Burma Campaign 75 years on

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E.J.Sparrow

INDEX SOURCES OF INFORMATION INTRODUCTION BACKGROUND “VIPER FORCE” BURMESE ARMY nd W A R D I A R Y 2 BATTALION BURMA RIFLES CEYLON HMS CORNWALL HMS D0RSETSHIRE HMS HERMES HMS EREBUS Deployed at Trincomalee. S.S ASCOT S. S. KHEDIVE ISMAIL COMMANDO TRAINING FIRST OPERATION BY 3 COMMANDO BRIGADE IMPHAL & KOHIMA

Lance Corporal JOHN HARMAN VC:

CAPTAIN RANDLE VC

SARGEANT HANSON TURNER,

Queen’s Own Royal West Kent Regiment

Royal Norfolk Regiment

page 3 page 4 page 5 page 6 page 8 page 9 page 19 page 20 page 20 page 20 page 21 page 21 page 21 page 21 page 23 page 25

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The West Yorkshire Regiment (The Prince of Wales's Own) page 28

WITHDRAWL COMMANDOS TO INDIA ATTACKS BY COMMANDO BRIGADE ON AKYAB BATTLE OF KANGAW HILL 170 JANUARY 1945 ORDER OF THE DAY BY JAPANESE GENERAL ORDER OF THE DAY BY BRITISH GENERAL GEORGE ARTHUR KNOWLAND VC AIR SUPPORT ROYAL NAVAL AIR SERVICE HMS AMEER HMS KHEDIVE PALEMBANG REFINERIES EXECUTION BY JAPANESE OF FLEET AIR ARM OFFICERS BATTLE HONOURS Palembang 1945 THE ROYAL AIR FORCE OPERATIONS CARRIED OUT BY THE RAF IN BURMA LANDING CRAFT SKIPPERS EXPERIENCE RECOLLECTIONS OF GEORGE SCALES RNVR CHINDITS

page 28 page 29 page 30 page 33 page 34 page 35 page 37 page 37 page 37 page 37 page 37 page 37 page 41 page 41 page 42 page 43 page 44 page 44 page 45

CHINDIT VICTORIA CROSSES MICHAEL ALLMAND VC MAJOR FRANK BLAKER VC MC LIEUTENANT GEORGE CAIRNS VC NAIK FAZAL DIN VC RECOLLECTIONS OF CYRIL BALLS

page 46 page 46 page 46 page 47 Page 44 page 49

6th Gurkha Rifles 3rd Battalion, 9th Gurkha Rifles South Staffordshire Regiment l0th Baluch Regiment Indian Army Berkshire Regiment

Brigadier Wingate's appraisal of the 2 Battalion Burma Rifles

OTHER CAMPAIGN WINNERS OF THE VICTORIA CROSS LIEUTENANT KARAMET SINGH JUDGE 15th Punjab Regiment, Indian Army HALVILDAR BHANBHAGTA GURUNG VC 3rd Battalion, 2nd Gurkha Rifles MAJOR CHARLES FERGUSON HOEY VC MC 1st Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment LIEUTENANT ALEC GEORGE HORWOOD to 1st Battalion, Northamptonshire Regiment RIFLEMAN GANJU LAMA 7th Gurkha Rifles HALVIDAR LACHHIMAN GURUNG VC 8th Gurkha Rifles, Indian Army JEMADAR RAO ABDUL HAFIZ KHAN VC 9th. Jat Regiment, Indian Army SEPOY BHANDARI RAM 10th Baluch Regiment, Indian Army LIEUTENANT CLAUD RAYMOND Corps of Royal Engineers SHER SHAH VC 16th Punjab regiment, Indian Army GIAN SINGH VC 15th Punjab Regiment, Indian Army NAND SINGH Acting Naik in the 1/11th Sikh Regiment HAVILDAR PRAKASH SINGH, VC, 8th Punjab Regiment RAM SARUP SINGH VC 2nd Battalion, 1st Punjab Regiment PRAKASH SINGH CHIB VC 4 /13th Frontier Force Rifles ST HALVIDAR UMRAO SINGH 81 West African Division SUBADAR NETRA BAHADUR THAPA 5th Royal Gurkha Rifles (Frontier Force) 2nd Battalion WILLIAM BASIL WESTON VC 1st Battalion West Yorkshire Regiment OPERATION DRACULA (Capture of Rangoon by Amphibious Assault) THE US CHINESE DIMENSION LIFE AS A POW THE BURMA RAILWAY THE HELL SHIPS The Lisbon Maru Rakuyo Maru Toyofuku Maru

LIFE AS A POW IN JAPAN David Wilson in 1947 THE AFTERMATH An excerpt from: BURMA INDEPENDENCE BILL Indian and Pakistan Independence Ceylon Independence Japan joins UN THOSE WE LEFT BEHIND TAUKKYAN WAR CEMETERY The TAUKKYAN CREMATION MEMORIAL The TAUKKYAN MEMORIAL The RANGOON MEMORIAL, National Arboretum Alrewas ROYAL NAVAL MEMORIALS Plymouth, Portsmouth, Chatham AT ARLINGTON IN THE USA General Orde Wingate and 8 US airmen ANZAC MEMORIAL “HELL FIRE PASS” MYANMAR THE COMMANDOS FAREWELL Presentation of colours to 3 COMMANDO RM SOURCES OF BACKGROUND INFORMATION (1) IWM © IWM (2) CWGC (C) CWGC (3) THE NAVALHISTORY NET WEBSITE http://www.naval-history.net/index.htm (4) For pictures of graves https://www.twgpp.org/index.php (5) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Hill_170

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(6) Col Peter Young’s narrative taken from the War Diaries of No 1 C COMMANDO (7) VICTORIA UNIVERSITY LIBRARY WELLINGTON NEW ZEALAND (8) SAINT MARY THE VIRGIN CHURCH PELDON MEMORIAL BOOK (9) FLEET AIR ARM ARCHIVE 1939 TO 1945 (10) RAF website history section http://www.raf.mod.uk/ (11) LONDON GAZETTE (12) PERSONAL FILES AND PHOTOS marked ©EJS (13) Hansard nd (14) The remains of the war diary of the 2 Battalion Burma Rifles for 1942 is available at the National Archives at Kew as file WO 172/975, only the months of January and April April-June June 1942 survive PLEASE NOTE that we obtained special dispensation from a number of agencies including the CWGC and the War Graves photographic project regarding copyright on their material used in this book. The IWM have granted a non commercial license for their material used in this book book, which covers most of the action pictures This was granted in view of the nature of the book being commemorative rather than published for commercial reasons

INTRODUCTION Following the attack on Pearl Harbour, the Japanese made attacks on the colonies in South East Asia belonging to the British, French and Dutch, who were not in a position to defend them. The prize they sought was oil, rubber, tungsten and tin to sustain their war effort. This book focuses mainly on just one of these: Myanmar formerly called Burma. From Thailand in the east, Burma slopes up to the North West and is the gateway to Assam and India. It has a series of rivers creating barriers to the Japanese, which run down from the North to the sea. However these same rivers became of advantage to the British to carry out sabotage at attacks tacks on the Japanese by small river craft. The attacks delayed the Japanese on the way in and again when in full retreat in 1944 after they had been repulsed at Kohima and Imphal. In 1942 there were members of “Viper Force” operating in small launches in the Burmese rivers to harass the Japanese on their advance towards India. They fought a rearguard action and carried out sabotage. Viper Force was comprised mainly of RN and RM personnel By 1944 the Japanese had to cross these same river obstacles during their retreat. They were pursued by the regular Army comprising British, Indian and African troops. 3 Special Service Brigade comprising 4 Commando units harassed the Japanese from the sea while other irregular forces such as the Chindits and the US Merri Merrill’s ll’s Marauders operated inland. This book covers some of the experiences of the various regular and irregular forces and a is a tribute to all who fought there The book is published FREE to download as a commemorative ee- book. At the time there was little mention of Burma on the radio and in the papers. They became the FORGOTTEN ARMY. Whilst many of the survivors have since “crossed the harbour bar” - the marine jargon for dying we, have in our midst hundreds of handicapped ex service personnel still needin needing help

SO PLEASE READ THESE STORIES THAT THEY MAY LIVE ON IN OUR MEMORIES AND DONATE WHERE YOU SEE A COLLECTING BOX FOR A SERVICE CHARITY Thank you

BACKGROUND In 1937 Burma separated from India. Up till then Burma had been for military purposes a part of India Command. Following the separation, the G.O.C. Burma Army came directly under the War Office, and although a few Indian troops remained in the country, its defence was not an Indian problem. In November 1940, it became the responsibility of the newly created Far Eastern Command, which had its headquarters at Singapore and Air Chief Marshal Sir Robert Brooke-Popham as Commander-in-Chief. This was the position when Japan entered the war in December 1941, and launched almost simultaneous attacks on key points in South-East Asia and the Pacific. On 7th December, 1941, the forces available for the defence of Burma were: British troops comprised: the 2nd Battalion of the King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry and the 1st Battalion of the Gloucestershire Regiment. Six Indian Battalions - the 5th/1st Punjab Regiment. 2nd/7th Rajput Regiment and 1st/18th Royal Garhwal Rifles in the 13th Indian Infantry Brigade and the 1st/9th Jat Regiment, 4th/12th Frontier Force Regiment and 1st/7th Gurkha Regiment forming the 16th Indian Infantry Brigade. Eight regular battalions and four territorial battalions of the Burma Rifles: four battalions of the Burma Auxiliary Force: seven battalions (one of them a reserve battalion) and five mobile detachments of the Burma Frontier Force: five Garrison Companies: three Mountain Batteries, Royal Indian Artillery: One Field Battery (18-pounders), Burma Auxiliary Force: Any other help would have to come from the Royal Navy and the Fleet Royal Marines. Against the country the Japanese employed their Fifteenth Army, which ultimately comprised four divisions, each of which was larger than an Indian division. On the night of 7th/8th December, 1941, the Japanese invaded Thailand by land and sea, and so gained possession of airfields and convenient assembly areas for the invasion of Burma. The G.O.C. Burma had been instructed that his first duty was to protect the air route to Singapore by defending the landing-grounds in southern Burma, his second duty was to safeguard communications with China by the Burma Road. It was expected that a Japanese attack would come along the one good road from Thailand into Burma, across the southern Shan States to Thazi, not far south of Mandalay; and accordingly a good proportion of the defending forces was concentrated in and to the south-east of Mandalay, Burma's second city. During the first two weeks of January 1942 there was considerable air activity, with raids on Rangoon, Martaban, Moulmein and Tavoy, while the Japanese were preparing their next blow. They had crossed the border from Thailand at a point due east of Tavoy on 8th January, and on 13th January the 17th Indian Division was ordered to concentrate all its available strength in Moulmein, Kawkareik and Tavoy; the tin and wolfram (tungsten) mines near Mergui were to be put out of 5

action, and Mergui aerodrome demolished. In the night of 17th/18th January the advanced companies of the 3rd and 6th battalions Burma Rifles were in action against aadvancing dvancing Japanese forces at Kyaukmedaung, twenty twenty-five miles east of Tavoy. The fall of Tavoy on the 19th gave the Japanese an important port and control of the entire coast from Malaya to Moulmein. The evacuation of Mergui, half half-way way between the Malayan border bo and Tavoy, became essential, and was successfully accomplished by sea between 20th and 23rd January, without any Japanese interference. During the month of February, as the Japanese advanced from the south and east and threatened to cut the British lines of communication and withdrawal, it became necessary to retreat from Martaban to the Bilin River and from there to the Sittang. If the bridge over the Sittang River at the village of the same name fell undamaged into the hands of the Japanese, the road ro to Rangoon would lie open before them. So, in the early morning of 23rd February, the bridge was destroyed, even though some British and Indian troops were thereby cut off on the farther side of the river. Many of them fortunately succeeded in crossing the river later, either swimming or on rafts. The remnants of the 17th Division were now withdrawn to the vicinity of Pegu. They had lost much of their transport and artillery, and many other weapons, and ceased to exist as a fighting force for the time being. eing. The Japanese proceeded up the east bank of the Sittang River, and on the 26th crossed the river at Shwegyin. There was little hope of holding Rangoon much longer. By mid mid-February February a very large proportion of the Indian population had fled from the cit city, y, either to Upper Burma and so by the Chindwin tracks to Assam, or across the waterless Arakan Yoma to the coast at Taungup and thence by country boat to Chittagong or by military transport vessels returning to India.

“VIPER FORCE” IRRAWADDY 1942 DEDIC DEDICATED TO THE MEMORY OF THE MEMBERS OF “VIPER FORCE” In the early part of the war it was critical that the British maintained an effective naval force in the Mediterranean to allow the flow of men to and fro between the UK and Asia/ Australasia. To this end the Mobile Naval Base Defence Organization (MNBDO) 1 operated in the Mediterranean prior to being shipped east of Suez In January 1942 Marines of 1st RM Coast Regiment sailed for Ceylon, where they were asked to volunteer for 'special service of a hazardous nature'. Major Duncan Johnston and 108 men were chosen to form “Viper “ 6

“Force. ©IWM At the time the British were preparing to withdraw northwards to India. The Viper Force operated in a fleet of 7 assorted launches fitted with Vickers machine guns or Bren guns, an Aldis signal lamp and a 'China' Mk I W/T Set 8. They saw numerous actions on the Irrawaddy and Chindwin rivers harrying the Japanese until May 1942. They were then forced to abandon their craft and march out to India. The individuals have not been identified but seven are known to have been drowned when Kohinoor capsized in a dust storm. Only 58 of the original 108 reached India, though a further six were released by Chinese troops some 11 months later from a prison camp North East of Mandalay.

Viper’s launch RITA ©IWM As part of their first major mission they were deployed to Rangoon in Burma to take on the invading Japanese army and over the next few months the 100 men of Viper Force blew up oil refineries, dock services, stores and on one occasion 20 million tonss of aviation fuel in a spectacular inferno. They helped stragglers and refugees across rivers to join up with the Indians on the North bank of rivers. On 14th March the Royal Marines Force "Viper" river patrol was based on Monyo and responsible for patrols as far as Danubyo and Henzada. Liaison with the Burma Military Police continued, operating through Major Hindle who was also based at Monyo. On the 14th and 15th March, the 17th Indian Division withdrew northwards, forming ne new w defensive positions around Okpo, South of Shwegon. The Burma Military Police Police-Burma Burma Frontier Force Group withdrew on the armoured train and on reaching Okpo took up guard of the area around the railway station Viper Force had a small victory at Henza on the 17 March but suffered heavy losses at Padaung on the 27th resulting with the deaths of 46 Viper Force men. Marine William LOUGH Service No: PLY/X 100895 went down fighting on the 24/04/1942. He was last seen in a small motorboat on the Chindwin 'firing his Bren gun into the Japanese motor transport' which was coming down to the road by the river with seven tanks tanks. Along with him Marine Marine, ROBERT ANDERSON PEACOCK Royal Marines “VIPER Force” (R.M. Group, M.N.B. D.O. (1)) Age: 21 Po Posted missing presumed killed:: 24/04/1942 Service No: CH/X 100916: Son of Laurence C. Peacock and Catherine Binnie Peacock, of Dunlop, Ayrshire. Memorial 7

Reference: Panel 84. Memorial: CHATHAM NAVAL MEMORIAL He was last seen in a small motorboat on the Chindwin 'firing his Bren gun into the Japanese motor transport' which was coming down to the road by the river with seven tanks

The Leader of â&#x20AC;&#x153;Viper Forceâ&#x20AC;? was Major Duncan JOHNSTON. He later joined Detachment 385 where he was killed on a mission in February 1945

BURMESE ARMY Some of the first troops to engage with the Japanese were the Burma Rifles. Unfortunately The war diaries of the other Burma Battalions were lost in the retreat. However the diary of the 2nd Battalion was saved and is on view at the Public Record Office at Kew. It portrays many of the difficulties encountered as they were pushed northwards to India. The original document has been edited here to reduce the number of abbreviations and hence make the text clearer. With refugees streaming north, villages burnt and wide spread looting causing utter chaos, there are several references to desertion and troops being released. Thus it is understandable 8

that this is probably a case of men wanting to be back with their families, who are now living in devastated occupied territory rather than cowardice. The authorities released men letting them take their rifle and 50 rounds of ammunition to protect their families. Note the continual change of location as they make a fighting retreat north wards. 2ND BURMA RIFLES WAR DIARY FOR APRIL 1942

1st April

2 Burma Rifles left THAYETMYO by marching route. Lieutenant Colonel SMITH remained in Command THAYETMYO. Dump made of bedding and unwanted stores and arrangements made to dispatch it to Brigade ALLANMYO. 4 Platoon broken up as per Division orders and Bren Guns from 4 Platoon and D Company 12 in number returned to Brigade. Total strength of Battalion now only 430 owing to sickness and desertion. C & D Companies merged into one since 28 March Arrived MINDE and formed Perimeter Camp.

2nd April

Left MINDE. Arrived TON 1200 hrs. Locals reported area quiet. Received information from 2 Brigade BURCORPS concentrating area ALLANMYOKYAUKPADAUNG-BWETKYICHAUNG-THAYETMYO.

3rd April

Left TON. Arrived THANIBAYA 0900 hrs. KAMA reported clear of enemy. Brigade reported “Large enemy column of 100 lorries appears to have harboured for night at KYUNGALE”. Bicycle patrol sent to investigate. 2 Brigade reported they were moving today to vicinity high ground NORTH of THAYETMYO. Role protection WEST flank of Corps if possible withdrawal. 2 Burma Rifles movements left own discretion. Patrol reported no enemy or Lorries in KAMA or KYUNGALE. Brigade informed.

4th April

Two platoons B Company sent under Company Command to investigate KAMA Area. Report from Patrol no enemy on KAMA. 700 enemy reported to have passed PYALO moving towards ALLANMYO. Received orders from Brigade to commence withdrawal to THAYETMYO. Patrol returned with no further information.

5th April

Left THANBYA. Arrived TON 0900 hrs. Received message from Brigade saying they were commencing withdrawal towards MINHLA, final destination YINCHAUNG South of MAGWE. 2 Burma Rifles will conform. Left TON.

6th April

Arrived YEMYET. Left YEMYET. Arrived BAN BYIN 1800 hrs.

7th April

Left BAN BYIN. Arrived AHLELE 1000 hrs. Battalion for the most part is living off the country. Rice and paddy always available and sometimes vegetables, oil, meat and dhall.

8th April

Left AHLELE. Arrived LINKE 1330 hrs. Received instructions from 2 Brigade to return via YENANMA or LEHLA, orders to recce motor road YENANMA-MINHLA. 10 Karen desertions during past two days. Total desertions now 61. Capt Lyne & 2 B Horls 9

left for MINHLA by bullock cart to go into hospital. 9th April

Left LINKE. Arrived YENANMA 1000 hrs. Informed by Brigade a Japanese regiment may be advancing on both sides of river. Task to recce road for passability Motor Transport and places for road blocks.

10th April

Left YENANMA. Arrived TAUNG-U 1200 hrs. Met by C.O. of 8 Burma Rifles Camped EAST side of village. Brigade Major arrived and gave verbal instructions as follows- 2 Burma Rifles role remain TAUNG-U area and watch approaches from SOUTH and SOUTH WEST. 8 Burma Rifles to move later to YENANMA to watch main motor road from THAYETMYO.

11th April

Received orders from Brigade to pass following message to 8 Burma Rifles.8 BURIF will move YENANMA tonight. Information from Brigade Japanese reported to have crossed from ALLANMYO to THAYETMYO 7 April Officer Commanding 2 Brigade visited Camp. Received 2 Brigade Operations Instruction No 18. A & B Companies moved out to forward defensive areas. A Company on hills to SOUTH of village. B Company on motor road YENANMATAUNG-U WEST of village,

12th April

8 Burma Rifles passed through Burma Rifles position en route to YENANMA. HQ & C Companies moved to new defensive position on CHAUNG one mile further EAST.

13th April

One Company 8 Burma Rifles and one Company Chins from 3 and 6 Burma Rifles arrived by march route from MINHLA. Company 8 Burma Rifles en route to join Battalion at YENANMA. Company Chins to join 2 Burma Rifles and replace KAREN Company as ordered in re-organization of Burma Rifles Battalions. Company commanded by Subedar SWAK ZAM. Morning and afternoon spent in collecting together KARENS to be sent back to 9 Burma Rifles Chin Company made up to war strength in equipment and arms from KAREN Company. Certain selected KARENS kept for specialist jobs in HQ Coy. List of Kachin and Chin personnel required to complete new establishment sent to Brigade. Chin Company renamed C Company and Karens collected for dispatch to Brigade. Orders from 2 Brigade. 2 Burma Rifles will move at once to take up defensive position KYOGON 6 miles from MINHLA. Orders sent to A & B Companies to withdraw at once & divert to KYOGON. HQ C Company and KAREN Detachment marched to KYOGON. Arrived 1915 hrs. Perimeter Camp arranged. Fresh orders from Brigade. Battalion will move to take up position on high ground one mile WEST of MINHLA. Brigade HQ at NYAUNGBINHLA. B Company arrived KYOGON. 2330 hrs A Company arrived KYOGON.

14th April

Battalion marched to new position. Arrived 0700 hrs. Position taken up by 0830 hrs. Battalion position shelled for 20 minutes by enemy artillery from EAST bank of IRRAWADDY. 3 Burmese Army Other Ranks wounded, one serious who died same day. Considerable confusion among mules, many of whom ran away. Five mules and one horse shot as result of wounds. Remaining mules sent back to RV approx one mile back on MINBU Road. Runaway mules gradually rounded up with exception of 10 mules. Four later brought in by 7 Burma Rifles One Platoon C Company reported to have withdrawn without orders. Orders from Brigade. 2 Brigade will withdraw along Road MINHLA-MINBU. 7 Burma Rifles will withdraw through 2 Burma Rifles. 2 Burma Rifles to withdraw 2 hrs after 7 Burma Rifles clear. Intermediate position recced by B Company. Last of 7 Burma Rifles passed through 2 BURIF position. B Company commenced withdrawal to intermediate position. Battalion commenced withdrawal.

15th April

Arrived PAIKTIN. Took up previously recced. intermediate position. 7 Burma Rifles passed through. Transport consisting of 30 bullock carts and approx 90 mules marched to MINBU. Battalion marched from MINBU. Reached harbour area four miles SOUTH of MINBU. A & C Companies took up defensive positions to cover embarkation of remainder of Brigade.

16th April

informed place of embarkation now two miles further south. Covering position altered accordingly. B Company moved to position astride road 7 miles South of MINBU. Advance HQ to behind A Company position M.S. 5 and C withdrawn to Reserve M.S. 4. Informed place of embarkation again changed to sandbank off MINBU chaung. Warning order from Brigade. MAGWE now evacuated by our troops and no further crossing possible. Brigade will march to SAGU â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 2 Burma Rifles Rear Guard. B Company withdrawn. Japanese Gunboat No. 209 steaming up river fired on with L.A. fire by A Company. After exchange of fire gunboat withdrew downstream.

A Company withdrawn through C Company covering position. 17th April

Arrived harbour area one mile NORTH of SAGU. Brigade left SAGU. 2 Burma Rifles Advance Guard.

18th April

Arrived WYINGYIT. 2 Burma Rifles in defensive position covering Brigade, Brigade left WYINGYIT. 2 Burma Rifles Main body. Report from Frontier Force.8 enemy contacted on West flank. All precautions taken.

19th April

Arrived harbour area two miles NORTH of SALIN. Report of very heavy fighting on opposite bank North of YENANGYAUNG.

20th April

Brigade left camp. Arrived CHAUNGBYU 0500 hrs. 2 Burma Rifles took up defensive position at daylight. No news of fighting on opposite bank. Brigade left CHAUNGBYU area. Arrived TANYAUNG 0200 hrs 21 Apr.

21st April

2 Burma Rifles motor patrol reported enemy advance party reached SINBYUEYUN. Reports of further enemy South of SALIN. Numbers unknown. Brigade left TANYAUNG. Arrived SEIKPYU 0330 hrs.

22 April

Informed by Brigade will take up defensive position North of YAW CHAUNG. No news of enemy movement since fighting in YENANGYAUNG area three days ago. Recce patrol returning from CHAUK reports no enemy or own Troops there. Demolitions apparently complete and looting prevalent. 2 Burma Rifles moved to defensive position area North of YAW CHAUNG. 2 Burma Rifles WEST 8 Burma Rifles EAST.

23rd April

Received orders from Brigade. 8 Burma Rifles, Brigade HQ and baggage train will move to YENANGYAT evening 23 Apr. 2 Burma Rifles will move independently morning 24 April. Moved into perimeter camp for night 23/24 April.

24th April

Left camp. On arriving LANYWA found that baggage train had spent night there consequently movement henceforth behind, carts very slow. Arrived YENANGYAT 1530 hrs. Camped in YENAGYAT village with piquets on surrounding hills. Brigade baggage train consists of approx 240 bullock carts which make movement very slow. 2 Burma Rifles Transport: 96 mules for 1st line, Reserves Ammunition, and one sup hard rationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; 38 bullock carts for remainder of rations and sick men.

25th April

Remained in Camp at YENANGYAT.

26th April

Brigade moved to MYITCHE arriving 0900 hrs. Received orders from Brigade. 2 Burma Rifles will separate from Brigade and moved to TILIN via PAUK. Role delay any advance through TILIN on KALEWA. 12

27th April

All rations possible collected locally. 2 Brigade less 2 Burma Rifles marched to PAKOKKU.

28th April2

Burma Rifles with a detachment Sappers and Miners – engineers and W/T detachment left YITCHE with approx one week’s rations for personnel on bullock carts. Mules rations to be bought locally. Arrived TABYA 0800 hours. Report from Patrol left at MYITCHE in mufti that 300 Thakins and 1-00 Japanese with one gun had arrived that place. Brigade informed. Message arrived from Brigade to say plan now altered. 2 Brigade complete will now make for TILIN. Burma Rifles to await arrival of remainder of Brigade at TABYA. Battalion positions altered and new position recced for Brigade.

29th April

2 Brigade arrived TABYA by marching route from PAKOKKU. Report from F.F.8 at KANHLA saying that they had been surrounded by enemy. Report subsequently proved completely false. Burma Rifles with W/T detachment plus our bullock cart Transport left by marching route. Arrived THANBYA-AING 1830 hrs. Brigadier arrived with Advance party from Brigade.

30th April

B Company sent as fighting patrol to PAUK to report if any enemy movement there. Brigade arrived THANBYA-AING. 2 Burma Rifles less B Company moved to PAUK arriving 1130 hrs. All quiet there but village looted and many houses burnt down. Dacoits common over whole area. Took up position at PAUK. Brigade arrived PAUK by marching route from THANBYA-AING. C.H.D. O’Callaghan Lieut. Col. Commanding 2 Burma Rifles 2ND BURMA RIFLES WAR DIARY FOR May 1942

1 May

Remained in PAUK. One Burman prisoner shot for complicity in stealing a man’s rifle. Baggage train left for YEBYU. Brigade marched for YEBYU. Reported by Spies left in PAUK that approx 200 Thakins armed with rifles arrived there at 0600 hrs. Brigade informed.

2nd May

Brigade marched for YEBYU. Reported by Spies left in PAUK that approx 200 Thakins armed with rifles arrived there at 0600 hrs. Brigade informed. Arrived CHAUNG at Milestone 55. 2 Burma Rifles left here with Baggage train as not sufficient water at YEBYU.

Remained 2/3 May in perimeter camp on hill North of CHAUNG.2 Burma Rifles marched. Two bridges burnt en route. 3rd May

Received orders from Brigade to proceed a once to YEBYU. Information now received that former report about Thakins in PAUK much exaggerated, probably only a few scallywags with 2 shot guns. Baggage train marched with C Company as escort. 2 Burma Rifles marched. Two bridges burnt en route. Arrived YEBYU 1600 hrs. Much delay caused by the fact that a party of Thakins from PAKOKKU had previously burned many bridges on road PAUK-TILIN for which diversions had to be made. Brigade HQ and 2 Burma Rifles left YEBYU.

4th May

Arrived KYIN. Delay due to bullock cart train having great difficulty at one of the diversions.

5th May

Brigade left KYIN. Arrived AKYIBAN 0930 hrs.

6th May

Brigade left AKYIBAN. Arrived PONNA 1000 hrs passing through TILIN.

7th May

Brigade left PONNA. Arrived PETWUN 1600 hrs. 2Â˝ hrs break for tea at SEMINDAW.

8th May

Left PETWUN. Arrived GANGAW 1330 hrs after 1Â˝ hrs break for tea. Hopes for local stores did not materialize owing to fact partly that many had been distributed to troops passing through and partly that the majority of shopkeepers being Indians had left for India. Rice, paddy and dhall had so far been available in villages en route, but little else. No report of enemy near GANGAW area. Two Chin deserters.

9th May

Left GANGAW. Arrived LETPAN 1130 hrs. Usual procedure in marches is as follows:2nd LINE Transport (carts) leaves Camp in evening approx 1800 hrs. 1st LINE Transport (carts) containing rations and stores required immediately on arrival leave approx 2100 hrs. Brigade fighting group leave early next morning. Arriving usually several hours after carts. Recce. and requisitioning parties leave with 2nd LINE Transport and by M.T. if any available.

10th May

Left LETPAN. Arrived CHAUNGGAUK 1030 hrs. Many men in Battalion with sore feet due to long and continuous marches and bad condition of sock and boots. As many as possible sent in bullock carts. Remainder marched slowly with 1st Line Transport. Six Chins, two Karens missing from previous days march. Whether they were unable to keep up owing to sore feet or deserters not known, probably the former.

11th May

Left CHAUNGGAUK. Arrived KINYAN MYAUK 1030 hrs. Owing to water shortage Brigade HQ and 8 Burma Rifles marched on 4 miles leaving 2 Burma Rifles and 2nd 14

Line Transport in KINYAN MYAUK. Orders received by 2 Brigade from BURCORPS to proceed to KALEMYO as quickly as possible. 12th May

Left KINYAN MYAUK. Arrived SIHAN MYAUK 1000 hrs after encountering heavy rain on way. General reorganization. Rations drawn from rations dump. Bullock carts Transport cut down to minimum. All kit etc remaining being destroyed. 2 Burma Rifles was cut down to 14 bullock carts. Sick evacuated by lorries. 12 lorries arrived. 9 allotted to 2 Burma Rifles to ferry Battalion to KALEMYO. Advised HQ, B, C Companies and number 3 Mortar Platoon left by lorries for destination now changed to IMBAING.

13th May

Remainder of Battalion and Mule Transport and 10 bullock carts marched to NATSHAUNG. All stores taken on lorries and bullock carts. Convoy arrived IMBAING. Placed in temporary Camp by Corps representative. Further 3 lorry loads left NATSHAUNG with remainder of HQ Company. 2nd-in-Comd with A Coy and bullock carts escort arrived NATSHAUNG. Bullock carts unloaded and rations put on lorries. Remainder of Battalion left NATSHAUNG by lorries. Arrived IMBAING 0830 hrs. Orders received from 2 Brigade. 2 Burma Rifles will to YESAGYO. Be watchful approaches from EAST between YESAGYO and IMBAING. Adv. HQ, A & B Companies left IMBAING by lorries. Arrived YESAGYO 1130 hrs. Remainder of Battalion left by marching route to be ferried by M.T. when available. A & B Companies left to take up position as follows:A Coy: 6 miles South of Yesagyo guarding track over hills B Coy: 3 miles East of Yesagyo. C Company and Adv HQ remained YESAGYO area. All Battalion now arrived except Doctor and 3 Platoon. Lorries sent to fetch them and take Mortar Platoon direct to Brigade HQ, the Battalion having no Transport to carry them. Reported 2 GC Officers, 35 Other Ranks from Chin Reinforcement Company deserted. Brigade informed. Clocks put back 2 hrs to conform to India Standard Time.

14th May

2 Burma Rifles now temporarily under 16 Brigade. Company Commanders from 15

CHIN reinforcement Company and 15 more Chin Burma Army Other Ranks deserted during the night. Orders from 16 Brigade to move Battalion back to Mile stone 51. A & B Companies withdrawn by Motor Transport. A & B Companies arrived at Headquarters. Commenced ferrying of Battalion by Motor Transport to destination now changed to Milestone 62.4. 2nd-in-command & Quarter Master sent ahead with Jems. One lorry for tactical purposes allotted to 2 Burma Rifles. Last of Battalion arrived. 15th May

34 Kachins and 33 Chins deserted night 14/15 May. Took up position astride road Mile Stone 62.4 to cover withdrawal of forward Troops.

16th May

Last of forward Troops (8th Burma Rifles) passed through position. 2 Burma Rifles marched to harbour area at KAMPAT. Captain Hodgson with 5 men and one jeep left to patrol rd KALEMYO-TAMU 20 miles ahead of paused Troops to return by 18 May. Adjutant duty handed over to Captain F.A. Harris. Battalion marched to MINTHAN. Arrived destination 1830 hrs.

17TH May

Brigade marched to WATOCK. A Coy 2 Burma Rifles left by M.T. for WATOCK and on arrival there proceeded on to Camp 8 miles North of TAMU. 2 Burma Rifles less A Company arrived WATOCK 0530 hrs. Left again at 0700 hrs, food distribution ordered PANTHA and from this place destination changed to camp 3 miles North of TAMU. This destination was reached by ferrying the Battalion as Motor Transport became available.

18th May

Brigade marched to LOKCHAO, 13 miles from TAMU, arriving 0830 hrs. Here Battalion was ordered to defend all approaches to an iron bridge on Main Road which was being dismantled by engineers. 10 more Chin desertions during night.

19th May

Captain Hodgson rejoined from special mission and took over his former duties as Adjutant. Orders from 2 Brigade received stating 2 Burma Rifles were to remain in this position till 28 May. Heavy rain all day showed that monsoon had now broken. Total strength of Battalion now 8 Burmese Officers and 89 Karens 77 Kachins 142 Chins & 4 Other classes and 46 Followers.

20 May

Remained in present position.

21st May hrs

Warning Order from 2 Brigade. 2 Brigade is moving by marching route approx 1930

Stores to be ferried by jeep, the rd being impassable for heavier traffic. Mules Animal Transport to be sent for remaining stores. 22nd May

Stores being moved on jeeps throughout day. Orders from 2 Brigade. Will move on pack Transport at 1900 hrs. Fresh Orders from 2 Brigade. Motor Transport now available for stores and Animal Transport will not be used. Report that Road is unfit for Motor Transport, orders changed accordingly and all stores made up to mule loads. Brigade left LOCKCHAO

23rd May

Brigade arrived Mile Stone 47 where Motor Transport was expected to lift the Brigade to PALEL. Mules unloaded sent away. Stores moved to PALEL by Motor Transport Informed by Brigade Motor Transport could not reach Mile Stone 47 owing to slippery nature of road and that Brigade would march to Mile Stone 40. Brigade left Mile Stone 47. Arrived Mile Stone. 40 at 1400 hours. Brigade moved from there in Motor Transport. Arrived PALEL 1700 hrs and moved into rest camp for night.

24th May

Received orders 2 Brigade will move to IMPHAL by Motor Transport. Two bridges down on rd PALEL-IMPHAL. Owing to shortage of Motor Transport between the two bridges, Brigade had to be ferried in 8 lorries. 2 Burma Rifles plus stores left PALEL in 8 3 ton lorries. On arrival at first broken bridge stores unloaded and transferred to other bank but no Motor Transport was found on the other side as expected. After waiting four hours Battalion moved by marching route to other broken bridge leaving stores to await Motor Transport. Arrived second broken bridge where Motor Transport was waiting. Informed destination not IMPHAL but Mile Stone 108 approx 24 miles beyond. 2 Burma Rifles plus stores left by Motor Transport .Arrived Mile Stone 108 2030 hrs. Found that we were not expected. Tarpaulins borrowed and Brigade spent night in open field.

25th May

Moved to Temporary Camp site Mile Stone 109 pending definite orders. 2 Burma Rifles paraded on road and was inspected by H.E. Commander-in-Chief GENERAL SIR ARCHIBALD WAVELL.

26th May

Conference of Commanders of Burma Rifles Battalions to decide future disposal of Burma Troops. Decided men to be given the option without bias of going to India or returning to their homes with 3 months pay, all savings and Provident fund and a rifle and 50 rounds. Those that stayed would go to India with the idea of forming 17

a Divisional recce unit. 27th May

Moved up to Camp area. Men now all under cover in huts, tents or tarpaulins. Time occupied in 1. Large fatigues to improve roads in Camp under direction of Sappers 2. Calculation of back pay, savings and Provident fund. 3. Bringing up to date of all Casualty returns and records, all records having been lost by Battalion B Echelon. 2nd Lieutenant Hilton reported back for duty.

29th May

Moved to another camp nearer main road at Mile Stone 107. All Burma Rifles Battalions moved into this area during the course of the day with the intention of easing communication. Future movements still vague. Most Chins wish to return home. Kachins doubtful.

30th May

All spare arms, mortars, tommy guns, Brens, ammunition Signal Equipment etc handed back to Ordnance in orders of 1 Burma Division.

31st May

Final figures published of men going and men staying: KACHINS

CHINS

KARENS

FOLLOWERS

Going to Burma

132

Staying

C.H.D. O’Callaghan Lieut. Col. Commander Burma Rifles Battalions

2ND BURMA RIFLES WAR DIARY FOR JUNE 1942 Items concerning Unit’s movements 2 Jun

A party left for RANCHI consisting of men who did not wish to return to Burma and who would not be needed in new Recce Unit. 2 BURIF party, CAPT P.A.HARRIS, 2/Lt G.M. HILTON, 4 B.A.O.Rs. and 3 Followers

5 Jun

Men left for Burma in 3 parties 1. CHINS & KARENS taken by M.T. to SHAGANOO 2. LUSHAI Chins Rd to DIMAPUR and Rail to SILCHAR. 3. Kachins by Road to DIMAPUR then Rail to LIDO. All ranks were given 7 days rations. CHINS ordered to report to Col HASWELL Commanding CHIN Levies within one month of departure.

6 Jun

All ranks remaining in 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th, 9th and 10th Burma Rifles formed into composite BURMA RIFLES Battalion for the time being consisting of one Company of Kachins & Chins combined and two Companies Karens with a total strength of 20 G.C. Officers. 308 Burma Army Other Ranks.

0915

The Burma Rifles Composite Battalion under Col C.H.D. O’Callaghan was inspected by 18

Lt.GEN. BROAD, Commanding Eastern Army. 9 Jun

10 Jun

A.M.

Composite Burma Rifles Battalion arrived DIMAPUR in Motor Transport.

P.M.

Battalion left by train for Ranchi

En route to RANCHI by train.

11 Jun En route to RANCHI by train. At SANTANAR three coaches containing 4 Burmese Officers and approx 180 Other Ranks of Burma Frontier Force and Burma Military Police plus a number of families were added to the train. 21 Jun 22 Jun

One woman in Family Party reported suffering from Small Pox Movement order to HOSHIARPUR received.

23 Jun

Morning spent in striking tents. Battalion and families embussed in 27 Lorries from Camp at 1340 hrs. Another woman of Family Party reported suffering from Small Pox. Both so ill patients and contacts left at Camp. Battalion entrained at TORI at 1800 hrs and departed 2010 hrs. Strength BOs 7 GCOs 23 Burmese Army Other Ranks 323 Followers 69 Families 72.

24 Jun

Arrived PASANLI 0526 hrs and depart 1010 hrs. Morning meal cooked on the station. Evening meal cooked on the train. PAJARBEAN arrived 2030 hrs depart 2140 hrs.

25 Jun Arrived LUCKNOW 0430 hrs and morning meal cooked on the station. Another case of Small Pox and 28 contacts left at I.H.H. Lucknow [Indian Military Hospital]. Depart from Lucknow 0810 hrs. Tea as such at MILAK. Arrived MORADABAD 2110 hours depart 2135 hrs. 26 Jun

Arrived SAHARANPUR 0835 hrs and morning meal cooked on the station. depart 1110 hrs. AMBALA Camp reached 1405 hrs where ice issued. Afternoon meal cooked on train. Arrived at HOSHIARPUR 2200 hrs. Night spent on train.

27 Jun Battalion marched to HOSHIARPUR Camp, distance 2Â˝ miles in heavy rain. Kit brought forward in one lorry. Camp found partially pitched but re-encamped during day. 28 Jun Camp arrangements completed. 29 Jun Training restarted. 6 G.C. Officers and 54 Burmese Army Other Ranks reported from Burma Details. The remnants of the 2ND Battalion Burma Rifles were absorbed into the Chindits were they did outstanding work as intelligence gathers (see the section on Chindits for General Wingateâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s appraisal) CEYLON In August 1943, with the agreement of the Combined Chiefs of Staff, Winston Churchill appointed Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten as Supreme Allied Commander South East Asia. The initial land forces operational area for SEAC was India, Burma, Ceylon, Malaya, northern islands of Sumatra, and, for offensive operations, Siam (Thailand). The headquarters moved in April 1944 to Kandy in Ceylon. Ceylon itself came under attack from the Japanese as did ships protecting Ceylon and troopships 19

bringing in personnel. One measure implemented when Admiral Louis Mountbatten became Supreme Commander in South East Asia was to combine the COPPS, SBS and other small units into the Small Operations Group (SOG) under Colonel (later Major General) H. T. Tollemache RM. Combined Operations Assault Pilotage Parties (COPPS) had been formed in September 1942 from RN navigators and RE officers training for beach reconnaissance ahead of the Torch landings in North Africa.

HMS CORNWALL 5th April 1942 Sighted during return passage to Maldives by aircraft from Japanese cruiser TONE. HMS Cornwall came under heavy and sustained attacks by dive bombers from the aircraft carriers AKAGI, SORYU and HIRYU. Deficient AA armament and careful manoeuvring by enemy aircraft gave ship little defence and she was quickly disabled. She sank within 15 minutes with heavy casualties including 190 killed or missing. (Note: Some 6 minutes later, HMS DORSETSHIRE was sunk by similar attacks).

HMS Cornwall & HMS Dorsetshire under attack

©IWM

HMS Cornwall sinking ©IWM

HMS D0RSETSHIRE ship loss ©IWM 5th April 1942 Sighted by aircraft from Japanese cruiser TONE in position 01.54N 77.45E South of Ceylon. Came under heavy dive bombing attacks and sank within 8 minutes. 234 of ship's company lost their lives. There were hundreds of the crew in the water and then three planes came over and added to the horror of those moments by machine-gunning us in the water. 6th April 1942 1,122 survivors from both cruisers rescued by HMS ENTERPRISE, HMS PANTHER and HMS PALADIN some 30 hours after the sinking

HMS HERMES ÂŠIWM 8th April 1942 Remained south of Ceylon after Japanese air attacks and had no serviceable aircraft on board. 9th April 1942 Under attack by Japanese aircraft off Ceylon and sank after being hit by no fewer than forty 250 lb Bombs. 306 of her ship's company lost their lives.

ÂŠIWM

HMS EREBUS Deployed at Trincomalee. 9th April 1942 Under Japanese air attack whilst in harbour and sustained casualties and damage.

The SS ASCOT sank on February 29, 1944, after being torpedoed by a Japanese submarine in the Indian Ocean. Survivors were machine-gunned on the rafts and in the water. Of the 52 crew who had abandoned ship, only eight survived The loss of HM Troopship S. S. KHEDIVE ISMAIL troopship On 12TH February 1944 Convoy KR-8 sailed from Mombasa to Colombo. In the early afternoon of Saturday 12TH February 1944, the Japanese submarine I-27, commanded by Lt-Cdr Toshiaki Fukumura, attacked the convoy in the One and a Half Degree Channel, south-west of the Maldives. The submarine sank the Khedive Ismail, which was carrying 1,511 personnel. As survivors floundered in the sea, I-27 submerged and hid beneath them. While HMS Paladin lowered boats over her side to begin rescuing survivors, HMS Petard raced in to release depth charges. The destruction of an enemy submarine that might sink more ships took precedence over the lives of the survivors, and I-27 under Commander Fukumura had a history of machine-gunning survivors of ships she had sunk, The depth charges forced I-27 to the surface where HMS Paladin rammed her. Finally a torpedo from Petard destroyed the I-27. No fewer than 1,297 people lost their lives in the two minutes it took for the Khedive Ismail to sink. Included in the casualties were 14 WRNS.

NEED FOR COMMANDOS IN BURMA 21

In anticipation that special troops were needed to exploit the Burma river system, Commando troops were trained firstly in Scotland and then in jungle warfare in Ceylon

COMMANDO TRAINING

THE COMMANDO STATUE AT ACHNACARRY

For their valour in action the Commandos earned thirty-eight battle honours and many awards including eight Victoria Crosses, but many made the supreme sacrifice, no fewer than 1,700 Commando soldiers lost their lives and others were seriously wounded. It was a record that prompted Winston Churchill to pay the following tribute to the Commandos: "We may feel sure that nothing of which we have any knowledge or record has ever been done by mortal men which surpasses their feats of arms. Truly we may say of them when shall their glory fade." They trained at Achnacarry September 1943 and shipped out to the Far East arriving in Burma in January 1944. The Royal Marine Commandos like all British Commandos went through the six week intensive commando course at Achnacarry. The course in the Scottish Highlands concentrated on fitness, speed marches, weapons training, map reading, climbing, small boat operations and demolitions both by day and by night. The only difference between the Army and Royal Marines is the former are all volunteers whereas the latter are not.

SINGLE ROPE RIVER CROSSING HOURS

TARZAN COURSE

GIVING HIM A SHAVE ?

RIVER CROSSING

50 MILE YOMP OVER ROUGH COUNTRY IN 8

BOAT DRILL

In general, the severity of the tests increased steadily throughout the course. Thus with the speed march it was done as a squad carrying rifles, wearing a pack covering 15 miles at 10 minutes a mile. Along level ground and downhill they doubled and uphill it was at Light Infantry pace.

ROUTE OF 50 MILE YOMP

ROPE BRIDGE

CLIFF CLIMBING

42 and 44 RM Commandos were part of 3 Special Service Brigade along with numbers 1 and 5 Army Commandos. 42 served in India and Burma in 1943â&#x20AC;&#x201C;45 No. 42 (Royal Marine) Commando had been raised in August 1943, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel R C de M. Leathes from the 1st Royal Marine Battalion, as part of the expansion of the commandos. 44 RM Commando was formed on the 1st August 1943 at Ashurst from the 3rd RM Battalion. Those who were unfit or unsuitable were drafted to other units. Post war on the 16th March 1947 it was redesignated 40 Commando RM as the Commandos contracted to two Royal Marine Brigades number 3 Commando Brigade RM and number 4 Brigade for the reserves. At this point the Army ones disbanded. The renaming of 44 as number 40 RM was to keep the name of the first RM commando in service and to pick a commando from each of the major theatres of the war where the RM commandos fought. In August 1943 Lord Louis Mountbatten set up his South East Asia Command (SEAC) HQ in India. So far the Japanese advance had been relentless and Mountbatten laid plans to regain the initiative with an assault on Burma. In the UK No 5 Commando, now under Lt-Col D M Shaw MC, became part of 3 SS Brigade under the command of Brigadier W I Nonweiler. Together with No 44 Royal Marines Commando, No 1 Commando, with Ken Trevor in command and No 42 RM Commando, they left Gourock on the River Clyde in Scotland on 15 November 1943. No 5 Commando and No 44 RM Commando arrived in Bombay on 19th December 1943 after a five week voyage. They were moved by train to a camp at Kedgaon near Poona - a "cold, windswept, bleak and bare hill". At Lake Kharakvasla, also near Poona, a Combined Training Centre had been established to practice amphibious landing techniques.

A month later, after putting into Alexandria for repairs following a German bombing raid, No 1 Commando and No 42 Royal Marines Commando arrived. No 2 (Dutch) Troops of No 10 (IA) Commando left the United Kingdom on 11th December with the ultimate intention that they should take part in the liberation of the Dutch East Indies. No. 44 and No.5 Commandos arrived in the theatre together. 42 RM Commando was sent to Alexandra on HMT Ranchi. By December 42 RM Commando reached Alexandria and spent Christmas there. The stay was caused by an air attack by the Luftwaffe, which caused damage to the Ranchi's Foc'sle. In January 1944 they embarked on HMT Scythia at Port Tewfik and set sail for Bombay. They arrived in Bombay and proceeded to Kedgaon to carry out Jungle training in the Belgaum Jungle Meanwhile 44 RM Commando spent some time at Cox's Bazar acclimatizing before becoming operational. FIRST OPERATION BY 3 COMMANDO BRIGADE No 5 Commando and No 44 RM Commando were soon on the move again. In late December 1943 the XV Indian Corp launched an offensive in the Arakan (North West Burma) and on the 9th January 1944 the 5th Indian Division had captured Maungdaw. With the onset of the Japanese 'Ha Go' counteroffensive against the 5th Indian Division, Nos. 5 and 44 Commando returned to Bombay 23

where they boarded HMS Keren on the 22nd February bound for Cox's Bazar on the north east coast of India close to the Burmese border. They arrived there on the 5th March 1944 to prepare for Operation Screwdriver - the invasion of Burma. On 5 March 1944 No. 44 set up their base at Nhila on the Teknaf peninsula. Later the same month No. 44 took part in their first operations against the Japanese. These were two missions codenamed Operation Screwdriver. Their first operation 11 March was a landing from the sea assisted by RN Beach Commando 'Hotel' at Alethangyaw their objective was to capture the town for the rest of the brigade to pass through into the surrounding hills to engage the enemy. By this time the 'Ha Go' offensive had been halted and XV Corp planned to clear the Maungdaw to Buthidaung road. The landing was met in force by machine gun emplacements and sniper fire and for the next 48 hours the Commando had a series of running battles with the Japanese and carried out a reconnaissance of the surrounding hills. The mission claimed 40â&#x20AC;&#x201C;50 Japanese dead for the loss of four commandos missing believed dead. Their second mission was crossing the Naf River by barge on 21 March with the objective of raiding Nahkaungdo, Lambaguna and Hinthaya. The operation was a success following a number of small skirmishes the Japanese were forced to bring up reinforcements. Buthidaung and the Japanese stronghold of Razabil were captured and No 5 Commando returned to the coast at Maungdaw to be followed later by No 44 Commando.

On 23rd March 1944 two troops were called out to help extricate an artillery battery from an exposed defile. On their way back they were ambushed in a narrow defile and suffered heavy casualties. Their success was later recognized by the awards of two MCs, an MM and two mentions in Dispatches. The Japanese Fifteenth Army now launched an offensive in northern Burma which culminated in the battles around the towns of Imphal and Kohima.

IMPHAL & KOHIMA

ÂŠIWM

When You Go Home, Tell Them Of Us And Say, For Your Tomorrow, We Gave Our Today

KOHIMA WAR CEMETERY

(C)

CWGC

As can be seen from the satellite picture it is difficult mountainous terrain to fight over. Imphal was a major British base in Assam on the Indian Burmese border. The British had established a large supply facility for their planned offence to push the Japanese back. It was also the start of the supply route to China. The Americans wanted to keep the Chinese able to continue tying up Japanese forces that otherwise be available to them elsewhere in the Pacific. The Battle at Imphal took place in the region around the city of Imphal, the capital of the state of Manipur in northeast India from March until July 1944. 25

Japanese armies attempted to destroy the Allied forces at Imphal and invade India, but were driven back into Burma with heavy losses. Together with the simultaneous Battle of Kohima on the road by which the encircled Allied forces at Imphal were relieved, the battle was the turning point of the Burma Campaign. Imphal was held by the IV Corps, commanded by Lieutenant-General Geoffrey Scoones. The corps was in turn part of the British Fourteenth Army under Lieutenant General William Slim. Because the Allies were planning to take the offensive themselves, the corps' units were thrown forward almost to the Chindwin River and widely separated, and were therefore vulnerable to being isolated and surrounded. 20th Indian Infantry Division under Major-General Douglas Gracey occupied Tamu 68 miles south-east of Imphal. The division was untried but well-trained. 17th Indian Infantry Division under Major-General 'Punch' Cowan occupied Tiddim, 151 miles south of Imphal, at the end of a long and precarious line of communication. The division, which had two brigades only, had been intermittently in action since December 1941. 23rd Indian Infantry Division under Major-General Ouvry Roberts was in reserve in and around Imphal. It had served on the Imphal front for two years and was severely under strength as a result of endemic diseases such as malaria and typhus. 50th Indian Parachute Brigade under Brigadier Maxwell Hope-Thompson was north of Imphal, conducting advanced jungle training. 254th Indian Tank Brigade under Brigadier R. L. Scoones was stationed in and around Imphal. The Indian divisions were composed of both British and Indian personnel. In each brigade, there were generally one British, one Gurkha and one Indian battalion, although two brigades (37th Brigade in 23rd Division and 63rd Brigade in 17th Division) were composed entirely of Gurkha units. Each division was supported by two field artillery regiments (usually British) and one Indian mountain artillery regiment. On the 29th April Lashio had fallen, as the Chinese 29th Division and part of the 28th had been obliged to withdraw to avoid being cut off. So the Burma Road to China was cut and the way lay open for the Japanese to advance on Bhamo and Myitkyina. The latter town was evacuated on 7th May. The withdrawal up the Chindwin and along the hill tracks to the Indian frontier went on. The first rains of the monsoon fell on 12th May, and the final stages of the retreat to the region of Imphal were made under heavy rain. The ordeal of many of the civilians who followed the same route, without transport and without food supplies, was terrible, and many perished. In Assam, both the military and civilians spared neither themselves nor their limited resources in welcoming and organising the refugees and the retreating troops. The Battle of Kohima was the turning point of the Japanese “U Go” offensive into India in 1944 during the Second World War. The battle was fought in three stages from 4 April to 22 June 1944 around the town of Kohima in Nagaland in northeast India. From 3 to 16 April, the Japanese attempted to capture Kohima ridge, a feature which dominated the road by which the besieged British and Indian troops of IV Corps at Imphal were supplied. By mid-April, the small British and Indian force at Kohima was relieved. From 18 April to 13 May, British and Indian reinforcements counter-attacked to drive the Japanese from the positions they had captured. The Japanese abandoned the ridge at this point but continued to block the Kohima–Imphal road. From 16 May to 22 June, the British and Indian troops pursued the retreating Japanese and reopened the road. 26

The battle ended on 22 June when British and Indian troops from Kohima and Imphal met at Milestonee 109, ending the Siege of Imphal. The following 3 Victoria Crosses demonstrate clearly the scale of the fighting. Lance Corporal JOHN HARMAN VC of the Queenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Own Royal West Kent Regiment

He was born 20/07/1914 Beckenham, Kent. Died 09/04/1944 Kohima, India. John Harman was the son of millionaire Martin Coles Harman, owner of Lundy Island, and followed his father's interest in natural history. Harman was 29 years old, and a lance lance-corporal corporal in the 4th Battalion, The Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment, British Army during the Second World War when the following deed took place for which he was posthumously awarded the VC. On 8/9 April 1944 at the Battle of Kohima, British India, Lance Lance-Corporal Corporal Harman was commanding a section of a forward orward platoon where soldiers of the Imperial Japanese Army had established a machine-gun gun post within 50 yards of his company and were becoming a menace. Since it was not possible to bring fire on to the enemy post the lance lance-corporal corporal went forward by himself himsel and threw a grenade into the position, destroying it. He returned carrying the enemy machinegun as a trophy. Early next morning, having ordered covering fire from his Bren gun team, he went out alone, with Lee Enfield and fixed bayonet and charged a part partyy of Japanese soldiers who were digging in. He shot four and bayoneted one. On his way back, Lance Corporal Harman was severely wounded by a burst of enemy machine-gun gun fire and died soon after reaching British lines. A second VC was awarded at Kohima CAPTAIN AIN RANDLE VC Royal Norfolk Regiment

On the 4th May, 1944, at Kohima in Assam, a Battalion of the Royal Norfolk Regiment attacked the Japanese positions on a nearby ridge. Captain Randle took over command of the Company which was leading the attack whe when n the Company Commander was severely wounded. His handling of a difficult situation in the face of heavy fire was masterly and although wounded himself in the knee by grenade splinters he continued to inspire his men by his initiative, courage and outstand outstanding ing leadership until the Company had captured its objective and consolidated its position. He then went forward and brought in all the wounded men who were lying outside the perimeter. In spite of his painful wound Captain Randle refused to be evacuated and d insisted on carrying out a personal reconnaissance with great daring in bright moonlight prior to a further attack by his Company on the position to which the enemy had withdrawn. At dawn on 6th May the attack opened, led by Captain Randle, and one of the th platoons succeeded in reaching the crest of the hill held by the Japanese. Another platoon, however, ran into heavy medium machine gun fire from a bunker on the reverse slope of the feature. Captain Randle immediately appreciated that this particular b bunker unker covered not only the 27

rear of his new position but also the line of communication of the battalion and therefore the destruction of the enemy post was imperative if the operation was to succeed. With utter disregard of the obvious danger to himself Captain Randle charged the Japanese machine gun post singlehanded with rifle and bayonet. Although bleeding in the face and mortally wounded by numerous bursts of machine gun fire he reached the bunker and silenced the gun with a grenade thrown through the bunker slit. He then flung his body across the slit so that the aperture should be completely sealed. The bravery shown by this officer could not have been surpassed and by his selfsacrifice he saved the lives of many of his men and enabled not only his own Company but the whole Battalion to gain its objective and win a decisive victory over the enemy.” SARGEANT HANSON VICTOR TURNER VC West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Own) 1st Battalion

©CWGC Serjeant, Service No: 4624899, Date of Death: 07/06/1944, Age: 33, West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Own) 1st Battalion. , Son of James Herbert and Alice Turner; husband of Edith Turner, of Copley, Halifax, Yorkshire. Citation: “ The citation in the London Gazette of the 15th August, 1944, gives the following details:In Burma, at Ningthoukong on the night of 6th-7th June, 1944, an attack was made by Japanese with medium and light machine guns. The attack largely fell on the position held by a platoon of which Serjeant Turner was one of the Section Commanders. The enemy were able to use grenades with deadly effect. Three machine-guns in the platoon were destroyed and the platoon was forced to give ground. Serjeant Turner with coolness and fine leadership reorganised his party and with a doggedness and spirit of endurance of the highest order repelled all attacks. The position was held throughout the night. When it was clear that the Japanese were attempting to outflank the position, Serjeant Turner, armed with grenades, boldly and fearlessly attacked them single handed. He went back five times for more grenades; and on the sixth occasion, still singlehanded, he was killed while throwing a grenade among the enemy. His conduct on that night will ever be remembered by the Regiment. His superb leadership and undaunted will to win in the early stages of the attack was undoubtedly instrumental in preventing the enemy plan from succeeding. The number of enemy found dead the next morning was ample evidence of the effect his grenade throwing had had. He displayed outstanding valour and had not the slightest thought of his own safety. He died on the battlefield in a spirit of supreme self-sacrifice”. Grave Reference 6. B. 7 IMPHAL WAR CEMETERY Manipur India WITHDRAWL OF THE COMMANDOS TO INDIA While the battle raged at Kohima and Imphal from 4th April to 22nd June 1944 the commandos were at Silchar in Assam. From there they withdrew through India by train. It was an extremely uncomfortable 6 day journey in a hot overcrowded train No 5 and No 44 Commandos were engaged in routine patrol duties in and around Maungdaw when the call came for them to proceed at haste to Silchar where they arrived on the 11th April 1944. This was a vital communications junction and 3 to 4 day patrols into the Assam hills were mounted. The Commandos remained in this area until August 1944 and then returned by rail to Bangalore via Calcutta. Fourteen days leave was authorized for all. During September 1944 they were deployed to 28

Trincomalee in Ceylon where Nos 1 and 42 Royal Marines Commandos rejoined the Brigade. They had spent the spring of 1944 doing jungle training at Belgaum and the summer at Cocanada on the hot and humid coast of India. During this time the Dutch troops returned to the UK. They correctly surmised that there was little early prospect of an invasion of the Dutch East Indies and preferred to take part in the liberation of Holland than doing nothing useful in the Far East. Nos 1 and 42’s sojourn in Ceylon was short lived. Brigade staff flew to Urma at the end of September 1944 to plan a further operation in Arakan with XV Indian Corp. No 3 SS Commando Brigade moved to Teknaf, via Calcutta and Chittagong, to participate in the planned operations. They were joined by the Special Boat Squadron (SBS) who operated against a number of coastal and offshore island targets using small craft including canoes, inflatable boats, paddle boards and swimmers. During this time 3 Commando Brigade were placed under the command of the 25th Indian Division. Nos.1 and 42 (RM) Commandos took over a section of the line south of Maungdaw and both also conducted reconnaissance patrols to neighbouring islands using LCAs. No 42 had a relatively peaceful time but No 1 was split into two. Half, under Major JHS Turnbull MC, carried out exhausting patrols in the hills but saw little of the enemy. The other half, under Major Davies, undertook patrols on the plains where a number of skirmishes with the Japanese inflicted several casualties on them. 3 troop captured a live prisoner... a relatively rare event. One officer was killed in these actions and awards included one MC and three MMs. ATTACKS BY COMMANDO BRIGADE ON AKYAB

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Royal Marines landing on Ramree Island

Landing Akyab Island

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Royal Marine Engineers in the first stages of construction of an airfield on Akyab to allow close air support

The brigade then planned attacks on the west coast of Burma. Starting with a raid by 42 RM Commando on Elephant Island in November 1944 where they lost one marine captured and killed 10 Japanese. In December 1944 Brigadier Campbell Hardy DSO took over as commander of the brigade. 29

On 3 January the brigade was involved in a full scale amphibious landing with the rest of the brigade and a tank squadron in Operation Lightning at Akyab. The landings started at 12:30 hours and were completed by 13:50 hours. When they reached the town of Akyab they discovered the Japanese had withdrawn and there was no trace on th the e island of the supposed garrison of three battalions, though 5 Commando wiped out a strong enemy patrol. With Akyab secured the brigade was next sent to the Myebon peninsula. They landed on the morning of 12th January and though the Japanese opposition wa wass light they had a major problem with mud. 42 and 5 landed at high tide losing only a few men to mines. However their supporting tanks soon stuck in the mud and had to be left on the landing craft. 5 Commando landed half an hour later and passed through 42 42’s ’s bridgehead to a hill in the jungle where they were held up by machine-guns.

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When 1 and 44 came ashore it was low tide and their craft grounded four hundred yards out. It took 3 hours to wade through the mud often waist deep to reac reach h the shore. The brigade captured the village of Kantha as a preliminary move on Kangaw, across a number of waterways on the mainland, where Christison had decided that he wanted to cut the Japanese line of withdrawal. The terrain was difficult with no roa roads, ds, and consisting of mangrove swamps and rice paddies that prevented tanks or artillery coming ashore initially. The whole area was dominated by a small wooded ridge known as Hill 170

BATTLE OF KANGAW By the end of December XV Indian Corp had been ready to o take the offensive once more against the Japanese 28th Army. General Christison, the Corp Commander planned to use 3 Commando Brigade to clear the island of Akyab. In the event the island had been undefended and the landing was used as a training exercis exercise. e. The island was quickly secured and used as a supply base for future operations. On a patrol to a neighbouring island No 5 Commando had a brush with the enemy killing four at no loss to themselves themselves. General Christison's next objective was to destroy the Japanese 28th Army before it could retreat across the mountains to the valley of the Irrawaddy. As part of this No 3 Commando Brigade was tasked with landing on the south south-eastern eastern face of the Myebon peninsula. They landed in the early morning of 12th January. ry. Reconnaissance raids by a COPP team had earlier laid delayed action charges to destroy beach obstacles just before H H-Hour. Hour. The assault was made with No 42 Commando making the first landings. Soft mud prevented the use of the tanks of the 19th Indian Lancers ncers and by the afternoon the landings switched to another beach. This beach was open from the next morning having been prepared by Indian engineers. Anti Anti-personnel personnel mines slowed progress and the beach-master was killed as he stepped ashore.

Despite these obstacles 42 Commando seized their objectives and secured the beachhead. No.5 Commando then passed through meeting little opposition until the approaches to a hill, codenamed 'Rose', where they came under machine gun fire and suffered a number of casualties. 1 Commando followed No 5 in a brisk attack 0830 the next day, after an air strike and naval bombardment, the 'Rose' feature was attacked by No 5 Commando supported by A Squadron of the 19th Lancers. The area was cleared although no prisoners were taken, the Japanese preferring to fight to the death. No 42 Royal Marines came through to attack Myebon village, which they took with little difficulty supported by the 19th Lancers. The brigade then proceeded to clear the Myebon peninsula. Captured documents, and the interrogation of the only two prisoners taken, showed that there had been 250 Japanese on the peninsula. Only 40 had escaped the net at a cost to 3 Brigade of 5 killed and 30 wounded. The brigade withdrew to the beachhead for two days of rest. With the capture of the Myebon Peninsula the enemy could not now evacuate the Arakan using the many waterways. Their only option was the Myobaung to Tamandu road. General Christison decided to cut the route near the village of Kangaw but, to reach the area without alerting the enemy, required an indirect water borne approach south east from Myebon and then north for some 18 miles. Of the landing beaches on the Daingbon Chaung, between the features code named “Thames “ and the “Mersey”, (see map) Peter Young, who had temporarily taken over as Brigade Commander in December pending the arrival of Campbell Hardy, wrote, 'There was no road. The landing was through mangrove, the paddy for about three quarters of a mile, leading up to (Hill) 170 31

was swamped by the spring tides. Even the bunds didn't make proper footpaths being broken in many places. No tanks could be got ashore - or guns â&#x20AC;&#x201C;during the first few days, but we had air support, medium guns for the Myebon area and a lighter battery and a sloop. Motor Launches and Landing Craft guarded the chaung Left of Centre" The various areas of high ground marked on the map were not of great height although some were of significance in the forthcoming action. No 1 Commando landed at 1300 hours on previously reconnoitered beaches on the 22nd January under cover of an aircraft laid smokescreen. They cleared the bridgehead and pushed on to Hill 170 which lay between the chaung and the village of Kangaw. They secured this position except for a small pocket on the northern edge. By this time Nos 5 and 42 Commandos were ashore and No.5 moved in support of No 1. No 44 stood by in readiness to attack another feature codenamed 'Milford' to the east of Hill 170, which at 1930 hours they captured without opposition later handing the position over to No 42 Commando as forces were redeployed in the course of the action. During the night the enemy counterattacked No 1 Commando from the northern tip of Hill 170 but they were beaten back after hand-to-hand fighting. At first light the remaining enemy was cleared from Hill 170 and No 44 Commando moved forward to Pinner, south-west of Kangaw. Intermittent shelling of the bridgehead continued but the troop of tanks was brought ashore and they joined No 1 Commando on the northern edge of Hill 170. On the 25th they came under heavy shellfire which continued for four consecutive days. On the 26th 51 Brigade landed and took over positions at Milford and Pinner. On the 28th they launched an attack on Kangaw and the two features which overlooked it - Perth and Melrose. That on Perth failed to make an impression but Melrose was substantially cleared. The next day (27th) No 5 Commando set up an ambush and patrolled Kangaw but no enemy were encountered. On the 30th of January the order to relieve the Commandos was received. No 5 Commando remained under the command of 51 Brigade on the Pinner feature while No 44 Commando returned to Diangbon under 51 Brigade. This left Nos 1 and 42 Commando on Hill 170. On the morning of 31st January the position occupied by No 4 Troop of No 1 Commando came under attack. A tank of the 19 Lancers was destroyed by Japanese engineers and in the ensuing ferocious battle many heroic deeds were recorded. Suffice to note, in this short account, that 24 men of No 4 Troop held off 300 Japanese for over two hours. The survivors held onto the position for another day and were reinforced by a platoon from No 42. The brigade put in a counterattack, which was beaten back. Further reinforcements were called in to clear the area. They met stiff opposition and there were many casualties. No 5 Commando's commander brought forward a troop and then a second to relieve the forward elements of No 1 Commando. The following morning No 5 Commando cleared and consolidated the position; no less than 340 Japanese dead were found on the slopes of the position. This was the battle of Kangaw. The Commandos were relieved on 1st February, having suffered five officer and forty other ranks killed and a further six officers and 84 other ranks wounded. The Battle of Kangaw prevented the Japanese from cutting the road from the beaches and enabled 51st Indian Brigade to maintain their strangle hold on the road. General Christison wrote in a Special order of the Day to 3 Commando brigade: The Battle of Kangaw had been the decisive battle of the whole Arakan campaign and that it was won was very largely due to your magnificent defence of Hill 170. A third DSO was awarded to Campbell Hardy, Ken Trevor received a DSO and Knowland received a VC.

HILL 170

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By the end of the month they were involved in the battle of Hill 170 170. This his was one of the most intense battles of the whole Burma campaign. On 22 January 1945, 42 Royal Marines Commando (Lt Col H H Dales) together with No 1 Commando landed and occupied positions in the mangrove swamp .Subsequently, Subsequently, the Commando was ordered to capture a heavily wooded ridge known as Hill 170. 70. Two days of hand hand-to-hand hand fighting were necessary before the Japanese could be driven from the ridge, and no so sooner oner were they dislodged than they subjected it to heavy artillery fire. After a lull of several days, the Japanese counter attacked at dawn on 31 January 1945. The enemy attacked repeatedly. In spite of heavy casualties to the Commando, the Japanese were finally beaten off and withdrew leaving their dead lying thickly among forward Commando positions. ÂŠIWM

The plan was for the 3rd Commando Brigade to withdraw on 30 January but the plans were halted by a new Japanese counter counter-attack on the brigade's positions by the 154th Infantry Regiment. The next morning at 05:45, the 2nd Battalion, 154th Infantry Regiment launched a surprise attack on Hill 170 under cover of a fierce artillery bombardment and heavy machine gun fire. The focus of their attack was the he northern end of Hill 170 defended by No.4 Troop, No. 1 Commando. The troop's position was ringed by gunfire in a preliminary to a major attack. Throwing grenades in front of them, the Japanese attacked at 07:30 on a 100 yd (91 m) front platoon by platoon. platoo Hill 170 was now defended by No. 1 and No. 42 commandos supported by a tank troop from the 19th Lancers. The tanks at the northern end of the hill were attacked in a suicidal assault by Japanese engineers, armed with explosive charges on the end of bam bamboo boo poles. The engineers destroyed two of the three Sherman tanks after a hand hand-to-hand hand battle by climbing on top of them and exploding their charges. The Japanese infantry attacked Hill 170 throughout the rest of the day, the brunt of these 33

attacks falling on No. 4 Troop of No. 1 Commando. At 09:30, a counter-attack was launched by W Troop, No. 42 Commando and No. 3 Troop, No. 1 Commando, that had to be abandoned after advancing only 20 yd (18 m) against massed machine gun fire The next counter-attack was by X Troop, No. 42 Commando supported by the remaining Sherman tank that also failed in the face of the heavy Japanese fire. The commandos then responded by bringing all available artillery and mortar fire down on the Japanese positions. At 14:00, No. 6 Troop, No. 1 Commando put in a counter-attack but this also failed, with the troop losing nearly half of its men. To the east of Hill 170 on "Pinner", No. 5 Commando was by then relieved by the 8/19th Hyderabad Regiment from the 51st Brigade and rejoined the 3rd Commando Brigade on Hill 170, their machine guns adding to the weight of fire brought to bear on the Japanese. At 16:00, the 2/2nd Punjab Regiment from the 51st Brigade managed to work their way around the left flank of Hill 170 and engaged the Japanese from there. At the same time No. 5 Commando were moved forward to take over from the front line from No.4 Troop, except for one section that had been cut off and overrun. Just after 17:00, some Japanese were seen to be withdrawing from the hill and the 2/2nd Punjabi Regiment started a flanking night attack but this failed to drive the Japanese off their positions on the hill. The Japanese responded with a night attack of their own against No. 5 Commando's positions that also failed. An estimated 700 Japanese shells landed on the hill during the last day of the battle. In a day of continuous fighting, much of it hand-to-hand, the men of No. 1 and No. 42 commandos had repulsed and counter-attacked the waves of Japanese infantry. Early the following morning, No. 5 Commando was able to move forward and found the hill abandoned, apart from over 340 Japanese dead. The British losses for the battle were 45 dead and 90 wounded. JAPANESE SPECIAL ORDER OF THE DAY 30th January General Miyazaki made a special order of the day. â&#x20AC;&#x153;He said that in the past battle opportunities had been lost because of passive conservative and thick headed NCOs and men were badly commanded and controlled. The fact that the true value of the Imperial Army was not in evidence is primarily the responsibility of every Division Group Commanders and Battalion Commanders. It is extremely regrettable and it is a condition that cannot be tolerated. All officers will be rejuvenated so all actions are carried out with daring and careful planning; moreover precautions must be taken in the following ways. If no order received each defensive area will be defended until death by the last soldier. Those withdrawing without orders will be given the most punishment under the penal code. Reconnaissance and defence are of primary importance. Units will maintain liaison to the front, rear, left and right flanks. Execute and report when given orders. As the enemy is in progress of moving it is extremely weak. Carry out immediate and determined attacks regardless of your strength when the occasion arises. Battalion units will infiltrate and block their path or retreat and make reinforcement impossible. To win a battle the enemy must be killed. Every man will kill no less than three enemy. Kill, kill, kill. To demand this the officers themselves must be courageous, active and daring. One action is better than 100,000 directives. Executive ability must be perfected. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Signed: Miyazaki. BRITISH ORDER OF THE DAY In a Special Order of the Day to 3 Commando Brigade, Lt Gen Sir Philip Christison, Commander of XV Corps, concluded. "The Battle of Kangaw has been the decisive battle of the whole Arakan campaign, and that it was won was very largely due to your magnificent defence of Hill 170". The whole battle cost the Japanese approximately 2500 casualties.

Lieutenant George ARTHUR KNOWLAND VC Rank: Lieutenant Unit: No 1 Commando Regiment/Corps: Royal Norfolk Regiment Service: Army Service number: 323566 Honours & Medals: Victoria Cross Age: 22 Date of death: Wednesday, January 31, 1945 Killed in action or died of wounds Roll of Honour: No 1 Commando Roll of Honour Cemetery, Memorial: Taukkyan War Cemetery Lieutenant George Arthur Knowland VC War Office, I2th April 1945. In Burma on 31st January, 1945, near Kangaw, Lieutenant Knowland was commanding the forward platoon of a Troop positioned on the extreme North of a hill which was subjected to very heavy and repeated enemy attacks throughout the whole day. Before the first attack started, Lieutenant Knowland's platoon was heavily mortared and machine gunned, yet he moved about among his men keeping them alert and encouraging them, though under fire himself at the time. When the enemy, some 300 strong in all, made their first assault they concentrated all their efforts on his platoon of 24 men, but, in spite of the ferocity of the attack, he moved about from trench to trench distributing ammunition, and firing his rifle and throwing grenades at the enemy, often from completely exposed positions. Later, when the crew of one of his forward Bren Guns had all been wounded, he sent back to Troop Headquarters for another crew and ran forward to man the gun himself until they arrived. The enemy was then less than 10 yards from him in dead ground down the hill, so, in order to get a better field of fire, he stood on top of the trench, firing the light machine gun from his hip, and successfully keeping them at a distance until a Medical Orderly had dressed and evacuated the wounded men behind him. The new Bren team also became casualties on the way up, and Lieutenant Knowland continued to fire the gun until another team took over. Later, when a fresh attack came in, he took over a 2 inch Mortar and in spite of heavy fire and the closeness of the enemy, he stood up in the open to face them, firing the mortar from his hip and killing six of them with his first bomb. When all bombs were expended he went back through heavy grenade, mortar and machine gun fire to get more, which he fired in the same way from the open in front of his platoon positions. When those bombs were finished, he went back to his own trench, and still standing up fired his rifle at them. Being hard pressed and with enemy closing in on him from only 10 yards away, he had no time to re-charge his magazine. Snatching up the Tommy gun of a casualty, he sprayed the enemy and was mortally wounded stemming this assault, though not before he had killed and wounded many of the enemy. Such was the inspiration of his magnificent heroism, that, though fourteen out of twenty four of his platoon became casualties at an early stage, and six of his positions were over-run by the enemy, his men held on through twelve hours of continuous and fierce fighting until reinforcements arrived. If this Northern end of the hill had fallen, the rest of the hill would have been endangered, the beachhead dominated by the enemy, and other units farther inland cut off from their source of supplies. As it was, the final successful counter-attack was later launched from the vital ground which Lieutenant Knowland had taken such a gallant part in holding. The units of the brigade had been given different objectives. No. 1 Commando in the lead would secure Hill 170, a 700 yd (640 m) long, 300 yd (270 m) wide and 1,000 ft (300 m) high hill codenamed "Brighton", supported by No. 5 Commando. No 42 (Royal Marine) Commando would be 35

responsible for the security of the beachhead between two tidal creeks which were codenamed "Thames" and "Mersey". No. 44 (Royal Marine) Commando's objectives were two valleys codenamed "Milford" and "Pinner" to the east of Hill 170. "Milford" was secured on 22 January and "Pinner" the following day. All the objectives were taken with minimal Japanese resistance. Over the night of 23/24 January, the Japanese attacked "Pinner" and an artillery barrage unprecedented for the theatre of war landed on Hill 170 and would continue for the next four days On 26 January, 51st Indian Infantry Brigadeâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;supported by a troop of M4 Sherman tanks from the 19th Lancersâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;arrived from the beachhead and took over the positions of No. 44 (Royal Marine) Commando on "Milford" and "Pinner". On the night of 28/29 January, 51st Brigade attacked Kangaw and two heights codenamed "Perth" and "Melrose" which dominated the road east from Kangow but they only partially achieved their objectives as the Japanese resistance along their withdrawal route was increasing but Kangaw was captured and the British occupied positions to dominate the main road

In March 1944 the Commando was withdrawn back to India to prepare for Operation Zipper, the planned invasion of Malaya. The war ended before the Zipper landing could take place and No. 44 RM Commando was sent to liberate Hong Kong instead. 36

AIR SUPPORT Air support was provided by both the Fleet Air Arm and the RAF. The posting of Battle Honours gives an indication of the squadrons and parent ships involved.

ROYAL NAVAL AIR SERVICE The Royal Marines had a number of officers flyin flyingg planes from aircraft carriers in support of ground forces off the coast of Arakan giving covering support to 3 Commando Brigade in their assaults on Akyab and Ramree. Major Aston was Commander (Flying) on the carrier HMS Ameer. Later 804 Squadron gave support pport for the assault on Cheduba by the Royal Marines of the East Indies Fleet

HMS AMEER ÂŠIWM HMS KHEDIVE ÂŠIWM HMS Khedive was involved with HMS Ameer in this task. On board HMS Khedive Major Marsh RM was the Commander (Flying). An interesting coincidence as the air covers for 3 Commando Brigade and Royal Marines in the Arakan was from 2 Assault Carriers whose Senior Air Officers were both Royal Marines

BATTLE HONOUR BURMA 1944 - 45 Operations over Burma, October 1944 to April 1945, and May to A August ugust 1945. Awarded to Squadron numbers: 800, 804, 807, 808, 809, 815, 851, 896, and 1700. Awarded to HM aircraft carrying ships: Ameer, Ceylon, Cumberland, Emperor, Empress, Hunter, Kenya, Khedive, Newcastle, Queen Elizabeth, Shah, Stalker, Suffolk and Sussex.

PALEMBANG REFINERIES In late 1944 a carrier force comprising HMS Victorious, HMS Illustrious, HMS Indomitable and HMS Indefatigable attacked ttacked the two oil refineries at the junction on the river Musi where the river Gerong joins it in South Sumatra. At the time these refineries produced 75% of Japanese aviation fuel. These refineries are downstream of Palembang. The Pladju refinery belonged to Shell S and the Sungei Gerong one to Stanvac (Esso & Mobile).

HMS Victorious, HMS Illustrious, HMS Indomitable and HMS Indefatigable. ©IWM

However poor weather interfered badly with the raids, which proved costly. In January 1945 the same 1st Aircraft Carrier er Squadron comprising aircraft from HMS Victorious, HMS Illustrious, HMS Indomitable and HMS Indefatigable. They did extensive damage to the refineries and defending Japanese aircraft but at heavy cost to the attackers. Some of the crew members were beheaded behea by the Japanese. Below are pictures of the Pladju Refinery post war which gives some idea of the target. ©EJS

TOP LEFT ALKYLATION UNIT

DISTILLATION UNITS 3 AND 4

VACUUM COLUMN AND 5 DISTILLATION UNIT COOLING WATER INTAKE IN SUNGAI GERONG

TANKER AT PLADJU WHARF

REFINERY IN FOREGROUND ON FIRE IS PLADJU

LOSSES ON 24TH January 1945

FAA, 820 Squadron, HMS Indefatigable, flying Avenger torpedo-bomber, attack on Palembang, Sumatra, operation Meridian, air operations and crash HARRIS, Clifford L, Ty/Leading Airman, FAA/FX 87003, MPK HEMINGTON, Arthur, Ty/Sub Lieutenant (A), RNVR, killed MITCHELL, Herbert G C, Ty/Chief Petty Officer Pilot, FAA/FX 97016, MPK

FAA, 857 Squadron, HMS Indomitable, flying Avenger torpedo-bomber, attack on Palembang, Sumatra, operation Meridian, air operations and crash DUNCAN, David H, Ty/Act/Petty Officer Airman, FAA/FX 87175, MPK HIBBURD, Robin E A, Ty/Lieutenant (A), RNVR, MPK MASON, James, Ty/Sub Lieutenant (A), RNVR, MPK

FAA, 1830 Squadron, HMS Illustrious, each flying Corsair fighter, attack on Palembang, Sumatra, operation Meridian, air operations BROWN, Albert H, Ty/Sub Lieutenant (A), RNVR, killed

FAA, 1834 Squadron, HMS Victorious, air operations GRAVE, Ian L, Ty/Sub Lieutenant (A), RNVR, MPK

FAA, 1836 Squadron, HMS Victorious, air operations BLAIR, Matthew T, Ty/Sub Lieutenant (A), RNVR, killed SUTTON, Arthur W, Ty/Lieutenant, RCNVR, MPK 39

One of the sad accidents of war occurred on the 29th January 1945. HMS Illustrious was hit by friendly fire, during a Kamikaze attack after the Palembang strike two shells from AA cruiser HMS Euryalus hit the flight deck and island, killing 12 and wounding 21. AUSTWICK,, Sydney, Act/Leading Seaman, D/J 8264 82648, killed CLOKE, Rundle, Ty/Petty Officer, D/JX 152080, DOW FERGUSON, David, Naval Airman 1c, FAA/FX 101056, killed GOSS,, Norman R, Naval Airman 1c, FAA/FX 105258, killed GRAHAM, David H, Able Seaman, C/JX 546657, killed GRANT, Benjamin B, Naval Airman an 1c, FAA/FX 95356, killed MCGIVERN,, Stanley, Able Seaman, P/JX 521372, killed MOORE, John F, Naval Airman 1c, FAA/FX 93337, killed STEPHENS, John A, Able Seaman, D/JX 367782, killed VINCE, John, Able Seaman, C/JX 318479, killed WALKER, Norman R, Lieutenant utenant (A), RNVR, MPK WINTER,, Norman C, Able Seaman, C/JX 318494, killed

FAA, 849 Squadron, HMS Victorious, air operations GUNN,, Malcolm J, Ty/Sub Lieutenant (A), RNVR, DOW

FAA, 854 Squadron, HMS Illustrious, air operations ARMSTRONG, Roland S, Ty/Sub Lieutenant (A), RNVR, MPK BARBER,, Alwyn, Naval Airman 1c, FAA/FX 96751, MPK COUSINS,, Stanley T, Ty/Sub Lieutenant (A), RNVR, MPK HOULDIN,, Philip W P, Ty/Sub Lieutenant (A), RNVR, MPK MAINPRICE, William J, Ty/Act/Lieutenant Commander, MPK STOLLERY, Henry G C, Ty/Chief Petty Officer Airman, FAA/FX 79439, MPK

FAA, 1770 Squadron Squadron, HMS Indefatigable, air operations LEVITT, Dennis, Ty/Lieutenant (A), RNVR, MPK WEBB, John F, Ty/Lieutenant (A), RNZNVR, MPK

FAA, 1834 Squadron Squadron, HMS Victorious, air operations DURNO,, Leslie D, Ty/Lieutenant (A), RNVR, MPK

FAA, 1836 Squadron, HMS Victorious, air operations MAYNARD, Stanley G F, Ty/Sub Lieutenant (A), RNVR, killed Claims emerged from surviving war veterans that a number of airmen survived the raid on the Palembang oil refineries and were held captive by the Japanese before being executed. The number of men is generally held to be by nine but research by the NZ FAA museum has cast doubt on this figure indicating it may be twelve. EXECUTION BY JAPANESE OF FLEET AIR ARM OFFICERS Sub-lieutenant (A) J. K. Haberfield, RNZNVR, of HMS Indomitable, and Sub-Lieutenant (A) E. J. Baxter, RNZNVR, of HMS Illustrious, were shot down on 26 January 1945 during an attack on the oil refineries at Palembang, Sumatra. They were captured by the Japanese and, in February 1945, sent to Singapore where they were placed in Outram Road gaol. At the end of July 1945 they were executed, together with seven other Fleet Air Arm pilots. There was no trial before the execution of the prisoners. The two Japanese particularly concerned were Captain Toshio Kataoka, who was the senior officer, and a Captain Ikeda. These men committed suicide. Kataoka, in a will made before his suicide, said: â&#x20AC;&#x153;We took nine prisoners from Outram Road in a lorry to the beach at the northernmost end of Changi and executed them with Japanese swords. The bodies were put in a boat prepared beforehand and sunk in the sea with weights attached. Now that the responsibility must be borne out publicly, I hereby pay for my deeds with suicide.â&#x20AC;? The names of the 'Palembang Nine' on the plaque in the FAA museum are Lt. John Haberfield - Pilot from 1839 Fighter Squadron (HMS Indomitable) Lt. Evan John Baxter - Pilot from 1833 Fighter Squadron (HMS Illustrious) S/Lt. Reginald James Shaw - Pilot from 1833 Fighter Squadron (HMS Illustrious) Lt. Kenneth Morgan Burrenston - Crew from 849 TBR Squadron (HMS Victorious) S/Lt. John Robert Burns - Crew from 849 TBR Squadron (HMS Victorious) S/Lt. Donald V Roebuck - Crew from 849 TBR Squadron (HMS Victorious) S/Lt. William Edwin Lintern - Crew from 849 TBR Squadron (HMS Victorious) Petty Officer Ivor Barker - Crew from 849 TBR Squadron (HMS Victorious) Petty Officer J S McRae - Crew from 849 TBR Squadron (HMS Victorious)

BATTLE HONOURS Palembang 1945 Operation Meridian 1, Task Force 63, air strikes on oil refineries at Pladju, on Sumatra, 24 January 1945. Awarded to Squadron numbers: 820, 849, 854, 857, 887, 894, 1770, 1830, 1833, 1834, 1836, 1839, and 1844. 41

Awarded to HM aircraft carrying ships: Illustrious, Indefatigable, Indomitable and Victorious.

THE ROYAL AIR FORCE When the Japanese attacked Burma the air defences were in a poor state. The RAF had 7 airfields from Lashio in the North to Rangoon in the South but only 37 front line aircraft plus another from 21 from a US Volunteer group to face a Japanese force estimated at some 400 bombers and fighters. Rangoon suffered air raids on 23rd December (when civilian casualties were estimated at 2,400) and on the 25th. The first of these raids started a general exodus of Burmese and Indians from the city. On the last day of December, Indian Light and Heavy anti-aircraft batteries were landed at Rangoon. Fighters of the Royal Air Force and the American Volunteer Group had taken a heavy toll of the December raiders. The position improved somewhat in January 1942 with the arrival of a squadron of Blenheim bombers and some Hurricanes. The bombers attacked the Japanese aircraft on the ground at their bases while the fighters gave air cover to the Burma Army while they landed to fight a rear guard action and carryout demolition work. 221 Group remnants gradually withdrew with the Army to India operating from Tezpur and Dinjan in Assam giving what help they could to the Army in Northern Burma. Both American and British transport aircraft and troop-carriers assisted in bringing out refugees and sick and wounded, to the number of nearly 9,000, and in dropping supplies to the army and to refugees. They were able to sustain the garrisons cut off at Imphal and Kohima with 400 tons of supplies a day. In the autumn of1943 the Eastern Air Command comprised units of the RAF and the US Tenth Air Force. By May 1944 the assets had risen to 64 RAF Squadrons and 28 US Squadrons respectively. The 81st West African Division became cut off in the Keladan Valley they were supported by supply drops and attacks on the Japanese attackers. Likewise in February 1944 the 7th Indian Division was supplied from the air with some 2000 tons when they became surrounded. In the second Chindit expedition, which was launched on 5th March, 1944, in the course of six days more than 9,000 men, over 1,300 animals and over 250 tons of stores were landed far behind the Japanese lines by transport aircraft and gliders. This force continued to receive supplies from the air, and air ambulances brought out its casualties. One novel task the RAF took on was the spraying with insecticide of the extremely malarial Kabaw Valley to protect the health of the advancing British troops

BATTLE HONOURS AWARDED TO THE RAF Arakan 1942â&#x20AC;&#x201C;1944. For operations by fighter, bomber and transport squadrons in support of the First and Second Arakan Offensives, November 1942 to February 1943 and November 1943 to March 1944. Burma 1944â&#x20AC;&#x201C;1945. For operations during the 14th Army's advance from Imphal to Rangoon, the coastal amphibious assaults, and the Battle of Pegu Yomas, August 1944 to August 1945. Manipur 1944. For operations in support of the besieged forces at Imphal, March to July 1944 42

North Burma 1943â&#x20AC;&#x201C;1944. For the supply by air of General Wingate's first long-range penetration into North Burma, February to June 1943; and for the air supply and support of his second expedition, 5 March to 26 June 1944.

OPERATIONS CARRIED OUT BY THE RAF IN BURMA Jan 1942 - Reinforcements arrive in the Far East to supplement the defensive air forces; 51 Hurricanes arrive in Singapore, 48 Hurricanes in Sumatra and 30 Hurricanes and Blenheims arrived in Burma from the Middle East. 26 Jan-30 Mar 1942 - The Japanese advance through the Far East. By the end of January, the RAF and other British and allied forces had withdrawn from Malaya and Singapore to Sumatra. Two weeks later, the enemy captured Palembang airfield in Sumatra destroying 39 Hurricanes in the process. 18 February, the Allies had evacuated to Java. RAF aircraft in the area had been reduced to 18 serviceable Hurricane fighters, 12 Hudson, 6 Blenheim and four Vildebeest bombers. 3 March, Allied forces began evacuating Java; those that remained capitulated the next day. In Burma, the channel dash Japanese forces entered Rangoon on 8 March forcing the remaining RAF Hurricanes and Blenheims to move north. Finally on 27 March, the Japanese began a three-day assault forcing the Allies to evacuate to India. During these final days, Dakotas of No.31 Squadron and the USAAF airlifted 8,600 civilians to safety. 14 Feb 1943 - Dakotas of No. 31 Squadron and Hudsons of No. 194 Squadron begin air supply missions to Chindit forces working behind enemy lines in Burma. Chindits were small pockets of highly trained British troops, usually with local guides, who operated behind enemy lines, cutting enemy lines of communication. The name was taken from that of a mythical Burmese God. 16 Mar 1944 - A Japanese advance through Burma isolates the British garrison at Imphal. During the three-month siege, 150,000 men had to rely entirely on air supply for their survival. More than 400 tons of stores had to be flown daily into a heavily guarded valley, with only three squadrons of Spitfires available for air defence and six squadrons of Hurricanes for attack June 1944 - Allied forces in Burma go on the offensive. Supported by twenty-three squadrons of transport aircraft and with air superiority established by RAF Spitfires and American Mustangs, the Japanese army is finally defeated near Rangoon.

ÂŠIWM

June 1944 - RAF Sunderlands, landing on Lake Indaw, evacuate 506 wounded Chindits from behind Japanese lines 1 Feb 1945 - Allied forces cross the Irrawaddy River and take the crucial airfield of Meiktila in central Burma. The airfield is defended against strong Japanese counter-attacks by the RAF Regiment, enabling supplies and reinforcements to be flown in. April 1945 - By the second week of the month, Japanese resistance had virtually crumbled in light of devastating attacks by Allied fighter-bombers. On the 3 May, the Burmese capital finally fell to the Allies. 21 Jul 1945 - Ten thousand Japanese troops are killed whilst trying to escape from Burma in an attack lasting nine days by aircraft of 3rd Tactical Air Force.

LANDING CRAFT SKIPPERS EXPERIENCE GEORGE SCALES RNVR

Lieutenant George Scales RNVR : 1939-45 War Star; Atlantic Star; Africa Star for Malta Convoys; Burma star with clasp "Pacific"; 1939-45 War Medal with oak leaf: representing a "Mention in Despatches" & French Croix de Guerre with a Silver Star representing award at Divisional Level. This is his story of the Operation Dracula as recounted in 2008 concerning his time in the Far East following the D-day landings followed by those at Walcheren where he had an eventful day. Firstly LCT 7011 hit a mine some 3 miles North-west of the island, which blew the bows off the craft, which then sank in 3 minutes with the loss of 15 soldiers. George was lucky to be picked up by a Landing Craft Infantry, LCI, before the bitter cold of the water killed him. Having removed his wet clothing & downed a whiskey, the LCI was hit by a shell from a German gun, setting the petrol tanks on fire. So once more he went into the sea to be rescued and taken aboard a hospital ship to have his wounds dressed. This ship in turn was hit & water poured into the ward where George was. Thus for the third time George was back in the sea in the space of an hour. At this point, he was rescued by an LCT heading back to Ostend, where his wounds could be dressed. Having no clothes of his own George 44

was given an Army privateâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s battledress, the only clothing available. It was in this costume that George was sent to skipper back to England an LCT, whose own captain had gone missing. Following a spot of leave, George travelled on a troopship, the P&O Liner Orion to Bombay. Thence the Orion took him to Mandapam to take over his new vessel a LCG (a converted LCT fitted as a gunboat) and sail it to Akyab in Burma RANGOON 1st May 1945 Operation "Dracula" was the operation to seize the port of Rangoon before the monsoon broke and allow supply to the Army, which would have been extremely difficult by airfield and road. Indian XV Corps, under Lieutenant General Sir Philip Christison was to control the ground forces. Indian 26th Infantry Division under Major General Henry Chambers and other forces sailed in six convoys from Akyab and Ramree islands between April 27 and April 30 1945. The Naval covering force consisted of two battleships (one French), three cruisers (one Dutch) and six destroyers. Another flotilla of five destroyers was responsible for the destruction of the main Japanese evacuation convoy. 224 Group of the Royal Air Force covered the landings from the airfields around Toungoo and Ramree. On May 1, 1945, twelve squadrons of B-24 Liberators heavily bombed known Japanese defences south of Rangoon. An Air Force observation post, a small detachment from Force 136 and a Gurkha composite parachute battalion landed at Elephant Point at the mouth of the Rangoon River in the middle of the morning. They eliminated some small Japanese parties, either left as rearguards or perhaps forgotten in the confusion of the evacuation. They themselves suffered thirty casualties from inaccurate Allied bombing. Once Elephant Point was secured, minesweepers cleared a passage up the river, and landing craft began coming ashore in the early hours of the morning of May 2. Fortunately George now commanding LCT 913 had a much easier river trip than had been anticipated. It could easily have been the most frightening experience so far if the Japanese had decided to try and hold Rangoon. The dropping of the Atomic bombs on Nagasaki & Hiroshima brought an end to hostilities and so the invasion of Malaya, which would have involved George's LCT 913, was not necessary. Instead George was detailed to ship supplies & troops around the liberated countries of South East Asia, where local Nationalist groups sought to fill the vacuum caused by the collapse of Japanese control. At last George returned to the UK & demobilisation He got married &settled down initially in Peldon to lead a very different life, as a successful farmer.

CHINDITS

Early in 1942, Field-Marshal Wavell requested the services of Lieutenant-Colonel 0. C. Wingate (who had served in the Abyssinian campaign), to organise guerrilla activity in Burma. A scheme was produced by Wingate for a long-range penetration group which should function behind the Japanese lines, being supplied by air. He was given command of a brigade formed of the 13th Battalion the King's Regiment, the 3rd/2nd Gurkha Rifles, the 142nd Commando Company, and the 2nd Battalion the Burma Rifles

CHINDIT WINNERS OF THE VICTORIA CROSS MICHAEL ALLMAND VC

6th Gurkha Rifles

(C)IWM)

The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 36764. page 4900. 26 October 1944 The citation in the London Gazette which announced Allmand's award reads: "Captain Allmand was commanding the leading platoon of a Company of the 6th Gurkha Rifles in Burma on 11th June, 1944, when the Battalion was ordered to attack the Pin Hmi Road Bridge. The enemy had already succeeded in holding up our advance at this point for twenty four hours. The approach to the Bridge was very narrow as the road was banked up and the low low--lying land on either side was swampy and densely covered in jungle. The Japanese, who were dug in along the banks of the road and in the jungle with machine guns and small arms, were putting up the most desperate resistance. As the platoon come within twenty yards of the Bridge, the enemy opened heavy and accurate fire, inflicting cting severe casualties and forcing the men to seek cover. Captain Allmand, however, with the utmost gallantry charged on by himself, hurling grenades into the enemy gun positions and killing three Japanese himself with his kukri. Inspired by the splendid example of their platoon commander the surviving men followed him and captured their objective. Two days later Captain Allmand, owing to casualties among the officers, took over command of the Company and, dashing thirty yards ahead of it through long grass gras and marshy ground, swept by machine gun fire, personally killed a number of enemy machine gunners and successfully led his men onto the ridge of high ground that they had been ordered to seize. Once again on June 23rd in the final attack on the Railway B Bridge ridge at Mogaung, Captain Allmand, although suffering from trench-foot, foot, which made it difficult for him to walk, moved forward alone through deep mud and shell-holes holes and charged a Japanese machine gun nest single single-handed, handed, but he was mortally wounded and died d shortly afterwards. The superb gallantry, outstanding leadership and protracted heroism of this very brave officer were a wonderful example to the whole Battalion and in the highest traditions of his regiment." regiment Died 24 June 1944 (aged 20).Buried at Taukkyan War Cemetery, Burma

MAJOR FRANK BLAKER VC MC

3rd Battalion, 9th Gurkha Rifles

(C)IWM) The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 36715. page 4423. 26 September 1944 46

Frank Blaker was 24 years old, and a Temporary Major in the Highland Light Infantry, British Army, attached to 3rd Battalion, 9th Gurkha Rifles serving with the Chindits. “On 9 July 1944 near Taungni, Burma (now Myanmar), Major Blaker was commanding a company which was held up during an important advance by close-range firing from medium and light machine-guns. The major went ahead of his men through very heavy fire and despite being severely wounded in the arm, located the machine guns and charged the position alone. Even when mortally wounded he continued to cheer on his men whilst lying on the ground. His fearless leadership inspired his men to storm and capture the objective” Died 9 July 1944 (aged 24) Taungni, Burma Buried at Taukkyan War Cemetery, Burma

LIEUTENANT GEORGE CAIRNS VC

South Staffordshire Regiment

(C)IWM

The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 38615. page 2461. 17 May 1949. The Victoria Cross citation, published in the London Gazette reads “The KING has been graciously pleased to approve the posthumous award of the VICTORIA CROSS to: — Lieutenant George Albert CAIRNS (198186), The Somerset Light Infantry, attached to the South Staffordshire Regiment. On 5 March 1944, 77 Independent Infantry Brigade, of which the 1st South Staffordshire Regiment formed a part, landed by glider at Broadway (Burma). On 12 March 1944, columns from the South Staffordshire Regiment and 3/6 Gurkha Rifles established a road and rail block across the Japanese lines of communication at Henu Block. The Japanese counter-attacked this position heavily in the early morning of 13 March 1944, and the South Staffordshire Regiment was ordered to attack a hill-top which formed the basis of the Japanese attack. During this action, in which Lieutenant CAIRNS took a foremost part, he was attacked by a Japanese officer, who, with his sword, hacked off Lieutenant CAIRNS left arm. Lieutenant CAIRNS killed this Officer; picked up the sword and continued to lead his men in the attack and slashing left and right with the captured sword killed and wounded several Japanese before he himself fell to the ground. Lieutenant CAIRNS subsequently died from his wounds. His action so inspired all his comrades that, later the Japanese were completely routed, a very rare occurrence at that time” The original recommendation for the award of the V.C. to Lieutenant Cairns was submitted to the late General Wingate after the usual evidence of three witnesses had been checked. The aircraft carrying General Wingate and the records crashed, the general being killed and all the records destroyed. Later, when the proposal was retrieved, it was found that two of the three witnesses had been killed and this led to further delay. Some six weeks ago the former Brigade Commander of the 77th Brigade (now Major Calvert) had the case reopened. Meanwhile, after listening to a broadcast in which her husband's bravery was mentioned, Mrs. Cairns, who lives at Sidcup, approached her M.P., Mr. G. D. Wallace, who made representations to the War Office on her behalf. Died19 March 1944 (aged 30) Henu Block, Burma Buried at Taukkyan War Cemetery

NAIK FAZAL DIN VC

l0th Baluch Regiment, Indian Army.

Died 2 March 1945 (aged 23) Meiktila, Burma He was a Punjabi Muslim The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 37091. p. 2647 22 May 1945 â&#x20AC;&#x153;War Office, 24th May, 1945. The KING has been graciously pleased to approve the posthumous award of the VICTORIA CROSS to: No. 18602 Naik (acting) FAZAL DIN, l0th Baluch Regiment, Indian Army. In Burma, on 2nd March, 1945, Naik Fazal Din was commanding a section during a Company attack on a Japanese bunkered position. During this attack, the section found itself in an area flanked by three bunkers on one side and a house and one bunker on the other side. This was the key of the enemy position and had held up a Company attack made earlier. Naik Fazal Din's section was accompanied by a tank but, at the time of entering the area, it had gone on ahead. On reaching the area, the section was held up by Light Machine Gun fire and grenades from the bunkers. Unhesitatingly Naik Fazal Din personally attacked the nearest bunker with grenades and silenced it. He then led his section under heavy fire against the other bunkers. Suddenly six Japanese, led by two officers wielding swords, rushed from the house. The Bren gunner shot one officer and Japanese other rank but by then had expended the magazine of the gun. He was almost simultaneously attacked by the second Japanese officer who killed him with his sword. Naik Fazal Din went to the Bren gunner's assistance immediately but, in doing so, was run through the chest by the officer, the sword point appearing through his back. On the Japanese officer withdrawing his sword, Naik Fazal Din, despite his terrible wound, tore the sword from the officer and killed him with it. He then attacked a Japanese other rank and also killed him. He then went to the assistance of a sepoy of his section who was struggling with Japanese and killed the latter with the sword. Then, waving the sword, he continued to encourage his men. He staggered to Platoon Headquarters, about 25 yards away, to make a report and collapsed. He died soon after reaching the Regimental Aid Post. Naik Fazal Din's action was seen by almost the whole Platoon who, undoubtedly inspired by his gallantry and taking advantage of the bewilderment created amongst the enemy by the loss of its leaders, continued the attack and annihilated the garrison which numbered 55. Such supreme devotion to duty, even when fatally wounded, presence of mind and outstanding courage, have seldom been equaled and reflect the unquenchable spirit of a singularly brave and gallant N.C.O.â&#x20AC;?

CYRIL BALLS of the Berkshire Regiment

1939-1945 star, Burma star, Defence Medal, 1939-1945 War Medal He was the son of Mabel Grace (nee Wyncoll) and Walter Balls. Cyril was to be â&#x20AC;&#x153;Mentioned in Dispatches" for his bravery at Monastery Hill, Mandalay in Burma during World War 2. Cyril served for three years in India and Burma in the Royal Berkshire Regiment. Unfortunately like many of his generation Cyril did not discuss his experiences thus only snippets have survived. The following are items he related in 2000 shortly before he died:While near Rangoon he heard a loud commotion, which when they investigated was a pig being attacked by a python. He suffered with his health and was sent at the end to Rangoon to recuperate from Beri Beri. He also suffered from pyorrhea and lost all his teeth due to the gum infection The first major action involving the Royal Berkshires was April 14th 1944 when the 2nd Division including 1st Battalion Royal Berkshire's broke through to relieve the defenders at Kohima. Cyril on the right with the Indian "Char Wallah" in the middle

The fall of Mandalay Report in SEAC Souvenir Newspaper (Price 1 Anna) â&#x20AC;&#x153;By 7 March the leading units could see Mandalay Hill, crowned by its many pagodas and temples. Lieutenant General Seiei Yamamoto, commanding the Japanese division, was opposed to defending the city, but received uncompromising orders from higher headquarters to defend Mandalay to the death. Kimura at Burma Area Army was concerned about the loss of prestige should the city be abandoned. Also, there were still large supply dumps south of the city, which could not be moved. A Gurkha battalion (4/4th Gurkha Rifles), commanded by an officer who had served in Mandalay before the war stormed Mandalay Hill on the night of 8 March. Several Japanese held out in tunnels and bunkers underneath the pagodas, and were slowly eliminated over the next few days, although most of the buildings survived substantially intact. Fighting their way further into the city, Rees's division was stopped by the thick walls of Fort Dufferin (as the ancient citadel was named), surrounded by a moat. Medium artillery and bombers failed to make much impression on the walls, and an assault via a railway tunnel was driven back. 19th Division prepared to make another assault via the sewers on 21 March, but before it could be made, the Japanese abandoned the fort, also via the sewers. King Thibaw's teak palace, inside the fort, had burned down during the siege, only one of many historic buildings destroyed. Elsewhere on XXXIII Corps's front, Indian 20th Division launched an attack southwards from its bridgehead. The Japanese 33rd and 31st Divisions, weakened by casualties and detachments to 49

the battle at Meiktila, were thrown into disorder. Armoured and motorised columns of 20th Division reached almost as far south as the Meiktila fighting, before turning back north against the rear of the Japanese facing the bridgeheads. The British 2nd Division attacked Mandalay from the west. By the end of March, Japanese Fifteenth Army had been reduced to uncoordinated remnants trying to move southwards to regroup in the Shan States.

When Cyril died the above photographs were found in his wallet. They are of a friend killed in action in Burma. Cyril had been sent to bring a Bren gun as they could see a sniper. When Cyril returned his friend had been shot between the eyes the sniper had killed him. On another occasion only Cyril & an officer survived from a jungle patrol. At one stage, Cyril was involved in trying to flush Japanese soldiers from a cave system with a flame thrower. He was very concerned that women & children could have been in the caves with the soldiers, who refused to surrender. Cyril worked post war on a fruit farm and died 29th May 2001.

Cap badge of the Burma Rifles. Brigadier Wingate's appraisal of the 2nd Battalion Burma Rifles The following is a quote from Brigadier Wingate's debrief report for Operation Longcloth, written after the Chindit leader had regained India in 1943 and had time to reflect on the performance of the men from the Karen, Kachin and Chin hill tribes of Burma General Wingate said of these former members of the 2nd Battalion of the Burma Rifles:"I would like to record here that I have never had under my command in the field as good a body of men as the 2nd Burma Rifles. Their Commander, Lieutenant-Colonel Wheeler and myself were hopeful that the work of a reconnaissance unit for a Long Range Group would make full use of their good qualities, but we were surprised by their excellence in the face of the enemy. As a result of the experience we gained, the following conclusions may be drawn. The Burman Hillman is an ideal soldier for aggressive reconnaissance. He is not at all ideal in defence. He is not ideal if ordered to attack a strongly held position. But in carrying out rapid, bold and intelligent patrols in the face of the enemy, in obtaining local information, in making propaganda, in handling boats, in living off the country, and in loyal service to his officers he is without equal."

OTHER BURMA CAMPAIGN WINNERS OF THE VICTORIA CROSS

LIEUTENANT KARAMET SINGH JUDGE 15th Punjab Regiment, Indian Army.

The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 37156. pp. 3439–3440. 3 July 1945 The citation reads: “The KING has been graciously pleased to approve the posthumous award of the VICTORIA CROSS to:— Lieutenant Karamjeet Singh JUDGE (IEC. 5504), 15th Punjab Regiment, Indian Army. In Burma, on 18th March, 1945, a Company of the 15th Punjab Regiment, in which Lieutenant Karamjeet Singh Judge was a Platoon Commander, was ordered to capture the Cotton Mill area on the outskirts of Myingyan. In addition to numerous bunkers and stiff enemy resistance a total of almost 200 enemy shells fell around the tanks and infantry during the attack. The ground over which the operation took place was very broken and in parts was unsuitable for tanks. Except for the first two hours of this operation, Lieutenant Karamjeet Singh Judge's platoon was leading in the attack, and up to the last moment Lieutenant Karamjeet Singh Judge dominated the entire battlefield by his numerous and successive acts of superb gallantry. Time and again the infantry were held up by heavy medium machine gun and small arms fire from bunkers not seen by the tanks. On every such occasion Lieutenant Karamjeet Singh Judge, without hesitation and with a complete disregard for his own personal safety, coolly went forward through heavy fire to recall the tanks by means of the house telephone. Cover around the tanks was nonexistent, but Lieutenant Karamjeet Singh Judge remained completely regardless not only of the heavy small arms fire directed at him, but also of the extremely heavy shelling directed at the tanks. Lieutenant Karamjeet Singh Judge succeeded in recalling the tanks to deal with bunkers which he personally indicated to the tanks, thus allowing the infantry to advance. In every case Lieutenant Karamjeet Singh Judge personally led the infantry in charges against the bunkers and was invariably first to arrive. In this way ten bunkers were eliminated by this brilliant and courageous officer.

HALVILDAR BHANBHAGTA GURUNG VC

3rd Battalion, 2nd Gurkha Rifles, British Indian Army

The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 37107. page 2831. 1 June 1945 “On 5 March 1945 at Snowdon-East, near Tamandu, Burma (now Myanmar), Gurung and his unit were approaching Snowdon-East. His company became pinned down by an enemy sniper and was suffering casualties. As the sniper was inflicting casualties on the section, Rifleman Bhanbhagta Gurung, being unable to fire from the lying position, stood up fully exposed to the heavy fire and calmly killed the enemy sniper with his rifle, thus saving his section from suffering further casualties. The section advanced again but came under heavy fire once again. Without waiting for orders, 51

Gurung dashed out to attack the first enemy fox-hole. Throwing two grenades, he killed the two occupants and without any hesitation rushed on to the next enemy fox-hole and killed the Japanese in it with his bayonet. He cleared two further fox-holes with bayonet and grenades. "During his single-handed attacks on these four enemy fox-holes, Rifleman Bhanbhagta Gurung was subjected to almost continuous and point-blank Light Machine Gun fire from a bunker on the North tip of the objective." For the fifth time, Gurung "went forward alone in the face of heavy enemy fire to knock out this position. He doubled forward and leapt on to the roof of the bunker from where, his hand grenades being finished, he flung two No. 77 smoke grenades into the bunker slit." [3] Gurung killed two Japanese soldiers who ran out of the bunker with his Kukri, and then advanced into the cramped bunker and killed the remaining Japanese soldier. Gurung ordered three others to take up positions in the bunker. "The enemy counter-attack followed soon after, but under Rifleman Bhanbhagta Gurung's command the small party inside the bunker repelled it with heavy loss to the enemy. Rifleman Bhanbhagta Gurung showed outstanding bravery and a complete disregard for his own safety. His courageous clearing of five enemy positions single-handed was in itself decisive in capturing the objective and his inspiring example to the rest of the Company contributed to the speedy consolidation of this success.â&#x20AC;?

MAJOR CHARLES FERGUSON HOEY VC MC 1st Battalion of the Lincolnshire Regiment

Charles Ferguson Hoey VC MC (16 February 1944) was a Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross, The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 36518. page 2269. 18 May 1944. The citation reads as follows: "In BURMA, on the 16th February, 1944, Major Hoey's company formed part of a force which was ordered to capture a position at all costs. After a night march through enemy-held territory, the force was met at the foot of the position by machine gun fire. Major Hoey personally led his company under heavy machine gun and rifle fire up to the objective. Although wounded at least twice in the leg and head, he seized a Bren gun from one of his men and, firing from the hip, led his company into the objective. In spite of his wounds the company had difficulty in keeping up with him, and Major Hoey reached the enemy strong post first, where he killed all the occupants before being mortally wounded. Major Hoey's outstanding gallantry and leadership, his total disregard of personal safety and his grim determination to reach the objective resulted in the capture of this vital position." His remains are now interred at Taukkyan War Cemetery in Burma

LIEUTENANT ALEC GEORGE HORWOOD

to 1st Battalion, Northamptonshire Regiment

Lieutenant Queen's Own Royal West Surrey Regiment attached to 1st Battalion, Northamptonshire Regiment The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 36445. page1478. Citation reads â&#x20AC;&#x153;On 18 January 1944 at Kyauchaw, Burma (now Myanmar), Lieutenant Horwood accompanied a company into action with his forward mortar observation post. Throughout the day he was in an exposed position and under intense fire, but he came back at night with most valuable information about the enemy. On 19 January he moved forward and established another observation post, directing accurate mortar fire in support of two attacks, and also carrying out personal reconnaissance, deliberately drawing the enemy fire so that their position could be definitely located. On 20 January he volunteered to lead the attack and while doing so was mortally woundedâ&#x20AC;? No known grave name inscribed on the Rangoon Monument

RIFLEMAN GANJU LAMA

7th Gurkha Rifles

On June 12 the Japanese put down an intense artillery barrage on the Gurkha-held position north of the village of Ningthoukhong, knocking out several bunkers and causing heavy casualties. They followed this up with an exceptionally strong attack. After ferocious hand-to-hand fighting, and supported by three medium tanks, they broke through the line in one place, pinning opposing British troops to the ground with intense fire. B Company, 7th Gurkha Rifles, was ordered to counter-attack and restore the situation. Shortly after passing the starting line, the company came under heavy enemy medium machine-gun and tank machine-gun fire at point-blank range, which covered all lines of approach. Rifleman Ganju Lama, the No 1 of the PIAT (Projector Infantry Anti-Tank) - which launched a 3 lb grenade on his initiative - crawled forward through thick mud, bleeding profusely, and engaged the tanks single-handedly. In spite of a broken left wrist and two other wounds, one in his right hand and one in his leg, caused by withering cross-fire concentrated on him, he succeeded in bringing his gun into action within 30 yards of the enemy tanks. He knocked out first one, and then another, the third tank being destroyed by an anti-tank gun. Despite his serious wounds, he then moved forwards and engaged with grenades the tank crews who were now attempting to escape. Not until he had killed or wounded them all, thus 53

enabling his company to push forward, did he allow himself to be taken back to the Regimental Aid Post to have his wounds dressed. "Throughout the action," his citation attested, "Rifleman Ganju Lama, although seriously wounded, showed a complete disregard for his own personal safety and it was solely due to his prompt action and brave conduct that a most critical situation was averted, all positions regained, and heavy casualties inflicted on the enemy." After this exploit, having been taken by stretcher to the Regimental Aid Post, Ganju Lama was evacuated to a Base Hospital. His VC - the award of which requires three independent witnesses and the risk of death to be 90 to 100 per cent - was eventually presented to him in Delhi by the Viceroy, Field Marshal Lord Wavell, in the presence of Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten, General Slim, and members of his own family. A month earlier, Ganju Lama had been awarded the Military Medal. During operations on the Tiddim Road, his regiment surprised a party of Japanese and killed several of them. Ganju Lama was awarded the MM for destroying two tanks in the action. Ganju Lama was born in India at Sangmo, southern Sikkim, on July 22 1924 and, although neither an ethnic Gurkha nor a Nepalese subject, he enlisted in the 7th Gurkhas in 1942. At that time, Gurkha regiments were prepared to accept any potential recruit who closely resembled the Gurkha and lived near the border of Nepal. Ganju Lama's tribe lived in the independent kingdom of Bhutan, in the Himalayas east of Sikkim. His real name was Gyantso, but a clerk in the recruiting office wrote it down as Ganju, and Ganju he remained. After leaving the regimental centre in 1943, he joined the 1st Battalion, 7th Gurkha Rifles, in Burma, near Imphal. After Indian Independence in 1947, Ganju Lama joined the 11th Gorkha (as it is spelt in the Indian army) Rifles, a regiment formed from Gurkhas of the 7th and 10th Gurkha Rifles who had decided to continue their services in India instead of joining the British Army. Later, he was promoted Subedar Major (Chief Indian Officer in a company of Sepoys) and in 1965 was appointed ADC to the President of India. The year before, a large boil had developed on his leg; when it burst, a Japanese bullet came out. In retirement, Ganju Lama returned to his people and was appointed honorary ADC to the President of India for life. He had been granted the honorary rank of Captain in 1968 while still serving. (Above is from a newspaper obituary)

HALVIDAR LACHHIMAN GURUNG VC

8th Gurkha Rifles, Indian Army

The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 37195. p. 3861. 24 July 1945 â&#x20AC;&#x153;On 12/13 May 1945 at Taungdaw, Burma [now Myanmar], Rifleman Lachhiman Gurung was manning the most forward post of his platoon which bore the brunt of an attack by at least 200 of the Japanese enemy. Twice he hurled back grenades which had fallen on his trench, but the third exploded in his right hand, blowing off his fingers, shattering his arm and severely wounding him in the face, body and right leg. His two comrades were also badly wounded but the rifleman, now alone and disregarding his wounds, loaded and fired his rifle with his left hand for four hours, calmly waiting for each attack which he met with fire at point blank range. 54

...Of the 87 enemy dead counted in the immediate vicinity of the Company locality, 31 lay in front of this Rifleman's section, the key to the whole position. Had the enemy succeeded in over-running and occupying Rifleman Lachhiman Gurung's trench, the whole of the reverse slope position would have been completely dominated and turned. This Rifleman, by his magnificent example, so inspired his comrades to resist the enemy to the last, that, although surrounded and cut off for three days and two nights, they held and smashed every attack. “ His outstanding gallantry and extreme devotion to duty, in the face of almost overwhelming odds, were the main factors in the defeat of the enemy. He received his Victoria Cross from the Viceroy of India, Field Marshal Lord Wavell at the Red Fort in Delhi on 19 December 1945

JEMADAR RAO ABDUL HAFIZ KHAN VC

9th. Jat Regiment, Indian Army

He was 18 years old, and serving as Jemadar in the 9th Jat Regiment, British Indian Army during World War II, when he performed the deeds for which he was awarded the VC. London Gazette, 27 July 1944. The citation reads as follows: The KING has been graciously pleased to approve the posthumous award of the VICTORIA CROSS to: – “”Jemadar Rao Abdul Hafiz Khan (11460), 9th. Jat Regiment, Indian Army. In Burma, in the early hours of the 6th April, 1944, in the hills 10 miles North of Imphal, the enemy had attacked a standing patrol of 4 men and occupied a prominent feature overlooking a Company position. At first light a patrol was sent out and contacted the enemy, reporting that they thought approximately 40 enemy were in position. It was not known if they had dug in during the hours of darkness. The Company Commander ordered Jemadar Rao Abdul Hafiz Khan to attack the enemy, with two sections from his platoon, at 0930 hours. An artillery concentration was put down on the feature and Jemadar Rao Abdul Hafiz Khan led the attack. The attack was up a completely bare slope with no cover, and was very steep near the crest. Prior to the attack, Jemadar Rao Abdul Hafiz Khan assembled his sections and told them that they were invincible, and all the enemy on the hill would be killed or put to flight. He so inspired his men that from the start the attack proceeded with great dash. When a few yards below the crest the enemy opened fire with machine-guns and threw grenades. Jemadar Rao Abdul Hafiz Khan sustained several casualties, but immediately [sic] ordered an assault, which he personally led, at the same time shouting the Mohammedan battle-cry. The assault went in without hesitation and with great dash up the last few yards of the hill, which was very steep. On reaching the crest Jemadar Rao Abdul Hafiz Khan was wounded in the leg, but seeing a machine-gun firing from a flank, which had already caused several casualties, he immediately went towards it and seizing the barrel pushed it upwards, whilst another man killed the gunner. Jemadar Rao Abdul Hafiz Khan then took a Bren gun from a wounded man and advanced against the enemy, firing as he advanced, and killing several of the enemy. So fierce was the attack, and all his men so 55

inspired by the determination of Jemadar Rao Abdul Hafiz Khan to kill all enemy in sight at whatever cost, that the enemy, who were still in considerable numbers on the position, ran away down the opposite slope of the hill. Regardless of machine-gun fire which was now being fired at him from another feature a few hundred yards away, he pursued the enemy, firing at them as they retired. Jemadar Rao Abdul Hafiz Khanwas badly wounded in the chest from this machine-gun fire and collapsed holding the Bren gun and attempting to fire at the retreating enemy, and shouting at the same time "Re-organise on the position and I will give covering fire." He died shortly afterwards. The inspiring leadership and great bravery displayed by Jemadar Rao Abdul Hafiz Khan in spite of having been twice wounded, once mortally, so encouraged his men that the position was captured, casualties inflicted on the enemy to an extent several times the size of his own party, and enemy arms recovered on the position which included 3 Lewis Machine-guns, 2 grenade dischargers and 2 officers' swords. The complete disregard for his own safety and his determination to capture and hold the position at all costs was an example to all ranks, which it would be difficult to equal. “

SEPOY BHANDARI RAM

10th Baluch Regiment, Indian Army

The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 36928. Page792. 8 February 1945. The citation reads: The KING has been graciously pleased to approve the award of the VICTORIA CROSS to:No. 24782 Sepoy Bhandari Ram, 10th Baluch Regiment, Indian Army. “On the 22nd November, 1944, in East Mayu, Arakan, during a Company attack on a strongly held Japanese bunker position, Sepoy Bhandari Ram was in the leading section of one of the platoons. In order to reach its objective, his platoon had to climb a precipitous slope, by way of a narrow ridge with sheer sides. When fifty yards from the top, the platoon came under heavy and accurate light machine gun fire. Three men were wounded, amongst them Sepoy Bhandari Ram, who received a burst of light machine gun fire in his left shoulder and a wound in his leg. The platoon was pinned down by the intense enemy fire. This Sepoy then crawled up to the Japanese light machine gun, whilst in full view of the enemy, and approached to within fifteen yards of the enemy position. The enemy then hurled grenades at him, seriously wounding him in the face and chest. Undeterred, severely wounded by bullets and grenade splinters and bespattered with blood, this Sepoy, with superhuman courage and determination, crawled up to within five yards of his objective. He then threw a grenade into the position, killing the enemy gunner and two other men, and continued his crawl to the post. Inspired by his example, the Platoon rushed up and captured the position. It was only after the position had been taken that he lay down and allowed his wounds to be dressed. By his cool courage, determination to destroy the enemy at all cost, and entire disregard for his personal safety, this young Sepoy enabled his Platoon to capture what he knew to be the key to the whole enemy position. “

LIEUTENANT CLAUD RAYMOND

Corps of Royal Engineers

The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 37151. p. 3365. 26 June 1945 “On 21 March 1945 at Talaku, Burma (now Myanmar), Lieutenant Raymond was second-incommand of a reconnaissance patrol when they were fired on by a strongly entrenched enemy detachment and the lieutenant at once led his men towards the position. He was first wounded in the shoulder and then in the head, but continued leading his men forward, when he was hit a third time, his wrist being shattered. He still carried on into the enemy defences where he was largely responsible for capturing the position. In spite of the gravity of his wounds, he refused medical aid until all the other wounded had received attention. He died the next day, aged 21” Grave Reference:12. G. 9.Cemetery:TAUKKYAN WAR CEMETERY

SHER SHAH VC

16th Punjab regiment

The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 37066. p. 2393. 4 May 1945. In Burma, on the night of 19th / 20th January 1945, Lance Naik Sher Shah commanded the left forward section of his platoon. At 19:30 hours a Japanese platoon attacked his post. Realizing that overwhelming numbers would probably destroy his section, he, by himself, stalked the enemy from their rear and broke up their attack by firing into their midst. He killed the platoon commander and six other Japanese and, after their withdrawal, crawled back to his section post. At 00:15 hours the Japanese, who were now reinforced with a company, started to form up for another attack. Sher Shah heard their officers giving orders and bayonets being fixed prior to the assault. Again he left his section post and, in spite of Japanese covering from small arms and mortars, crawled forward and saw Japanese officers and men grouped together. He fired into this group and they again broke up and started to withdraw in disorder. Whilst on his way back for the second time he was hit by a mortar bomb, which shattered his right leg. He regained his position and propping himself against the side of the trench, continued firing and encouraging his men. When asked whether he was hurt, he replied that it was only slight. Some time afterwards it was discovered his right leg was missing. The Japanese again started forming up for another attack. In spite of his severe wounds and considerable loss of blood, and very heavy Japanese supporting fire, Lance Naik Sher Shah again left his section post and crawled forward, firing into their midst at point blank range. He continued firing until for the third time the Japanese attack was broken up and until he was shot through the head, from which he subsequently died. Twenty-three dead and four wounded Japanese, including an officer, were found in daylight immediately in front of his position. His initiative and indomitable courage throughout this very critical situation undoubtedly averted the over-running of his platoon, and was the deciding factor in defeating the Japanese attacks. His supreme self-sacrifice, disregard of danger and selfless devotion to duty, were an inspiration to all his comrades throughout the Battalion” No known grave. His name is on the Rangoon Memorial Shah’s Battalion 7/16 Punjab Regiment, affectionately known as “Saat Solah Punjab” is now a part of the Pakistan Army, proudly known as the “Sher Shah Battalion”.

GIAN SINGH VC

15th Punjab Regiment, Indian Army

The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 37086. p. 2607. 22 May 1945 The KING has been graciously pleased to approve the award of the VICTORIA CROSS to:— No. 11620 Naik Gian SINGH, 15th Punjab Regiment, Indian Army. “In Burma, on 2nd March, 1945, the Japanese were holding a strong position astride the road KamyeMyingyan. Two Companies of the 15th Punjab Regiment carried out successfully a wide encircling movement and established themselves on some high ground about one and a half miles in the rear of this enemy position. As all water supply points were within the enemy position it was vital that he should be dislodged. The attack on to the first objective was successful and one platoon was ordered to attack a village to the right. This platoon's attack, with the aid of tanks, advanced slowly under very heavy enemy fire. Naik Gian Singh was in command of the leading section. The enemy was well concealed in foxholes along cactus hedges and Naik Gian Singh soon observed enemy some twenty yards ahead. Ordering his Light Machine Gunner to cover him, he, alone, rushed the enemy fox-holes, firing his Tommy Gun. He was met by a hail of fire and wounded in the arm. In spite of this he continued his advance alone, hurling grenades. He killed several Japanese including four in one of the enemy main weapon pits. By this time a troop of tanks moved up in support of this platoon and came under fire from a cleverly concealed enemy antitank gun. Naik Gian Singh quickly saw the danger to the tanks and, ignoring the danger to himself and in spite of his wounds, again rushed forward, killed the crew and captured the gun single-handed. His section followed him and he then led them down a lane of cactus hedges, clearing all enemy positions which were being firmly held. Some twenty enemy bodies were found in this area, the majority of which fell to Naik Gian Singh and his section. After this action, the Company reformed to take the enemy positions to the rear. Naik Gian Singh was ordered to the Regimental Aid Post but, in spite of his wounds, requested permission to lead his section until the whole action had been completed. This was granted. There is no doubt that these acts of supreme gallantry saved Naik Gian Singh's platoon many casualties and enabled the whole operation to be carried out successfully with severe losses to the enemy. The magnificent gallantry of this Naik throughout, his devotion to duty and leadership, although wounded, could not have been surpassed. “ Singh was presented with his Victoria Cross by King George VI, in a ceremony at Buckingham Palace on 16 October 1945

NAND SINGH

Acting Naik in the 1/11th Sikh Regiment, in the Indian Army

The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 36548. p. 2683. 2 June 1944. 58

On 11/12 March 1944 on the Maungdaw Maungdaw-Buthidaung Buthidaung Road, Burma (now Myanmar), Naik “On Nand Singh, commanding a leading section of the attack, was ordered to recapture a position gained by the enemy. He led his section up a very steep knife knife-edged edged ridge under very heavy machine-gun machine and rifle fire and although wounded in the thigh, captured the first trench. He then crawled forward alone and, wounded again in the face and shoulder, nevertheless captured tthe he second and third trenches.”

Havildar PRAKASH SINGH INGH, VC, 8th Punjab Regiment

. The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 36013. pp. 2141 2141–2142. 11 May 1943. On 6 January uary 1943, the Bren Gun Carrier Platoon of 5/8th Punjab was attacked by a strong Japanese patrol near Donbaik on the Mayu Peninsula. The Platoon Commander was wounded and was forced to retire, handing over the command to Havildar Parkash Singh. Parkash Sin Singh gh noticed two other carriers bogged down in a nullah, and under heavy Japanese fire. He immediately rushed to the rescue of the stricken carriers; calling on their crews to abandon the vehicles and run for safety while he provided covering fire. When his Bren gunner was wounded, he took control of the gun from him, and charged towards the enemy. Driving with one hand and firing the Bren gun with the other, he drove them out of their fixed positions. As he returned to pick the crews of the stranded carriers, carriers he came under heavy enemy fire, but calmly rescued all eight men. On 19 January, the battalion carriers again came under heavy anti-tank tank fire in the same area, and several of them were destroyed including that of the Platoon Commander. The crews of the d destroyed estroyed vehicles were given up for dead, and the rest of the carriers withdrew. But Parkash Singh wanted to see for himself if there were any survivors among the burning wrecks. Driving down the beach under intense enemy fire, he found the officer and his driver in their badly damaged carrier. The men were too badly injured to be moved, so Parkash Singh decided to tow their vehicle to safety. Despite the order of his Platoon Commander to go back and save himself, the fearless NCO rigged a makeshift tow chain cha and secured it to the damaged carrier, all the time exposed to enemy fire, and then towed it back to safety. For his feats of cool courage and selfless dev devotion on 6 and 19 January 1943” Havildar Parkash Singh was awarded the Victoria Cross although the initial recommendation was for a VC and Bar. No known grave. His name is on the Rangoon Memorial

RAM SARUP SINGH VC 2nd Battalion, 1st Punjab Regiment

The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 36928. pp. 791 791–792. 8 February 1945 Kennedy Peak, Tiddim Area, Burma, 25 October 1944, Jemadar (Acting Subadar) Ram Sarup Singh, 2nd Battalion, n, 1st Punjab Regiment, Indian Army The citation reads: “In In Burma on the 25th October, 1944, two platoons of the 1st Punjab Regiment 59

were ordered to put in a diversionary attack on the flank of an enemy position. This feature was of exceptional natural strength and was defended by a large force of fresh Japanese troops who had turned the hill into a fortress. Every approach was covered by medium and light machine guns sited in bunkers. The platoon of Subadar Ram Sarup Singh at once charged the position with another section. This instantaneous action completely bewildered the enemy, who fled from the bunkered positions suffering casualties in their retreat. The Subadar was wounded in the legs but took no notice of his wounds. While he was consolidating his position, the enemy opened heavy fire with grenade dischargers, and at the same time put in a strong counter-attack in three waves of twenty each from a flank. It seemed that the platoon must be overwhelmed, but Subadar Ram Sarup Singh got another light machine gun into position and led a charge against the advancing enemy, bayoneting four himself, and checking them. Although badly wounded in the thigh, he got up and, ignoring his wound, again went for the enemy shouting encouragement to his men. He bayoneted another Japanese and shot a further one, but was mortally wounded by a burst of medium machine gun fire in the chest and neck. It would be difficult to find a finer example of cool bravery, cheerfulness, leadership and determination. His action had a profound effect on the rest of the Company, and when volunteers were called for to bring in his body, under the heaviest fire, the entire Company volunteered. Subadar Ram Sarup Singh's gallantry will inspire the Regiment for all time.” Subadar Ram Sarup Singh has no known grave and therefore his name is commemorated on the Rangoon Memorial in Burma, Face 30

PRAKASH SINGH CHIB VC

4 /13th Frontier Force Rifles

Jemadar in the 4 /13th Frontier Force Rifles, The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 37056. p. 2281. 27 April 1945. “On 16/17 February 1945 at Kanlan Ywathit, Burma (now Myanmar), Jemadar Prakash Singh Chib was commanding a platoon which took the main weight of fierce enemy attacks. He was wounded in both ankles and relieved of his command, but when his second-in-command was also wounded, he crawled back and took command of his unit again, directing operations and encouraging his men. He was wounded in both legs a second time but he continued to direct the defence, dragging himself from place to place by his hands. When wounded a third time and final time, he lay shouting the Dogra war-cry, "Jawala Mata Ki Jai! [Victory to Goddess Jawala!]" as he succumbed to his wounds, inspiring his company that finally drove off the enemy”

CAPTAIN HALVIDAR UMRAO SINGH

81ST West African Division

The London Gazette: (Supplement) no.101.page2741. 29 May 1945 “On the night of 15 to 16 December 1944 in the Kaladan valley, Burma, Umrao 60

Singh was a field gun detachment commander in an advanced section of the 33 Mountain Battery, 30th Mountain Regiment, Indian Artillery, serving on detachment as part of the 81st West Wes African Division in Viscount Slim's British 14th Army, supporting the advance of the XV Corps on the Arakan. Singh's gun was in an advanced position, supporting the 8th Gold Coast Regiment. After a 90 minute sustained bombardment from 75 mm guns and mort mortars ars from the Japanese 28th Army, Singh's gun position was attacked by at least two companies of Japanese infantry. He used a Bren light machine gun and directed the rifle fire of the gunners, holding off the assault. He was wounded by two grenades. d wave of attackers killed all but Singh and two other gunners, but was also beaten off. The A second three soldiers had only a few bullets remaining, and these were rapidly exhausted in the initial stages of the assault by a third wave of attackers. Undaunted, Sin Singh gh picked up a "gun bearer" (a heavy iron rod, similar to a crow bar) and used that as a weapon in hand to hand fighting. He was seen to strike down three infantrymen, fatally wounded, before succumbing to a rain of blows. Six hours later, after a counter-attack, attack, he was found alive but unconscious near to his artillery piece, almost unrecognisable from a head injury, still clutching his gun bearer. Ten Japanese soldiers lay dead nearby. His field gun was back in action later that day Singh was presented with h his VC by King George VI at Buckingham Palace on 15 October 1945. The citation reads "Havildar Umrao Singh set a supreme example of gallantry and devotion to duty."

SUBADAR NETRA BAHADUR THAPA 5th Royal Gurkha Rifles (Frontier Force) 2nd Battalion

Subadar, Service No: 284671/IO, Date of o Death: 26/06/1944, Age: 28: 5th Royal Gurkha Rifles (Frontier Force) 2nd Battalion Battalion,, Awards: Awards V C. Son of Haimatisara; husband of Naina, of Rabu, Nepal Citation:: The citation in the London Gazette of 10th October October,, 1944, gives the following details: Subadar Netra Bahadur Thapa on 25th June, 1944, was in command of the garrison of 41 men of the 2/5th Royal Gurkha Rifles which held an isolated piquet on a hillside commanding the Base at Bishenpur in Burma. This post was commanded by another which had been overrun by the enemy the previous night, and its retention was vital to the safety of other posts farther down the ridge, and of Bishenpur itself. In the evening a Japanese attack began, and a fierce fight ensued, in which the enemy were driven back with disproportionate losses. Subadar Netra Bahadur Thapa moved from post to post regardless of his own safety, encouraging his men and tending the wounded. After a short lull, the Japanese forces attacked again, from a di different fferent direction. The Gurkhas held their ground until by ill-luck luck both machine machine-guns guns of one section jammed, and the enemy overran both this and another section, killing 12 out of the 16 men. The Subadar, having no reserve himself went forward and stemmed any ny further advance with grenades. Although the situation was critical, he determined to hold on. Another section of 8 men with additional ammunition was sent to reinforce him; all these men were soon casualties, but the Subadar himself retrieved the ammunition, ammuni and with his platoon headquarters took the offensive, armed with grenades and kukris. Whilst so doing he received first a bullet wound in the mouth, then was killed by a grenade. His fine example of personal 61

bravery and his high sense of duty so insp inspired ired his men that a vital position was held to the limit of human endurance He is buried in Taukkyan War Cemetery, Burma, Panel Reference Face 63.

WILLIAM BASIL WESTON ESTON VC

1st Battalion, The West Yorkshire Regiment

Weston was 21 years old, and a lieutenant in The Green Howards British Army serving in the 1st Battalion, The West Yorkshire Regiment War Office Citation taken from the London Gazette â&#x20AC;&#x153;On On 3 March 1945 during the attack on Meiktila, Burma, Lieutenant Weston was commanding a platoon which,, together with the rest of the company, had to clear an area of the town of the enemy. In the face of fanatical opposition he led his men superbly, encouraging them from one bunker position to the next. When he came to the last, particularly well-defended well bunker, he fell wounded in the entrance. Knowing that his men would not be able to capture the position without heavy casualties he pulled the pin out of one of his grenades as he lay on the ground and deliberately blew himself up with the occupants of th the bunker. â&#x20AC;&#x153; He is buried in Taukkyan War Cemetery, Burma

OPERATION DRACULA (Object: Capture of Rangoon by Amphibious Assault) extract from EASTERN FLEET WAR DIARY MAY 1945 PART I 11. The assault was carried out on 2nd May by the 26th Indian Division mounted from Arakan ports by Force W, under the command of Rear Admiral B.C.S. Martin, CBE, DSO. 12. Assault convoys had arrived at the lowering positions during the night 1st/2nd May, with the exception of minesweepers and survey craft under the command o off Captain A. Day, CBE, RN (Naval Commander, Force 65) who arrived p.m. on 1st May to sweep and mark the channel to the lowering position for the remainder of the force. 13. Fighter protection for the assault convoys and for ships in this assault area were provided by a Carrier Group under the command of Commodore G.N. Oliver, CB, DSO (Commodore Commanding 21st Aircraft Carrier Squadron). The group consisted of H.M.S. ROYALIST, HUNTER, STALKER, KHEDIVE, and EMPEROR, and the destroyers SAUMAREZ (D 26), VENUS, VIRGO, VIGILANT, with H.M.S. PHOEBE as fighter direction ship. 14. Accompanying the assault force were H.M.I.S. SUTLEJ and CAUVERY. There was no supporting bombardment by ships as geographical and tidal conditions necessitated this being done entirely by the Royal Air Force. 15. A Gurkha Battalion made a parachute drop in the Elephant Point area on 1st May, and captured the coastal batteries with very little opposition. 16. Leaving the lowering position at 0200 on 2nd May, the first waves of landing craft touched down at 0700 at Sadinghmut and Kyauktan Creek. There was no opposition, and the build up at these bridgeheads was cancelled as soon as it became clear that the Japanese had left Rangoon. The first troops landed in Rangoon Town at 1700 on 3rd May. 17. 7. One L.C.T. was mined in the Rangoon River and was lost. H.M.S. SILVIO was mined on 8th May, but remained seaworthy. 18. Prior to the assault, H.M.S. BLACKMORE had carried out weather reporting duties to the 62

eastward of the Andamans and H.M. S/M STRONGBOW to the westward of the Nicobars. The weather during the assault was, generally, calm, but heavy rain curtailed flying operations and bogged down heavy gear at the beach heads. The lateness of the good weather season was demonstrated by a cyclone near the convoy route on 3rd May. As soon as they could be spared, all major landing craft were withdrawn to Indian ports in order to be clear of the lee shore before the south west monsoon became established.

THE US CHINESE DIMENSION An over simplified assessment of the situation in the Pacific after the attack on Pearl Harbour on the 7th December 1941was that President Roosevelt badly needed to get the Japanese over committed in China. To do this required Chiang Kai-Shek to continue to be supplied as his armies were hungry and badly needed weapons and ammunition. This would allow the Americans to set about reclaiming mastery of the sea and recover the Island bases. Japan had invaded China in 1937, gradually isolating it from the rest of the world except for two supply lines: a narrow-gauge railway originating in Haiphong, French Indochina; and the Burma Road, an improved gravel highway linking Lashio in British Burma to Kunming in China. Along these two supply lines the USA had sent aid to the Chinese Nationalists. The United States had been supporting China's war against Japan with money and supplies for some time prior to the attack on Pearl Harbour under a Lease Lend programme. In 1940 with France hard pressed with the war in Europe they were not able to prevent Japanese warships from moving into French Indochina and closing the railroad from Haiphong. A month later, threatening war if its demands were not met, Japan secured an agreement from the hard-pressed British government to close the Burma Road to war materiel temporarily. The Burma Road reopened in October 1940, literally the sole lifeline to China. By late 1941 the United States was shipping lend-lease materiel by sea to the Burmese port of Rangoon, where it was transferred to railroad cars for the trip to Lashio in northern Burma and finally carried by truck over the 712-mile-long Burma Road to Kunming. Over this narrow highway, trucks carried munitions and materiel to supply the Chinese Army, whose continuing strength in turn forced the Japanese to keep considerable numbers of ground forces stationed in China. Consequently, Japanese strategists decided to cut the Burma lifeline, gain complete control of China, and free their forces for use elsewhere in the Pacific. Hence the Japanese invasion of Burma. From the Japanese point of view as they fought their way north so the string of air strips fell into their hands taking their fighter planes closer to the Indian border and in range to the American planes flying supplies into Southern China over the Himalayas from India and Assam. In American parlance this was called flying over the â&#x20AC;&#x153;Humpâ&#x20AC;?. With Britain and America both at war with Japan as of the 12th December 1941 the only American combat force that was in a position to help defend Burma was the American Volunteer Group (AVG). Organized by retired Army Air Forces Col. Claire L. Chennault which was preparing to provide air support to the Chinese Army against the Japanese in China. The AVG had begun training during the summer of 1941 in Burma to be out of range of Japanese air raids until ready for combat. 63

Chennault had intended to use his three squadrons of fighter aircraft but the outbreak of war in the Pacific and subsequent Japanese invasion of Burma quickly changed his priorities. In response to a British request for support on 12 December, one squadron of the AVG moved from the training base in Toungoo to Mingaladon, near Rangoon, to help protect the capital city Although Chiang Kei Shek ultimately agreed to release his 5th and 6th Armies to help hel in the defence of Burma political wrangling between the various parties over command structures tended to down grade their effective use. Basically Chiang Kei Shek kept changing his mind. min The Chinese would not serve under British Officers and although US General Stillwell was put in charge of the Chinese armies in Burma the subordinate Chinese Officers were not informed via the normal procedures A Japanese offensive begun in early March achieved success. However, the Chinese 200th Division held at Toungoo for twelve days against repeated Japanese assaults. Their stand represented the longest defensive action of any Allied force in the campaign.

The 5307th Composite Unit was a United States Army long range penetration special operations jungle warfare group the equivalent of the British Chindits. In early 1944, the 5307th were organized as light infantry assault unit, with mule transport for their 60 mm mortars, tars, bazookas, ammunition, communications gear, and supplies. Although the 5307th's three battalions were equivalent to a regimental regimental-size size unit they lacked the equivalent heavy weapons support. In just over five months of combat, “Merrill’s Marauders” as the 5307th became known, had advanced 750 miles through some of the harshest jungle, fought in five major engagements (Walawbum, Shaduzup, Inkangahtawng, Nhpum Ga, and Myitkyina) and engaged in combat with the Japanese Army on thirty-two two separate occasions occasions,, including two conventional defensive battles with enemy forces for which they were not equipped. They not only had to face Japanese soldiers but endured hunger, fevers, and disease including amoebic dysentery, scrub typhus etc. Their last battle, the capture pture of Myitkyina freed the airfield for use by US fighter planes so allowing the US planes flying over the ”hump” from India to be routed by a more southerly route without interference by Japanese fighters.

The men of the 5037th had the rare distinction of having each soldier awarded the Bronze Star. In June 1944, the 5307th Composite Unit (provisional) was awarded the Distinguished Unit Citation: “The unit must display such gallantry, determination, and esprit de corps in accomplishing its mission under extremely difficult and hazardous conditions as to set it apart and above other units participating in the same campaign”

LIFE AS A POW THE BURMA RAILWAY

The Japanese ran into a problem with the US submarines in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. The extra sea journey around the Malayan Peninsular was a major hazard in trying to take supplies to their army via Rangoon. A less hazardous journey could be achieved if goods could be offloaded in Siam and then transferred by rail to the Front.

Construction camps housing at least 1,000 workers each were established every five to 10 miles (8 to 17 km) of the route. Workers were moved up and down the railway line as needed. The construction camps consisted of open-sided barracks built of bamboo poles with thatched roofs. The barracks were about 66 yards long with sleeping platforms raised above the ground on each side of an earthen floor. Two hundred men were housed in each barracks, giving each man a two-foot wide space in which to live and sleep ÂŠIWM

The railway was a 258 miles long between Ban Pong, Siam and Thanbyuzayat, Burma. It was building started in 1943. Forced labour was used in its construction. The Australian Government figures suggest that of the 330,000 people that worked on the line (including 250,000 Asian labourers and 61,000 Allied POWs) about 90,000 of the labourers and. 12,621 Allied POWs died during the construction. The dead POWs included 6,904 British personnel, 2,802 Australians, 2,782 Dutch, and 133 Americans. There proved to be a major penalty incurred by the Japanese in that many local people were Nationalists and saw the Japanese at first as liberators from the European colonial powers. They tended to assist the Japanese in the initial stages of the invasion. This attitude changed markedly due to the harsh treatment received by the slave workers on the railway.

Starving Dutch and Australian prisoners ©IWM After the railway was completed, the POWs still had almost two years to survive before their liberation. During this time, most of the POWs were moved to hospital and relocation camps where they could be available for maintenance crews or sent to Japan to alleviate the manpower shortage there. Transport to Japan was in what were known as “Hell Ships”. THE HELL SHIPS Although POWs had been shipped to Japan from early in the war, by 1944, the Japanese began transferring increasing numbers to work in Japan, Korea & Manchuria. The conditions were appalling, prisoners were often crammed into cargo holds with little air, food or water for journeys that would last weeks. Many died due to asphyxia, starvation or dysentery. Some POWs in the heat, humidity, lack of oxygen, food, and water became delirious and unresponsive to their environment. Unlike weapons transports which were sometimes marked as Red Cross ships, these prisoner transports were unmarked and were targeted by Allied submarines and aircraft. The following 3 cases are where the ship was sunk by the Allies unaware of the POW passengers on board.

The Lisbon Maru, Japanese steamship carrying POWs, sunk by US submarine Grouper off Shanghai, many died, but others escaped, some of whom died over the succeeding weeks

On 4th September 1944, convoy HI-72 sailed from Singapore. One of the ships was the Rakuyo Maru, which carried 1317 POWs. On the 12th of September the Rakuyo Maru was torpedoed by the US submarine Sealion at around 5:00am. The Rakuyo Maru lost 1159 prisoners to the sea and the after effects of being in the water for up to 4 days.

Toyofuku Maru on 20 September 1944, the Toyofuku Maru left Manila as part of convoy MATA-27. Of the eleven ships in the convoy she was the largest and the only one 66

carrying prisoners. Fast Carrier Task Force TF 38 commanded by Rear Admiral Marc Mitscher was the main strike force of the United States Navy. Spotter planes from one of her carriers came across the Toyofuku Maru convoy on the morning of 21 September and a full scale attack was soon launched. At about 10.30 a.m. she received direct hits from two ariel torpedoes and three bombs. She split in two and sank within five minutes. 1,047 prisoners who drowned were, trapped below decks LIFE AS A POW IN JAPAN What life was like for those reaching Japan is described in the following account of a merchant seaman captured by a commerce raider and handed over to the Japanese: DAVID WILSON in 1947

Extract from his memoirs â&#x20AC;&#x153;Having been ordered to abandon ship, David leapt into the port lifeboat and put the plug in before swinging himself back on deck and helping to lower the boat into the water. In the queue for the ladder his life was saved by a young sailor, John McMillan, who waited to allow David to go down first but who was hit by a shell splinter and died of his injuries. The casualties stayed in the boat while others, David included, hung on to safety ropes: For the first time I was able to try out my wonderful life-jacket coat but unfortunately, I had not done the buttons up before getting into the water and the buoyancy was so great, I could not force the coat down enough to do the buttons up, I did however have my arms in the sleeves, so the coat acted like a life buoy. At least I had the comfortable feeling that the coat would support me for 24 hours if need be. The survivors were taken aboard the raider, the wounded were taken to the sick bay and the others shown to their quarters, an 18ft by 12 ft room, already occupied by the crew of SS Wellpark which had been sunk 2 days earlier on the same route. The crew was quite well fed and the men were permitted to go up on deck for an hour each day, the rest of the time was spent playing cards and reading books. The Thor was a successful raider and on the 3rd April a further ship was attacked, a Norwegian merchant ship, the Aust. The crew joined those already captured. On the 10th the Kirkpool was sunk and the remaining crew of twenty was picked up. On 4th May we were told that we would be transferred to a supply ship in the Indian Ocean. On being allowed on deck that evening, we could just make out the lines of the supply ship hove to about a mile away. She turned out to be the Regensburg of about 8,000 tons. We collected what gear we had, (in my case none) and clambered down the rope ladders into the launches. Sailors lined the rails on the raider and waved goodbye to us and, of course, we responded. It was hard to realise that they had sunk our ship and nearly killed us a short while back but, strange to say we were a little sad at leaving them. The crew was treated well on board the Regensburg and had the same food as the ship's company. However on 7 July 1942 the ship arrived in Yokohama Harbour and dropped anchor. The crew transferred to the Ramses before being handed over to the Japanese on 25 August. Before disembarking, the German sailors gave us two sacks of food, one contained black bread, the other tins of salmon. They told us to be sparing with it as it would be the last good food we would have for a very long time. 67

Presently we were herded into trucks, 25 prisoners to a truck and two guards and taken on a tour of Yokohama, Kawasaki and surrounding districts for two hours, all the time being pelted with rotten fruit, lumps of horse dung and anything else to hand. The population had been told that we were coming and, as they had not seen any European prisoners before, they all turned out to watch. At first, before the barrage, we thought they were cheering us as all we could hear was 'hurio, hurio' which we discovered afterwards was an insulting name for POW and that was our name from then on. As we were packed into the trucks so tightly and all standing up, we could not duck out of the way, and nor could the guards, and soon we were all covered in this filth. Kawasaki POW Camp. The bunks were full of big red bed bugs which would come out at night in droves. We would be covered in bites every night and when you squashed one it gave off a sickly smell. After a time we got used to them and did not take much notice of the bites. We were issued with two thin blankets each and a canvas pillow filled with straw. . Whenever we passed one of the guards, we were required to bow low to him. This took us a bit of time to remember to do but, as we got beaten around the head every time we forgot, we soon got the hang of it. It was about 2 miles to Mitsui Docks and we were put to work in the holds of old British ships which had been sold for scrap to Japan before the war but used by them to bring supplies in. Our job was to shovel coal into slings to be hoisted out of the holds. . . We were allowed up on deck at midday to eat our meager meal and have a few minutes to relax. It was horrible to see the brass plate at the foot of the bridge and see where the ship was built, shipyards on the Tyne, the Clyde or Belfast made me terribly homesick, even though the actual shipyards were strange places for me. As we did not have any nourishing food, it was not long before people started going down with various illnesses. Dysentery was common which would start as diarrhea and end up with passing blood and losing weight rapidly. . â&#x20AC;Ś.Another distressing illness was Beri-Beri, wet or dry. . . We all got depressed and some men said we would never be free again, so why go on with this miserable life. They just lost the will to live and faded away. . . I am sure I owe my life to Tom Gordy a US Marine from Texas. I had been ill for about ten days and could not eat the pink rice served up. One morning Tom cooked me an egg on a piece of tin in the boiler room and brought it to me before going to work, he stood over me and made me eat it, it tasted delicious. The night before he had wormed his way across the yard, past the guard room and into the chicken run which was kept by the guards for fresh meat and eggs. He silently stole an egg without disturbing the birds and, of course had to worm his way back without breaking the egg. What a wonderfully unselfish act, we never had any meat or eggs in our diet. From that day I started to get better. During 1943 David was allowed to send a card home, the first since his capture twenty months previously. At last his parents knew he was alive: Everyone, except for my mother had given up any hope of seeing me again. The card arrived on Christmas Day 1943, in wartime there was a post every day, and my father was walking along towards the church to get ready for the service when he was astonished to see the postmistress riding up the hill towards him shouting - 'he's alive!' Peldon being a small village, everyone knew about me and she wanted as many people as possible to hear the good news. My mother played the organ that morning with so much gusto that the poor boy pumping the bellows wet himself with the effort! About this time the camp began to be plagued by rats that ate the prisoners' soap, gnawed holes in their clothes and bit them during the night. In August 1943, David and four others were taken to a 'hospital' camp as suspected diphtheria cases, where they endured reduced rations as there 68

were no working parties going out from this camp. Our hut was next to the cookhouse and, although prisoners worked in there, it was more than their lives were worth to let us have spare food. However, on odd occasions they would throw over a bone which had been stripped of meat and had been in a stew. We would take it in turns to chew on it for five minutes then pass it to the next person. By the time it had been passed round a few times, each end of the bone would have gone and all the marrow. The marrow was delicious but we were careful to make sure everyone had some of it. David's experiences left him with a life-long dislike of sharing utensils or food with others, an understandable reaction given the conditions under which the prisoners existed. Although it was considered a hospital camp, David never saw any medicines being administered. The camp commandant inflicted a variety of punishments on the inmates, including forcing prisoners to stand in the latrine tank, or stand on a box in the yard all night in freezing conditions. The latter punishment frequently led to pneumonia. Life was made more bearable by the appearance of a brown dog that spent his time between the different huts and was fed by the prisoners from their own meagre food ration. From 1944, American B29 bombers began raids on Japanese cities. The raids would result in more beatings for the prisoners, cheered on by the local inhabitants. David witnessed the Kamikaze pilots' attacks on American bombers. On 15 April 1945 the air raid sirens sounded at 10.15pm: A few minutes later we heard a tremendous roar as the first planes swept in and dropped their bombs. The whole camp building shook so much we thought it would collapse, so we went outside. The napalm bombs on impact would send a stream of flaming jelly a hundred yards. In no time at all the whole city was a roaring furnace which, in turn created a fierce wind which blew all before it, roofs, doors, windows and all kinds of debris. Part of the camp fence caught fire and we thought we would be engulfed but we managed to put that fire out and then the wind suddenly changed and the fire moved away. â&#x20AC;Ś...The devastation revealed the next morning was unbelievable. For approximately four miles in any direction there was not a house or wall standing, just a blackened desert. On 17 August 1945 the prisoners discovered that the war was over: The whole camp went wild and several prisoners immediately armed themselves with various sharp instruments and went looking for the guards but they had disappeared. The senior officers in camp managed to convince everybody that it was in our interests to keep calm and we really needed the guards to protect us from the population. The guards did appear later but kept a low profile. The next day Japanese military police came to the camp and took the guards' rifles away but left them with their bayonets, for their protection and, perhaps ours. That evening the livestock kept by the guards, a pig and some chickens, were slaughtered and we all enjoyed a meal of roast pork, chicken and home-made bread - the first decent food we had tasted for three years. It is hard to summarise how our feelings were at that time. We had lived in fear of starvation, disease and bombing for so long. We had been brutally treated, made to work under harsh conditions, got into the state of mind when I thought we would never be free again then, very suddenly the war was over. I think most of us felt stunned. Having missed the American food drops for two days, David painted 'POW Camp, Drop Food' on the roof and supplies quickly arrived by parachute: The pilots certainly made up for missing us on previous days. Two of them took their life in their hands and took motion pictures of us. Several emptied their pockets and threw down packets of cigarettes. Others scribbled 69

messages - 'See you in the States in a month', 'Compliments of the Fighting 83rd USS Essex' tied them onto their singlets and tossed them to us. One pilot sent down the names and addresses of all the pilots on USS Essex. They all did aerobatics over the camp for about 15 minutes whilst we laughed and cried and cheered them. How wonderful they were to us that day. David arrived home to a wonderful welcome from his family and the villagers put on a Welcome Home party, but he found it took some time to settle back into family life. Post war David remained in the Merchant Navy until 1951 and then worked for HM Customs and Excise until retirement. In 1950 he married Ina and they had two children. It was Ina who persuaded her husband that his memoir should reflect his feelings and her advice has resulted in a rich and powerful account of life both in the Merchant Navy and as a Prisoner of War in Japan.”

THE AFTERMATH

An excerpt from: BURMA INDEPENDENCE BILL House of Commons Debate 05 November 1947 volume 443 cc1836-961 1836 § Order for Second Reading. The Prime Minister (Mr. Attlee) I have it in Command from the King to acquaint the House that His Majesty places his Prerogative and interests, so far as concern the matters dealt with by the Bill, at the disposal of Parliament. I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time." “The purpose of this Bill is to give effect to the will of the peoples of Burma as expressed by their elected representatives that their country should become an independent State, should cease to be part of the British Commonwealth of Nations and should no longer form part of the King's Dominions. Henceforward the relationship of this country and Burma will be based on a Treaty and on the friendship between the two nations which, I am glad to say, is stronger than ever today. The departure from the British family of nations of one of its members must be an occasion for deep regret. It was the hope and desire of the Government that the people of Burma would recognise the great advantages which accrue from membership of the Commonwealth—a membership which, as one of the Dominion Prime Ministers said, is not a derogation from independence but an addition to it. But they have decided otherwise. In our view, nations have the right to decide on the nature of their own government.........” Indian and Pakistan Independence

The Indian Independence Act 1947 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that partitioned British India into the two new independent dominions of India and Pakistan. The Act received the royal assent on 18 July 1947, and Pakistan came into being on 15 August at the same time as Indian independence

Ceylon Independence

Ceylon Independence Act 1947 1947 CHAPTER 7 An Act to make provision for, and in connection with, the attainment by Ceylon of fully responsible status within the British Commonwealth of Nations. [10th December 1947] Be it enacted by the King's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the sameâ&#x20AC;Śâ&#x20AC;Ś.. Japan joins UN

Japan joined the UN in 1956, it did so with great enthusiasm and broad public support, for the international organization was seen to embody the pacified country's hopes for a peaceful world order. Membership was welcomed by many Japanese who saw the UN as a guarantor of a policy of unarmed neutrality for their nation

THOSE WE LEFT BEHIND

TAUKKYAN WAR CEMETERY is the largest of the three war cemeteries in Burma (now Myanmar). It was begun in 1951 for the reception of graves from four battlefield cemeteries at Akyab, Mandalay, Meiktila and Sahmaw which were difficult to access and could not be maintained. The last was an original 'Chindit' cemetery containing many of those who died in the battle for Myitkyina. The graves have been grouped together at Taukkyan to preserve the individuality of these battlefield cemeteries. Burials were also transferred from civil and cantonment cemeteries, and from a number of isolated jungle and roadside sites. Because of prolonged post-war unrest, considerable delay occurred before the Army Graves Service was able to complete their work, and in the meantime many such graves had disappeared. However, when the task was resumed, several hundred more graves were retrieved from scattered positions throughout the country and brought together here. The cemetery now contains 6,374 Commonwealth burials of the Second World War, 867 of them unidentified. In the 1950s, the graves of 52 Commonwealth servicemen of the First World War were brought into the cemetery from the following cemeteries where permanent maintenance was not possible: Henzada (1); Meiktila Cantonment (8); Thayetmyo New (5); Thamakan (4); Mandalay Military (12) and Maymyo Cantonment (22). Taukkyan War Cemetery also contains: (C) CWGC

The TAUKKYAN CREMATION MEMORIAL commemorates more than 1,000 Second World War casualties who died in campaigns in Burma (now Myanmar) whose remains were cremated in accordance with their faith. (C) CWGC

The TAUKKYAN MEMORIAL which commemorates 46 servicemen of both wars who died 72

and were buried elsewhere in Burma but whose graves could not be maintained. (C) CWGC

The RANGOON MEMORIAL, which bears the names of almost 27,000 men of the Commonwealth land forces who died during the campaigns in Burma and who have no known grave. (C) CWGC

National Arboretum Alrewas

The memorial to those lost building the BURMESE Railway WW2 at the National Arboretum Alrewas in Staffordshire in the UK.

The Naval Memorials to those Sailors and Royal Marines, who have no known graves

1. PLYMOUTH

2. PORTSMOUTH

3. CHATHAM

AT ARLINGTON IN THE USA

General Orde Wingate was one of nine men who died in the crash of a U.S. Army Air Corps transport plane in India on March 25, 1944. They were originally buried in India, but moved to a common grave in Section 12 of Arlington National Cemetery on November 10, 1950.

ANZAC MEMORIAL “HELL FIRE PASS” IN MYANMAR

Anzac Day Dawn Service

Visitors walk along “Hell Fire Pass” deepest cutting on the railway

THE COMMANDOS FAREWELL Presentation of colours to 3 COMMANDO RM On the 29th November 1952 at Floriana in Malta GC, Prince Philip presented colours to 3 Commando Brigade. Below is 40 Commando RMâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

With the end of hostilities the Army Commandos disappeared into the History books and 44 RM Commando was sent to Hong Kong to help maintain order and to be redesignated as 40 RM Commando. One of 44 RM Commandoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s last tasks was providing guards for Japanese POWs at Fort Stanley on the South of the island. The prisoners were awaiting trial for war crimes.