Today marks the 65th Anniversary of the end of the War in the Pacific v Japan and so the end of World War II
30,000 British people (12,500 in horrendous prison camps) and many more Asian people died to achieve the victory.
Never Forget, Never Again
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When he was in his early 80's he took it upon himself to go back their to visit the British war cemetary in Kohima, i couldn't understand why a crippled frail old man in a wheelchair would want to go all that way and finally he told me why, he wanted to find his best mates grave who he had to kill with a single shot as he was to badly injured to get back to hospital, what a choice he had leave him to be butchered by the Japs or kill him yourself, i wonder what you would have done. But the nice thing that come out of his trip was that he found the grave, and i think he managed to settle his mind after this. He fought alongside the Gherka's and unbeleivable these old man also in there 80's walked for 3 to 4 days across mountains to meet up with the old British soldiers at Kohima.
The battle of Kohima is an epic tale and deserves telling. Anyway after Kohima the tide turned and the British advanced back through Bruma, my father and his associates where in the thick off it fighting all the way, and unbelievably they didnt take a single prisioner. When he arrived home, there was no welcome for him, just the pleasure of meeting his 4 year old son who he had never seen before.
They where brave men and deserve every ounce of reconition. RIP dad.
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"It was horrific - there were around 6,000 of us in the camps at one point and by the time we were released, the number fell to 127.
"People would get cholera, typhoid and dysentery but there was no medical treatment. Often they had to amputate, but it was no use."
He said the prisoners had made a secret radio and, when they could, one would sneak out, and listen to transmissions before sharing the information with the others.
But it was only when the Japanese and Korean guards disappeared did the survivors realise the situation in the wider world had changed considerably and the Allied forces were celebrating their victory.
"The Allied forces parachuted in to come and get us - I think about three or four days after the final surrender.
"We were in such bad condition. I could hardly walk and had sores all over my body I had contracted chronic dysentery and malaria.
"By that point, I weighed 5st 9lb and every bone in my body was visible."
It took months before he was able to return to his family in the UK - who at one point had been informed that he was presumed dead and so had begun grieving for him.
"I was flown back in the dead of the night but all I could focus on was forgetting everything.
"I'll never forget what happened to me. I still have nightmares now.
"We were the forgotten army right from the word go - [Prime Minister Winston] Churchill gave up on us as nobody was able to get through those jungles."
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Beyond my imagination. The forgotten army? Not any more I hope. R.I.P.
Regards
Kerry
My Dad too mate the 14th Army , the forgotten army under Major Slim..... Again R.I.P. Dad
Tell them of us and say,
For your tomorrow,
We gave our today.
RIP - gone, but never forgotten - and eternally indebted.
Like many a truly brave man who through unimaginable adversity survived, and I guess through that adversity got strength to restart his life.
We should never forget them.
As an aside I also remember as a kid neither my mum nor grandmother would buy anything Japanese, there was very strong feeling about this, whilst we shouldn't forget it is good that scars heal.
I think that both wars should be reintroduced to the schools curriculum, so the kids of the future can pass on the memory of the brave men and women (from all countries) of both wars - RIP
As a microcosim of the far east theatre in WW2 Read Jungle Soldier - The story of Freddy Spencer Chapman. This is an unbelievable book written by Bryan Moynahan, and gives a insight into the human strength needed to survive.
Link
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/bookreviews/6607168/Jungle-Soldier-by-Brian-Moynahan-review.html
Thank you for that CharltonKerry.
Your father's experiences graphically bring home the effects of war on those at the sharp end to those of us lucky enough to have avoided it.
Many thanks for that. Have ordered it ( via AFKA's shop of course!)
Heroes one and all
Another little story i remember was the night they got caught in an ambush, completely surround and out of ammo, they then fought hand to hand, back to back, until they where alone, probably not that unusual, apart from the fact my father was stuck to a tree by a japenese bauyonet. He had great and very interesting life, brought up in the east side of Dartford, being the youngest of 11 children, his father died when he was 2, he was brought up the hard way, always intelligent, he actually passed for Dartford grammer but his family couldn't afford the uniform. throughout his life he fought many a union battle and was always standing up for the underdog. Prior to his death he wrote his life story (missing out his exploits in Burma unfortunately) a copy of this now is in the Dartford library, for future generations to read.
Funny story after he came back he always suffered with his knees and hip, eventually he went into the military hospital in Woolwich, where he was put with a load of SAS who jumped out of a plane without parachutes, unfortunately the pilot cocked up and they missed the trees, when he got wheeled in after his hip operation, he come to with armed soldiers in beds around him, he didn't know that the IRA had just bombed Woolwich whilst he was undergoing his operation and they expected them to attack the hospital. What was amazing was these SAS had guns tucked up in bad with them and they where looking forward to the assult. Why was he being looked after, they said because of the respect the forgotten army had from the common or garden soldier.
Sorry to be so long winded but these anniversaries always bring back memories.
The VE celebrations were less than a month before yet, in the theatre outside Europe, still people didn't return after that date.
Slightly off topic: the Commonwealth War Grave Commission site shows 13 entries for my father's cousin's (uncommon) surname in both World Wars. I am definitely related in varying degrees to 4 of those listed and quite probably a 5th which I have yet to confirm for sure.
It might be that this family was particularly badly affected by war I don't know the statistics as a whole.
For me though it exemplifies all too starkly the evils of war and it annoys me that politicians sitting in their plush Whitehall offices so lightly send good men to an early death. Lions led by donkeys.
RIP to them all.
thanks for the stories. By re-telling them you keep them alive and so honour your parents and their colleagues.
Len, speak to Addickted. He has an unusual surname and is visiting as many of his namesakes graves as he can. The one is Basra (from WWII) may be difficult he says.
Talking of bayonets I took my Dad's bayonet from his flat to give to my younger brother (lucky I wasn't stopped by the police).
It was pre-world war one issue and what they call a sword bayonet with a 10 or 12 inch blade. Most World War two soldiers used newer shorter bayonets but as my dad was in Royal Engineers Bomb Disposal they kept theirs. They used them to probe in the sand to find land mines before clearing them.
As kids it was a toy we played with. Strange now when you think that this was all that was between my dad and him being blown, literally, to bits. he survived but some of his mates weren't so lucky.
The World at War also.
Read the book King Rat-------------says it all really.
One and All
I have never cried reading a book before,
Read the book King Rat-------------says it all really.[/quote]
I was there this year ..try posting a couple of photo's.