60The Battle of Kohima,

North East India4 April – 22 June 1944

SECOND WORLD WAR

ANNIVERSARY

TH

‘The turning point in the war with Japan’

‘A nation that forgets its past has no future’. These words by Winston Churchill could not be more apt to

describe the purpose of this series of booklets, of which this is the first.

These booklets commemorate various Second World War actions,and aim not only to remember and commemorate those who

fought and died, but also to remind future generations of the debt they owe to their forebears, and the inspiration that

can be derived from their stories.

They will help those growing up now to be aware of the veterans’sacrifices, and of the contributions they made to our security

and to the way of life we enjoy today.

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Kohima

KOHIMA, THE CAPITAL OF NAGALAND IN THE NORTH EAST OF INDIA

INDIA BURMA

PAKISTAN

KOLKATA

DELHI

The Ridgeshowing the mainlandmarks andthe location ofprincipalregiments.

AcknowledgementsThis booklet has been produced with the help of:Commonwealth War Graves CommissionConfederation of British Service and Ex-Service Organisations (COBSEO)Department for Education and SkillsImperial War MuseumMajor G Graham MC & BarNew Opportunities FundRoyal Military Academy SandhurstThe Burma Star Association The Royal British Legion Remembrance Travel The Victoria Cross and George Cross AssociationVeterans Agency

PhotographyAll photography reproduced with the permission of the Imperial War Museum, Commonwealth War GravesCommission and HMSO.

© Crown copyright 2004. Designed and produced by COI Communications, April 2004, 261670

Kohima is:• 5000 feet above sea level• 40 miles from Dimapur• 80 miles from Imphal

KEY FACTS

•Imphal

•KohimaDimapur•

DHAKA••

KOLKATA

BHUTAN

BANGLADESHBURMA

INDIA

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Foreword by theUnder Secretary of State for Defence and Minister for Veterans, Ivor Caplin MP

‘A nation that forgets its past has no future.’ These words byWinston Churchill could not be more apt to describe the purpose of thisseries of booklets, of which this is the first. As Minister for Veterans I believethat we should continue to remember the bravery of our Armed Forcesduring the Second World War; without their efforts and sacrifices, our livestoday would be very different. These booklets will commemorate variousSecond World War actions, and aim not only to remember andcommemorate those who fought and died, but also to inform futuregenerations of the sacrifices made by those who fought. The inspiration thatcan be derived from their stories will be invaluable for their future. I want tohelp those growing up now to be aware of the veterans’ sacrifices, and ofthe important contributions they made to our security and to the way of lifewe enjoy today.

Each booklet is intended to be linked with a specific commemorativeevent. In April 2004, veterans of Kohima, along with relations of soldierswho died there, will be travelling to North India with RemembranceTravel for a two-week pilgrimage of the region. I hope that this series willhave relevance beyond these events, as well as serve as a memento ofthe 60th anniversary commemorations.

It has been very difficult to select specific campaigns for these booklets,and for this first booklet we have chosen Kohima to represent the war inBurma. This is in no way intended to diminish the importance of the otherbattles fought in that theatre. This is a tribute to all who served there, andI hope that the series will return to this theatre of the war with an issue onthe Fourteenth Army and the liberation of Burma.

It is hard for us to understand the horrors of these battles. In a messagefor issue ‘to all ranks on the Manipur road’, Earl Mountbatten wrote afterthe battle of Kohima that ‘only those who have seen the horrific nature ofthe country under these conditions will be able to appreciate yourachievements’. This sums up a great truth about the battle of Kohima,and emphasises the magnitude of the victory bought at great cost by thecombined British and Indian force of the 2nd British Division, the161st Indian Brigade (which included the 4th Royal West Kents), and the33rd Indian Brigade. Though its importance was not fully realised at thetime, Kohima was a turning point in the war against Japan. This bookletwill, I hope, go some way to helping us to understand, and to remember,those who stopped the Japanese advance into Northern India.

THE BATTLE OF KOHIMA | 1

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Kohima, a hill town in North-East India (Assam),5000 feet above sea level in the middle of theNaga Hills, was from April to June 1944 thelocation of one of the most bitterly fought battlesof the Second World War. Over the course of18 months, the British and Indian FourteenthArmy, under the command of General WilliamSlim, had been building up logistical bases atDimapur and Imphal for an eventual offensiveinto Burma. The Japanese Fifteenth Army, underthe command of Lt General Renya Mutagachi,received orders in early 1944 to put a stop tothe British preparations in Assam. The fighting inand around Kohima in the spring of 1944 waspart of a larger Japanese offensive, known as‘U-Go’, in which three Japanese divisions, the15th, 31st and 33rd, attempted to destroy theBritish/Indian forces at Imphal, Naga Hills and Kohima. The Japanese, however, wereunaware that the British and Indian troopsbased in Assam in 1944, unlike theirpredecessors in 1942, were properly trainedfor the coming battles.

Kohima was an important hill station on theonly road that led from the major British/Indiansupply depot at Dimapur to Imphal. It wasnearly 40 miles from Dimapur, and 80 milesfrom Imphal. The Japanese plan was for the31st Division to split into three columns thatwould cut the Kohima–Imphal Road and envelop

the village from three different angles. TheJapanese operation, ‘U-Go’, began in mid-March 1944; by the 22nd elements of theBritish IV Corps (17th, 20th and 23rd IndianDivisions) based in and around Imphal, wereengaging the first of the Japanese troops.

General Slim understood that a major Japaneseoffensive was under way. With most of IV Corpstied up in Imphal and the Imphal–Kohima roadcut, he knew that Kohima would need to bereinforced. British military intelligence did notinitially realise the threat to Kohima. It wasassumed that no more than a few battalionswould be able to traverse the high ridge systemthat existed between the Chindwin River andKohima. Before long, however, reportsconfirmed that an entire Japanese division wason the move to Kohima.

In mid-March, the only troops stationed in theKohima area were a few units of Assam Rifles,1st Assam Regiment and Line of Communicationstroops. The 1st Assam Regiment, which wasstationed east of Kohima, was forced towithdraw before the Japanese advance afterheavy fighting. Realising the state of affairs, Slimacted to move the 5th (and later 7th) IndianDivisions by air to reinforce both Imphal andKohima. Both of these units had just completedan excellent defence and counter-offensive

The Background to the Battle of Kohima

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Kohima battlefield showing Jail Hill and DIS Ridge

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THE BATTLE OF KOHIMA | 3

campaign in the Arakan region of Burma,against the Japanese Operation ‘Ha-Go’. Slimalso activated XXXIII Corps; the 2nd BritishDivision, 268th Indian Brigade and the 23rdInfantry Brigade (Chindits) were all earmarkedto relieve the garrison at Kohima and open theroad to Imphal.

The battle-hardened and well-trained 161stIndian Brigade, 5th Indian Division was flown tothe Dimapur area in late March. The brigademoved down the road towards Kohima and byearly April was creating defensive positions inand around the village. Defending the areapresented significant problems; the key feature,Garrison Hill, and a long wooded spur on ahigh ridge west of the village, were the scene ofperhaps the bitterest fighting of the whole Burmacampaign. The small area of terrain provided bythis ridge and the surrounding area permitted thedeployment of only one battalion, the 4th RoyalWest Kent Regiment. The rest of the 161st IndianBrigade – the 1/1st Punjab Regiment, the 4/7thRajput Regiment and the brigade’s artillery – wereplaced two miles west of Kohima, in Jotsoma.Over the course of the battle, units from Jotsomawere sent forward to reinforce areas covered bythe 4th Royal West Kents.

The defenders of the Kohima area, the161st Indian Brigade, Assam Rifles and 1st Assam Regiment, contained the Japaneseadvance in the region and forced them into abattle of attrition. The battle included fiercehand-to-hand combat, especially in the gardenof the Deputy Commissioner’s (representative ofthe Government of India, Indian Civil Service)bungalow and around the tennis court. Thedefenders were cut off from Dimapur, and hadto rely upon daily air re-supply. Despite theseobstacles, they withstood 13 days of siege andheavy fighting without backing down.

The battle for Kohima can be divided into twophases: the siege, which lasted for 13 days;

and the clearance of the Japanese 31st Divisionfrom the area, followed by the opening of theKohima–Imphal road, from mid-April until22 June. This second stage occurred over the course of two months and caused morecasualties for both armies.

This battle was ultimately to prove to be theturning point of the Burma Campaign. EarlMountbatten described it as ‘probably one of the greatest battles in history…in effect theBattle of Burma… naked unparalleledheroism…the British/Indian Thermopylae’.

Kohima Ridge and the Defended Localities

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By 5 April, the 4th Royal West Kents and theremainder of the 161st Brigade were set up in their respective positions in and aroundKohima. The 4th Royal West Kents and thesupporting troops from the Assam Rifles andAssam Regiment were positioned in a series oftrenches along the Kohima Ridge. The Kohimaridge consisted of features such as GarrisonHill, Jail Hill, Field Supply Depot (FSD) Hill, andDetail Issue (DIS) Hill; these areas, along withthe Deputy Commissioner’s (DC) Bungalow,were used as the main lines of defence.

The Japanese 31st Division, which haddeployed more than 12,000 men in theKohima region, opened the attack on theevening of 5/6 April. The 4th Royal WestKents, recognising their numerical inferiority andneed to shorten their defences, withdrew fromthe more isolated positions on the ridge afterthe first major assault. The Japanese had madesignificant inroads into the ridge and werepreparing their own positions for defence. By7 April, reinforcements from the Rajputs arrivedfrom Jotsoma, providing a boost for morale.

The Japanese launched a series of attacks intothe north-east region of the defences on 8 April,and by the 9th the British and Indians there hadbeen forced back to the tennis court. At thisjuncture, the Japanese cut the tracks betweenJotsoma and Kohima and the road betweenJotsoma and Dimapur. The Japanese forced thegarrison at Kohima to withdraw further into theirlines on 10 and 11 April with attacks on DISand FSD.

On 13 April, the Japanese pressed theiradvantage against the British and Indianpositions on the ridge. The troops defendingnear the DC’s bungalow and the tennis courtcame under increasingly heavy artillery andmortar fire, and had to repel frequent infantryassaults. This area was the scene of some ofthe hardest, closest and grimmest fighting, with

grenades being hurled across the tennis court atpoint-blank range. The War Diary of the 4th RoyalWest Kent Regiment opposite describes the scene.

In the end the attacks were beaten off with thehelp of remarkably accurate fire from the RoyalArtillery positioned at Jotsoma ridge. This factdid not escape the Japanese commanders, andthey turned much of their attention against thepositions of the 161st at Jotsoma. The Britishand Indian troops were able to repel these attacks.

14 April was to mark a turning point in thesiege. While the Japanese continued to shelland fire upon the Kohima and Jotsomagarrisons, they did not send any infantryattacks. The 2nd British Division, newly arrivedfrom an air and land 1500-mile transportation,and the 161st Brigade had broken theJapanese roadblock on the Dimapur–Kohima

The Siege

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Remains of the Deputy Commissioner’s bungalowand tennis court

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road. The garrison in Kohima received word ofthis on the 15th and morale soared. They werebolstered by the knowledge that the lifting ofthe siege was inevitable and fast approaching.

Knowing that reinforcements were on the way,the Japanese launched a last deadly anddesperate attack against the positions at FSDon the evening of 16/17 April. Each side tookthe positions more than once, only to be thrownout by their opponents. The heavy fightingand the casualties sustained forced the Britishand Indian troops to withdraw from FSD to the

Garrison Hill positions. This action left thedefenders hemmed in from the south, northand east.

With matters reaching crisis level, on themorning of 18 April British artillery opened upfrom the west against the Japanese positions.Elements of the 2nd British Division, 161stBrigade and tanks from XXXIII Corps pushedinto the area north-west of Garrison Hill andforced the Japanese from their positions. Theroad between Dimapur and Kohima had beenopened, and the siege was lifted.

THE BATTLE OF KOHIMA | 5

Night 13/14 Apr also saw bitter fighting. At the FSD the Rajputs were forcedfrom their trenches by direct hits from the 75mm guns opposite, so that A Coy at KUKI p. had to send one pl. forward to save the front positions….The Japsmade a heavy rush attack at B Coy from the DC bungalow, and succeeded inpenetrating into a shed on a small but important hillock when a Bren jammed.The pln. comd, Lt King, restored the situation by driving them out with grenades,but not before the Bren gunner himself picked up a shovel and cracked at hisassailants with it.

Early morning brought a further attack on B Coy, supported by grenadedischarge bombs, but it was repulsed with many casualties to the enemy. Air supply drop of water very successful. Enemy mortar activity continuedthroughout the day, interspersed with smoke bombs which was taken to mean that his stock of captured ammunition was running low. This assumptionwas correct.

13/14 April KOHIMA

14 April KOHIMA

Extract From 4 Battalion Royal West Kents War Diary 13–14 April 1944

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The 161st Indian Infantry Brigade’s defensivestand in and around Kohima blunted theJapanese offensive in the region. With theopening of the road between Dimapur andKohima, the 2nd Division and troops from XXXIII Corps were able to move into the areaand support the counterattack, which began in early May.

The task of the 2nd Division, 33rd and161st Indian Brigades was to clear the Japaneseforces stationed around Kohima and open theroad to Imphal. Major General John L. Grover,GOC 2 Division, had devised a strategy todestroy the Japanese positions in and aroundthe Kohima region by envelopment. Groverordered the 4th Infantry Brigade to destroy theJapanese to the south at GPT Ridge and in theAradura region. The terrain and climate in theregion made this a difficult task, as LieutenantHorner, the signals officer of the 2nd RoyalNorfolks, 4th Infantry Brigade, described:

The physical hammering one takes is difficultto understand. The heat, humidity, altitudeand the slope of almost every foot of groundcombine to knock hell out of the stoutestconstitution. You gasp for air which doesn’tseem to come, you drag your legs upwardstill they seem reduced to the strength ofmatchsticks, you wipe the sweat out of youreyes… So you stop, horrified to be proddedby the man behind you or cursed by anofficer in front.

The 5th Infantry Brigade was to swing north-east to clear the Japanese from the NagaVillage. The remaining brigade of the2nd Division, the 6th, was to clear the centre,FSD Hill and Jail Hill. The fighting within the6th Brigade’s area was documented by MajorBoshell, who commanded ‘B’ Company,1st Royal Berkshires, in the 6th Infantry Brigade:

To begin with I took over an area overlookingthe Tennis Court… The lie of the land made itimpossible to move by day because ofJapanese snipers. We were in Kohima forthree weeks. We were attacked every singlenight… They came in waves, it was like apigeon shoot. Most nights they overran partof the battalion position, so we had to mountcounter-attacks… Water was short andrestricted to about one pint per man per day.So we stopped shaving. Air supply was thekey, but the steep terrain and narrow ridgesmeant that some of the drops went to theJaps. My company went into Kohima over100 strong and came out at about 60.

The Relief and Clearance of Kohima

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The 33rd and 161st Indian Brigades were underthe command of the 2nd Division to clear theJapanese. The fighting was bitter and extremelydifficult, with the Japanese putting up aconsistently stiff defence. Arthur Swinson, thedistinguished historian of Kohima, recorded how:

7th May and the three days that followedwere probably the bitterest time in the wholebattle of Kohima. After thirty-four days andnights of close and bloody fighting, afterhunger, thirst, discomfort, after appallingcasualties, the enemy still held the mainbastions of their position. No bombs, shells,mortars, flame-throwers or grenades couldseem to shift them…The Jap[anese] had lostthousands upon thousands of men, andreports kept saying they were weak anddiseased and running short of ammunition.But all the British, Gurkhas and Indians knewwas that as soon as they got near a bunker,the fire poured out of it as mercilessly as ever.

By the morning of 13 May, many of thefeatures in the Kohima region had been takenby the British/Indian forces; a few, among themthe DC’s bungalow, were still holding outagainst the Dorsets and their supporting tanks.Major Michael Lowry published an accountin 1950 of the attack by his ‘B’ Company,The Queen’s Royal Regiment, on Jail Hill on10 May.

At 2200 hrs got the order to move out at 2215 hrs… This night approach, in my opinion, was most difficult – very tricky navigation and altogether rather nerve-racking, something I shall never forget…I had to navigate the column – in fact, I hadto lead it. Very tricky, no defined tracks, thickundergrowth, down hundreds of feet roundspurs and up hundreds of feet and across re-entrants, hacking, pushing, stumbling, and through ruined bashas and so on…

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Supplies arriving at the foot of FSD Hill

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The gist of this local attack on to this positionwas an assault in line under covering fire.Pen and I started the ball rolling by whistlingover some grenades… But the terrain was noteasy, there being many shell-holes, horizontaltree stumps and the odd trench to negotiate.As we were going down the slope we caughtthe full blast of about three light machineguns and rifle fire and, of course, grenadesas we tried to negotiate the obstacles. This, I am afraid, resulted in many more mendropping…

After this there followed a sniping duel, andthen things happened the like of which I hadnever seen before. It was the nearestapproach to a snowball fight that could beimagined. The air became thick withgrenades, both theirs and ours, and we wereall scurrying about trying to avoid them asthey burst. This duel appeared to go on non-stop for an unreckonable time…

For the rest of the day we dug like beavers –everything we could find, plates, mugs,bayonets and entrenching tools – not so muchdigging as is normally done, but by makinga hole and burrowing and tunnellingourselves forward below ground level. By theevening we were completely dug in and allsection posts linked up…

Over time, the British and Indian troops gainedthe upper hand, forcing the Japanese 31stDivision to begin a withdrawal by mid-May.As Japanese troops were cleared from the area,additional British and Indian units from XXXIIICorps were moved into the area to reinforceand relieve members of the 2nd Division and33rd and 161st Indian Brigades.

Strengthened by reinforcements, the 2nd Divisionand other units began to clear the Japanesefrom the Kohima–Imphal road, preparatory tolifting the siege of Imphal. More heavy fightingensued, but eventually the Japanese troops werecleared from the road. British and Indian troopsfrom Kohima and Imphal met at Milestone 110on 22 June, formally ending the sieges ofImphal and Kohima.

The British and Indian forces had lost around4000 men, dead, missing and wounded. TheJapanese had lost more than 7000 men in theKohima area fighting. On 31 May, GeneralSato, Commander of the Japanese 31stDivision, ordered the first units to withdraw; he wrote of this decision that:

we fought for two months with the utmost courage and have reached the limits of human fortitudes…Shedding bitter tears I nowleave Kohima.

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At both Kohima and Imphal, the army wasentirely reliant on supply by the RAF until theroad from Dimapur was cleared. At Kohima themain problem was to drop air suppliesaccurately on to the narrow ridgelines, whereasat Imphal there were a few airstrips to land on.The first air drop at Kohima, on 13 April, wasa great disappointment; the first planes with airsupplies mis-identified the dropping zone, anddelivered their loads outside the perimeter.Once the dropping zone was correctlyidentified, however, the air drops became moreregular and exact, providing the daily needs offood, water and ammunition. By mid-April, mostdays, as Arthur Swinson wrote:

In the late afternoon some half a dozenDakotas, flying in line ahead, would come upthe valley, circle low round Garrison Hill, andrelease their many-coloured parachutes. Agood few of the precious parachutes driftedaway to the enemy’s lines… Some lodged inthe trees, these were retrieved by shooting atthe cords till they came down.

By May, the troops were never short of food orammunition, and the silk parachutes themselveswere much coveted and used for warmth anddecoration. The water, which had beenrationed to a pint a day during most of April,was gradually increased to three pints, thanksto the RAF. Nevertheless, air and ground crewswere near exhaustion when the besiegedgarrisons were relieved; the RAF had flownnearly 19,000 tons of supplies and more than12,000 men, and had evacuated 13,000casualties and 43,000 non-combatants.

The Role of the Air Force

THE BATTLE OF KOHIMA | 9

By the end of the battle the Royal Air Force(RAF) had flown:• 19,000 tons of supplies• 12,000 men• 13,000 casualties• 43,000 non-combatants

KEY FACTS

British and Indian troops with supplies on a forward airfield in Burma

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The Victoria Cross is the British realm’s highestaward for gallantry in the face of the enemy.It has precedence over any other of ourSovereign’s awards or Commonwealthdecorations.

The Victoria Cross was founded by RoyalWarrant on 29 January 1856. The Cross itselfis cast from the bronze of cannons captured atSevastopol during the Crimean War. Thedesign, chosen by Queen Victoria, consists of across with the Royal Crest resting upon a scrollbearing the words ‘For Valour’.

Since its inception the Victoria Cross has beenawarded 1,354 times. The youngest recipientwas 15 years old and the eldest was 69 yearsold. Three cases exist where both father andson have won the Victoria Cross; four pairs ofbrothers have also been recipients.

Two Victoria Crosses were awarded followingthe battle at Kohima.

LANCE CORPORAL JOHN HARMAN4th Battalion,The Queen’s Own Royal West Kent Regiment,161st Indian Infantry Brigade,5th Indian Division

Lance Corporal John Harman was a sniper in‘D’ Company, defending DIS Hill from 6 Aprilwhen the siege began. On the 7th, Harmancrawled forward from his slit trench, towards aJapanese light machine-gun team which hadtaken cover in a captured trench. Before theJapanese could react, he sprinted the 35 yardsto fling himself down below the level of theenemy fire slit. He took out a grenade with afour-second fuse, counted to three, and threwthe grenade into the Japanese positions. Havingverified that both of his opponents were dead,Harman then returned to his section with theirweapons.

The following day, the Japanese resumed theirattacks on DIS Hill. Once again, Harman,bayonet fixed, set out to attack a Japanesetrench containing five men armed with automaticweapons. Harman shot his way into the trench,wiped out the position, and then began walkingback, ignoring his comrades’ shouts to run. Hewas hit by a burst of fire, and died, saying: ‘I’vegot to go. It was worth it – I got the lot.‘

These actions, which prevented the prematurefall of the hill, resulted in Lance Corporal JohnHarman receiving the Victoria Cross. The LondonGazette on 22 June1944 read:

Lance-Corporal Harman’s heroic action andsupreme devotion to duty were a wonderfulinspiration to all and were largely responsiblefor the decisive way in which all attacks weredriven off by his company.

Victoria Crosses

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About the Victoria Cross:• It was founded by Royal Warrant on

29 January 1856• It has been awarded 1,354 times• The youngest recipient was 15 years old

and the eldest was 69 years old• Two Victoria Crosses were awarded

following the battle at Kohima.

KEY FACTS

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TEMPORARY CAPTAIN JOHN NEIL RANDLE2nd Battalion,The Royal Norfolk Regiment,2nd Division

Captain Randle was commander of ‘B’ Company of the Norfolks. He was ordered to attack the Japanese flank on GPT Ridge.The London Gazette, 12 December 1944, wrote:

On the 4th May, 1944, at Kohima in Assam,a Battalion of the Norfolk Regiment attackedthe Japanese positions on a nearby ridge.Captain Randle took over command of theCompany which was leading the attack whenthe Company Commander was severelywounded. His handling of a difficult situationin the face of heavy fire was masterly andalthough wounded himself in the knee bygrenade splinters he continued to inspire hismen by his initiative, courage andoutstanding leadership until the Companyhad captured its objective and consolidatedits position. He then went forward andbrought in all the wounded men who werelying outside the perimeter. In spite of hispainful wound Captain Randle refused to beevacuated and insisted on carrying out apersonal reconnaissance with great daring inbright moonlight prior to a further attack byhis Company on the position to which theenemy had withdrawn. At dawn on 6th Maythe attack opened, led by Captain Randle,and one of the platoons succeeded inreaching the crest of the hill held by theJapanese. Another platoon, however, ran intoheavy medium machine gun fire from abunker on the reverse slope of the feature.

Captain Randle immediately appreciated thatthis particular bunker covered not only therear of his new position but also the line ofcommunication of the battalion and thereforethe destruction of the enemy post wasimperative if the operation was to succeed.With utter disregard of the obvious danger tohimself Captain Randle charged the Japanesemachine gun post single-handed with rifleand bayonet. Although bleeding in the faceand mortally wounded by numerous bursts ofmachine gun fire he reached the bunker andsilenced the gun with a grenade thrownthrough the bunker slit. He then flung hisbody across the slit so that the apertureshould be completely sealed. The braveryshown by this officer could not have beensurpassed and by his self-sacrifice he savedthe lives of many of his men and enabled notonly his own Company but the wholeBattalion to gain its objective and win adecisive victory over the enemy.

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Memories of Kohima

UNVEILING OF THE ROYAL WELCH FUSILIERS MEMORIAL 1944

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One veteran returned to the battlefield 10 yearslater and recorded his feelings.

Memories of Kohima

MAJOR GORDON GRAHAM MC & BARof the Cameron Highlanders who returned tothe battlefield in 1954

The trees are all young on Garrison Hill, and inNaga Village children are playing. The wetearth and sprouting shrubs have the samespring-fresh smell. And there is no stench.Grass-filled fox-holes still mark forgotten remainsand some rusty ration tins and leather strapshave escaped, as too worthless to pick up, adecade of scavengers.

Beneath the Hill the graves. One thousand threehundred and eighty-seven of them, in orderly,impersonal, endless rows. In this geometricalpanorama there is no heartbreak, no rebuke,no regret. It is a design of peace, the piouspeace that follows war, the revulsive peace of‘Never Again’. It is the mute attempt to expressthe inexpressible by those who, helpless, areleft behind. It has the same consciousinadequacy as the ‘Remarks’ column in theVisitors’ Book, where a sudden embarrassmentcatches the pen which has written smoothly thename and address and then stumbles on to ananti-climactic ‘Very impressive’ or ‘A fittingresting-place for heroes’. But one ex-soldier hadwritten in a flash of perceptiveness, ‘I wish myname were here’.

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The Battle in Retrospect

Kohima Town and Cemetery 1954

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Yet the heartbreak is there. On this bronze plateor that is written the parting message of thosewho loved. Some are inspired; some are simpleand heartfelt; some are superstitious; some, likethe blank spaces in the Visitors’ Book, are stilledto silence by the despair of incomprehension.But, mute or vocal, all concern those whospeak, and we are left wondering what maybe the response of those who are gone before.Do they know too much to keep their treasuresin the crumbling storehouses of memory? Or dothey go unforgetful, yet untrammelled by pasthappiness? Killed in Action. April 18 1944.Aged 27. ‘Good-night, Daddy.’ Killed inAction. April 21 1944. Aged 29. ‘A veryparfit gentle Knight.’ Killed in Action. May 51944. Aged 35. ‘Beatae memoriae quis nosseparabit?’ Killed in Action. May 6 1944.Aged 23. ‘Our only beloved son, who diedthat freedom might live.’

Statistics can be comforting. Fifty thousandrupees; 200 saplings; 36 tons of cement;1387 graves; and 10 years. Like the poignantmilestones, past which the country bus haddriven in as many minutes as the advancingtroops had moved in days, these figuresmeasure the thinker, not the thought. To somethey are mere computation; to others they arethe sight, smell, and touch of a forgottenbattlefield. Just as, at the summit crossroadswhere the bus groans to a standstill, the levelspace above is to some that which was once a tennis court and is now a war cemetery; toothers it was a point of dominating destiny.Behind lies the tortuous mounting road. Beforelie the jumbled blue forests and hills ofNagaland and Burma. Above the cross-roads is the memorial, its message unread by thosewho pass, but commanding and holding thegaze of those who arrive: ‘When you gohome, tell them of us and say, for yourtomorrow, we gave our today.’

Round the memorial are written the names.Brigadiers and privates; tankdrivers andstretcherbearers; signalmen and riflemen; namesfrom every corner of England, Scotland andWales. For our tomorrow, they gave theirtoday. One of tomorrow’s children guided meto the memorial on the Naga Village height.With proud knowledge he explained the bullet-riddled sheets of corrugated iron. The trackwhich the bull dozers drove up the hillside isnow a leafy lane; and houses identical withthose which the battle obliterated have hidden

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‘When you go home, tell them of us and say, for yourtomorrow, we gave our today.’

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the pattern of war till it can no more be traced.Red blanketed Nagas, cheerful rebels now asthen, stared in unbelief as I panted upwardbehind the nimble barefoot urchin to the placewhich I should have known better than he andwhich I knew before he was born. TheHighlanders’ memorial is in a houseyard, a confusion of fencing, pigs and hens.McCassey, Mackay, Mackinnon, Macmillar,MacNaught, in bronze alphabeticalpermanence. Here 83 were killed and eightwere missing. Beneath the names is the title ofthe Cameron lament, ‘Lochaber No More’.

The wail of the bagpipes from the Assam Rifles’barracks on the ridge below was almost tootimely a background to reverie. So, too was thebugle sounding reveille when stumbling throughthe thickets in the mist of a rainy dawn, I lookedfor ghosts and found none. We are the ghostscalled forth by our own memories, investingeach impersonal inch of soil with our ownpersonal meanings; these meanings our self-conjured mists in which wraithlike, we startleonly ourselves.

But as the mists are swept clear of the heightsabove by the rushing winds of an oncomingmonsoon, there where we stareuncomprehendingly at the sudden call for vision– still too sudden too fleeting but unutterablycertain – is the great meaning we seek. For thetrees are all young on Garrison Hill, and inNaga Village children are playing.

THE BATTLE OF KOHIMA | 15

Kohima War Cemetery – Cross of Sacrifice

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| THE BATTLE OF KOHIMA 16

Kohima today

VIEW OF THE CEMETERY AT KOHIMA

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Kohima, the capital of Nagaland, today has apopulation of 40,000. It is located some 40mountainous miles from the Burmese border,and has no air or rail link. It is sandwichedbetween Assam to the west, Burma to the east,Arunachal Pradesh to the north and Manipur tothe south. Further north lie the Himalayas, furthersouth the Chin Hills. It is hard to think of a moreinaccessible place. The views are wonderful,through high mountains, deep forests, smallturreted villages.

In Kohima the homes have tin roofs, the pets run wild, the roads are dusty and no-one everseems to be in any great hurry. Relics of thebattle can still be found on the battlefield, alongwith monuments to the Royal Scots at AraduraSpur, the Royal Norfolks on GPT Ridge, theDurham Light Infantry at Kuki Piquet, and thememorial to the 1st Battalion the Queen’s RoyalRegiment inside the Kohima War Cemetery.

Kohima War Cemetery lies on the battlegroundof Garrison Hill. No trace remains of the DC’sbungalow, which was destroyed in the fighting,but white concrete lines mark for posterity theboundaries of the historic tennis court. Thecemetery, which is completely terraced, nowcontains 1420 Commonwealth burials of theSecond World War. At the highest point in thecemetery stands the Kohima Cremation memorial,commemorating 917 Hindu and Sikh soldierswho fought alongside the British as part of theBritish Indian Army, and whose remains werecremated, in accordance with their faith. At thelower end of the cemetery, near the entrance, isa memorial to the 2nd Division – a massive

stone which was dragged by Naga tribesmento its present position.

The cemetery also contains a memorial to the2nd Battalion, the Dorsetshire Regiment; and a number of other regimental memorials havebeen erected on or near Garrison Hill

THE BATTLE OF KOHIMA | 17

2nd Division War Memorial

Kohima War Cemetery is maintained by theCommonwealth War Graves Commission. TheCommission maintains over 1,179,000 wargraves at 23,203 burial sites in 148 countriesaround the world. It also commemorates afurther 760,193 Commonwealth war deadon memorials to the missing.

Commonwealth governments share the cost ofmaintenance in proportion to the number of gravesof their war dead: UK – 79%; Canada – 10%;Australia – 6%; New Zealand – 2%; SouthAfrica – 2%; India – 1%.

KEY FACTS

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FOURTEENTH ARMY, XXXIII CORPS

2ND BRITISH DIVISION:2nd Manchester Regiment (Machine Gun Battalion)

4th Infantry Brigade:1st Royal Scots1/8th Lancashire Fusiliers2nd Royal Norfolk Regiment5th Infantry Brigade:7th Worcestershire Regiment1st Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders2nd Dorsetshire Regiment6th Infantry Brigade:1st Royal Welch Fusiliers1st Royal Berkshire Regiment2nd Durham Light Infantry

10th Field Regiment, Royal Artillery

5TH INDIAN DIVISION:161st Indian Infantry Brigade:4th Royal West Kent Regiment1/1st Punjab Regiment4/7th Rajput Regiment

7TH INDIAN DIVISION:33rd Indian Infantry Brigade:1st Queen’s Royal Regiment4/15th Punjab Regiment4/1st Gurkha Rifles114th Indian Infantry Brigade:1st Somerset Light Infantry4/14th Punjab Regiment4/5th Royal Gurkha Rifles

OTHER XXXIII CORPS UNITS

11th Cavalry45th Cavalry149th R.A.C.

1st Burma Regiment1st Chamar Regiment1st Assam Regiment

Shere Regiment (Nepalese)Mahindra Dal Regiment (Nepalese)

268TH INDIAN BRIGADE:2/4th Bombay Grenadiers5/4th Bombay Grenadiers17/7th Rajput Regiment

3RD INDIAN DIVISION (CHINDITS):23rd Infantry Brigade:2nd Duke of Wellington’s Regiment4th Border Regiment1st Essex Regiment

LUSHAI BRIGADE (UNDER DIRECT COMMAND OFFOURTEENTH ARMY):1st Royal Battalion Jat Regiment8/13th Frontier Force Rifles7/14th Punjab Regiment1st Bihar Regiment

British and Indian Army Units awarded the Battle Honour of Kohima

| THE BATTLE OF KOHIMA 18

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THE BATTLE OF KOHIMA | 19

50th anniversary of the battle of Kohima

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This booklet is intended to be of interest toyoung people, as well as veterans. As theformer may not be acquainted with basicmilitary terminology, a simple glossary of 1944

British Army terms relating to variously-sizedcommands is included here. These commandsare listed in descending order of size with therank of the commander shown in italics.

Glossary

| THE BATTLE OF KOHIMA 20

TERM DESCRIPTION

Army Group The largest military command deployed by the British Army, comprising General or Field Marshal two or more armies, and containing 400,000–600,000 troops.

Army A military command controlling several subordinate corps, plus Lieutenant-General supporting forces, amounting to 100,000–200,000 troops.

Corps A military command controlling two or more divisions, as well as other Lieutenant-General supporting forces, amounting to 50,000–100,000 troops.

Division The standard 1944 British Army formation, an infantry or armoured Major-General division contained 10,000–20,000 personnel.

Brigade A formation that contains several battalions or regiments that amount toBrigadier 3000–6000 personnel, which exists either independently or else forms

part of a division.

Regiment A unit typically of armoured or artillery forces, amounting to 500–900 Lieutenant-Colonel soldiers, that equates in status and size to an infantry battalion.

Battalion A unit usually comprising 500–900 soldiers (such as an infantry, Lieutenant-Colonel engineer or signals battalion).

Squadron Typically, a sub-unit of an armoured or recce regiment that equates in Major status and size to an infantry company.

Company A small sub-unit of a battalion. A typical infantry company could Major contain around 150–180 soldiers.

Battery Major A small sub-unit, usually of artillery, that forms part of a battalion.

Unit A small military grouping that ranges in size from a section (of 10 soldiers) up to a battalion or regiment (500–900 personnel).

Formation A large military grouping that ranges in size from brigade up to army group.

DC Deputy Commissioner

DIS Daily Issue Store

FSD Field Supply Depot

GOC General Officer Commanding

GPT General Purposes Transport

MC Military Cross

RAF Royal Air Force

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Kohima

KOHIMA, THE CAPITAL OF NAGALAND IN THE NORTH EAST OF INDIA

INDIA BURMA

PAKISTAN

KOLKATA

DELHI

The Ridgeshowing the mainlandmarks andthe location ofprincipalregiments.

AcknowledgementsThis booklet has been produced with the help of:Commonwealth War Graves CommissionConfederation of British Service and Ex-Service Organisations (COBSEO)Department for Education and SkillsImperial War MuseumMajor G Graham MC & BarNew Opportunities FundRoyal Military Academy SandhurstThe Burma Star Association The Royal British Legion Remembrance Travel The Victoria Cross and George Cross AssociationVeterans Agency

PhotographyAll photography reproduced with the permission of the Imperial War Museum, Commonwealth War GravesCommission and HMSO.

© Crown copyright 2004. Designed and produced by COI Communications, April 2004, 261670

Kohima is:• 5000 feet above sea level• 40 miles from Dimapur• 80 miles from Imphal

KEY FACTS

•Imphal

•KohimaDimapur•

DHAKA••

KOLKATA

BHUTAN

BANGLADESHBURMA

INDIA

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60The Battle of Kohima,

North East India4 April – 22 June 1944

SECOND WORLD WAR

ANNIVERSARY

TH

‘The turning point in the war with Japan’

‘A nation that forgets its past has no future’. These words by Winston Churchill could not be more apt to

describe the purpose of this series of booklets, of which this is the first.

These booklets commemorate various Second World War actions,and aim not only to remember and commemorate those who

fought and died, but also to remind future generations of the debt they owe to their forebears, and the inspiration that

can be derived from their stories.

They will help those growing up now to be aware of the veterans’sacrifices, and of the contributions they made to our security

and to the way of life we enjoy today.

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