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2nd / 40th Infantry Battalion Print Page 
The plaque commemorates those who served in the 2nd / 40th Infantry Battalion during World War Two.
Location
| Address: | 300 Waterdale Road, Repatriation Hospital, Heidelberg , 3081 |
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| State: | VIC |
| Area: | AUS |
| GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -37.755725 Long: 145.047069 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
| Monument Type: | Plaque |
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| Monument Theme: | Conflict |
| Sub-Theme: | WW2 |
| Actual Event Start Date: | 03-September-1939 |
| Actual Event End Date: | 15-August-1945 |
Dedication
| Actual Monument Dedication Date: | Thursday 24th April, 2003 |
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2 / 40th BATTALION
In memory of the officers and men of the 2/40th Battalion A.I.F. and attached units of "Sparrow Force".
On 23 February 1942 this small unsupported force on Timor were forced to capitulate to a massive Japanese invasion force after four days of intensive fighting during which 48 were killed in action and 130 wounded.
In September 1942 "Sparrow Force" were shipped to Java. In early January 1943, about 450 were sent to Singapore mostly to work on the infamous Burma Railway and then on to Japan to work in coal mines. On the way 87 from the Battalion were drowned when the Tamahoke Maru was torpedoed off the Kyushi Coast by the U.S.S. Tang.
We left 242 of our comrades behind.
Lest We Forget
Unveiled on 24 April 2003
