Many know about Britain’s fight against Nazi Germany during WW2, but sometimes Britain’s involvement in the fight against Japan is sometimes sadly forgotten.
When Japan attacked the United States Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbour on 7th December 1941*, Japan also launched simultaneous attacks on British territories in Hong Kong, Malaya (now Malaysia), Burma (now Myanmar), and Singapore.
On 8th December 1941, Britain declared war on Japan. Much of the fighting took place in jungles and on remote islands in blistering tropical heat, high humidity and during monsoon rains.
Those who were captured by the Japanese Armed Forces were expected to commit suicide, but many Allied troops did not. As a result, they were taken as prisoners of war and were held in jails or makeshift prisoner camps in the jungles of Southeast Asia.
Prisoners of War and Forced Labour
The Allied troops were treated brutally by the Japanese. Prisoners of war were forced to carry out slave labour and sent to work throughout East Asia in docks, factories, fields and mines.
Many starved to death, suffered severe malnutrition, or had no access to medicine for diseases such as malaria, cholera and dysentery. Those who did survive the day were often beaten by their captors and endured extreme weather conditions.
John Booth’s Harrowing Personal Experience
British WW2 veteran and Blesma Member John Booth – known to many as Jack, joined the British Royal Artillery at the age of 21. He was deployed to Singapore during WW2.
Ten months after deployment, he was taken prisoner by the Japanese forces, along with many other British soldiers, during Japan’s invasion of Singapore. He was forced to work in 12-hour shifts on the docks in tropical heat, surviving on meagre rations of rice, dead rats, and snakes.
The ‘Death Railway’ Linking Thailand to Burma
One of the most infamous WW2 prisoner of war labour projects enforced by the Japanese was the Burma-Thailand railway.
Approximately 60,000** prisoners of war were forced to work on what is now known as the ‘Death Railway’, which stretched over 420km**. Prisoners of war were often forced to work over 12 hours a day, using basic tools such as shovels, hoes and picks, in unbearable humidity and torrential rain. Prisoners were given barely enough food to survive.
It is estimated that around 13,000** prisoners of war died due to the extreme and deadly conditions – hence the railway's name.
Civilian labourers were also involved in the construction of the railway, and approximately 70,000 - 90,000** civilian labourers lost their lives.
John Booth was shipped with 700 other British prisoners of war to work on the railways in Thailand and Burma. He was given the gruelling task of carrying water up a steep rock face from the river. Due to the horrfic conditions and relentless work, he developed tropical ulcers on both of his legs from insect bites and bamboo scratches that turned septic.
The pain was excruciating. John was given just five minutes to decide whether to have his legs amputated or be left to die.
He chose amputation. Four friends held him down while a fellow PoW medic amputated both legs using a saw – and with no anaesthetic.
John later revealed that he was relieved to have his legs amputated, as the pain had become unbearable. Most men died after undergoing amputation as a prisoner of war, but John and an Australian PoW named Billy Hargreaves, were the only two reported double leg amputees to survive.
Most lads died after the amputations, but I survived along with an Australian, Billy Hargreaves. We stayed in the camp under a mosquito net for 12 months. When lads died, someone would play the Last Post, and you’d hear it 20 times a day some days. I was lucky to survive
John Booth
Japan’s Surrender
After the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan on the 6th and 9th of August in 1945, and the Soviet Union's declaration of war on Japan, Japan announced it would surrender on the 15th of August in 1945. This is now commemorated as VJ Day (Victory over Japan Day).
Following Japan’s, Allied troops began occupying Japan. The official surrender documents were not signed until the 2nd September 1945 on board the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, marking the official end of WW2.
After Japan’s surrender, prisoners of war camps were slowly liberated as they were discovered one by one by Allied troops. They were then able to gradually make their way back home.
British Prisoners of War Returning Home
For those who survived the labour camps in Asia, many British prisoners of war didn't return home until after VJ Day, on 15th August 1945, which was three months after VE Day.
Returning home was a long and difficult process. Most prisoners travelled by ship to ports like Southampton or Liverpool, a journey that often took more than six weeks. Those in better health were sometimes fortunate enough to fly.
Once arriving back home, for many it took a long time to adjust back to civilian and family life after their horrific experiences. Many also suffered long-term health complications from malnutrition, malaria and undiagnosed PTSD.
Fellow Blesma Member, and D-Day veteran Bill Sharples was involved in supporting WW2 prisoners of war to adjust back to civilian life.
I joined a barracks in Preston to help prisoners of war who were returning from Germany and Japan. They were suffering from weight loss, diseases… all sorts. I helped them find jobs – they’d been through some harrowing stuff.
Bill Sharples
For veterans like John Booth, they also had to renavigate life after the loss of both of his legs.
When John arrived back in Britain, he exclaimed: “My wife hadn’t seen me for years – and when I came back home I obviously had no legs. But I was in an OK condition considering. I got false legs and wore them for 70 years. I worked, I drove.”
Blesma’s Involvement During and After WW2
Blesma was founded in the aftermath of the First World War. The charity was determined that the new generation of war limbless would not suffer neglect as their predecessors had following the First World War.
Blesma were there to support WW2 veterans such as John Booth and Bill Sharples. Both of whom were residents at Blesma’s nursing home in Blackpool.
“Blesma have been fantastic to me all my life.” - Bill Sharples. Bill sadly passed away in 2018.
John Booth sadly passed away in 2016.
*Source: National Army Museum
**Source: BBC Archives - Burma-Thailand Railway
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