WW2 60th Anniversary: The Battles for KohimaThe Relief and Clearance of Kohima
The 161st Indian Infantry Brigade s defensive stand in and around Kohima blunted the Japanese offensive in the region. With the opening of the road between Dimapur and Kohima, the 2nd Division and troops from XXXIII Corps were able to move into the area and support the counterattack, which began in early May. The task of the 2nd Division, 33rd and 161st Indian Brigades was to clear the Japanese forces stationed around Kohima and open the road to Imphal. Major General John L. Grover, GOC 2 Division, had devised a strategy to destroy the Japanese positions in and around the Kohima region by envelopment. Grover ordered the 4th Infantry Brigade to destroy the Japanese to the south at GPT Ridge and in the Aradura region. The terrain and climate in the region made this a difficult task, as Lieutenant Horner, the signals officer of the 2nd Royal Norfolks, 4th Infantry Brigade, described:
The physical hammering one takes is difficult to understand. The heat, humidity, altitude and the slope of almost every foot of ground combine to knock hell out of the stoutest constitution. You gasp for air which doesn't seem to come, you drag your legs upwards till they seem reduced to the strength of matchsticks, you wipe the sweat out of your eyes... So you stop, horrified to be prodded by the man behind you or cursed by an officer in front.
The 5th Infantry Brigade was to swing north-east to clear the Japanese from the Naga Village. The remaining brigade of the 2nd Division, the 6th, was to clear the centre, FSD Hill and Jail Hill. The fighting within the 6th Brigade's area was documented by Major Boshell, who commanded 'B' Company, 1st Royal Berkshires, in the 6th Infantry Brigade:
To begin with I took over an area overlooking the Tennis Court... The lie of the land made impossible to move by day because of Japanese snipers. We were in Kohima for three weeks. We were attacked every single night... They came in waves, it was like a pigeon shoot. Most nights they overran part of the battalion position, so we had to mount counter-attacks... Water was short and restricted to about one pint per man per day. So we stopped shaving. Air supply was the key, but the steep terrain and narrow ridges meant that some of the drops went to the Japs. My company went into Kohima over 100 strong and came out at about 60.
The 33rd and 161st Indian Brigades were under the command of the 2nd Division to clear the Japanese. The fighting was bitter and extremely difficult, with the Japanese putting up a consistently stiff defence. Arthur Swinson, the distinguished historian of Kohima, recorded how:
7th May and the three days that followed were probably the bitterest time in the whole battle of Kohima. After thirty-four days and nights of close and bloody fighting, after hunger, thirst, discomfort, after appalling casualties, the enemy still held the main bastions of their position. No bombs, shells, mortars, flame-throwers or grenades could seem to shift them... The Jap[anese] had lost thousands upon thousands of men, and reports kept saying they were weak and diseased and running short of ammunition. But all the British, Gurkhas and Indians knew was 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 the features in the Kohima region had been taken by the British/Indian forces; a few, among them the DC's bungalow, were still holding out against the Dorsets and their supporting tanks. Major Michael Lowry published an account in 1950 of the attack by his 'B' Company, The Queen's Royal Regiment, on Jail Hill on 10 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 had to lead it. Very tricky, no defined tracks, thick undergrowth, down hundreds of feet round spurs 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 |
The gist of this local attack on to this position was an assault in line under covering fire. Pen and I started the ball rolling by whistling over some grenades... But the terrain was not easy, there being many shell-holes, horizontal tree stumps and the odd trench to negotiate. As we were going down the slope we caught the full blast of about three light machine guns and rifle fire and, of course, grenades as we tried to negotiate the obstacles. This, I am afraid, resulted in many more men dropping... After this there followed a sniping duel, and then things happened the like of which I had never seen before. It was the nearest approach to a snowball fight that could be imagined. The air became thick with grenades, both theirs and ours, and we were all scurrying about trying to avoid them as they 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 much digging as is normally done, but by making a hole and burrowing and tunnelling ourselves forward below ground level. By the evening we were completely dug in and all section posts linked up...
Over time, the British and Indian troops gained the upper hand, forcing the Japanese 31st Division to begin a withdrawal by mid-May. As Japanese troops were cleared from the area, additional British and Indian units from XXXIII Corps were moved into the area to reinforce and relieve members of the 2nd Division and 33rd and 161st Indian Brigades.
Strengthened by reinforcements, the 2nd Division and other units began to clear the Japanese from the Kohima-Imphal road, preparatory to lifting the siege of Imphal. More heavy fighting ensued, but eventually the Japanese troops were cleared from the road. British and Indian troops from Kohima and Imphal met at Milestone 110 on 22 June, formally ending the sieges of Imphal and Kohima.
The British and Indian forces had lost around 4000 men, dead, missing and wounded. The Japanese had lost more than 7000 men in the Kohima area fighting. On 31 May, General Sato, Commander of the Japanese 31st Division, ordered the first units to withdraw; he wrote of this decision that:
The Role of the Air Force
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| British and Indian troops with supplies on a forward airfield in Burma |
At both Kohima and Imphal, the army was entirely reliant on supply by the RAF until the road from Dimapur was cleared. At Kohima the main problem was to drop air supplies accurately on to the narrow ridgelines, whereas at Imphal there were a few airstrips to land on. The first air drop at Kohima, on 13 April, was a great disappointment; the first planes with air supplies mis-identified the dropping zone, and delivered their loads outside the perimeter. Once the dropping zone was correctly identified, however, the air drops became more regular and exact, providing the daily needs of food, water and ammunition. By mid-April, most days, as Arthur Swinson wrote:
In the late afternoon some half a dozen Dakotas, flying in line ahead, would come up the valley, circle low round Garrison Hill, and release their many-coloured parachutes. A good few of the precious parachutes drifted away to the enemy's lines... Some lodged in the trees, these were retrieved by shooting at the cords till they came down.
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By the end of the battle the Royal Air Force (RAF) had flown:
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Victoria Crosses
The Victoria Cross is the British realm's highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy. It has precedence over any other of our Sovereign's awards or Commonwealth decorations. The Victoria Cross was founded by Royal Warrant on 29 January 1856. The Cross itself is cast from the bronze of cannons captured at Sevastopol during the Crimean War. The design, chosen by Queen Victoria, consists of a cross with the Royal Crest resting upon a scroll bearing the words 'For Valour'. Since its inception the Victoria Cross has been awarded 1,354 times. The youngest recipient was 15 years old and the eldest was 69 years old. Three cases exist where both father and son have won the Victoria Cross; four pairs of brothers have also been recipients. Two Victoria Crosses were awarded following the battle at Kohima.
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About the Victoria Cross:
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4th 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 April when the siege began. On the 7th, Harman crawled forward from his slit trench, towards a Japanese light machine-gun team which had taken cover in a captured trench. Before the Japanese could react, he sprinted the 35 yards to fling himself down below the level of the enemy fire slit. He took out a grenade with a four-second fuse, counted to three, and threw the grenade into the Japanese positions. Having verified that both of his opponents were dead, Harman then returned to his section with their weapons.
The following day, the Japanese resumed their attacks on DIS Hill. Once again, Harman, bayonet fixed, set out to attack a Japanese trench containing five men armed with automatic weapons. Harman shot his way into the trench, wiped out the position, and then began walking back, ignoring his comrades' shouts to run. He was hit by a burst of fire, and died, saying: 'I've got to go. It was worth it - I got the lot.'
These actions, which prevented the premature fall of the hill, resulted in Lance Corporal John Harman receiving the Victoria Cross. The London Gazette on 22 June 1944 read: Lance-Corporal Harman's heroic action and supreme devotion to duty were a wonderful inspiration to all and were largely responsible for the decisive way in which all attacks were driven off by his company.
Lance-Corporal Harman's heroic action and supreme devotion to duty were a wonderful inspiration to all and were largely responsible for the decisive way in which all attacks were driven off by his company.
TEMPORARY CAPTAIN JOHN NEIL RANDLE
2nd 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 attacked the Japanese positions on a nearby ridge. Captain Randle took over command of the Company which was leading the attack when the Company Commander was severely wounded. His handling of a difficult situation in the face of heavy fire was masterly and although wounded himself in the knee by grenade splinters he continued to inspire his men by his initiative, courage and outstanding leadership until the Company had captured its objective and consolidated its position. He then went forward and brought in all the wounded men who were lying outside the perimeter. In spite of his painful wound Captain Randle refused to be evacuated and insisted on carrying out a personal reconnaissance with great daring in bright moonlight prior to a further attack by his Company on the position to which the enemy had withdrawn. At dawn on 6th May the attack opened, led by Captain Randle, and one of the platoons succeeded in reaching the crest of the hill held by the Japanese. Another platoon, however, ran into heavy medium machine gun fire from a bunker on the reverse slope of the feature.
Captain Randle immediately appreciated that this particular bunker covered not only the rear of his new position but also the line of communication of the battalion and therefore the destruction of the enemy post was imperative if the operation was to succeed. With utter disregard of the obvious danger to himself Captain Randle charged the Japanese machine gun post single-handed with rifle and bayonet. Although bleeding in the face and mortally wounded by numerous bursts of machine gun fire he reached the bunker and silenced the gun with a grenade thrown through the bunker slit. He then flung his body across the slit so that the aperture should be completely sealed. The bravery shown by this officer could not have been surpassed and by his self-sacrifice he saved the lives of many of his men and enabled not only his own Company but the whole Battalion to gain its objective and win a decisive victory over the enemy.
Last Updated: 15 Jun 04
