Thai-Burmar Railway

marnlq

New Member
Just back from Thailand, have been to Kachanaburi, the province where the well-known Thai-Burmar Railroad passing through. Posting a few pics here...

The Thai-Burmar Railway
In Dec. 1941, the Pacific War began with the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour, Hawaii and the invasion of Malaya. By mid 1942, the Japanese forces were fighting against the British in Burmar. To maintain their armies in Burmar, the Japanese needed a more secure route than the sea. They decided to build a railway, 415 km long , through jungle and mountain from Ban Pong in Thai to Hhanbyuzayat in Burmar.

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Engineers had surveyed the 415 km route but expressed doubts about the economics of the project. However with a vast source of labor at their disposal in the form of Allied Prisoners of War it was planned to begin construction from both ends at once using meter gauge single track.[/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The first prisoners arriving at Ban Pong to begin construction on 23 June 1942[/font]

[/font]
[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Prisoners were working at least 16 [/font]hours[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] up to 22 hours straight shifts, and once you fell down you seldom got up, you were kicked to death,[/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]More than 16,000 prisoners died during the construction of the railway or about thirty-eight prisoners for every km of railway built. The prisoners died because of sickness, malnutrition and exhaustion. There was very little or no medical treatment available and many prisoners suffered horribly before they died.[/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The prisoner's diet consisted of rice and salted vegetables served twice a day. Sometimes they were forced to work up to sixteen hours a day under atrocious conditions. Many prisoners were tortured for the smallest offenses. The Japanese commander's motto was "if you work hard you will be treated well, but if you do not work hard you will be punished."[/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Punishments included savage beatings, being made to kneel on sharp sticks while holding a boulder for one to three hours at a time and being tied to a tree with barbed wire and left there for two to three days without any food or water.

Most prisoners were barefooted, and had only a loincloth. Nothing in the way of clothing nothing in the way of what we consider the necessities of life including food.[/font] [font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Working with a sledgehammer and tap to clear massive rocks that lay in the railway's path, and that prisoners at first did not know they were building a railway.[/font]
 

marnlq

New Member
Another one
 

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marnlq

New Member
A train used in the World War II
 

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marnlq

New Member
I also took the train through the "death railroad"
 

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TrainNut

Ditat Deus
marnlq said:
...[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]with a vast source of labor at their disposal in the form of Allied Prisoners of War...[/font][/font]
Please forgive my ignorance of war history but what nationality made up the largest amount of the Allied Prisoners of War? What I am getting at is who (major nationality) gave their lives to build this railroad?
 

marnlq

New Member
[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Workers on the Death Railway [/font][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Total Deaths[/font]



[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Asian Laborers [/font][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]200,000 [/font][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]+/- 80,000[/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]British POW's [/font][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]30,000 [/font][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]6,540[/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Dutch POW's [/font][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]18,000 [/font][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]2,830[/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Australian POW's [/font][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]13,000 [/font][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]2,710[/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]American POW's [/font][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]700 [/font][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]+/- 356[/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Korean & [/font][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]15,000 [/font][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]1,000[/font]

Japanese soldiers


www.hellfirepass.com
 

krokodil

Member
Hey

I plan to visit these places in 2 month and also continue to Cambodia. I am already very excited for this railroad experience.

Thank you for the photos.
 

Turbomotive

New Member
I know this line well and have ridden it many times. The start point for travellers is Thonburi station right near my house and where they keep one of those moguls (from Japan) in steaming order.

At Kanchanaburi station, about a mile before the bridge, you'll see a Garret on static display, the only metre-gauge Garret to my knowledge.

The modern line follows the River Kwae (rhymes with "air") valley and terminates at Nam Tok, in the middle of nowhere but near some waterfalls.

Hellfire Pass, a few miles further on, pictured here, is tremendously moving. Narrow roadbed hacked out of solid rock, precipitous fall, astonishing view and the cries of tortured souls.

One man dead for every sleeper (crosstie). Mostly Asians, Chinese and Koreans, populations of countries occupied by Japan at the time and treated brutally. As were the PoWs (I'm a Brit myself).

On another track...
There's a line in Cambodia between Siam Reap/Battambang and Phnom Penh, but the rolling stock hasn't been upgraded since the 1960s.
 
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