116th Indian Infantry Brigade records

Discussion in 'British Indian Army' started by Matt Poole, Aug 25, 2012.

  1. Matt Poole

    Matt Poole Member

    Hi to all.

    Any ideas where records of the 116th Indian Infantry Brigade are held? The 116th reoccupied the Andaman Islands (in the Indian Ocean, closer to Burma than India, but part of India) in October 1945. The Imperial War Museum holds film footage of this (catalog item JFU 416). Their on-line caption for this cine footage includes the following:

    In the Andaman Islands, after more than three and a half years of Japanese occupation, troops of 116th Indian Infantry Brigade make an amphibious landing at Port Blair to take the surrender of the Japanese garrison, while Civil Affairs troops see to the welfare of the population.

    I am hoping that records of the 116th will reveal something more about an RAF 355 Squadron Liberator crew shot down on 17 May 1945 over Port Blair. From the Air Historical Branch came this summary of a document tied to the 116th. Because of a current project to get the communal crew grave exhumed, I have X'd out the name of the village to protect the site (not that too many will be able to visit this exotic locale):

    +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

    28 Nov 1945 report entitled “REPORT OF ALLIED AIRCRAFTS SHOT DOWN BY JAPANESE”, an Allied forces translation of Japanese language info provided by “12 S.N.B.F” [No 12 Special Base Area Force (Japanese)] to “H.Q. 116 Ind Inf Bde” [Headquarters 116th Indian Infantry Brigade]:

    This raw Japanese-to-English translation is printed verbatim from the Air Historical Branch's letter to next-of-kin in 2009. Illegible portions of this report were noted in [brackets] by F/Lt Hudson of the AHB.

    On 17 May 1945 6 Liberators attacked Port Blair [illegible] bombed Japanese coast establishements. One of them (Captain Chittern [illegible] the chief of this bomber) get a fire by Japanese anti-aircraft guns [illegible] down to the earth in XXXXXXVillage. The bomber was seriously [illegible] and destroyed by fire. Seven (7) of her crews were dead on the spot [illegible] buried their bodies politely in this place. One of another crews British air Sergeant Hallold Winn 23 years old, was escaped by his parachute before the bomber fell down and rescued by Japanese forces, but unfortunately, he got [REDACTED Section 41 Medical Information] and died, inspite of we give him the best medical treatment, on 17th August.

    A logical fine-tuning of the original Japanese translation, into English, is:

    On 17 May 1945 6 Liberators attacked Port Blair and bombed Japanese coast establishments. One of them (Captain Chittern, the captain of this bomber) [not accurate; there was no such man aboard KH250], took fire from Japanese anti-aircraft guns and crashed down to earth at XXXXXXVillage. The bomber was seriously damaged and was destroyed by fire. Seven (7) of her crewmen were dead on the spot, and [the Japanese, or locals ordered by the Japanese] buried their bodies with respect at this place. Another crewman, British air Sergeant Harold Wynne, 23 years old, escaped by parachute before the bomber fell down and was rescued by Japanese forces, but unfortunately, he got [became ill or suffered injury] and died on 17th August, despite the fact that we gave him the best medical treatment.

    +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

    I was able to pinpoint the crew grave, where up to ten are buried; the above-mentioned Japanese report cited seven dead, but there are ten missing. Not all the casualties may have been recovered for burial in that grave. It was a crash site with a fire, after all.

    The British right after the war, having learned of the grave of the KH250 crewmen, for some baffling reason decided not to exhume the remains. Instead, a brick and concrete grave marker was constructed, complete with a marble plaque containing the crew names. The families of the missing were not told the truth. Officially the ten missing men have no known grave -- but of course at least some of them, if not all of them, DO have a known grave! Madness!

    Part of the absurdity is the fact that Sgt Harold Wynne, the one crewman captured, then executed on 17 Aug '45 with a lethal injection (I have the name of the Japanese doctor involved, and first-hand recollections), has a known grave in Kirkee War Cemetery in India. Someone decided to exhume his remains for reburial in a war cem, yet something like four miles away Wynne's crewmates were not exhumed from their recognized communal grave.

    So, I've fought for over two years to get the MOD to excavate the undeniable gravesite of the KH250 crew, in the hope that remains will still exist to be moved to a war cemetery. The MOD has asked the help of the Indian government, and negotiations are ongoing. It's a long, slow process. The kin of all ten families, and also the kin of Harold Wynne, have been found, and now they know the truth.

    With luck, one day the exhumation will take place -- the MOD wants this to happen --, remains will be recovered, and there will be a reburial.

    I must add that the condition of the grave today is appalling. The 2004 earthquake which triggered the horrible tsunami in that part of the world also caused land subsidence in the Andamans of up to one meter. The grave, once situated on dry ground at the head of a tidal creek flowing down to the Port Blair harbor, is now inundated daily by tidal action.

    Furthermore, the grave marker and brickwork was shattered by the force of the tsunami flooding. Attached are two photos, one with my annotations. These was taken for me by Aparna and Udai Singh, who generously visited the nearby village, collected recollections from residents, and then visited the grave -- which has always been well-known to the locals. A few months earlier Sanjib Kumar Roy, a local newspaper editor, had also conducted superb research for me and was the first to send me photos of the shattered grave, in late 2009.

    You will agree after viewing the photos that the grave is in dreadful shape.

    Although I know the basics, and the AHB-provided official documentation is quite detailed -- I am hoping that even more will be found in records of the 116th Indian Infantry Brigade. I have not yet done much snooping for the whereabouts of such records.

    Any leads will be greatly appreciated!

    Cheers from Maryland, near Washington DC,

    Matt
     

    Attached Files:

    Our bill likes this.
  2. bamboo43

    bamboo43 Very Senior Member

    Hi Matt,

    No sign of these records in all the obvious places I'm afraid. Idid pick up one mention of 116th IIB here:

    The National Archives Search Results

    Looks like the first document is at the IWM.
     
  3. bamboo43

    bamboo43 Very Senior Member

  4. Matt Poole

    Matt Poole Member

    Hi, Steve (Bamboo),

    Thanks for your excellent imput. There are many interesting possibilities in those National Archives listings, especially, even if they do not include the official 116th IIB records. Oh, to spend about a year straight at the Archives...

    Cheers,

    Matt
     
  5. bamboo43

    bamboo43 Very Senior Member

    Hi, Steve (Bamboo),

    Thanks for your excellent imput. There are many interesting possibilities in those National Archives listings, especially, even if they do not include the official 116th IIB records. Oh, to spend about a year straight at the Archives...

    Cheers,

    Matt

    I keep asking TNA to build me a studio flat upstairs with a lift that enters straight into the reading room, but alas, so far, no reply.

    Glad to have helped.:)
     
  6. Roddy1011

    Roddy1011 Senior Member

    Hi there -

    Were the Andamans not under the control of Chandra Bose and the Indian National Army ? If so, you could look at some of the Far East intelligence files...I also believe - but can not confirm - that the India Army Records are in the British Library...

    Roddy
     
  7. Matt Poole

    Matt Poole Member

    Hi, Roddy,

    Thanks for your reply.

    The Andamans were under the direct, brutal control of the Japanese army and navy, no doubt about it. Subhash Chandra Bose made a short visit to Port Blair during the war at the invitation of the Japanese, but that was back on 29 Dec 1943, long before KH250 was shot down.

    British Library, eh? Thanks for that tip, much appreciated.

    Cheers,

    Matt
     
  8. DaveB

    DaveB Very Senior Member

  9. Matt Poole

    Matt Poole Member

    I've been off on tangents and failed to take note of your reply until now, DaveB. Many thanks for the details!

    Cheers,

    Matt
     
  10. Drew5233

    Drew5233 #FuturePilot 1940 Obsessive

    Can't say I've looked at what files have been found above but a quick check returned these two files:

    WO 172/2124 116 Indian Infantry Brigade: Headquarters (HQ) 1943 Feb.-July

    WO 172/2125 116 Indian Infantry Brigade: Signals 1943 Jan.-July

    I have listed/posted all the South-East Asia Command war diaries (WO 172) in Excel on the forum-It maybe an idea to have a trawl through thoughs.

    Cheers
    Andy
     
  11. Matt Poole

    Matt Poole Member

    Thanks, Andy.

    Having previously been too preoccupied with other compulsive aspects of my glorious obsessions, I finally took a few minutes to search on the National Archives holdings, thanks to your posting. In addition to those two (which predate my timeframe), I found three very interesting files:

    War Office: South East Asia Command: Military Head... WO 203/2249
    116 Indian Infantry Brigade: situation reports . 116 Indian Infantry Brigade: situation reports ALLIED LAND FORCES SOUTH EAST ASIA War Office: South East Asia Command: Military Headquarters Papers, Second World War
    Date: 1945 Nov.-1946 Feb.
    Item open from 1972
    Legal status: Public record(s)

    War Office: South East Asia Command: Military Head... WO 203/2248
    116 Indian Infantry Brigade: situation reports . 116 Indian Infantry Brigade: situation reports ALLIED LAND FORCES SOUTH EAST ASIA War Office: South East Asia Command: Military Headquarters Papers, Second World War
    Date: 1945 Oct.,Nov.
    Legal status: Public record(s).

    War Office: South East Asia Command: Military Head... WO 203/2250
    116 Indian Infantry Brigade: weekly operation reports . 116 Indian Infantry Brigade: weekly operation reports ALLIED LAND FORCES SOUTH EAST ASIA War Office: South East Asia Command: Military Headquarters Papers, Second World War
    Item open from 1972
    Date: 1945 Dec.-1946 Jan.
    Legal status: Public record.

    +++++++++++++++++++
    116 Indian Infantry Brigade reoccupied the Port Blair, S. Andaman Island area in Oct '45, so these cover my period. I don't know when the British constructed the grave marker -- it may have come at a later time than these records cover -- but I'm very pleased with the possibilities.

    Thanks so much,

    Matt
     
  12. bamboo43

    bamboo43 Very Senior Member

    Hi Matt,

    Good to see the guys here are giving you some avenues of exploration.:D
     
  13. Lal.Mak

    Lal.Mak Junior Member

    Hi Matt,

    I have seen all your mail and appriciate your efforts. I am from the andaman and by
    by profession a documentary film maker and have contcts in GOI. If you give me the
    details of the grave I am sure I can get it protacted and get you permission to exhume
    the remains.
     
  14. Matt Poole

    Matt Poole Member

    Hi, Lal.Mak,

    I'm sorry I have just noticed your message, posted about a month ago.

    Thanks very much for your offer of help, via your connections in the government.

    The grave exhumation, for now, must be carried out by the Indian government, not by the British government or a private group. This decision was made by the British Ministry of Defence something like a year and a half ago.

    No private individuals I know have the financial clout to try to exhume the remains.

    The British RAF Group Captain stationed in New Delhi who has brought the grave exhumation project to the attention of the Indian government has been very open and matter-of-fact in explaining the protocol. The Indian Ministry of External Affairs, nobody else, must decide to accept, or deny, the request for an exhumation.

    Recently a milestone was passed when the Indian Ministry of Defence passed the file over to MEA, and it is a waiting game with no understanding of when a decision might be rendered by MEA. Again, according to the G/Capt, the only Indian government entity with the power to accept or deny the project is MEA.

    If MEA accepts, then Indian Air Force Air Marshal P.K. Roy, the Commander-in-Chief of the Andaman and Nicobar Command (based in Port Blair), will be directed to plan and carry out the exhumation, but he cannot act unless he receives the order from MEA. The RAF G/Capt is not supposed to contact Air Marshal Roy directly about this, and Air Marshal Roy cannot carry out the grave dig unless he receives orders from MEA to do so.

    I don't know at the moment to whom, at MEA, the file was delivered. Do you have an influential contact at MEA? If you feel like contacting me privately, please send me a personal message via this message board.

    Again, many thanks for your offer.

    Incidentally, my friend Bamboo43 (Steve) was fantastic in visiting The National Archives in Kew to digitally photocopy the 116th Indian Infantry Brigade records brought to our attention through the kindness of Drew5233 (Andy). Unfortunately, there was nothing specific about the loss of Liberator KH250 or the capture, POW incarceration, or death of crewman Harold Wynne. Nevertheless, Steve's files contain some fantastic info, some of which I have already shared with another researcher with an Andamans them to his work.

    Regards,

    Matt
     
  15. Matt Poole

    Matt Poole Member

  16. Raasay

    Raasay New Member

    Hello Matt,

    I found your post while searching for 'Andaman'. My search reason is that my father was 2 i/c of an expedition to the Andaman Islands in 1943/44, mounted by Force 136. I would like more information about the expedition. I have a detailed account written by the expedition commander, Terence Croley (my godfather), but know nothing about the planning, objectives, etc. Croley's account says little about these topics. There were some European signalers in the team and I would like to trace their families.

    Brian Duncan, Gettysburg PA
     
  17. Matt Poole

    Matt Poole Member

    Hi, Brian,

    I just stumbled upon your post from ten months ago. The story of your father's expedition is a six-page chapter in the 2015 Pen & Sword book, "Special Operations South-East Asia 1942-1945" by David Miller. I was in direct communication with David several years ago. Perhaps he has additional material, and he can learn from you, too. Over 20 copies of the book are available via bookfinder.com, for as little as $19.17. Contact me privately if you don't want to purchase the book, as I can scan the pages and maybe even use Optical Character Recognition software to produce a Word document for you. There are three photos of Terence Croley, though your father isn't mentioned in the captions -- only in the text.

    Because you mentioned that you are in Gettysburg, PA (to others: site of the legendary and horrific American Civil War battle, and where President Lincoln gave his Gettysburg Address to consecrate graves), I found your Twitter account and also your B & B website. I phoned and learned that you're away for a bit. Will send an email to the B & B shortly. IF you are in the UK and there is a chance for you to meet up with author David Miller, I hope you can make this happen before you return.

    Cheers, and sorry I didn't see this sooner!

    Matt
     

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