Auction 83 "No Surrender to Coronavirus" Militaria Autograph Auction
Jun 9, 2020
98 Bohemia Ave., St. 2, Chesapeake City, MD 21915, United States
A "No Surrender to Coronavirus" auction of some of the most important surrender documents of World War II ever seen, with a major share of the proceeds dedicated to four international Coronavirus charities. Included is a historic document that directly led to the surrender of Nazi Germany, and whose "mate" resides in the National Archives. The sale also offers the British order to surrender Hong Kong, the Japanese surrender of Hong Kong, the British surrender of Java, historic German surrender documents, and much more.
The auction has ended

LOT 5:

AN ORIGINAL SIGNED COPY OF THE BRITISH SURRENDER OF JAVA, ISSUED TO THE COMMANDER OF THE TEXAS �LOST BATTALION�

catalog
  Previous item
Next item 

Start price:
$ 25,000
Estimated price :
$50,000 - $75,000
Buyer's Premium: 30% More details
sales tax: 8.875% On lot's price, no sales tax on commission
tags:

AN ORIGINAL SIGNED COPY OF THE BRITISH SURRENDER OF JAVA, ISSUED TO THE COMMANDER OF THE TEXAS �LOST BATTALION�
AN ORIGINAL SIGNED COPY OF THE BRITISH SURRENDER OF JAVA, ISSUED TO THE COMMANDER OF THE TEXAS "LOST BATTALION"
Most important original signed document, Bandoeng, Java, March, 12, 1942, American signatory COL. ALBERT C. SEARLE's copy of the document executed with Japanese Lt. General Masao Maruyama unconditionally surrendering all British and Australian troops, RAF personnel and American troops on Java, who Maruyama agreed would be treated pursuant to the Geneva Convention � which Japan had never ratified! The 12 x 8 inch manuscript document is written in the hand of RAF Air Vice Marshal Sir Paul Copeland Maltby (1892-1971). It states the terms of the surrender, in full: "1. All British troops, Australian troops, and personnel of the Royal Air Force, and all American troops which has enlist[ed] in Java surrender to the Japanese troops unconditionally. 2. All troops will obey absolutely to [sic] any orders of the Japanese troops, subject to their rights as prisoners of war, bide [sic] the Geneva Convention of 1929." The document is signed at bottom by the four Allied commanders who add their rank, including Maltby representing the RAF, Major General H. D. W. SITWELL commanding British troops, Brigadier ARTHUR S. BLACKBURN commanding Australian troops, and Col. ALBERT C. SEARLE, commanding officer of the 26th Artillery Field Brigade which had arrived in Java at the start of the war. Very good condition. One copy of the surrender was retained by Maruyama, with the Allied signatories each receiving one copy signed amongst themselves. The Japanese invaded Java on February 28, 1942 landing at three points on the north coast of the island, which was defended by Dutch, British, Australian and American forces. A stubborn resistance was put up, particularly by the British and Commonwealth troops, as well as American artillerymen supporting them. Allied defeat in the Battle of the Java Sea a day earlier dealt a huge blow to any hope for relief, as the Dutch surface fleet was destroyed, with American losses also sharp. Within days, the Japanese forces took a key airfield, negating any substantive RAF support on the island. As the situation in Java deteriorated, American forces were ordered to evacuate. Col. Albert Searle, a long-time Regular Army officer, saw his own command off but refused to leave himself. He returned to Bandoeng to join the 2nd Battalion, 131st Field Artillery, a Texas National Guard unit. Once there, he complained to Deputy Supreme Commander of the American-British-Dutch-Australian Command, Gen. George Brett, that as the only remaining American forces on the island were National Guardsmen, he felt it his duty to remain there to represent the Regular Army in the inevitable surrender. Brett agreed. A few days later, Searle would send the last Allied radio message from Java. He and the 2nd Battalion would spend the duration of the war in horrific conditions, used as slave laborers building the Burma Railway. Of course, their barbaric treatment was completely contrary to the false "Geneva Convention" promise made by Maruyama in this surrender document. American authorities had no information about the fate of the "Lost Battalion" until September 16, 1944 when American submarines sank two Japanese freighters transporting more than 2,000 British and Australian POWs to Japan. The surviving POWs told the U.S. that American soldiers from the Second Battalion had worked with them on the Burma railroad. Of the 534 men of the 2nd Battalion taken prisoner, 86 died in captivity. Photos for illustrative purposes only and not included.

catalog
  Previous item
Next item