Chindits

The Chindits (Officially in 1942 77th Indian Infantry Brigade and in 1943 Indian 3rd Infantry Division) were a British jungle Special Forces unit that served in Burma from 1943 until 1945 as part of the Fourteenth Army during the Burma Campaign in World War II. They were formed into long range penetration groups trained to operate from bases deep behind Japanese lines.

Operation Longcloth

In February 8 1943 in Operation Longcloth, 3000 Chindits, Wingate with them, begun their march into Burma. The original intent had been to use the Chindits as a part of a larger offensive but it was cancelled when the thrust along the Arakan coast faltered.

Related Topics:
February 8 - 1943 - Operation Longcloth - Burma - Arakan coast

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The Chindits crossed the Chindwin River on February 13 and faced the first Japanese troops two days later. They were divided into eight company-sized columns. Two columns marched to the north and received their air supply drops in broad daylight to create an impression that they were the main attack. They even had a man impersonating a British general along with them. RAF mounted air attacks on Japanese targets to support the deception.

Related Topics:
Chindwin River - February 13

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Five other columns, led by one under the command of Major Michael Calvert, proceeded eastward. Three of them later turned north to attack Japanese garrisons but two, those of Calvert and Bernard Fergusson, proceeded towards a valley with the most railway connections. On March 4 Calvert's column reached the valley and demolished the railway in 70 places. Fergusson arrived two days later to do the same.

Related Topics:
Michael Calvert - Bernard Fergusson - March 4

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On many occasions, the Chindits could not take their wounded with them; some were left with friendly Burmese villagers. Since there were no established paths in the jungle, they had to clear their own with machetes and kukris. A single RAF squadron of 6 planes supplied them by air and not all supply drops found their way to the troops.

Related Topics:
Machete - Kukri - RAF

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When the major force of Chindits crossed Irrawaddy river on March 18, the Japanese already knew about them and had sent three regiments against them. The Japanese first sent troops to cut their supply lines before they noticed the air drops; after that, those troops were sent against the Chindits.

Related Topics:
Irrawaddy river - March 18

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On March 24 Wingate received an order to withdraw. By that time the men were exhausted and short of supplies. Back on the Irrawaddy River they abandoned nonessential supplies and either killed their mules for food or set them loose. The columns dispersed and proceeded back with their own routes and methods; one group built an airstrip in the jungle and evacuated their wounded by air, another continued to China. Fergusson's column tried to create a diversion by making false trails and camps. Others crossed the border rivers in one column or in small groups. Many were captured.

Related Topics:
March 24 - Airstrip

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By the end of April, after the mission of three months, the rest of the Chindits had crossed the Chindwin river. They had lost a total of 818 men and only 600 of the survivors were regarded fit for further service.

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