Faithfully yours - The personal side of war: part two

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Published on Friday, November 11, 2016

By Neil Strohscein

Neepawa Banner

The year was 1944. In Europe, Britain and North America, all eyes were on England’s south east coast where a massive build up of men, munitions and machinery was under way. Everyone in Europe knew that a major allied invasion of France was about to happen. What they didn’t know was where or when the armies would land. So while the Generals and their aides met behind closed doors to plan the invasion, British, Canadian, American and other allied troops assembled near the coast of England; ready to go at the moment the command was given.

On June 6, 1944, General Dwight Eisenhower, the Allied Supreme Commander in Europe, gave the order to “move out” and the D-Day invasion of Normandy was underway.

For the next 12 months, the eyes of the world would be on Europe. Every week, we would hear of the progress that was being made in France, Italy, North Africa and Eastern Europe; as allied forces marched to Berlin, determined to put an end to the Third Reich and punish its leaders for the atrocities they had committed over the previous two decades.

But while all of this was going on, a small contingent of British troops, with help from their allies in India and Nepal, were engaged in another battle. This battle wasn’t over a republic or a region. It was over a road and a ridge. The Japanese wanted both; because it would give them control of a major supply route and would allow them free access to northeastern India and more importantly, give them another front from which they could launch an attack into China. The Allies wanted to keep that road, because they knew that once the war in Europe was over, the war against Japan would be intensified and that road would enable troops moving eastward to receive the supplies they needed as they attacked Japanese positions in Burma and beyond.

Sitting in the middle of the action was the little town of Kohima; that battle has come to be known as the Battle of Kohima. The first shots were fired on April 4, 1944. The battle ended on June 22, 1944. It was a bloody battle and it was a costly battle.  Four thousand sixty-four British, Indian and Nepalese soldiers were killed. No accurate count of Japanese casualties is available; but some suggest that it could have been as high as 7000 men. It was one of many similar battles that would be fought before the war with Japan finally came to an end.

One thousand four hundred twenty of those killed in that battle are buried in the Kohima War Cemetery. A memorial to the heroic efforts of the 2nd British Division (the small group of 1500 men who held the Japanese at bay until reinforcements arrived) also stands there. Carved into its face are these words, which have become known as the Kohima Epitaph: “When you go home, tell them of us and say: ‘For your tomorrow, we gave our today’.”

That is why we have Remembrance Day. That is why we wear poppies. That is why we stand in silence at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. That is why we lay wreaths at war memorials. That is why we put aside our faith traditions and come together as communities to pray for peace and rededicate ourselves to be people of peace who live in peace with others.

It’s our way of saying thanks to those who gave their todays for our tomorrows.