At
the end of the Second World War English survivors of the
notorious ‘Death Railway” set foot upon their native soil
after an absence of three-and-a-half years. Among them,
sadly diminished in number, were men of the 1st and 2nd
Battalions of the Cambridgeshire Regiment. They and their
comrades from the United Kingdom and Commonwealth countries
underwent the most trying ordeals as captives of the Japanese.
Most of the men had been compelled to take part in the construction
of the Bangkok-Moulmein railway, which ran through the dense
jungle and mountains of Thailand and Burma far away from
the war front. Infantrymen raised from the pleasant, undulating
countryside of Cambridgeshire and the flat green and golden
fens of the Isle of Ely commenced the long voyage to the
Far East on October 29th, 1941. They were later joined by
officers and men of the 5th and 6th Battalions of the Royal
Norfolk Regiment, the 135th Field Regiment Royal Artillery,
the 198th Field Ambulance R.A.M.C., the 287th Field Company
Royal Engineers and other Regiments and corps which, with
the 2nd Battalion of the Cambridgeshire Regiment, formed
the 53rd Infantry Brigade. The 1st Battalion of the Cambridgeshire
Regiment formed part of the 55th Infantry Brigade.
Comprising a section of the 18th Division, the units were
committed to action in Malaya, supporting troops of the
East Surrey Regiment and the Leicestershire Regiment who
had fought a weary, bitter action against Japan’s elite
Regiment, the Imperial Guard. Supported by tanks and aircraft
Japanese troops quickly over-ran the defending troops in
the Malayan Peninsula. Although resistance was fierce and
spirited the defenders, untrained in jungle warfare and
with negligible air and sea support, were forced back to
the causeway and eventually Malaya was abandoned. The 18th
Division occupied defensive positions alongside Commonwealth
soldiers on the island of Singapore. Facing them across
the Johore Straits, 30,000 well-equipped Japanese soldiers
prepared to invade the island. They were commanded by General
Yamashita who, desirous of maintaining his initiative, knew
he must secure Singapore’s surrender as quickly as possible.
Shortage of ammunition, petrol and water placed the defenders
in a perilous position from which they faced annihilation.
Singapore capitulated and approximately 130,000 men, of
whom 28,500 were British, laid down their arms. The majority
were taken to various sites in Thailand and Burma and set
to work building the railway under most appalling conditions.
Starvation, overwork and disease claimed at least one life
in four. Since the war ended much of the railway has been
dismantled, but a section is still in use between Non Pladok
and Kinsayok, a distance of 130 km. (81 miles). This stretch
of line conveys travellers on a most interesting and beautiful
journey. It serves as a permanent reminder of the hardship
and suffering of thousands of men of many nationalities,
including those who live—and who once lived—in the peaceful
lands of Cambridgeshire. |
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