Davis, Cyril Bowen (Corporal, b.1920 - d.1972)

Collection relating to the Second World War service of NX72134 Corporal Cyril Bowen Davis, 8 Division Signals, Malaya and Japan, 1941-1945. The collection includes handwritten letters from the time of Davis’ enlistment in Paddington, NSW, 1941, his capture in Singapore, his time as a Prisoner of War in Japan, and his subsequent return to Australia.

Davis’ letters provide very detailed descriptions of his impressions and experiences. One of his letters from Malaya, addressed Dear Mum and All at home, reads ‘… the jap is a great little goer when he has the upper hand but as soon as he meets any resistance he squibs it and goes for his life. We are going to lick him if he will give us a fair go at him but half the Malayans and every breed of human being here are on his side and are constituting a fifth column that we are slowly but surely cleaning out …’.

During the final stages of the Malayan campaign, when Juhore Bahru was bombed, Davis was concussed and subsequently hospitalised at an Australian General Hospital about five miles from Singapore. It was here that he was captured when Singapore fell, on 15 February 1942. Davis spent the duration of the war labouring until repatriated from Wakinohama POW camp on 6 September 1945. One of his letters, on Red Cross letterhead and addressed ‘Dear Dad’, comprehensively summarises his wartime experience in eight pages. He describes the fall of Singapore, becoming a prisoner of war and internship at first Changi, then Adam Park where he laboured building roads. He then describes transportation to Japan on board the Kamakura Maru, and subsequent imprisonment at the Kawasaki and Wakinohama POW camps in Kobe. His letter closes ‘… In these few pages I’ve tried to give you some general idea of what went on in one of the “best” camps in Japan so you can imagine what sought of a time some of the boys [had] in other camps. I saw men beaten beyond recognition for not being able to understand what a nip wanted done. Men have died as a result of such bashings. There are many other incidents that happened, all of which go to show what a bastard race the japs are … Well you’ll agree that it’s been a pretty rough time …’.

Davis returned to Australia on 13 October 1945. Following the war, he struggled to cope with the trauma he carried with him as a consequence of his POW experience. The collection includes personal letters written by Davis to his wife in the 1960s. These letters, along with medical records from the Repatriation Department, give insight into Davis trauma. Davis died from a fatal fall on the 18th of December 1972.