Historical information

Photograph of Private later Corporal Sperry Bodsworth born 27/8/1909. In 1940 aged 30 years he enlisted in the Army and assigned to the 2/21 Battalion. On 13/12/1941 the Battalion was deployed from Darwin to Ambon in the Dutch East Indies, now Indonesia, to form part of "Gull Force". The Battle of Ambon occurred between 30 January to 3 February, 1942. In April 1942 Bodsworth was listed as missing and on 1/6/1942 was reported as a Prisoner of War. Bodsworth was awarded a Mention in Despatches.

Significance

The Battle of Ambon (30 January – 3 February 1942) occurred on the island of Ambon in the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia), during World War II. Japan invaded and conquered the island in a few days, facing Dutch, American and Australian forces. The chaotic and sometimes bloody fighting was followed by a series of major Japanese war crimes. Allied casualties in the battle were relatively light. However, at intervals for a fortnight after the surrender, Japanese personnel chose more than 300 Australian and Dutch prisoners of war at random and summarily executed them, at or near Laha airfield. In part, this was revenge for the sinking of the Japanese minesweeper, as some surviving crew of the minesweeper took part.. Three-quarters of the Australians captured on Ambon died before the war's end. Of the 582 who remained on Ambon, 405 died. They died of overwork, malnutrition, disease and one of the most brutal regimes among camps in which bashings were routine.
Blood Oath, a 1990 Australian feature film is based on the real-life trial of Japanese soldiers for war crimes committed against Allied prisoners of war on the island of Ambon, in the Netherlands East Indies (Indonesia), such as the Laha massacre of 1942.

Physical description

Brown timber frame containing black and white photograph of WW2 Soldier wearing slouch hat