ANDY DILLON’S ILL-FATED DIVISION by Joeseph Kennedy
In the Second World War there were many who became famous; some for heroism,
some for leadership. Andy Dillon, born in 1898, a young Lieutenant in the First
World War, becoming a Brigadier, OBE, MC by the end of his army career, war
both a hero and leader, although before this book he was relatively unknown.
Whilst his early career is described in the book, it mainly concentrates on the
period when he was a Colonel in the 18th Division which was involved in the
failed attempt to save the invasion of Singapore by the Japanese.
With help from Dillon’s own notes Joseph Kennedy covers the valiant attempt by Dillon to escape from
capture by the Japanese, before finally becoming a prisoner-of-war in the
notorious Japanese
‘death camps’ where so many of the 18th Division perished under the terrible conditions
imposed on them whilst building the Thailand-Burma railway.
Andy Dillon strove to do all he could to help those soldier/prisoners captured
but still under his leadership. He did much to fight for their rights as
prisoners of war and there is a detailed account of the famous
‘Selerang Incident’ when the Japanese used considerable duress to force prisoners to sign a
certificate promising on their honour not to attempt to escape.
Above all this book is a lasting tribute to all those who suffered at the hands
of the Japanese military in those prison camps, and a validation of one man in
particular, Andy Dillon, who must be properly acknowledged for his caring and
heroic leadership,.
Joseph Kennedy
Widely experienced in teaching history at all levels, including large numbers of
Malayan student-teachers in England, some of whom had been prisoners of the
Japanese in Changi Gaol in Singapore, the author obtained his BA Hons and MA at
the University of Liverpool, the University of Keele and the Open University.
He was also a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society.
Other publications include: A History of Malaya; Asian Nationalism in the Twentieth Century; British Civilians and the Japanese War in Malaya and Singapore and When Singapore Fell.
