Dunash said:
Would having a top (by British standards), more aggressive general like Bill Slim, or even Auchinleck or Montgomery at Singapore or Hong Kong have made any difference, or would they merely have delayed the inevitable debacle?
William Slim was not senior or known enough at the time, but he would have made a difference (at Singapore, not HK because of the reasons stated by others), not doubt about that. Slim was, in my as allways humble view, the best British (and among the absolute top among the Allies) field commander.
Monty, as I think Steffen and I have debated somewhere else, would have been a disaster (hmm, we actually never seemd to agree on that
).
Claude Auchinleck? Hmm, he did good in Norway, capturing Narvik and all, and to some extent in Egypt-Libya too, but would he be suited to lead the defense of Singapore? I really don't know. He and Slim would be a good team though, just as in real life; Slim as division commander or some such and the Auk in overall command.
Best regards!
- Bluenote.