Trincomalee, Madras, and Bombay faced Indian-government resistance to diverting resources from the army. Weihaiwei was too exposed for a peacetime fleet base, while Hong Kong lacked land and sat too close to Japan. Singapore combined space, an already necessary fortified chokepoint, and control of the communications line between India and Australia. Sydney, Darwin, and Perth offered depth but required much more investment, making political willingness to fund infrastructure as important as harbor geography.
Chapter · 26:19-34:18
Comparing imperial base options across Asia and Australia
A station-by-station survey shows why Indian, Chinese, and Australian alternatives each carried greater political, geographic, or infrastructure costs than Singapore.