The Death Railway

The Death Railway

I went to Kanchanaburi mainly to visit friends, but I had an unexpectedly powerful experience at the several sites around the city that are related to the so-called Death Railway, the infamous rail line from Thailand to Burma built by the Japanese with P.O.W. and conscript labour during WWII. The railway was immortalized in the 1958 movie The Bridge on the River Kwai, starring Alec Guiness. The railway sites in Kanchanaburi town include the J.E.A.T.H. Museum, the Allied War Cemetery and the Thailand-Burma Railway Centre, all three of which I visited on 2 July, 2010. I am not overstating the case when I say that it was a profoundly moving day for me.

The above is a view of the legendary "Bridge on the River Kwai" itself. The centre section was destroyed by Allied bombers in the final months of the war, so just the arched sections on the right are original. There was also a parallel wooden bridge slightly further upstream that was knocked down after the war. The name of the river was not actually Kwai, by the way. The Thais renamed it as such (but pronounce it to rhyme with "way") to capitalize on the success of the movie. This part of the railway is inactive nowadays, except for a little tourist choo-choo that goes back and forth from one bank to the other.

The quote above is from a Japanese officer who supervised the P.O.W. and conscript workers. It reminds me of the "Work will set you free" sign over the gate at Auschwitz. The brutality of the Japanese towards the workers was terrible, of course. Many of the "Japanese" were in fact Korean, as a result of Japan's annexation of Korea in 1910.  The engineers who designed the railway first projected that it would take 5 years to build. When they found out that P.O.W.s and conscripts would be used, they revised the estimate to 18 months. In the end, it was completed in 16 months at the expense of at least 100,000 workers' lives.

This statue (see above) is in the grounds of the J.E.A.T.H. Museum, which is itself in the grounds of Wat Chaichumphon in Kanchanaburi town. The bamboo structure is a replica of the workers' living quarters, which would have been scattered all along the line. The statue itself is of a former Japanese guard who later repented, became a Buddhist monk and created a peace foundation. (J.E.A.T.H. stands for Japan-England-Australia-Thailand-Holland).

In the centre of Kanachanaburi town is the Allied War Cemetery, the entrance pavilion of which is pictured below.  

The cemetery is beautifully maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, which oversees WWI and WWII military burial sites in over 100 countries.  There are nearly 7,000 British, Australian, and Dutch soldiers buried here. In addition, there are a few Indians. The Dutch soldiers were brought here by the Japanese from Java, mainly, but also from other parts of the Netherlands East Indies. Many of the the British were transported from the P.O.W. prison at Changi in Singapore. The Japanese told them the conditions would be better in Thailand, which was true at first, but only because there was a delay until the actual construction of the railway began. Those who were left behind might have been the lucky ones, which is hard to believe if you've ever visited Changi.

The plaque below is on the wall of the entrance pavilion.  

A plaque on the opposite wall commemorates the Indian soldiers.

I took my time walking up and down the rows of headstones.  I photographed 3 that particularly struck me.

First, an anonymous grave.  

 

The anonymous graves are poignant, but there aren't many. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission goes to great lengths to identify the remains of every fallen soldier and honour him by name, regardless of race, rank or creed. Fortunately, the Japanese were great record keepers -- rather like the Germans in their death camps.

Next, the grave of a Dutch soldier.

Note the Star of David. Perhaps Kanchanaburi was better than Auschwitz?

Finally, the grave of a very young British soldier.

Maybe it was the effect of walking up and down row after row of headstones, but when I came across this one, my eyes welled up.  

I hadn't deliberately planned to wear black on this day, but it was very appropriate. 

The third Death Railway site in Kanchanaburi is the Thailand-Burma Railway Centre.  For some reason, I didn't save any pictures of it, or maybe my battery ran out.  Located across the road from the Allied War Cemetery, the TBRC is a museum and research centre.  It's the brainchild of expatriate Australian national Rod Beattie, whose father died on the railway.  As far as I know, the TBRC is privately funded and operated.  To achieve a full understanding of the Death Railway, a visit to the TBRC is a must.  You can check out its website here:

https://www.tbrconline.com/index.htm

In a future post, I will profile some of the happier aspects of Kanchanaburi.  

Did you know that Lotus & Persimmon also has a Facebook page and an Instagram gallery (@lotusandpersimmon)?  Please 'like' and follow!

Posted on 15/01/2018 by David Gemeinhardt Travel, Thailand 0

Related articles

Muang Singh

L&P visits the westernmost outpost of the Angkor Empire at Muang Singh Historical Park, Kanchanaburi, Thailand.

Thai Titles: A Quick Guide

Thailand's ruling class uses a system of titles that is unfamiliar to outsiders. Read this quick guide for...

Thai Royalty: Who's who?

A brief guide to the senior living members of the Thai royal family.

Leave a CommentLeave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Recently Viewed

No products