T. P. M. Lewis
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T. P. M. Lewis (26 July 1904 – 10 June 1989) was a British educationalist who served in
Malaya Malaya refers to a number of historical and current political entities related to what is currently Peninsular Malaysia in Southeast Asia: Political entities * British Malaya (1826–1957), a loose collection of the British colony of the Straits ...
, and is known for the diary he kept during his three and a half years as a
POW POW is "prisoner of war", a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict. POW or pow may also refer to: Music * P.O.W (Bullet for My Valentine song), "P.O.W" (Bull ...
in
Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...
, which he later published.


Early life and education

T. P. M. Lewis was born on 26 July 1904 into a Welsh family, and educated at Royal Masoninc School,
Bushey Bushey is a town in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire in the East of England. It had a population of 25,328 in the 2011 census, rising to 28,416 in the 2021 census, an increase of 12.19%. This makes Bushey the second most populated town ...
,
Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...
, and at
Jesus College, Oxford Jesus College (in full: Jesus College in the University of Oxford of Queen Elizabeth's Foundation) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is in the centre of the city, on a site between Turl Street, Ship ...
.


Career

Lewis began his career in 1926 when he joined the Malayan Education Department of the
Straits Settlements The Straits Settlements () were a group of British territories located in Southeast Asia. Originally established in 1826 as part of the territories controlled by the British East India Company, the Straits Settlements came under control of the ...
and
Federated Malay States The Federated Malay States (FMS, , Jawi script, Jawi: ) was a federation of four protectorate, protected states in the Malay Peninsula — Selangor, Perak, Negeri Sembilan and Pahang — established in 1895 by the British government, and whi ...
as Assistant Master, and in 1930 was appointed Acting Headmaster of Anderson School, Ipoh, in addition to his other duties. He then served in several schools as headmaster or assistant headmaster including King Edward VII School, Taiping (1932), English College, Johore Bahru (1936), Francis Light School,
Penang Penang is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia along the Strait of Malacca. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay Peninsula. Th ...
(1938), and Clifford School,
Kuala Lipis Kuala Lipis (Pahang Malay: ''Kole Lepeh'') is a mukim and capital of Lipis District, Pahang, Malaysia with a population of 20,000. History Kuala Lipis was a gold-mining centre before the British Empire, British arrived in 1887. In 1898, it bec ...
(1940). After the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, during which Lewis spent over three years in captivity in Singapore, he returned to Malaya and rejoined the Malayan Department of Education. In 1948, he was appointed Director of Education,
Johore Johor, also spelled Johore,'' is a state of Malaysia in the south of the Malay Peninsula. It borders with Pahang, Malacca and Negeri Sembilan to the north. Johor has maritime borders with Singapore to the south and Indonesia to the east and ...
, before being promoted to Deputy Director of Education, Federation of Malaya, based in
Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur (KL), officially the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, is the capital city and a Federal Territories of Malaysia, federal territory of Malaysia. It is the largest city in the country, covering an area of with a census population ...
. In 1954, he went to Singapore where he assumed the role of Senior Inspector of Schools, and Director of Education. At the time there was a rapid increase in the number of school age children in Singapore, and there was an insufficient number of teachers and schools. Lewis was responsible for introducing a major school building programme, and the system of morning and afternoon schools where premises were used in two sessions by different pupils and staff. Lewis left Malaya in 1956 and returned to the United Kingdom where he taught at Abermad Preparatory School, Aberystwyh and in 1968 at Dragon School, Oxford. He retired in 1976, aged 72.


Internment at Changi and Sime Road POW camps, Singapore

Lewis was imprisoned during the Second World War in Changi and Sime Road POW camps in Singapore for three and a half years. During the war, with his fluency in Malay, he volunteered to become a local guide attached to an Australian unit under Major Angus Rose ("Roseforce") which operated behind enemy lines. Four of the six guides were killed or executed by the Japanese. When Allied forces surrendered, Lewis was interned in
Changi prison Changi Prison Complex, often known simply as Changi Prison, is a prison complex in the namesake district of Changi in the eastern part of Singapore. It is the oldest and largest prison in the country, covering an area of about . Opened in 193 ...
with his brother John, his other brother Gerwyn having been sent to Burma to work on the railway. During his internment Lewis kept a diary, which was buried in a tin in the prison's vegetable garden, knowing that discovery by the Japanese would have resulted in his execution. The diary, which survived the war, is the only known account of internment in Singapore written at the time, and was later published in a book "''Changi - the lost years (1941-1945): A Malayan Diary."''


Death and personal life

Lewis died on 10 June 1989. He married M. P. Roweli in 1946 and they had two sons. He was a keen sportsman playing rugby for
London Welsh London Welsh Rugby Football Club () was a rugby union club formed in 1885. Based in Old Deer Park, Richmond-upon-Thames, London Welsh RFC played in the English Premiership in the 2012–13 and 2014–15 seasons, after gaining promotion from ...
,
Perak Perak (; Perak Malay: ''Peghok'') is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia on the west coast of the Malay Peninsula. Perak has land borders with the Malaysian states of Kedah to the north, Penang to the northwest, Kel ...
and North Malaya.


See also

*
Changi - the lost years 1941-1945: A Malayan Diary
' by T. P. M. Lewis (1984) {{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis, T.P.M.


References

1904 births 1989 deaths 20th-century British educators Alumni of Jesus College, Oxford London Welsh RFC players