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{{short description|British Indian Army officer, alleged spy for Japan in World War II}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2025}}
{{Infobox military person
| name = Patrick Vaughan Stanley Heenan
| birth_date = Patrick Vaughan Stanley 29 July 1910
| death_date = 13 February 1942 (aged 31)
| birth_place = [[Reefton, New Zealand|Reefton]], [[Dominion of New Zealand|New Zealand]]
| death_place = [[Keppel Harbour]], [[Singapore]], [[Straits Settlements]]
| death_cause = [[Execution by shooting]]
| burial_place =
| image = Patrick Stanley Vaughan Heenan (1910-1942) portrait.png
| caption =
| nickname =
| allegiance = {{flag|United Kingdom}} {{flag|Empire of Japan|Japan}} (Alleged)
| service_years = 1932–1942
| rank = [[Captain (OF-2)|Captain]]
| branch = {{army|British India}}
| commands =
| unit = [[16th Punjab Regiment]] [[Army Service Corps (India)|Indian Army Service Corps]] 300 Air Liaison Section, Malaya
| battles =
{{tree list}}
* [[World War II]]
** [[Battle of Malaya]]{{executed}}
{{tree list/end}}
| awards =
| other_work =
}}

'''Patrick Vaughan Stanley Heenan''' (29 July 1910 – 13 February 1942) was a New Zealand military officer and spy. A [[Captain (OF-2)|captain]] in the [[British Indian Army]], he was convicted of [[treason]] after [[espionage|spying]] for [[Empire of Japan|Japan]] during the [[Battle of Malaya]] of World War II.{{sfnp|Elphick|2001}}{{sfnp|Farrell|2005}} Heenan was [[summary execution|executed]] by his wardens while in British custody during the [[Battle of Singapore]]. With the defeat of the British imminent, Heenan had mocked the guards, saying he would soon be free, while they would be the prisoners. In response, British military police [[Extrajudicial killing|shot]] him and dumped his body into the harbour.{{sfnp|Docker|Silver|1997}}

According to Heenan's biographer, Peter Elphick, these events were suppressed by [[Commonwealth of Nations|British Commonwealth]] [[censorship|military censors]].{{sfnp|Elphick|2001}}

==Early life==
Heenan's mother, Annie Stanley (born 1882), was not married at the time of her son's birth at [[Reefton, New Zealand]]. His birth certificate recorded her maiden name as his surname, and did not include any information about his father.{{sfnp|Elphick|2001}} A year later, both mother and son moved to [[Myanmar|Burma]] with a mining engineer named [[George Heenan|George Charles Heenan]] (1855–1912). The older Heenan is described by some sources as an [[Irish republicanism|Irish republican]],{{sfnp|Stearn|2004}} although he seems to have had a long association with [[New Zealand]], including selection for regional representative [[cricket]] teams in the 1880s and 1890s.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.espncricinfo.com/newzealand/content/player/37368.html |title=George Heenan |work=ESPN Cricinfo |date=2015 |access-date=16 October 2015}}</ref> There is no conclusive evidence that George Heenan was Patrick's father, or that George and Anne ever married. However, Patrick was [[baptism|baptised]] in Burma as a [[Roman Catholic Church|Roman Catholic]], with the surname Heenan.{{sfnp|Elphick|2001}} George Heenan died at [[Pauk, Myanmar|Pauk]], Burma, in 1912. Patrick's mother then worked as a [[governess]] for a family named Carroll.{{sfnp|Elphick|2001}}

In 1922, the Carrolls moved to England, and Anne Stanley went with them. Mrs Carroll died a few years later, and Bernard Carroll, who was an accountant, married Anne.{{sfnp|Stearn|2004}} From 1923 to 1926, Patrick was a [[boarding school|boarder]] at [[Sevenoaks School]] in [[Kent]], and in 1927 proceeded to [[Cheltenham College]], as a [[day pupil|day boy]], in a stream of students preparing for military careers.{{sfnp|Stearn|2004}} Although he was then 16 years old, at Cheltenham he was put in classes with pupils as young as 13.

Accounts of his time at Sevenoaks and Cheltenham show Heenan to have been a poor student and – in the words of the ''[[Dictionary of National Biography]]'' — a "gloomy, resentful misfit disliked by other pupils".{{sfnp|Stearn|2004}} He nevertheless excelled at sports, especially [[boxing]], due largely to his impressive physique.{{sfnp|Elphick|2001}}{{sfnp|Stearn|2004}} According to Elphick, Heenan was unpopular with other students at Cheltenham and was often in trouble with school authorities. Although he joined the [[Combined Cadet Force|Junior Division, Officers Training Corps]] (OTC) at Cheltenham, Heenan did not gain any formal qualifications;{{sfnp|Stearn|2004}} because of this, he was not able to be admitted to [[British Army]] officer training, when he left school at the age of 19. Heenan instead joined [[Steel Brothers]], a trading company with interests in [[Asia]].

==Military career==
In the early 1930s, Heenan applied for the [[Special Reserve|Army Supplementary Reserve]], the only way he could become an officer without formal qualifications. According to Elphick, had Heenan's illegitimacy been known, it would have prevented him becoming an officer. He was able to join the reserve by presenting his baptism certificate, along with a certificate signed by his school headmaster, stating that Heenan was capable of performing the duties of an officer. This was endorsed by the commander of Cheltenham College's OTC.

In 1933, he was [[Commissioned officer|commissioned]] into the Supplementary Reserve.<ref>{{London Gazette
| issue = 33927
| date = 4 April 1933
| page = 2287
| quote = SUPPLEMENTARY RESERVE OF OFFICERS. INFANTRY. Bedfs. & Herts. E.—Patrick Stanley Vaughan HEENAN (late Cadet Serjt., Cheltenham Coll. Contgt., Jun. Div., O.T.C:) to be 2nd Lt. 5th Apr. 1933
}}</ref> In 1935, Heenan was transferred to the British Indian Army,<ref>{{London Gazette
| issue = 34129
| date = 1 February 1935
| page = 773
}}</ref> with the service number 547/AI.<ref name="CWGG">{{cite web |url= http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2133552/HEENAN,%20PATRICK%20STANLEY%20VAUGHAN |title=Casualty Details: Heenan, Patrick Stanley Vaughan |work=[[Commonwealth War Graves Commission]] |date=2015 |access-date=16 October 2015}}</ref> His parents' address at this time was recorded as [[Cheam]], Surrey, England. He was put on the Indian Army's Unattached List, and was sent to [[British Raj|India]]. After six months' training with a British regiment, Heenan was not accepted by any Indian Army regiments. He had to do an additional six months with another British regiment before being accepted by the [[16th Punjab Regiment]]. He reportedly performed well in a skirmish on the [[North-West Frontier Province (1901–1955)|North-West Frontier]], but was later transferred to the [[Indian Army Service Corps]]. According to Elphick, this was a device commonly used to get unsatisfactory officers away from prestigious frontline regiments.{{sfnp|Elphick|2001}} However, Heenan later returned to the 16th Punjabs, but to a different battalion.{{citation needed|date = January 2012}}

In 1938–39, Heenan took a six-month "long leave" (an Indian Army tradition) in [[Japan]].{{citation needed|date = January 2012}}

During 1941, as fears of a Japanese [[South-East Asian theatre of World War II|invasion of Southeast Asia]] grew, Heenan's unit was sent to [[British Malaya|Malaya]]. He was transferred to an Indian Army Air Liaison Unit and was sent to [[Singapore]] for training. Following the completion of air liaison training, Heenan was stationed at [[Alor Setar]], in [[Kedah]], northern Malaya, in June 1941.{{sfnp|Farrell|2005}} It was in this area that most of the British [[Royal Air Force]], [[Royal Australian Air Force]] and [[Royal New Zealand Air Force]] squadrons in Malaya were based.{{citation needed|date = January 2012}}
[[File:Bristol Blenheims 62 Squadron Singapore Feb 1941.jpg|thumb|250px|Circa 8 February 1941. [[Bristol Blenheim]] Mark I bombers of [[No. 62 Squadron RAF]] lined up at Tengah, Singapore, before flying north to their new base at [[Alor Star]], Kedah. Heenan was attached to the squadron at Alor Star in late 1941.]]

Japanese forces [[Japanese Invasion of Thailand|invaded Thailand]] and [[Battle of Malaya|Malaya]] on 8 December. Sydney Tavender, chairman of the Cotswold branch of the [[Far East Prisoners of War]], and who served in the AIL unit with Heenan, said the Japanese aircraft always seemed to know the correct recognition codes, despite the fact that they were changed every 24 hours. By 10 December, the Japanese had destroyed most of the [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] aircraft in northern Malaya.

Heenan was caught during an air raid. "When we discovered he wasn't in the slit trenches with us we became suspicious," Tavender reported. "We went to his quarters and discovered a radio, which was still warm. That was the last we saw of him. He was arrested."<ref>''[[The Courier-Mail]]'', Brisbane, 6 May 1992</ref> The Japanese air raids were assisted by radio transmissions made by Heenan.{{sfnp|Elphick|2001}} Among other espionage equipment, he reportedly had a [[morse code]] transmitter operated by an [[alphanumeric keyboard]] — similar to a [[Alfred Traeger|Traeger Transceiver]] — which was disguised as a typewriter.{{citation needed|date = January 2012}} Heenan was sent to Singapore, and was reportedly [[court-martial]]led in January 1942.{{sfnp|Elphick|2001}} He does not seem to have been formally sentenced, but the normal sentence for treason by British officers was death.{{citation needed|date = January 2012}}

Heenan remained in custody at Singapore for several weeks. The Japanese gradually drove the Allies out of Malaya, and on 8 February they [[Battle of Singapore|attacked Singapore Island]]. Within days, it became clear that the battle was being won by the Japanese. In the words of journalist and author Lynette Silver (whose main source is Elphick):
:By 13 February[,] Heenan had become very cocky, taunting his guards ... that he would soon be free and they would be prisoners. It appears that ... [[Royal Military Police|British military police]] took matters into their own hands. After [[cut (cards)|cards were cut]] to decide who would ... [kill] Heenan, it is alleged he was taken to the dockside, where a sergeant executed him with a single pistol shot to the back of the head. The body was then dumped in the harbour.{{sfnp|Docker|Silver|1997}}
Elphick also says that Heenan was shot at [[Keppel Harbour]].{{sfnp|Elphick|2001}}

==Effects and aftermath==
Military historian Brian P. Farrell believes that Heenan could not have done decisive damage to the Allies but probably cost [[No. 62 Squadron RAF|No. 62 Squadron]] some personnel and aircraft.{{sfnp|Farrell|2005}} Elphick suggests that the British Commonwealth air forces would have been defeated without Heenan's help; their aircraft in Malaya were inadequate compared to the Japanese and airfields in northern Malaya had been located in positions that were for all intents and purposes not capable of being defended. Elphick added that Heenan "must have passed on much helpful information pre-war and he pushed the rate of aircraft destruction along a bit after the war began".{{sfnp|Elphick|2001}} Elphick also says that word of Heenan's actions spread quickly among British Commonwealth officers, which had a significant effect on morale.{{citation needed|date = January 2012}}

By 1998, the families of other personnel listed on the [[Commonwealth War Graves Commission]] World War II memorial at [[Kranji War Cemetery]] in Singapore were requesting the removal of Heenan's name.<ref name="Marsh">{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/htmlContent.jhtml?html=/archive/1998/04/13/nwar13.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040908165420/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/htmlContent.jhtml?html=/archive/1998/04/13/nwar13.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=8 September 2004 |first=Alec |last=Marsh |title=Japanese spy listed on British war memorial |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|date=13 April 1998 |access-date=6 March 2007}}</ref> His date of death on the memorial, 15 February 1942,<ref name="CWGG"/> was reportedly a standard date assigned to all Commonwealth personnel officially listed as missing during the Battle of Singapore.<ref name="Marsh"/>

==See also==
*[[Velvalee Dickinson]] (American spy for Japan during World War II)
*[[John Semer Farnsworth]] (American spy for Japan in the 1930s)
*[[Harry Thompson (spy)]] (American spy for Japan in the 1930s)
*[[Norman Baillie-Stewart]] (British spy for Germany during World War II)
*[[Arthur Owens]] (suspected British spy for Germany during World War II)
*[[Eddie Chapman]] (British double agent during World War II)
*[[William Colepaugh]] (American spy for Germany during World War II)
*[[Tyler Kent]] (American spy for Germany in the early 1940s)

==References==
;Notes
{{reflist|30em}}
;Bibliography
* {{cite book |url=http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/specials/noprisoners/viewpoints/silver.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020525001013/http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/specials/noprisoners/viewpoints/silver.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=25 May 2002 |title=Fabulous Furphies – 10 Great Myths from Australia's Past |first1=Edward |last1=Docker |first2=Lynette |last2=Silver |chapter=Scapegoats for the Bloody Empire |location=Burra Creek, NSW |publisher=Sally Milner Publishing |date=1997 |isbn=9781863511841 |access-date=16 October 2015}} Published online by ''[[Four Corners (Australian TV program)|Four Corners]]'', [[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]], 2002.
* {{cite web |url=http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/specials/noprisoners/viewpoints/elphick.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020520035758/http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/specials/noprisoners/viewpoints/elphick.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=20 May 2002 |title=Cover-ups and the Singapore Traitor Affair |first=Peter |last=Elphick |work=Fall of Singapore 60th Anniversary Conference |date=28 November 2001 |access-date=16 October 2015}} Published online by ''Four Corners'', Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 2002.
* {{cite book |first1=Peter |last1=Elphick |first2=Michael |last2=Smith |date=1994 |title=Odd Man Out, the Story of the Singapore Traitor |publisher=Trafalgar Square |edition=2nd |isbn=9780340617014 }}
* {{cite book |url=http://epress.nus.edu.sg/npu/viewarticle.php?id=37&layout=html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070328040326/http://epress.nus.edu.sg/npu/viewarticle.php?id=37&layout=html |url-status=dead |archive-date=28 March 2007 |first=Brian P. |last=Farrell |date=2005 |title=The Defence and Fall of Singapore 1940–1942 |publisher=Tempus Publishing |location=Stroud, Gloucs, UK |isbn= 9780752423111 |page=146 |quote=Ch. 7, n.19: The paper trail [in relation to Heenan] in archival records is [[Public Record Office|PRO]], WO172/18, [[Malaya Command]] War Diary Appendix Z.1, 10 December 1941; WO172/33, [[Indian III Corps|III Indian Corps]] War Diary, 12, 19, 23–24 December 1941;CAB106/53, [[11th Indian Infantry Division|11th Indian Division]] history, ch. 4; CAB106/86, Maltby Despatch; [[Imperial War Museum|IWM]], Wild Papers, 66/227/1, Wild notes |access-date=16 October 2015}}
* {{cite ODNB |url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/76003 |title=Heenan, Patrick Stanley Vaughan (1910–1942), army officer and traitor |first=Roger T. |last=Stearn |date=2004 |doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/76003 |access-date=10 September 2007 |url-access=subscription }}
* {{cite book |first=Alan |last=Warren |date=2002 |title=Singapore 1942, Britain's Greatest Defeat |publisher=Talisman |location=Singapore |isbn=9789810453206}}

==External links==
* {{cite journal |url= http://www.antiqueradio.com/traeger_pedal_07-99.html |title=The Pedal Radio of the Great Outback |journal=Antique Radio Classified |volume=16 |date=July 1999 |issue=7 |first=Richard |last=Begbie |access-date=16 October 2015}} An article about the Traeger Transceiver, with pictures.
*{{cite web |url=http://www.rancba.org.au/Patrick_Heenans_Radio.htm |first=James |last=Eagles |date=2005 |title=Patrick Heenan's Radio and the Flying Doctor |work=Royal Australian Naval Communications Branch Association |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060916141359/http://www.rancba.org.au/Patrick_Heenans_Radio.htm |archive-date=16 September 2006}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Heenan, Patrick}}
[[Category:1910 births]]
Registration Number 1910/4742 Family Name Given Name(s) Stanley Patrick Vaughan Mother's Given
Name(s) Annie Father's name NR New Zealand Births, Deaths, Marriages
[[Category:1942 deaths]]
[[Category:British Indian Army officers]]
[[Category:British Indian Army personnel who were court-martialed]]
[[Category:Extrajudicial killings in World War II]]
[[Category:Executed British collaborators with the Empire of Japan]]
[[Category:Executed spies]]
[[Category:Military of Singapore under British rule]]
[[Category:Military history of Malaya during World War II]]
[[Category:Indian Army personnel killed in World War II]]
[[Category:People educated at Cheltenham College]]
[[Category:People educated at Sevenoaks School]]
[[Category:People executed by the British military by firearm]]
[[Category:People from Reefton]]
[[Category:People convicted of spying for the Empire of Japan]]

Patrick Vaughan Stanley Heenan - Revision history

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