burma railway prisoners of war list

Accommodation for the Japanese guards had to be built first, and at all the staging camps built subsequently along the railway this rule applied. There were additionally about 250,000 natives (coolies) who were previously residents of countries including Java, Ambon, Singapore, Malaya, Burma and Tamils who had been working in some of these countries. 0 9 4 minutes read. George, from Coatbridge, Lanarkshire, Scotland, was a POW in Java in 1942. [71], A first wooden railroad bridge over the Khwae Yai was finished in February 1943, which was soon accompanied by a more modern ferro-concrete bridge in June 1943, with both bridges running in a NNESSW direction across the river. At the same time the 'Sweat Army' of labourers from Burma, ostensibly volunteers but many conscripted by the puppet Burmese government, toiled on the construction work. The Americans were called the Lost Battalion as their fate was unknown to the United States for more than two years after their capture. In October 1943, the railway station was finished. [77], Hellfire Pass in the Tenasserim Hills was a particularly difficult section of the line to build: it was the largest rock cutting on the railway, it was in a remote area and the workers lacked proper construction tools during building. Four prisoners of war with beri-beri, Nam Tok, 1943 Life and death on the railway The railway took 12 months to build, with final completion on 16 October 1943. These became more and more frequent when, towards the end of October 1943, trains full of Japanese troops and supplies began to go through from Thailand to Burma. Most of the camps were right alongside the railway track and some were near bridges and other vulnerable points. 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. Although working conditions were far better for the Japanese than the POWs and rmusha workers, about 1,000 (eight percent) of them died during construction. utilisation of prisoner of war labour in japanese prisoner of war camps. The Burma Railway was also known as the "Death Railway" as 16,000 allied troops and 100,000 Asian labourers died during its construction. 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. The remains of the notorious F-Force camp in Thailand. 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. It is also the case that Australians distinctive national characteristics did not give them a greater chance of survival, as is sometimes assumed. As a result of war bombing on bridges repeatedly, the Japanese used it to supply their troops in Burma. Construction was extremely difficult, with the route crossing through thick, mosquito-infested jungle and uneven terrain while monsoon conditions prevailed. Corrections? 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). It also describes the living and working conditions experienced by the POWs, together with the culture of the Thai towns and countryside that became many POWs' homes after leaving Singapore with the working parties sent to the railway. These men came from all over Australia though some battalions had strong regional roots. It completed the rail link between Bangkok, Thailand, and Rangoon, Burma. There is a popular perception that they also died at a higher rate than Australians. [73], The two bridges were successfully bombed and damaged on 13 February 1945 by bomber aircraft from the Royal Air Force (RAF). 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. .mw-parser-output .RMbox{box-shadow:0 2px 2px 0 rgba(0,0,0,.14),0 1px 5px 0 rgba(0,0,0,.12),0 3px 1px -2px rgba(0,0,0,.2)}.mw-parser-output .RMinline{float:none;width:100%;margin:0;border:none}.mw-parser-output table.routemap{padding:0;border:0;border-collapse:collapse;background:transparent;white-space:nowrap;line-height:1.2;margin:auto}.mw-parser-output table.routemap .RMcollapse{margin:0;border-collapse:collapse;vertical-align:middle}.mw-parser-output table.routemap .RMreplace{margin:0;border-collapse:collapse;vertical-align:middle;position:absolute;bottom:0}.mw-parser-output table.routemap .RMsi{display:inline;font-size:90%}.mw-parser-output table.routemap .RMl1{padding:0 3px;text-align:left}.mw-parser-output table.routemap .RMr1{padding:0 3px;text-align:right}.mw-parser-output table.routemap .RMl{text-align:right}.mw-parser-output table.routemap .RMr{text-align:left}.mw-parser-output table.routemap .RMl4{padding:0 3px 0 0;text-align:left}.mw-parser-output table.routemap .RMr4{padding:0 0 0 3px;text-align:right}.mw-parser-output table.routemap>tbody>tr{line-height:1}.mw-parser-output table.routemap>tbody>tr>td,.mw-parser-output table.RMcollapse>tbody>tr>td,.mw-parser-output table.RMreplace>tbody>tr>td{padding:0;width:auto;vertical-align:middle;text-align:center}.mw-parser-output .RMir>div{display:inline-block;vertical-align:middle;padding:0;height:20px;min-height:20px}.mw-parser-output .RMir img{height:initial!important;max-width:initial!important}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMov{position:relative}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMov .RMic,.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMov .RMtx{position:absolute;left:0;top:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMtx{line-height:20px;height:20px;min-height:20px;vertical-align:middle;text-align:center}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMsp{height:20px;min-height:20px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMtx>abbr,.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMtx>div{line-height:.975;display:inline-block;vertical-align:middle}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMts{font-size:90%;transform:scaleX(.89)}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMf_{height:5px;min-height:5px;width:20px;min-width:20px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMfm{height:100%;min-height:100%;width:4px;min-width:4px;margin:0 auto}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMo{width:2.5px;min-width:2.5px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMc{width:5px;min-width:5px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMoc{width:7.5px;min-width:7.5px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMd{width:10px;min-width:10px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMod{width:12.5px;min-width:12.5px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMcd{width:15px;min-width:15px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMocd{width:17.5px;min-width:17.5px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_{width:20px;min-width:20px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_o{width:22.5px;min-width:22.5px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_c{width:25px;min-width:25px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_oc{width:27.5px;min-width:27.5px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_d{width:30px;min-width:30px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_od{width:32.5px;min-width:32.5px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_cd{width:35px;min-width:35px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_ocd{width:37.5px;min-width:37.5px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMb{width:40px;min-width:40px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMcb{width:45px;min-width:45px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMdb{width:50px;min-width:50px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMcdb{width:55px;min-width:55px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_b{width:60px;min-width:60px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_cb{width:65px;min-width:65px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_db{width:70px;min-width:70px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_cdb{width:75px;min-width:75px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMs{width:80px;min-width:80px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMds{width:90px;min-width:90px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_s{width:100px;min-width:100px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_ds{width:110px;min-width:110px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMbs{width:120px;min-width:120px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMdbs{width:130px;min-width:130px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_bs{width:140px;min-width:140px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_dbs{width:150px;min-width:150px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMw{width:160px;min-width:160px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_w{width:180px;min-width:180px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMbw{width:200px;min-width:200px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_bw{width:220px;min-width:220px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMsw{width:240px;min-width:240px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_sw{width:260px;min-width:260px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RMbsw{width:280px;min-width:280px}.mw-parser-output .RMir .RM_bsw{width:300px;min-width:300px}. The rail line was built along the Khwae Noi (Kwai) River valley to support the Japanese armed forces during the Burma Campaign. The higher deaths in F Force were probably attributable to the fact that British workers contained a high proportion of men who were already ill when they left Singapore. To avoid a hazardous 2,000-mile (3,200km) sea journey around the Malay peninsula, a railway from Bangkok to Rangoon seemed a feasible alternative. Sir Edward "Weary" Dunlop an Australian surgeon and legend among prisoners of the Thai Burma Railway in World War II; When Britainwent to waron 3 September 1939 there was none of the 'flag-waving patriotism' of August 1914. Burma Railway, also called Burma-Siam Railway, railway built during World War II connecting Bangkok and Moulmein (now Mawlamyine ), Burma ( Myanmar ). Lt Col Coates the greatest doctor on the Burma Thailand Railway. The bulk of these forces were captured with the fall of Singapore, an event widely characterized as the worst military defeat in British history. 37,583 prisoners from the United Kingdom, Commonwealth and Dominions, 28,500 from Netherlands and 14,473 from the United States were released after the surrender of Japan. Many remember Japanese soldiers as being cruel and indifferent to the fate of Allied prisoners of war and the Asian rmusha. 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. This was the same time at which Australians in A Force left Changi for Burma. The railway, built by the Empire of Japan in 1943 to support its attack on the British colony of Burma, used forced labour, including Asian civilians and Allied prisoners of war, many thousands of . It is also known from a study of the Australians who joined the army in World War II that they were generally young and unmarried. A railway route between Burma and Thailand, crossing Three Pagodas Pass and following the valley of the Khwae Noi river in Thailand, had been surveyed by the British government of Burma as early as 1885, but the proposed course of the line through hilly jungle terrain divided by many rivers was considered too difficult to undertake. This was to be over 400 Km long through inhospitable jungle and hills. Burma-Siam Railway 1942-1945, Second World War. Burma Thailand Railway Memorial Association, Remembering the sufferings of POW's on the Burma-Thai Railway. The vast majority of the men of the 2nd AIF were of European descent. There, approximately 20% of the Allied POWs died during its construction. Director: Jack Lee | Stars: Virginia McKenna, Peter Finch, Kenji Takaki, Tran Van Khe. [23][24] The money was used to compensate neighbouring countries and colonies for material stolen by Japan during the construction of the railway. The book Through the Valley of the Kwai and the 2001 film To End All Wars are an autobiography of British Army captain Ernest Gordon. The Australian commander Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Kappe attributed the lower Australian death rate to a more determined will to live, a higher sense of discipline, a particularly high appreciation of the importance of good sanitation, and a more natural adaptability to harsh conditions [and to] the splendid and unselfish services rendered by the medical personnel in the Force. In 1943 Dutch prisoners were sent to Thailand where they suffered the same hardships as other Allied POWs. 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