A War of Empires : Japan, India, Burma & Britain: 1941–45

SHORTLISTED FOR THE RUSI DUKE OF WELLINGTON MEDAL FOR MILITARY HISTORY 2022 'This is a superb book.' - James Holland In 1941 and 1942 the British and Indian Armies were brutally defeated and Japan reigned supreme in its newly conquered territories throughout Asia. But change was coming. New commanders were appointed, significant training together with restructuring took place, and new tactics were developed. A War of Empires by acclaimed historian Robert Lyman expertly records these coordinated efforts and describes how a new volunteer Indian Army, rising from the ashes of defeat, would ferociously fight to turn the tide of war. But victory did not come immediately. It wasn't until March 1944, when the Japanese staged their famed 'March on Delhi', that the years of rebuilding paid off and, after bitter fighting, the Japanese were finally defeated at Kohima and Imphal. This was followed by a series of extraordinary victories culminating in Mandalay in May 1945 and the collapse of all Japanese forces in Burma. Until now, the Indian Army's contribution has been consistently forgotten and ignored by many Western historians but Robert Lyman proves how vital this hard-fought campaign was in securing Allied victory in the east. Detailing the defeat of Japanese militarism, he recounts how the map of the region was ultimately redrawn, guaranteeing the rise of an independent India free from the shackles of empire. Title Page 4 Contents 8 List of Maps 10 List of Illustrations 10 Author’s Note 12 Timeline 16 Introduction 20 Part 1: Hubris, 1942 36 Prologue 38 Chapter 1: Burma at the Intersection of History 42 Chapter 2: Defending Burma (Badly) 54 Chapter 3: A Hurried and Ill-Considered Plan 66 Chapter 4: The First Shots 72 Chapter 5: ‘We Could at Any Rate Send a Man’ 85 Chapter 6: A Slim Chance to Save Burma 93 Chapter 7: The Battle for Lower Burma 110 Chapter 8: Exodus 124 Chapter 9: Independence Armies 138 Chapter 10: The Reason Why 145 Part 2: Hiatus, 1943 154 Prologue 156 Chapter 11: Aftermath 160 Chapter 12: Taking Stock 167 Chapter 13: Arakan Round One 175 Chapter 14: Bharat Choro! 185 Chapter 15: Vinegar Joe’s Travails 193 Chapter 16: Trying to Crack the Donbaik Nut 201 Chapter 17: Irwin’s Blame Game 212 Chapter 18: ‘Our New God, Orde Wingate’ 220 Chapter 19: Re-thinking Training 230 Chapter 20: Building a Base 243 Chapter 21: ‘A Blind Man Searching for a Black Cat in a Dark Room’ 259 Part 3: Resurrection, 1944 266 Prologue 268 Chapter 22: Arakan, Again 274 Chapter 23: Ha-Go 282 Chapter 24: Okeydoke 293 Chapter 25: Sinzweya 303 Chapter 26: The March on Delhi 313 Chapter 27: Cock-up on the Tiddim Road 323 Chapter 28: The Chindwin 333 Chapter 29: Thermopylae in the Naga Hills 346 Chapter 30: The Spokes of the Wheel 361 The Northern Spoke 362 The Iril Valley Spoke 364 The Shenam Saddle Spoke 365 The Bishenpur (Tiddim Road) Spoke 368 The Ukhrul Spoke 369 The Iril Valley Spoke 370 The Shenam Saddle Spoke 371 The Bishenpur (Tiddim Road) Spoke 373 Chapter 31: Forty-Seven Days of Battle: Kohima 377 Chapter 32: Seventy-Six Days of Siege: Imphal 391 Chapter 33: Down the Hukawng Valley to Myitkyina 400 Chapter 34: The Road of Bones 420 Part 4: Redemption, 1945 434 Prologue 436 Chapter 35: What To Do About Burma? 440 Chapter 36: A Change of Plan 454 Chapter 37: Third Time Lucky in Arakan 460 Chapter 38: Meiktila and Mandalay 466 Chapter 39: Extract Digit! 475 Chapter 40: The Empire Strikes Back 486 Appendix 1 504 Appendix 2 506 Appendix 3 508 Appendix 4 510 Bibliography 511 Notes 512 Index 547 Plates 562 Author’s Biography 578 Copyright Page 579 By 1941 the Japanese reigned supreme in their newly conquered territories throughout Asia. But change was coming. In 1943 the Allies were determined to defeat the Japanese. New commanders were appointed, significant training together with restructuring took place, new equipment arrived and new tactics were developed. A War of Empires expertly retells these coordinated efforts to turn the tide of war as well as detailing the personalities of the commanders, their competing leadership styles, and their shared resolve to finally defeat the all-conquering Japanese. A War of Empires also details how the Indian Army, so brutally defeated in 1941 and 1942 was rebuilt, with a million new recruits. Acclaimed historian Robert Lyman describes how this new volunteer Indian Army, rising from the ashes of defeat, would ferociously fight not to preserve the British Empire but to resist the far more brutal, totalitarian Japanese empire and in the hope for a future, independent India. But victory did not come immediately. It wasn't until March 1944, when the Japanese staged a massive invasion of India, their famed 'March on Delhi', that the years of rebuilding reaped their reward and after bitter, desperate fighting, the Japanese were finally defeated at Kohima and Imphal. This was followed by a series of extraordinary victories culminating in the catastrophic Japanese defeat at Mandalay in May 1945 and the collapse of all Japanese forces in Burma. Robert Lyman expertly charts this dramatic change as Allied forces fought this brutal campaign in horrific conditions. Their contribution consistently forgotten and ignored by many Western historians, Lyman has conducted ground-breaking research into Indian Army archives, to reveal how these triumphs would help secure Allied victory and ultimately redraw the map of the region with an independent India, free from the shackles of empire, all but guaranteed. SHORTLISTED FOR THE RUSI DUKE OF WELLINGTON MEDAL FOR MILITARY HISTORY 2022 'This is a superb book.' - James Holland In 1941 and 1942 the British and Indian Armies were brutally defeated and Japan reigned supreme in its newly conquered territories throughout Asia. But change was coming. New commanders were appointed, significant training together with restructuring took place, and new tactics were developed. A War of Empires by acclaimed historian Robert Lyman expertly retells these coordinated efforts and describes how a new volunteer Indian Army, rising from the ashes of defeat, would ferociously fight to turn the tide of war. But victory did not come immediately. It wasn't until March 1944, when the Japanese staged their famed 'March on Delhi', that the years of rebuilding reaped their reward and after bitter fighting, the Japanese were finally defeated at Kohima and Imphal. This was followed by a series of extraordinary victories culminating in Mandalay in May 1945 and the collapse of all Japanese forces in Burma. The Indian Army's contribution has been consistently forgotten and ignored by many Western historians, Robert Lyman proves how vital this hard-fought campaign was in securing Allied victory in the east, defeating Japanese militarism and ultimately redrawing the map of the region with an independent India, free from the shackles of empire, all but guaranteed.