His Majesty's Naval Base, Singapore, alsoHer Majesty's Naval Base, Singapore (HMNB Singapore), alternatively known as theSingapore Naval Base,Sembawang Naval Base andHMS Sembawang, was situated inSembawang at thenorthern tip of Singapore and was both aRoyal Navyshore establishment and a cornerstone of British defence policy (theSingapore strategy) in theFar East between theWorld Wars. From 1921 to 1941 it was aChina Station base, from 1941 to 1945 a repair facility for the Imperial Japanese Navy and from 1945 to 1958 aFar East Fleet base. Today, it is a commercial dockyard but British military activity still exists at theBritish Defence Singapore Support Unit (BDSSU).^[1]

HMNB Singapore
An aerial view of the Singapore Naval Base in June 1953 fromRAAFAvro Lincoln bombers.
Active	1938–1958
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	Royal Navy
Type	Naval base
Part of	Royal Navy

Through the 19th century, the British Government relied on fourImperial fortress colonies as primary bases for the Royal Navy and British Army for control of the World's oceans. These wereBermuda and Halifax, Nova Scotia (military control of the latter was handed to the Canadian militia followingCanadian Confederation in 1867, and naval control to theRoyal Canadian Navy after 1905, along withEsquimalt Royal Naval Dockyard, which had been the main base of thePacific Station) in the North Atlantic, andGibraltar andMalta. As it was presumed that the only navies that could challenge the Royal Navy were those of European powers, no base equivalent to an Imperial fortress had been constructed outside of the Atlantic and its connected seas. This was despite the growing threats of the Pacific fleets of the Russian Empire and the United States during the 19th Century.^[2][3] After theGreat War, the British Government devoted significant resources into building a naval base onSingapore Island, wherethe capital of theStraits Settlements was located, as a deterrent to the increasingly ambitiousJapanese Empire with its growing fleet. Britain lacked a naval 'Imperial fortress' in the broad region of Asia, the Indian Ocean, and the Pacific Ocean. Instead, theBritish Empire relied on the squadron of the Bermuda basedAmerica and West Indies Station, utilising the Panama Canal after its 1914 completion, to patrol the western Atlantic and the eastern Pacific, while vessels based inMalta in theMediterranean Sea could project naval and military force to the Indian and western Pacific oceans via theSuez Canal, which had been completed in 1869. In light of the rising threat of theImperial Japanese Navy (IJN), this was no longer adequate.^[4]

Originally announced in 1923, the construction of the base proceeded slowly atSembawang until the Japanese invasion ofManchuria in 1931. It was completed in 1938, at a staggering cost of £60 million^[5] – equivalent to £2½ billion in 2006. The base covered 21 square miles (54 km²) and had what was then the largest dry dock in the world, the third-largest floating dock, and enough fuel tanks to support the entireRoyal Navy for six months.

It was defended by15-inch naval guns stationed atJohore battery,Changi, and atBuona Vista Battery. Other important batteries of smaller calibre were located atFort Siloso,Fort Canning, andLabrador. Air defence relied on theRoyal Air Force (RAF) airfields atRAF Tengah andRAF Sembawang.

Winston Churchill touted it as the "Gibraltar of the East".

The base was renamed from HMSTerror to HMSSultan on 1 January 1940 to acknowledge the proximity of the nine sultanates on theMalay Peninsula.^[6]

Afterthe fall ofMalaya on 31 January 1942, Singapore came within range of the artillery guns of theTwenty-Fifth Army of theImperial Japanese Army (IJA), who were positioned inJohor within sight of the base. The IJA was poised tocapture Singapore within afortnight. The base was subsequently captured, largely intact, by units of the advancing IJA and became the IJN No. 101 Repair Facility^[7] through to the end of theSecond World War during which time it was used by all 3Axis powers. It was used by Italian cargo-carrying submarines^[8] until the Italian Armistice, and by German cargo-carrying submarines^[9] until the German surrender.

With the surrender of Japan in August 1945,control of the naval base and Singapore was reverted to British and Commonwealth Forces in September 1945, when allied units ofSouth East Asia Command underLord Louis Mountbatten started to arrive in Singapore.

In line with the Royal Navy's tradition of naming their respective naval base and dockyard, the accommodation barracks adjacent to the base became known asHMSTerror (from 1945 to 1971) in honour ofHMS Terror, anErebus-classmonitor armed with twin15-inch guns, which was based at one time in Singapore before the war. Since 1972, part of the compound is now occupied by theRepublic of Singapore Navy'sNaval Diving Unit (NDU). During the 1970s and 1980s, part of this former British naval base became the Singapore Armed Forces' Infantry Training Depot that served to provide a three-month-long basic military training (BMT) course to mostly national service recruits, and the premises continued the legacy of HMSTerror by being popularly referred to as "Terror Camp" .

With thecomplete withdrawal of British forces from Singapore in 1971, the Naval Base has since been handed over to theSingapore government, which in 1968 converted it into a commercial dockyard (as Sembawang Shipyard, now part ofSingapore Exchange-listedSembCorp Marine).

After the short termANZUK arrangement was terminated (started in 1971 and ended in 1974),New Zealand Force South East Asia (NZFORSEA) was created with the HQ being sited at the Stores Basin area adjacent to the current Sembawang Naval Basin. NZFORSEA consisted of1 Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment (RNZIR), which was based atDieppe Barracks nearYishun New Town, No. 141 Flight ofRoyal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF), with itsBell UH-1D/H Hueys based atSembawang Air Base and frequent deployments ofRoyal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) frigates. This was the last major foreign military presence based in Singapore. Total military strength at the time stood at 850 with some 700 dependents. Under the auspices of theFive Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA), NZFORSEA took over the Royal Navy married quarters and billets, while the Installations Auxiliary Police Force (IAPF) was formed, the small police force was staffed by Singaporeans but commanded by an NZ officer to provide security to the whole area. This security blanket covered the British, UK and Australian facilities and personnel. When NZFORSEA withdrew from Singapore in 1989, it was replaced by the smaller NZ Defence Support Unit, the South East Asia (NZDSU SEA), with the IAPF still providing security to other nations including the US facilities and personnel.

The BritishMinistry of Defence (MoD) continues to maintain a small logistics base at Sembawang wharf to control most of the foreign military activities there, which includes repair, refuel and resupply for ships of the Australian, British and New Zealand navies as well as those from otherCommonwealth countries under the auspices of FPDA.^[10]

As part of a 1990 agreement (concluded in 1992) between Singapore and the United States,American military forces (primarilynaval andair force) have been making use of Sembawang's base facilities.^[11] TheCommander, Logistics Group Western Pacific has been headquartered in Sembawang since 1992, providinglogistic support for theUS 7th Fleet in its operations in the Pacific and Southeast Asia. TheUnited States Coast Guard, Marine Inspection Detachment (MIDET) Singapore is also a tenant.^[12][13][14]

Apart from the US naval presence, theUnited States Air Force has its administration, logistics and support component for the497th Combat Training Squadron being based there, while the squadron's flight operations are based atPaya Lebar Air Base.^[15]

Since 2002, Singapore has granted theIndian Navy in principle access to Sembawang Port and Indian patrol boats escorting American naval ships through theStraits of Malacca.^[16]

Admiralty Floating Dock No.9, a largefloating dry dock, the third-largest in the world at the time of its construction, was located at the base. It was used by the aircraft carrierHMS Eagle for a refit in 1939. At the time, the dry dock was described as having been floated from England to Singapore 10 years before.^[17]

Thegraving dock was completed in February 1938 and was more than 300 m (980 ft) in length and was the largestdry dock in the world at the time.^[18] With the impending capture of Singapore by the Imperial Japanese Army in 1942, the dry dock gates were blown off and machinery destroyed. The dock was subsequently repaired and used throughout the war andwas subjected to Allied air attacks to disable the dry dock in late 1944 and early 1945.

Modern sources give the title "Captain-in-Charge" to the senior officer at Singapore Naval Base from 1921 to 1942, includingflag officers.^[19] However, contemporary sources state that the official title wasn't granted until 1931, when Captain Birkett took on the role.^[20]

Included:^[19]

Included:^[19]

• Japanese occupation of Singapore
• Bombing of Singapore (1944–1945)
• British military history
• British Far East Command
• Eastern Fleet
• Far East Strategic Reserve
• ANZUK
• New Zealand Force South East Asia
• SembCorp Marine
• 497th Combat Training Squadron
• Task Force 73/Commander, Logistics Group Western Pacific

Notes

Bibliography

Further reading

• HM Naval Base Singapore: personal memoir
• United States Library of Congress: Country studies on Singapore: Singapore Naval Base
• Singapore National Heritage Board: Singapore Naval base