1962) commonly known as Sir Shenton Thomas, was the last Governor of the Straits Settlements. He served from 1934 to 1942, during which time the Second World War broke out, and again from September 1945 to April 1946, when the Straits Settlements was dissolved.

Thomas was a prisoner-of-war during the Japanese occupation of Singapore (15 February 1942 – 15 August 1945) having decided to stay in Singapore during the war. He was imprisoned in Cell 24 of Changi Prison along with Ernest Tipson. Thomas established the King George V Park in Malaya (later renamed the National Park of Malaysia). Today, Shenton Way, located in Singapore’s business district, is named after him. After the war, Thomas remained as the 11th British High Commissioner in Malaya (9 November 1934 – 1 April 1946), until the Malayan Union was established and succeeded the British administration in the Straits Settlements (except for Singapore, which was created a separate colony), Federated Malay States and Unfederated Malay States, where the post of Governor-General of the Malayan Union was created.

Thomas died on 15 January 1962, at his home in London. He was 82.