Battle of Plaman Mapu 1965
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 27 April 1965 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1965 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
| Era | Post-1945 (1946 onwards) | derived from year |
| Location | Malaysia | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | Asia | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation | Wikidata P361 |
| Coordinates | 0.9244, 110.4908 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Plaman Mapu (27 April 1965) was one of the largest battles of the Indonesia-Malaysia Confrontation, a protracted undeclared war between Indonesia and a British-led Commonwealth of Nations over the creation of a new Malaysian state. The battle occurred as a result of an Indonesian effort to storm a British hilltop base at Plaman Mapu, on the border between the Malaysian state of Sarawak and Indonesia.
In the early hours of 27 April 1965, a crack battalion of Indonesian soldiers launched a surprise attack on 'B' Company, 2nd Battalion of the Parachute Regiment in their base at Plaman Mapu. The British garrison was outnumbered by at least five to one, but it managed to repel the Indonesian assault after an intense two hour firefight. Acting commanding officer Sergeant-Major John Williams received a Distinguished Conduct Medal for his role in the action. Relief units soon arrived by helicopter, but the battle had concluded by this point.
The battle was the last attempt by Indonesian forces to launch a major raid into Malaysian territory, and was a propaganda disaster for the Indonesian government.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Plaman Mapu (revision 1370586222), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; shortened by selecting paragraphs and trimming at a sentence boundary; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
- Battle of Bau 1965 · 61 km
Other battles of the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation
- Action of 13 December 1964 1964
- Battle of Bau 1965
All 3 battles of the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation →
Browse more: battles in Malaysia · Asia · Post-1945 battles