Battle of Yenangyaung
Battle of Yenangyaung | |||||||
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Part of the Burma Campaign | |||||||
The Japanese conquest of Burma (the left red arrow represents Japanese movements to Yenangyaung) | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Japan | |||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Shozo Sakurai | |||||||
Units involved | |||||||
| 33rd Division | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
: 1,121 : 7,000 | 10,000 | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
204 killed 318 wounded 20 missing | 700 killed |
The Battle of Yenangyaung (
Background
The Japanese 55th Division
One objective for the Japanese forces in the Irrawaddy River valley was to capture the
On April 15, Lieutenant General Slim gave orders for the oil fields and refinery to be demolished.
Battle
On 16 April, almost 7,000 British soldiers, along with 500 prisoners and civilians, were encircled by an equal number of Japanese soldiers from the IJA 33rd Division at Yenangyaung and its oil field.
The 33rd Division was able to advance between Slim's 17th Division at Taungdwingyi and the 1st Burma Division south of Yenangyaung. Fearing that the Burma Corps may become trapped, Slim called upon Sun Li-jen's Chinese 38th Division for help.[3]
General Sun requested to lead his entire division to help the 1st Burma Division, but General
For the next three days, the Chinese forces attacked southwards. The temperatures reached 114 °F (46 °C) and smoke from the demolished oil wells and refineries hung over the battlefield.[5]
Meanwhile, the 1st Burma Division fought its way to and across the Pin Chaung river, where they met with the relief column on 19 April. On the next day, the Chinese forces attacked southwards toward Yenangyaung and Pin Chaung. The attack caused the Japanese to suffer casualties, but the Allied forces could not keep the oil fields and had to retreat to the north.[6]
Results
According to Allen,[clarification needed] the British were "deprived of a supply port at Rangoon, [and] then of [their] source of fuel at Yenangyaung[;] the question was no longer whether to retreat, but where to?"[3]: 70
See also
- Yenangyaung
- Battle of Toungoo
- Chinese Army in India
- New 1st Army
- Du Yuming
- Sun Liren
- National Revolutionary Army
Notes
Sources
- Hsu Long-hsuen and Chang Ming-kai, History of The Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945), 2nd Ed., 1971. Translated by Wen Ha-hsiung, Chung Wu Publishing; 33, 140th Lane, Tung-hwa Street, Taipei, Taiwan Republic of China. Pg. 377
- Slim, William (1956). Defeat into Victory. London: Cassell. ISBN 0-304-29114-5.
External links
- "The 7th Armoured Brigade Engagements - 1942". Archived from the original on 2012-07-29.
- Topographic map of Yenangyaung
- Postcard "Battle of Yenangyaung"
- https://web.archive.org/web/20080306041004/http://www.science.uwaterloo.ca/~cchieh/sun/honor.html