![]() ![]() Abandoning Mandalay, British Sir General Harold Alexander was compelled to order a general withdrawal to Assam in India. Rangoon was finally abandoned on March 6, 1942, and after a period of reinforcement, the Japanese succeeded in routing the British. Japan’s ensuing advance northward into the interior proceeded almost unimpeded to the Sittang River. Air attacks on Rangoon-the principal port of entry for Allied supplies-commenced toward the end of December. However, the goal of the extensive campaign that followed was to cut the vital Burma Road to China. The initial landing was at Tenasserim, on the Isthmus of Kra, aimed at neutralizing British airfields threatening the Japanese move south into Malaya. ![]() Another problem was the American suspicion that the British were striving to preserve their colonial empire at the expense of local nationalism.īurma was invaded in December 1941 by a relatively small Japanese contingent of 35,000 men. The British and the Soviets did not feel that the Chinese could make a significant contribution to the overall effort against Japan, and instead wanted the Burmese campaign to serve as a barrier for India and as a fountainhead for a future Allied drive to force the Japanese from Southeast Asia. For the Americans, the campaign was closely linked to keeping China in the war through supplies shipped over the Burma Road. Guided by a coalition of British and Americans, the participants themselves were multiracial, including Indians, Burmese and Chinese. ![]() The Allied effort in Burma during World War II was dominated by strong personalities and hampered by divergent strategic goals. Burma Campaign: Seizing Imphal and Kohima In World War II Close ![]()
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