After the war, the British regained rule of Singapore. But Lee, then a law student at Cambridge University, would never forget the debacle of Singapore’s fall. When he returned home in 1950, the 27-year-old law graduate was determined to free Singapore from colonial rule. Displaying a gift for navigating chaos, Lee entered the unruly politics of a country still reeling from World War II while lurching toward an uncertain postcolonial future.