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The Brunei Revolt: 1962-1963
In December 1962, nationalists in Brunei, the hugely wealthy small kingdom on the North Coast of Borneo, formed the Army of North Kalimantan (TNKU) and, demanding greater democracy, engineered a rebellion against the Sultan and seized a large number of hostages. Perceived to be an attempt by communists to destabilize the Sultanate and seize power, within twelve hours of its outbreak, British forces were dispatched by ship and aircraft from Singapore to restore order, the first unit to arrive being 1/2nd Gurkhas, who entered the capital. Within the week, the 1 Queens Own Highlanders had recaptured the strategically important oil fields and occupied Seria, 42 Commando, Royal Marines attacked Limbang and 1 Green Jackets landed in west Brunei. The next six months were spent rounding up TNKU and, since there were major concerns that Indonesia could be behind the Revolt, the charismatic Major General Walter Walker, then commanding 17th Gurkha Division, was sent to Brunei to command operations. By mid-May 1963, the surviving TNKU had been captured. While rapidly suppressed, the Revolt was the catalyst for the three year Confrontation with Indonesia 1963-66.
224 pages, Hardcover
First published October 24, 2012
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November 27, 2020
This could have been at least a four-star book, maybe a five-star, but instead it’s a three-and-a-half star. This may be, in part at least, because as the author (Nick van der Bul) admits in his Foreword, at the time this book was finished and proofread, ‘… the pressure was on to complete another project’. This is a pity because he hasn’t done himself justice.
Having said that, I did enjoy the book and will re-read it one day. Van der Bul explains in great detail the events of the Brunei Revolt, about which I knew nothing before picking this up, and he has made liberal use of anecdotes and personal accounts from those involved that give real depth and flavour to the narrative, which is good because quite a bit of it reads like a list of facts copied from military records or re-worked from his research of the subject. There is a lot here for the military enthusiast (as one would expect from Pen and Sword, the publisher) regarding the units deployed (battalion and regimental numbers and how they were made up). I like this but it does get a little tedious at times. Another failing in my view is that the narrative jumps around from one area of operations to another without much warning, and many of the places named in the book are not on the maps/plans illustrated. I know Brunei reasonably well but was still unsure at times about the geography. Some of the grammar could do with correcting and there is one paragraph that appears twice – in the narrative and also at the beginning of a chapter, after which the chapter continues relating events in a completely different place. I think the paragraph was inserted at the beginning of the chapter in error.
The book would benefit from an update to include more maps to show the boundaries of the Divisions (of British North Borneo), and more towns/rivers that are discussed, particularly because some of the towns’ names have changed since the Sixties.
The author has included quite a few contemporary photographs of places and the people involved, and these add to it immensely; it is always good to see what the protagonists looked like. One man of interest is the then Captain Jeremy Moore, RM, who led 42 Commando’s attack on the rebel-held town of Limbang (winning the Military Medal in the process), later becoming Major-General Jeremy Moore, Commander of Land Forces on the mission to re-take the Falkland Islands (Las Malvinas to our Spanish/South American friends!). Another is Lieutenant Commander Jeremy Black, RN, who commanded the Z-craft that transported Moore and his men to Limbang. He was also in the Falklands War, commanding the aircraft carrier HMS Invincible.
The author also gives a short history of Brunei and northern Borneo, including the Japanese Occupation in the Second World War, as well as the contemporary political situation in Borneo and Asia in general. This is great because it helps to put the events in context and help (especially younger) readers understand how governments were thinking at that time and what drove their actions.
Towards the end of the book, van der Bul explains how the Revolt morphed into the Indonesian Confrontation, and the role British forces played in protecting northern Borneo from Indonesian incursions.
As stated previously, the many personal stories add a great deal to the book and give the reader a good idea of what it was like for the individual soldiers/sailors/airmen and civilians to live through it. It is definitely worth reading if you are interested in this part of the world, and if you like British military history. It is a little-known fact that the Royal Marines suffered more casualties in one operation (liberating Limbang) than in any other between the Korean ‘Police Action’ and the Falklands War – five killed and eight wounded. That is in addition to the casualties sustained by the army in other parts of Brunei and British North Borneo (now Sabah, Malaysia).
Having said that, I did enjoy the book and will re-read it one day. Van der Bul explains in great detail the events of the Brunei Revolt, about which I knew nothing before picking this up, and he has made liberal use of anecdotes and personal accounts from those involved that give real depth and flavour to the narrative, which is good because quite a bit of it reads like a list of facts copied from military records or re-worked from his research of the subject. There is a lot here for the military enthusiast (as one would expect from Pen and Sword, the publisher) regarding the units deployed (battalion and regimental numbers and how they were made up). I like this but it does get a little tedious at times. Another failing in my view is that the narrative jumps around from one area of operations to another without much warning, and many of the places named in the book are not on the maps/plans illustrated. I know Brunei reasonably well but was still unsure at times about the geography. Some of the grammar could do with correcting and there is one paragraph that appears twice – in the narrative and also at the beginning of a chapter, after which the chapter continues relating events in a completely different place. I think the paragraph was inserted at the beginning of the chapter in error.
The book would benefit from an update to include more maps to show the boundaries of the Divisions (of British North Borneo), and more towns/rivers that are discussed, particularly because some of the towns’ names have changed since the Sixties.
The author has included quite a few contemporary photographs of places and the people involved, and these add to it immensely; it is always good to see what the protagonists looked like. One man of interest is the then Captain Jeremy Moore, RM, who led 42 Commando’s attack on the rebel-held town of Limbang (winning the Military Medal in the process), later becoming Major-General Jeremy Moore, Commander of Land Forces on the mission to re-take the Falkland Islands (Las Malvinas to our Spanish/South American friends!). Another is Lieutenant Commander Jeremy Black, RN, who commanded the Z-craft that transported Moore and his men to Limbang. He was also in the Falklands War, commanding the aircraft carrier HMS Invincible.
The author also gives a short history of Brunei and northern Borneo, including the Japanese Occupation in the Second World War, as well as the contemporary political situation in Borneo and Asia in general. This is great because it helps to put the events in context and help (especially younger) readers understand how governments were thinking at that time and what drove their actions.
Towards the end of the book, van der Bul explains how the Revolt morphed into the Indonesian Confrontation, and the role British forces played in protecting northern Borneo from Indonesian incursions.
As stated previously, the many personal stories add a great deal to the book and give the reader a good idea of what it was like for the individual soldiers/sailors/airmen and civilians to live through it. It is definitely worth reading if you are interested in this part of the world, and if you like British military history. It is a little-known fact that the Royal Marines suffered more casualties in one operation (liberating Limbang) than in any other between the Korean ‘Police Action’ and the Falklands War – five killed and eight wounded. That is in addition to the casualties sustained by the army in other parts of Brunei and British North Borneo (now Sabah, Malaysia).
January 12, 2024
The Book provides a detailed and succinct explanation of the Brunei Revolt in 1962/63, an event of which I was unaware. The author covers the background leading to the revolt, the revolt itself in detail, and then the mopping up afterwards that led into the Indonesian Confrontation of 1963-66. Whilst at times the amount of unit designations can get a bit wearisome, the author manages to use a lot of anecdotal stories of those involved to help make the story far more relevant and involving. Recommended reading for a little known conflict.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews