The battles of Imphal and Kohima, fought in 1944, are among the lesser-known battles of the Second World War. Yet this Allied victory was a turning point against Japanese forces in the Far East.
After the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, Japanese forces advanced through East Asia. In 1942, British and Indian forces in Burma were defeated at the end of a fighting retreat that lasted five months - the longest in British history. They fell back into India.
In the spring of 1944, Japan launched an an offensive into north-east India - code-named U-Go. They targeted the Allied base at Imphal, located on a plain surrounded by mountains. To hinder reinforcement, the Japanese plan included a simultaneous attack on Kohima, a small village located on the Imphal-Dimapur Road. A successful attack on Imphal would delay any British move back into Burma and give the Japanese a forward base for attacks in India.
The garrison at Kohima was heavily outnumbered. Located on a ridge, by early April the position was cut off and the soldiers trapped inside had to rely on supplies dropped from the air. Nevertheless, the Kohima garrison held out. A relief force arrived and bitter fighting continued throughout April and May - notably in the grounds and tennis court of the Deputy Commissioner's bungalow.
