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Makassar (119.427E
5.127S) was founded by the Portuguese
in the 16th century,
and seized by the Dutch
in
1667. It has an
excellent deepwater harbor
and exports coffee, copra,
spices,
and rattan.
In 1941, it was the principal Dutch
naval base guarding the Makassar Strait and the capital of Celebes. It in turn was
guarded by just two
small coastal guns,
an airstrip, and a
battalion of militia (about
1200 men). There was a
relatively
well-developed road network in the immediate vicinity.
Battle of
Makassar Strait. On 3-4 February 1942, an Allied task force of
four cruisers and seven destroyers attempted to
intercept
a Japanese convoy in Makassar
Strait. The Allied force was spotted by Japanese
land-based aircraft,
which on
4
February severely damaged Marblehead and
moderately
damaged Houston, forcing the
Allied
force to turn back.
The Dutch garrison at Makassar decided that they
could not hold the town, and they prepared to fall back to
Enrekang,
110 miles (180 km) north, to conduct a guerrilla campaign. About
400 natives were
recruited. On
9 February 1942 Combined Sasebo Special Naval
Landing Force
landed some 8000 troops, who took the town against light
resistance
from the Dutch rearguard. Within a month the native troops had
deserted
and some 300 Dutch were taken prisoner.
The Japanese subsequently established a camp for
Dutch prisoners of war
at
Makassar. The camp disciplinary officer, a petty officer named
Yoshida, was a sadist who engaged in
frequent beatings and other abuse
of the prisoners. Prisoners were
forced to climb trees full of fire ants and were beaten
unconscious for the
least infraction. On 14 March 1945 Yoshida ordered all prisoners
from
the camp hospital to parade
at
the camp gate, where they were soaked by
torrential rain. A number of prisoners subsequently died of
exposure.
Climate Information:
Elevation 6'
Temperatures: Jan 84/74, Apr 86/74, Jul 86/70, Oct 87/72, record 95/58
Rainfall: Jan 25/27.0, Apr 10/5.9, Jul 4/1.4, Oct 5/1.7 == 112.2" per annum
References
Cooper (1945-10; accessed 2016-10-12)
Russell
(1958)
"The
capture
of Makassar, February 1942" (accessed 2009-5-27)
The Pacific War Online Encyclopedia © 2007, 2009-2010, 2016 by Kent G. Budge. Index
