In 'Forlorn Hope' Jungslager describes the battle of the Dutch armed forces against Japan December 8, 1941 until March 9, 1942. In Part I he concentrates on the political events and measures in both Japan and in the countries of the Allied Powers during the crucial pre-war years. Part II covers the day-to-day military events as they took place in the Dutch East Indies after hostilities had broken out. As the Dutch had consumed all credit of confidence of the Indonesians by the time the war began, the many detailed battle reports make it tragically clear how desperate the battle of the officers and NCO's of the Dutch armed forces was.