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        • Japan's Invasion of the Malay Peninsula
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        • Double Tenth Incident
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        • Voices from Syonan
        • Return to British Rule
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        • The Free Thai Resistance Movement
        • Post WW2 Aftermath of Thailand
      • The Khabarovsk War Crimes Trial - Guide >
        • Defendants of Khabarovsk War Crime
        • The Japanese Empire and USSR in WW2
        • The Employment of the Bacteriological Weapon in the War
        • Planning of Japan invasion to USSR
      • Unit 731 Cover-up : The Operation Paperclip of the East - Guide >
        • Establishing Manchukuo
        • The Development of Unit 731
        • Plan Kantokuen and Bacteriological Warfare
        • The Downfall of the Japanese WW2 Era
        • Three Stages of Interrogations
        • Lasting Impacts
      • Marutas of Unit 731 - Guide >
        • How did Ishii Shiro start unit 731?
        • A Beta Testing Site
        • Establishing Pingfan
        • Experiences at the Human Experimentation Complex
        • Vivisection at the Unit 731
        • Anta Testing Grounds
        • Overall Advance from the Laboratory Creations
        • The End of the War
      • Prince Konoe Memoir - Guide >
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        • Operation U-Go
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        • Colonel Memorandum
        • The Beginning of Biological Warfare
        • The Bacteriological Warfare on China
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        • The Famine (1944-45)
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        • How World War II Complicated Food Scarcity and Invention
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The Battle of the Sittang Bridge and Its Implications for the Burmese Conquest

6/24/2019

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by Nickii Wantakan Arcado 
Picture
Desperately and gallantly the two brigades still east of the river fought to break through to the great Sittang railway bridge, held by their comrades, their only hope of getting their vehicles, and indeed themselves, over the six-hundred-yard-wide stream. Then came tragedy.
- Field Marshal Sir William Slim
​5:22 am, February 22, 1942. Burma British forces, mainly the 17th Indian Infantry Division, were falling back against Japanese advancement. The had already given everything they had at the Battle of Bilin River. Weak, tired, and, disheartened, infantry members retreated back to the bridge admits heavy enemy artillery. But then an unfortunate decision was made; blow up the bridge before it could be seized by the Japanese. The division and other units that happened to be on the bridge found themselves stranded.

Strategic Importance of an Occupied Burma

Initially, the Imperial Empire was interested in Burmese conquest for the sake of obtaining raw materials. These included exploiting oil from fields around the city of Yenangyaung and conquering rice fields in order to provide food to Japanese soldiers.

Eventually, the Japanese soon realized that Burma’s proximity to both China and India provided an advantage to the Imperial Army’s wartime occupation strategy. Taking control of a vital landmark in Rangoon would grant the Imperial Army the opportunity to cut Allied forces from the land link to China, preventing them from providing aid via supply routes to Chiang Kai-shek’s Kuomintang forces. Furthermore, the occupation of Rangoon (and Burma as a whole) would allow the Japanese to launch an attack against British forces that were stationed in India. The closest Indian state to Burma was Assam, a state that was within reach of the city of Calcutta, the residency of the British Raj aka the rule by the British Crown of India. With such proximity to the head of state, the Japanese hoped to defeat India and force the British to retreat, essentially cutting off British influence in Asia.
Picture

The Defeat of the 17th Indian Division

The Japanese were beginning to rack up several successful war campaigns, with the most recent being the defeat of Singapore on February 15 despite the country having 80,000 remaining troops. Eight days later, Japan set its sights on advancing to Rangoon. After defeating the 17th Indian Division on the Salween River (95 miles east of Rangoon), due in large part to the multiple areas that the Imperial Army was able to easily cross over to, the Japanese forced the division back to the Sittang River (now 65 miles northeast of Rangoon). With the withdraw to Sittang, the line of communications to China was cut, effectively allowing the road and railroad north out of Rangoon to come under Japanese artillery fire. 
​
A major problem began to show fruition. None of the division’s three Indian brigades had trained at the brigade level, nor had the division trained as a division. Tactically, the British would have been better off to have concentrated their men, but strategically they needed to engage the Japanese as far forward as possible so as to gain time. The strategy took precedence over tactics.

Unfortunately for the division, they had not trained at brigade level nor division level for that matter. As such, the decision to spread troop members across multiple areas to engage the Japanese as far forward as possible proved to be detrimental when compared to the option of concentrating the men for the sake of creating a stronghold. A culmination of other events led to the division’s uneventful circumstance of being surrounded by the Japanese, those of which included the poor organization of the infantry, lack of allied coordination, heavy aerial attacks, and automotive failure during fallback. Failing to expedite a strong bridgehead* on the Japanese side, Major General "Jackie" Smyth VC ordered the bridge to be destroyed, cutting off two-thirds of his division who was still at the far side of the river. Desperate, afraid, and with no means to cross the river, they fought for survival. 

Picture
Shoulder patch of the 17th Indian Infantry Division also known as the “The Black Cat Division”- Wikimedia

The Eventual Conquest of Rangoon

As the division was the only formation between the Imperial Army and Rangoon, the loss at Sittang Bridge leads to the capture of Rangoon and parts of lower Burma. Smyth was immediately dismissed by Commander-in-Chief, India, General Sir Archibald Wavell. Brigadier David "Punch" Cowan took his place in commanding the remaining survivors. Smyth never received another command. The 17th Division was left with only 3,484 men, roughly 40% of their original troop numbers. 

The defeat of the 17th division effectively opened the opportunity for Japan to conquer Rangoon. After actions at the Battle of Pegu, the Taukkyan Roadblock,  and efforts from the Australian-British-Dutch-American Command to prevent further conquest, (ABDACOM), Rangoon fell to Japanese control in March.
Picture
Flag of the State of Burma created in spring 1942 to be a Puppet state of the Empire of Japan. On August 1, 1942, the Burmese Executive Administration was established, dedicating and engaging all civil and administrative activities to the benefit of the Japanese military administration, Source: Wikimedia
References
Book:
- Slim, William. "Defeat Into Victory (London: Cassell, 1961)." The original edition was published in (1956): 444. 
Website:
  • https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/daily/wwii/the-17th-indian-division-in-burma-disaster-on-the-sittang/
  • https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/daily/wwii/the-17th-indian-division-in-burma-disaster-on-the-sittang/
  • http://ww2today.com/22nd-february-1942-the-battle-of-the-sittang-river-burma
  • https://history.army.mil/brochures/burma42/burma42.htm 

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  • Home
    • About >
      • FAQ's - Frequently Asked Questions
    • Support Us >
      • Projects you can support! >
        • Distributing Books
        • Presenting at 112th Annual Meeting of Pacific Coast Branch
        • Summer Research Relocation Fund
    • Contact
  • Stories
    • Videos >
      • Black Hearts (2021)
    • Blog
    • Podcast: Forgotten History
  • Internship
    • Summer 2025 Internship
    • Spring 2025 Internship
    • Summer 2024 Internship
    • Summer 2023 Internship
    • Fall 2022 Internship
    • Summer 2022 Internship
    • Summer 2021 Internship
    • Fall 2020- Spring 2021 Internship
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    • Fall 2019 Internship
    • Summer 2019 Internship >
      • Public History Night
    • School Year 2018-2019 Internship
    • Summer 2018 Internship >
      • 2018 Summer Showcase + Fundraiser
    • Fall 2017 Internship
    • Summer 2017 Internship >
      • 2017 Summer Showcase & Fundraiser
  • Books
  • Archives
  • Resource Page
    • Supplementary Research Guides >
      • Unit 731 - Guide >
        • Background of Biochemical Warfare Development
        • Imperial Japan's Chemical Warfare Development Program
        • Map of Unit 731
        • Personnel of Unit 731
        • Duties of Unit 731
        • Human Experimentation
        • [GRAPHIC] Germ Warfare Attacks
        • Cover Ups After the War
        • [OLD] Cover Ups After the War
      • Philippines' Resistance - Guide >
        • Philippines World War II Timeline
        • The Japanese Invasion & Conquest of the Philippines
        • Bataan Death March
        • Formation of Underground Philippines Resistance
        • Supplies of the Guerrilla Fighters
        • The Hukbalahap
        • Hunter's ROTC
        • Marking's Guerrillas
        • United States Army Forces in the Philippines of Northern Luzon (USAFIP-NL)
        • The Aetas
        • Chinese and Filipino-Chinese Nationalist Guerrilla Units
        • The Female Faces of the Philippine Guerrillas
      • Rising Sun Flag - Guide >
        • History of the Rising Sun Flag
        • Atrocities Committed Under the Flag
        • Rising Sun Flag in Pop Culture
      • Pinay Guerrilleras - Guide >
        • Japanese Occupation of the Philippine Islands: Pinays Answering the Call to Arms
        • The Fierce Heneralas and Kumanders of the Hukbalahap Guerrillas
        • Amazons of the Pacific Theater
        • Filipina American Veterans: Recovering the Extraordinary Feats of the Ordinary Pinays
        • The Legacy of the Asian Women Soldier
      • Fall of Singapore - Guide >
        • Singapore World War II Timeline
        • History of World War II in the Pacific
        • History of Singapore
        • Japan's Conquest in Asia
        • Japan's Invasion of the Malay Peninsula
        • Sook Ching Massacre
        • Double Tenth Incident
        • Social Changes and Challenges in Singapore
        • Voices from Syonan
        • Return to British Rule
      • Three Years and Eight Months - Guide >
        • Hong Kong before WW2
        • Buildup to World War 2
        • The Battle of Hong Kong
        • Life during 3 Years and 8 Months
        • East River Column Guerrilla Fighters
        • Prisoners of War Camps
        • End of Japanese Occupation
        • War Crimes Trials
      • Siamese Sovereignty - Guide >
        • The Land of Smiles
        • The Thai-Japanese Relationship
        • Phibun’s Domestic and International Policies
        • The Free Thai Resistance Movement
        • Post WW2 Aftermath of Thailand
      • The Khabarovsk War Crimes Trial - Guide >
        • Defendants of Khabarovsk War Crime
        • The Japanese Empire and USSR in WW2
        • The Employment of the Bacteriological Weapon in the War
        • Planning of Japan invasion to USSR
      • Unit 731 Cover-up : The Operation Paperclip of the East - Guide >
        • Establishing Manchukuo
        • The Development of Unit 731
        • Plan Kantokuen and Bacteriological Warfare
        • The Downfall of the Japanese WW2 Era
        • Three Stages of Interrogations
        • Lasting Impacts
      • Marutas of Unit 731 - Guide >
        • How did Ishii Shiro start unit 731?
        • A Beta Testing Site
        • Establishing Pingfan
        • Experiences at the Human Experimentation Complex
        • Vivisection at the Unit 731
        • Anta Testing Grounds
        • Overall Advance from the Laboratory Creations
        • The End of the War
      • Prince Konoe Memoir - Guide >
        • Who is Prince Konoe?
        • Preparation to Tripartite Pact
        • Emperor Hirohito and Prince Konoe
        • The End of Prince Konoe
      • Competing Empires in Burma - Guide >
        • What was the China-Burma-India Theater?
        • When did the China-Burma-India Theater Happen?
        • Who Fought in the China-Burma-India Theater?
        • The Second Sino Japanese War
        • Japan in the South
        • Operation U-Go
      • Battle of Shanghai - Guide >
        • The Battle of Shanghai. Background
        • Shanghai Before War
        • The First Battle of Shanghai 1932
        • Battle of Shanghai 1937
        • Aftermath of Battle for Shanghai
      • Ishi Shiro - Guide >
        • History of Biological Weapons and The Young Ishii Shiro
        • Establishment in Manchuria
        • Pingfang District - Harbin
        • Failures and Corruption
        • Post War
      • Taiwan The Israel of the East - Guide >
        • Background of Formosa
        • Industrialization of Japan
        • China During WWII
        • Taiwan under Kuomintang
        • New Taiwanese National Identity
      • Seeking Justice for Biological Warfare Victims of Unit 731 - Guide >
        • Introduction of Wang Xuan
        • Colonel Memorandum
        • The Beginning of Biological Warfare
        • The Bacteriological Warfare on China
        • Victims in Zhejiang’s Testimonies
        • After the War
      • Rice and Revolution - Guide >
        • The French Colonial Period
        • Anti-Colonial Resistance
        • The Rise of the Communist Movement
        • Imperial Japan’s Entry into Indochina
        • The Portents of Famine
        • The Famine (1944-45)
        • Legacy of the 1944-45 Vietnam Famine
      • Clash of Empires - Guide >
        • Japan’s Imperialist Origins
        • Japan’s Competition against the West: Nanshin-ron and Hokushin-ron
        • Japanese Imperialism Through the Lens of French Indochina
        • The U.S.-Japan Relations and the Pearl Harbor Attack
      • Hunger for Power and Self-SufficiencyI - Guide >
        • The Influence of War Rations on Post-War Culinary Transformations
        • How World War II Complicated Food Scarcity and Invention
        • American Military Innovations
        • Government-Sponsored Food Inventions in Europe during World War II
        • Feeding the Army: The Adaptation of Japanese Military Cuisine and Its Impact on the Philippines
        • Mixed Dishes: Culinary Innovations Driven by Necessity and Food Scarcity
      • Denial A Quick Look of History of Comfort Women and Present Days’ Complication - Guide >
        • The Comfort Women System and the Fight for Recognition
        • The Role of Activism and International Pressure
        • The Controversy over Japanese History Textbooks
        • The Sonyŏsang Statue and the Symbolism of Public Memorials
        • Activism and Support from Japanese Citizens
        • The Future of Comfort Women Memorials and Education
      • Echoes of Empire: The Power of Japanese Propaganda - Guide >
        • Brief Overview of Imperial Japan
        • Defining Propaganda
        • Propaganda Encouraging Action​
        • The Rise of Nationalism
        • The Formation of Japanese State Propaganda
        • Youth and Education
      • Shadows of the Rising Sun: The Black Dragon Society and the Dawn of Pan-Asianism - Guide >
        • Origins of the Black Dragon Society
        • The Influence of Pan-Asianism
        • Relationship with Sun Yat-sen
        • The Role in Southeast Asia
        • The Spread of Ideology and Espionage
        • Disbandment and Legacy
      • Chongqing Bombing: The Forgotten Blitz of Asia and Its Lasting Impact - Guide >
        • Introduction and Historical Background
        • The Class Divide During the Bombings
        • Resilience and Unity of Chongqing
        • Key Incidents - Great Tunnel Massacre
        • The Aftermath of the Bombings
        • Legacy and Commemoration
      • Shanghai's International Zone: A Nexus of War, Intelligence, and Survival - Guide >
        • Historical Background
        • The International Zone
        • Battles in Shanghai
        • Civilian Intelligence Efforts
        • Wartime Brutality
        • Aftermath & Legacy
    • Lesson Plans >
      • Reparations
      • Ethics in Science
      • Writing the Narrative of a Pinay Fighter
      • Privilege Journal
      • Environmental Injustices
      • Female Guerrillas
      • Hunter's ROTC
      • Scientific Advancements
      • Seeking Justice: A Humanities Lesson Plan
      • The Hukbalahap
      • Trading Immunity
      • Bataan Death March
      • Biochemical Warfare Development
  • History Remembered
Contribute