(2) Who built the Railway?

Nearly 200,000 men were involved in the construction of the Railway. Most of them were compelled into it by the Japanese Imperial Army.

By mid-1942, Japan had successfully conquered most of Southeast Asia, including Burma.

Much of the forced labour were prisoners-of-war from the newly acquired territories; these were previously colonies that Japan had now seized from Britain, France, the Dutch and America.

Study the photographs below in detail.

Can you infer the nationalities or ethnic groups of the men?

Describe the work they were doing.

What kind of living conditions do you think they experienced while building the Railway?

The common view and image is of European POWs doing the work of construction.

Do the photographs here confirm that idea?

The building of the Bridge over the River Kwai. Credit: BBC

For your research and discussion:

1) The Men. Find out exactly who the men were who toiled for months under the Japanese guards. How many were deployed to the Death Railway? From which countries did they come from?

2) The Work. Exactly what did they do daily on the Railway tracks?

3) The Conditions. What was life like? What risks and threats did they face. What health problems did they experience? How many died?

4) The Hope. What kept these POWs going? (Refer to the next page for more resources)

Google Sites

Report abuse