Battle of Kohima
Kohima, Naga Hills District, Assam Province, British India (now Nagaland, India)
What happened
British and Indian forces under Generals William Slim and Montagu Stopford, with the besieged garrison led by Colonel Hugh Richards, fought the Japanese division of General Kōtoku Satō. In 1944 Japan invaded northeast India, aiming to capture Kohima Ridge in the Naga Hills, which controlled the road supplying Allied troops at Imphal. The small Kohima garrison was surrounded and held out until relief arrived in April. Some of the fiercest fighting took place across the tennis court of a British official's house, and by June the Allies had driven the Japanese back.
Why it matters
Result: Allied victory. Leaders: Montagu Stopford against Kōtoku Satō. Why it matters: Together with the battle at Imphal, it stopped Japan's invasion of India and became a turning point in the Burma campaign. It is sometimes called the 'Stalingrad of the East'.
What came next
On 22 June 1944 Allied forces met on the road to Imphal, ending the siege there.
Did you know?
The Kohima War Cemetery is built on the battlefield, and the old tennis court is marked out on the ground with white lines.
Timeline
- 4 April 1944The Japanese attack on Kohima begins.
- April 1944Relief forces reach the besieged garrison.
- 22 June 1944Allied forces meet at Milestone 109, ending the siege of Imphal.