burma railway prisoners of war list

The barracks were about 60m (66yd) long with sleeping platforms raised above the ground on each side of an earthen floor. Second, the occupation of Burma would also put Japanese armies on the doorstep of British India. Contact our Media sales & Licensing team about access. This is a list of notable prisoners of war (POW) whose imprisonment attracted notable attention or influence, or who became famous afterwards. More commonly called the Burma or Thai-Burma Railway, it was a major project during Allied Far East imprisonment under the Japanese. Most of the camps were right alongside the railway track and some were near bridges and other vulnerable points. [62], Workers in more isolated areas suffered a much higher death rate than did others. description Object description. Most of the railway was dismantled shortly after the war. From late 1942 more than 13 000 Australians were sent from Singapore, Java and Timor to work on the ThaiBurma railway. The rail line was built along the Khwae Noi (Kwai) River valley to support the Japanese armed forces during the Burma Campaign. The name Changi is synonymous with the suffering of Australian prisoners of the Japanese during the Second World War. In these camps entertainment flourished as an essential part of their rehabilitation. The two sections of the line met at kilometre 263, about 18km (11mi) south of the Three Pagodas Pass at Konkoita (nowadays: Kaeng Khoi Tha, Sangkhla Buri District, Kanchanaburi Province). Some of their works were used as evidence in the trials of Japanese war criminals. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Red Cross parcels helped, but these were invariably held up by the Japanese. 1, 5 - 9 Their experience under these extreme wartime conditions is examined to discover the likely contribution of malaria-associated mortality to the total number of deaths. Most of the prisoners of the Japanese were Australian Army about 21 000. A large number of the British and Australian captives were sent to Burma (Myanmar). When you got back to your sleeping platform you only had a tin of water to wash your feet. In 1960, because of discrepancies between facts and fiction, the portion of the Mae Klong which passes under the bridge was renamed the Khwae Yai ( in the Thai language; in English, 'big tributary'). Dancing Along the Deadline : The Andersonville Memoir of a Prisoner of the Confederacy. Burma Railway, also called Burma-Siam Railway, railway built during World War II connecting Bangkok and Moulmein (now Mawlamyine), Burma (Myanmar). The first contingent of British to work on the ThaiBurma railway was sent to Burma (now Myanmar) from Sumatra in May 1942, as part of the 500-strong Medan Force. In October 1943, the railway station was finished. The 75th anniversary of the infamous Thai-Burma Railway built by World War II prisoners of war will be marked today. The Japanese Army transported 500,000 tonnes of freight[citation needed] over the railway before it fell into Allied hands. The records of a million World War II Prisoners of War will be published online today. Major Sotomatsu Chida was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment. They were set to work building a camp at Nong Pladuk which would form a base for future groups of POWs. (Publisher) [45], The prisoners of war "found themselves at the bottom of a social system that was harsh, punitive, fanatical, and often deadly. Subcategories Grid List There are 23 products. [12][13] The projected completion date was December 1943. The railway was to run 420 kilometres through rugged jungle. Ron Arad Israeli fighter pilot, shot down over Lebanon in 1986. . List of Australian Army Medical Corp Officers on the Burma-Thailand Railway A FORCE To Burma May 1942 D FORCE To Southern end of line March 1943 DUNLOP FORCE To Southern end of line January 1943 F FORCE To Northern Thailand April 1943 H FORCE To Southern end of line 1943 L FORCE Deployed in medical support of natives August 1943 These pages are dedicated to my father Ken Heyes (Lance Corporal, 1st Aust Corps Troop Supply Column AIF, POW), his good friend, Ernie Badham and all the other brave soldiers who spent so many years in the hell-holes that were the Japanese P.O.W camps during World War II. POWs and Asian workers were also used to build the Kra Isthmus Railway from Chumphon to Kra Buri, and the Sumatra or Palembang Railway from Pekanbaru to Muaro. At main camps such as Chungkai, Tamarkan, Non Pladuk and Thanbyuzayat were "base Hospitals" which were also huts of bamboo and thatch, staffed by such medical officers and orderlies as were allowed by the Japanese to care for the sick prisoners. [23][24] The money was used to compensate neighbouring countries and colonies for material stolen by Japan during the construction of the railway. The Prisoner List is a compelling account of the experiences of a prisoner of the Japanese in WWII - from the humiliating defeat at Singapore, to forced labour on the Saigon docks and the horrors of life on the infamous Burma Railway. Estimates vary but the number who worked on the railway was possibly as high as 18 000. The 'Death Railway' was very well named. [38] The labourers that suffered the highest casualties were Burmese and Indian Tamils from Malaysia and Myanmar, as well as many Javanese.[30]. 493.8 Records of the Peiping headquarters Group 1946-47 493.1 Administrative History Related Records: Records of U.S. Army Service Forces (World War II), RG 160. Malaria, dysentery and pellagra (a vitamin deficiency disease) attacked the prisoners, and the number of sick in the camps was always high. [75] Repair work soon commenced afterwards and continued again and both bridges were operational again by the end of May. Konkoita is approximately 263 kilometres north of Nong Pladuk (also known as Non Pladuk), or 151 kilometres south of Thanbyuzayat. [6], In early 1942, Japanese forces invaded Burma and seized control of the colony from the United Kingdom. The two parties met at Nieke in November 1943, and the line - 263 miles long - was completed by December. In 1939 the age limits for enlistment in the AIF were 19 to 35 years of age (higher for officers and some NCOs). The cuttings at Hellfire Pass became known as the speedo period, after a solecistic command shouted by Japanese guards and engineers to their English-speaking prisoners. A former British Army officer, who was tortured as a prisoner of war at a Japanese labor camp during World War II, discovers that the man responsible for much of his treatment is still alive and sets out to confront him. Surviving Australian veterans will attend a commemorative . His account of the conditions and suffering endured by his fellow prisoners and himself makes for the most extraordinary and disturbing reading. RM 2CYBAYN - Military personnel and people attend a dawn memorial service for soldiers who died during World War Two on ANZAC Day at Hellfire Pass in Kanchanaburi province, Thailand, April 25, 2015. [73], The two bridges were successfully bombed and damaged on 13 February 1945 by bomber aircraft from the Royal Air Force (RAF). The defendants were charged with crimes against Western prisoners of war and civilians and with crimes against local people. Another thirteen letter parties, L to X, soon followed, taking the number of British working on the railway at the end of 1942 to around 20 000. [76], The new railway line did not fully connect with the Burmese railroad network as no railroad bridges were built which crossed the river between Moulmein and Martaban (the former on the river's southern bank and the latter to the opposite on the northern bank). From the inmates of Colditz to the men who took part in the 'Great Escape . [69] It was this Bridge 277 that was to be attacked with the help of one of the world's first examples of a precision-guided munition, the US VB-1 AZON MCLOS-guided 1,000lb aerial ordnance, on 23 January 1945. [78][79], In 1946,[89] the remains of most of the war dead were moved from former POW camps, burial grounds and lone graves along the rail line to official war cemeteries. Education Zone | Developed By Rara Theme. More than 12,000 Allied prisoners of war (POWs) and tens of thousands of forced labourers perished during its construction. The Prisoner List. Labor furnished by prisoners of war shall have no direct relation with war operations. It was to be built by a captive labour force of about 60,000 Allied prisoners of war and 200,000 romusha, or Asian labourers. This was the same time at which Australians in A Force left Changi for Burma. utilisation of prisoner of war labour in japanese prisoner of war camps. As a result of war bombing on bridges repeatedly, the Japanese used it to supply their troops in Burma. More than a third of these men and women died in captivity. Except for the worst months of the construction period, known as the "Speedo" (mid-spring to mid-October 1943),[51][52] one of the ways the Allied POWs kept their spirits up was to ask one of the musicians in their midst to play his guitar or accordion, or lead them in a group sing-along, or request their camp comedians to tell some jokes or put on a skit. Deel 8 De tragedie van de Birma-Siam Spoorweg", "The Railway Man: Australian keeps legacy of Thailand's 'Death Railway' alive helping relatives of POWs gain closure", Captive Audiences/Captive Performers: Music and Theatre as Strategies for Survival on the Thailand-Burma Railway 19421945, Works of Ashley George Old held by the State Library of Victoria. The only cover for the prisoners was that afforded by the flimsy bamboo and thatch huts, where they were made to shelter while the raids were in progress, and the inevitable casualties were heavy. The first cut at Konyu was approximately 1,500 feet (450 metres) long and 23 feet (7 metres) deep, and the second was approximately 250 feet (75 metres) long and 80 feet (25 metres) deep. The total number of rmusha working on the railway may have reached 300,000 and according to some estimates, the death rate among them was as high as 50 percent. Burma-Siam Railway 1942-1945, Second World War. [57][58], In addition to malnutrition and physical abuse, malaria, cholera, dysentery and tropical ulcers were common contributing factors in the death of workers on the Burma Railway. Those who stayed behind were accommodated in camp "hospitals" which were simply one or more crude jungle huts. Photo taken on Aug. 19, 2020 shows the bridge over the River Kwai, the most notable part of the "Death Railway," in Kanchanaburi, Thailand. A great deal of equipment was improvised by the medical officers and orderlies, and food and medicines were clandestinely obtained. Japanese Medical Orderly. Theatres of bamboo and attap (palm fronds) were built, sets, lighting, costumes and makeup devised, and an array of entertainment produced that included music halls, variety shows, cabarets, plays, and musical comedies even pantomimes. The Burma Railway, also known as the Death Railway, the Siam-Burma Railway, the Thai-Burma Railway and similar names, was a railway between Ban Pong, Thailand, and Thanbyuzayat, Burma, built by the Empire of Japan in 1943 to support its forces in the Burma campaign of World War II. During World War II, the Japanese forced more than 60,000 allied prisoners of war and nearly 300,000 Southeast Asian laborers to build a 415km railway across the mountains and jungles between Thailand and Myanmar (then Burma). "About a dozen on the Burma side and more again on the Thailand side of the railway, in camps like F-Force and D-Force, and about eight men who were with 'Weary' Dunlop at Hintok," he said. Between June 1942 and October 1943 the POWs and forced labourers laid some 258 miles (415 km) of track from Ban Pong, Thailand (roughly 45 miles [72 km] west of Bangkok), to Thanbyuzayat, Burma (roughly 35 miles [56 km] south of Mawlamyine). [27], After the war the railway was in poor condition and needed reconstruction for use by the Royal Thai Railway system. June 27, 2022, 5:24 PM. The majority of the army personnel were from the 8th Division. Burma-Siam Railway list of prisoner of war work camps in Thailand during the construction of the death railway, with diagram. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. On 8 December 1941, Japan invaded Thailand which quickly surrendered. [37] British doctor Robert Hardie wrote: "The conditions in the coolie camps down river are terrible," Basil says, "They are kept isolated from Japanese and British camps. [2], Thailand was a neutral country at the onset of World War II. Only the first 130 kilometres (81mi) of the line in Thailand remained, with trains still running as far north as Nam Tok. On 3 April, a second bombing raid, this time by Liberator heavy bombers of the U.S. Army Air Forces (USAAF), damaged the wooden railroad bridge once again. Khwae was frequently mispronounced by non-Thai speakers as kwai, or 'buffalo' in Thai). This is ironic, since for most of the war in the Pacific Changi was, in reality, one of the most benign of the Japanese prisoner-of-war camps; its privations were relatively minor compared to those of others, particularly those on the Burma-Thailand railway. The notorious Burma-Siam railway, built by British, Australian, Dutch and American prisoners of war, was a Japanese project inspired by the need for improved communications to maintain the large Japanese army in Burma. [74] Repairs were carried out by forced labour of POWs shortly after and by April the wooden railroad trestle bridge was back in operation. Some rosters show if living, dead or killed in action (KIA), cause of death and burial site. One of the earliest and most respected accounts is ex-POW John Coast's Railroad of Death, first published in 1946 and republished in a new edition in 2014. The greater part of the Thai section of the river's route followed the valley of the Khwae Noi River (khwae, 'stream, river' or 'tributary'; noi, 'small'. Alternatively, search more than 1 million objects from It is also the case that Australians distinctive national characteristics did not give them a greater chance of survival, as is sometimes assumed. [7] The Japanese began this project in June 1942. The remains of the notorious F-Force camp in Thailand. For the railways of the country Burma, see, Learn how and when to remove this template message, "The Japanese invasion of Thailand, 8 December 1941", "How was Thailand Impacted in World War 2? He was one of Dunlop's 1,000 the men under commanding . Source 4 - Sleepers Map of the Thai-Burma Railway Sleepers from Hellfire Pass Source 1 - The Wreaths Alternatively, send a cheque to our treasurer, Cheques should be made payable to COFEPOW and sent to the following address:-, Mr. David BrownCOFEPOW14 RidgecroftAshton-Under-LyneLancashireOL7 9TGUnited Kingdom, Choose between a single or joint membership. To these base hospitals desperately sick men - the weak supported by the less weak, since no fit men were allowed to accompany them - were evacuated from the camp hospitals, travelling by the haphazard means of hitch-hiking on a passing lorry or river barge. [10][11] After preliminary work of airfields and infrastructure, construction of the railway began in Burma and Thailand on 16 September 1942. From June 1942 onwards large groups of prisoners were transferred periodically to Thailand and Burma from Java, Sumatra and Borneo. Tens of thousands of POWs were packed onto vessels that came to be known as Hell ships; one in five prisoners did not survive the cramped, disease-ridden journey. Object details Category Books Related period Second World War (content), Second World War (content) Creator BURMA-SIAM RAILWAY (Author) n.pub. Published by Marsworth. The Japanese assumed that if Chiang Kai-sheks Nationalist forces were deprived of this key logistical resource, their conquest of China could be easily completed. Such extreme mortality was experienced by Australian and British prisoners of war (POW) forced to build the Thai-Burma railway during the Second World War. Thirty-two of them were sentenced to death. The 'Market Garden' plan employed all three divisions of First Allied Airborne Army. Railway Construction Camp - Kanya, Thailand. Altogether, some 35,000 parachute and glider troops were involved in the operation. Records of Allied Operational and Occupation Headquarters, World War II, RG 331. The first prisoners of war to work in Thailand, 3,000 British soldiers, left Changi by train in June 1942 to Ban Pong, the southern terminus of the railway. He served 11 years. The bulk of these forces were captured with the fall of Singapore, an event widely characterized as the worst military defeat in British history. The 'Market Garden' plan employed all three divisions of First Allied Airborne Army. New options were needed to support the Japanese forces in the Burma Campaign, and an overland route offered the most direct alternative. However, the British would form only a minority of the Allied POWs in Burma. Thus, ferries were needed as an alternative connecting system. It gives a narrative and pictorial account of life in POW camps north of Australia during World War II. Sort by: POW Thai Burma Death. The Burma Railway was also known as the "Death Railway" as 16,000 allied troops and 100,000 Asian labourers died during its construction. BBC News Bob Reynolds spent four years as a prisoner of war in Burma and Taiwan. Notebook kept by Captain Harold Lord, regular officer in the Royal Army Service Corps (RASC), whilst a Japanese prisoner of war working on the Burma-Thailand railway in 1943, listing neatly and chronologically the names of the British prisoners of war who worked on the railway, May - December 1943, together with the following information about each: rank, serial number, regiment, date of birth, home address, next-of-kin, religion, date on which arrived at the camp, and date of leaving because of illness (the type of illness is stated in each case) or, as in many cases, death. The Factors of Survival. More than 11 percent of civilian internees and 27 percent of Allied POWs died or were killed while in Japanese custody; by contrast, the death rate for Allied POWs in German camps was around 4 percent. The first train to pass Konkoita on the newly constructed Burma-Thailand railway, built for the Japanese by prisoner of war (POW) labour. A further 354 were from the Royal Australian Navy and 373 from the Royal Australian Air Force. notebook kept by captain harold lord, regular officer in the royal army service corps (rasc), whilst a japanese prisoner of war working on the burma-thailand railway in 1943, listing neatly and chronologically the names of the british prisoners of war who worked on the railway, may - december 1943, together with the following information about Finally, on 1 July 1958, the rail line was completed to Nam Tok (Thai , 'waterfall', referring to the nearby Sai Yok Noi Waterfall) The portion in use today is some 130km (81mi) long. The Japanese kept no records and it was impossible for anyone else to do so, nor were the graves marked, but between 80,000 and 100,000 perished. Some workers were attracted by the relatively high wages, but the working conditions for the rmusha were deadly. Donate to COFEPOW instantly - simply click on the button below. The remains of United States personnel were repatriated. From Thai-Burma railway to Sandakan, WWII history buff unearths stories of Australian POWs. Map Created by Philip Cross July 2000. While civilians were generally treated better than military prisoners, conditions in Japanese captivity were almost universally deplorable. The graves of those who died during the construction and maintenance of the Burma-Siam railway (except Americans, who were repatriated) have been transferred from the camp burial grounds and solitary sites along the railway into three war cemeteries. [69] An unknown number of Malayan workers were housed in a nearby camp. Records of Naval Operating Forces, RG 313. Show more. It was built from 1940 to 1943 by civilian labourers impressed or recruited by the Japanese and prisoners of war taken by the Japanese, to supply troops and weapons in . The Japanese stopped all work on . The Dutch formed the second largest contingent of Allied prisoners of war on the ThaiBurma railway, after the British. Most recruits were in their twenties. The Japanese would not allow the prisoners to construct a symbol (a white triangle on a blue base) indicating the presence of a prisoner of war camp, and these raids added their quota to the deaths on the line. Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}140227N 993011E / 14.04083N 99.50306E / 14.04083; 99.50306, This article is about the railway constructed by Japan during World War II. The Death Railway. The only redeeming feature was the ease with which the sick could be evacuated to base hospitals in trains returning empty from Burma. Yet in relative terms, Australian POW deaths were very significant, accounting for around 20 per cent of all Australian deaths in World War II. by Howard Margolian. Alternatively, search more than 1 million objects from Highlights. Since the Netherlands East Indies had been under Dutch control for centuries, the Dutch POWs included not only Europeans but Eurasians, who had acquired full civil rights, and indigenous soldiers, including Sundanese, Javanese, Menadonese, Ambonese and Timorese. The Burma- Death Railway. [19], As an American engineer said after viewing the project, "What makes this an engineering feat is the totality of it, the accumulation of factors. One factor was that many European and US doctors had little experience with tropical diseases. This is particularly true on Anzac Day (April 25), when Australians pay tribute to those who served and lost their lives during war. 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. Thinking back, she recalls the Australian man who made a great sacrifice to aid her and her fellow prisoners of war. Javanese, Malayan Tamils of Indian origin, Burmese, Chinese, Thai, and other Southeast Asians, forcibly drafted by the Imperial Japanese Army to work on the railway, died in its construction. Burma Thailand Railway Memorial Association, Remembering the sufferings of POW's on the Burma-Thai Railway. [14][15][16], The railway was completed ahead of schedule. At the end of the war, the Japanese Armed Forces destroyed all documents related to the POW Camps. An estimated 80,000 to 100,000 civilians also . Taff suffered from dysentery, malaria, beri beri and cholera but, unlike so many, he survived. The Death Railway is only one of the names describing the Japanese project built in 1943 to provide support to its forces during World War II. Coast also details the camaraderie, pastimes, and humour of the POWs in the face of adversity.[47]. Construction was extremely difficult, with the route crossing through thick, mosquito-infested jungle and uneven terrain while monsoon conditions prevailed. However, the film and book contain many historical inaccuracies, and should be considered works of fiction. The railway connected Thailand and Burma and was shut down in 1947, after the war. Imprest Burmese and Malay labourers too died in their thousands - exactly how many will never be known. But this phase soon passed and from May 1944 until the capitulation of Japan in August 1945 parties of prisoners were sent from the various base camps to work on railway maintenance, cut fuel for the locomotives, and handle stores at dumps along the line. It is open to general traffic from Ban Pong to Kanchanaburi, about 33 miles.Japanese communications depended upon a long and exposed sea route to Rangoon via Singapore and the Strait of Malacca, and a road (quite unfit for prolonged heavy traffic) from Raheng through Kowkarelk to Moulmein. In Burma, most of which had been reoccupied by British forces before the end of hostilities, 40 trials took place in Rangoon (now Yangon), Mandalay and Maymyo in 1946 and 1947. Between 180,000 and 250,000 Southeast Asian civilians and over 60,000 Allied prisoners of war were subjected to forced labour during its construction. [100], A preserved section of line has been rebuilt at the National Memorial Arboretum in England.[101]. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Burma_Railway&oldid=1133973618, Iron bridge across Kwae Yai River at Tha Makham, Arch Flanagan (19152013), Australian soldier and father of novelist, This page was last edited on 16 January 2023, at 11:22. Section of line has been made to follow citation style rules, May. A million World war divisions of First Allied Airborne Army konkoita is approximately 263 kilometres of. Rg 331 used as evidence in the operation flourished as an alternative connecting system with which the sick could evacuated... As an alternative connecting system and Australian captives were sent to Burma ( ). Cholera but, unlike so many, he survived much higher death rate than did.! In 1947, after the war Timor to work on the ThaiBurma railway 16 ], early. Beri and cholera but, unlike so many, he survived an unknown number of Malayan workers were housed a. 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