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Changi chapel, built by Australian POWs in 1944, later relocated to Duntroon, Canberra

Changi Prison (Simplified Chinese: 樟宜监狱) is a prison located in Changi in the eastern part of Singapore.

Changi Prison was constructed by the British administration of the Straits Settlements as a civilian prison, in 1936.

During World War II, following the Fall of Singapore in February 1942, the Japanese military detained about 3,000 civilians in Changi Prison, which was built to house only 600 prisoners. The Japanese used the British Army's Selarang Barracks, near the prison, as a prisoner of war camp, holding some 50,000 Allied — predominantly British and Australian soldiers.[1] Although POWS were rarely if ever held in the civilian prison, the name Changi became synonymous in the UK, Australia and elsewhere with the POW camp.

A Christmas card sent by Sparrow Force members while they were prisoners of war in Changi Prison, in 1944. The card shows the uniform patches of the units that made up Sparrow Force, which surrendered to the Japanese in Netherlands Timor, on February 23, 1942, during the Battle of Timor (1942-43).

About 850 POWs died during their internment in Changi during the Japanese occupation [2], a relatively low rate compared to the overall death rate of 27% for POWs in Japanese camps.[3] However, many more prisoners died after being transferred to notorious Japanese labour camps, including the Burma Railway and Sandakan airfield.

Allied POWs, mainly Australians, built a chapel at the prison in 1944 using simple tools and found materials. British airman Stanley Warren painted a series of murals at the chapel. Another British POW, Sgt. Harry Stodgen built a Christian cross out of a used artillery shell. After the war, the Chapel was dismantled and shipped to Australia, while the cross was sent to the UK. The chapel was reconstructed in 1988, and is now at the National Prisoner of War Memorial in Duntroon, Canberra.

In 2000, the prison was demolished and its inmates were relocated to a new consolidated prison complex in a neighbouring site. In view of its historical significance, the Preservation of Monuments Board worked with the Singapore Prison Service and the Urban Redevelopment Authority to allow the front gates of the old prison to be preserved and moved to the new prison.

Presently, the new Changi Prison houses the most serious criminal offenders in the country, including criminal offenders who are serving long sentences and those who have been sentenced to death. It serves as the detention site for death row inmates at Changi, before they are executed by hanging, traditionally on a Friday morning.

In 1988, Singapore built a replica Chapel and Museum next to the Changi Prison. When Changi Prison was expanded in 2001, the Chapel and Museum was relocated to a new site 1 km away and the Changi Chapel and Museum was officially established on 15 Febrary 2001. Bernard Stogden, the son of Sgt. Harry Stogden, was invited to place the cross that his father made onto the wreathed altar in the new Chapel.

The Museum has a collection of paintings, photographs and personal effects donated by former POWs. Among the collection is a series of paintings and sketches by a POW named William Haxworth which provide valuable insight on the daily life of the internees during the occupation. In 1986, Haxworth's wife donated a collection of over 400 paintings and sketches to the National Archives of Singapore.

Also in the museum is a collection of watercolour paintings by Mary Angela Bateman who was among the thousands of women and children held at Changi Prison for more than three years during the war.^[1]

• Lieutenant-General Arthur Ernest Percival, commander of Allied forces in Singapore, following his surrender to the Japanese. Percival was moved to a camp in China in late 1942.
• James Clavell is one of the most famous survivors. He wrote about his experiences in the book King Rat.
• Sir Alexander Oppenheim, mathematician. In 1984, he published "The prisoner's walk: an exercise in number theory", based in part of his experiences at Changi.
• English cartoonist Ronald Searle

• King Rat (1962 novel), by James Clavell
• King Rat (1965 film), based on the novel
• Changi The fortunes of a fictional group of Australian POWS were dramatised in this television miniseries, screened by Australian Broadcasting Corporation in 2001.

1. ^ Nick Meo. "Singapore war internee's art on show", BBC, 2006-08-23.

• Fong, Tanya. "New Changi Prison goes high-tech." The Straits Times: August 16, 2004. [4]
• Choo, Johnson. "New technology at Changi Prison Complex allows focus on rehabilitation." Channel News Asia: August 16, 2004. [5]

• Changi drawings (1942-1945) / John Noel Douglas Harrison (1911-1980)

• Changi Chapel and Museum Official Website