Forgotten Armour: Tank Warfare in Burma

by Jack Bowsher, James Holland (foreword)

Forgotten Armour is a new appraisal of the role of tanks in India and Burma in the Second World War. Often regarded primarily as an infantryman’s war in dense jungle and through monsoon conditions, This book shows that this is far from the whole story. Using original research from places such as the National Archives, eyewitness testimony, and official histories, as well as more recent academic studies.

Beginning with the failure to fully mechanise the interwar Indian Army, and tracing the development of armoured training, logistics and tactics, Forgotten Armour tells the story of the Second World War in India and Burma from the cramped interior of tanks. It shows that much of the effort of the war was built around getting armour to the front and keeping it there. Once tanks arrived, and bunker busting methods were devised, armour proved decisive in their encounters against the Japanese, and saved countless Allied lives. It is time to remember the forgotten army’s forgotten armour.

Genres: World War II

385 pages, Hardcover

Published July 11, 2024

Reviews

[Benito Vera · Rating 5 out of 5]

As the title suggests, the book "Forgotten Armour: Tank Battles in Burma" covers the use of armored units in Burma, traditionally considered an infantry-centric campaign. The author argues (and successfully demonstrates) that armor played a crucial role. While tanks did not win the campaign outright, they had a decisive impact in its various phases.

Tank units helped the British Army in 1941-1942 to make an orderly retreat across the country and into India, avoiding a potential catastrophic rout and the loss of several hundred men who might have been killed or imprisoned. During the defensive battles in 1944, particularly at Kohima and Imphal, tanks were critical in stopping the Japanese advance and subsequently in destroying the retreating forces. Finally, during the brilliant 1945 offensive that led to the reconquest of Rangoon, tanks operated in large formations "à la blitzkrieg," pursuing, encircling, and annihilating Japanese forces retreating into Thailand.

This stellar performance was facilitated by the ability of the British and Indian armies to innovate in the use of armor adapted to the distinctive battle and geographical conditions of Burma. This included the reinvention of the logistics chain, based primarily on airborne supplies, and the lack of an effective response from the Japanese army, which was deficient in anti-tank weapons and failed to adapt their tactics to the new battlefield conditions.

The book is very well written, featuring excellent maps and graphics, and is brilliantly documented. The author extensively uses both public records and various private documents (such as diaries, letters, and interviews with veterans), all of which combine to create a very engaging narrative. "Forgotten Armour: Tank Battles in Burma" is the perfect complement to other works on the Burma battles. I give it 5 out of 5 stars.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is exactly what the title says it is, when we talk of Burma in the war I thought of jungle, Chindits and the “Poor Bloody Infantry” beating the Japanese in spite of the environment. Jack Bowsher completely unwinds that narrative and tells a story of a modern combined arms operation, armour doing what it was designed to do supporting infantry and how Slim destroyed the 15th Army in Burma.

A fantastic read that I highly recommend.

[Gary Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book on the Burma campaign.

[Charles McClure · Rating 5 out of 5]

extremely well done

This work is well worth the time. If you know nothing about the Burma Campaign and perhaps care little for the Order Of Battle, still the personalities of the Allied combatants is the primary highlight of this book for me.

[Wai Zin · Rating 4 out of 5]

War in CBI theater is often depicted as a Forgotten War.
Even people who have some knowledge of this theater, they know mostly of Chindit expeditions, Battle of Imphal and Flying Tigers. But not of Tank warfare.

This book fill that gap nicely. Starting from retreat from Burma in 42, desperate fights in swampy Arakan, mountains of Kohima and Imphal, burning plain of central Burma, the tanks were there sharing the fights with infantry. This book give you a details accounts of it.

For me, as a Burmese, the most particularly interesting part of this book is the fight at Shwetaung in 1942. This is the place BIA (Burma Independent Army) under tutelage of Japanese Army had their first big fight. BIA suffered horrendous loss against the tanks there however it had the pride of place in the annals of Burma fights for her Independence.

Most book of same genre give you a few lines of that fight and gloss over. In this book I can read quite detailed depictions of that fight from British perspective.

I have already bought Jack Bowsher's another book, Thunder Run Meiktila 1945 and will be reading it soon. Coincidentally I was born in Meiktila and can't wait to read the battle that took place in my birthplace.

[Marlon Slack · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent book that's very well-researched and well-realised.

Bowsher has a wonderful way of writing and draws on a wide variety of sources to bring the often forgotten campaign in Burma to life on the tactical and strategic level. His writing is frequently visceral when describing the men and action taken in the claustrophobic jungle.

Of particular note is Bowsher's rehabilitation of the much maligned M3 Grant/Lee tank within the pacific theatre.

For a tank that's constantly derided as being overweight, out of date, clunky and largely useless Bowsher shows how effective it was, in no small part due to the bravery and initiative of those who manned and commanded them.

Well worth a read for armour fans.