Overview Burma 3
Overview Burma 3
Overview Burma 3
British forces in Burma were weak to defend such a large country. The
Japanese captured Moulmein on 31 January 1942, and then headed
north. They crossed the Bilin River, forcing the 17 Indian Division to
withdraw over the River Sittang. The railway bridge over the river, the
only one in the vicinity, was blown up on 23 February 1942 by British
forces. Unfortunately, two of the brigades of the division were still on
the eastern bank of the river.
This left the 17 Indian Division very weak, but it still managed to fight
itself out of encirclement. The arrival of the 7 Armoured Brigade at
Rangoon was timely. The I Burma Corps was formed in March 1942 to
assume command of the two British divisions and one armoured
brigade. There was another major battle in central Burma, but Burma
Corps was safely extracted from Burma.
British forces in Eastern India were still weak, in fact there was only
one infantry brigade to hold the whole of the Assam front in May 1942.
The General Officer Commanding Eastern Army ordered a limited
offensive on 17 October 1942 in response to pressure from General
WAVELL for an offensive in the Arakan. This offensive became
bogged down, and ground to a halt as a result of Japanese resistance.
More troops were committed to the Arakan, but they failed to break
the stalemate.
After the failure of the First Arakan Campaign, a thorough review was
undertaken on the reasons for the failure of that campaign and the
retreat from Burma. Two divisions were redesignated as training
divisions, and the whole programme of training revised. A new
command structure was put in place, and medical issues addressed.
In January 1944, the 5 Indian Division (which had returned from the
Middle East), and the 7 Indian Division (which had remained in India
until now), both under command of XV Indian Corps, launched
another limited offensive in the Arakan. At the same time, the
Japanese 28 Army was beginning a major offensive itself, however,
this was a subsidiary operation to the main thrust by 15 Army intended
to capture the Imphal Plain and then advance into India.
The road between Kohima and Imphal was cut on the 29 March, with
the seige of Kohima lasting from 8 until 20 April 1944. It took several
more weeks to clear the Kohima area, with the road to Imphal being
reopened on 22 June. The Japanese were exhausted and starving,
and withdrew in confusion.