Surviving the Railway: Memories of Far East Prisoners of War – King’s Lynn Town Hall

Opening on Saturday 22 March, a new display at King’s Lynn Town Hall, Surviving the Railway: Memories of Far East Prisoners of War, explores the experiences and legacy of the soldiers from the Royal Norfolk Regiment who became prisoners of war following the fall of Singapore in 1942.

With the 80^th anniversary of VJ Day falling on 15 August this year, the curators of the display and trustees of the Royal Norfolk Regimental Museum hope to raise the profile of an oft-overlooked part of Second World War history that left an indelible mark on the collective East Anglian memory from halfway across the world.

The display – which is on show in Stories of Lynn – features objects and accounts held by the Royal Norfolk Regimental Museum alongside an archival film exploring the realities of internment, rarely made available to the public.

On display for the first time is also a new Roll of Honour, commemorating all who served in the Far East in the 4^th, 5^th and 6^th battalions of the Royal Norfolk Regiment, alongside a book of short biographies of some of the men. It is hoped this book will be added to during the life of the exhibition if more information comes to light from the families of those who served with the Regiment in the Far East.

Objects on display include a tiny but resonant fragment of a railway sleeper brought back home by Corporal F. G. Backham 57773069 of King’s Lynn and a small aluminium box decorated and personalised from a Dutch chlorine tablet tin by POW Captain R.W. Cole, an officer in the 6^th Battalion.

The ill-fated 18^th Infantry Division was a territorial formation of East Anglian battalions including the 4^th, 5^th and 6^th Royal Norfolks, a total of 2,913 men. As these were territorial battalions they contained a high number of men from the county.

Whilst originally heading for the Middle East, Japan’s declaration of war and subsequent rapid march down the Malayan Peninsula saw them divert for the island ‘fortress’ of Singapore. Despite its reputation, the Battle for Singapore was a brief one, and the British Army surrendered on the 15 February 1942.

The men captured in Singapore would go on to suffer three and a half years of brutal treatment at the hands of the Japanese, with many being sent up country to build the Thai-Burma railway, otherwise known as the ‘Railway of Death’. Around a quarter of these men would die from starvation, brutality and disease, but their stories stand as testament to the enduring nature of the human spirit in the face of seemingly hopeless circumstances.

The story of one of these survivors, John Coast (ex- 5^th Battalion Royal Norfolks) is presented in the exhibition through an edited version of a documentary about his experiences which has only been aired twice, the last time in 1978. John wrote the first account of life as a Far East Prisoner of War, Railroad of Death, which was published in 1946 less than six months after his return home, providing a vivid and moving account of the terrible conditions endured by the prisoners.

The display also looks at the aftermath of the soldier’s experience and brings the story up-to-date with the struggle of FEPOW veterans for compensation.

Recognising the sacrifice and suffering of those who served in the Far East, both those who lost their lives and the survivors, was the impetus behind the creation of the new commemorative Roll of Honour. This is based on information held across the Regimental Archive’s three nominal rolls (one for each Royal Norfolk battalion) which provides the name, Army number, family address and as far as possible, movements of each soldier.

Museum volunteer, Sarah Salmon, has painstakingly amalgamated information from the rolls, together with additional details from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, into one database. Curators were then able to commission the new commemorative book using this information, which visitors will be able to look through in the exhibition. The database itself will be an important research resource for the Museum.

Surviving the Railway: Memories of Far East Prisoners of War has been researched, curated and designed by Sam Wiggin, under the guidance of Kate Thaxton, Curator of the Royal Norfolk Regimental Museum, with the exhibition graphic design undertaken by Lily Alden during their year as Museum Trainees with Norfolk Museums Service.

These traineeships offer year-long paid roles within the Service to those looking to establish a career in museums and heritage. Sam is the Royal Norfolk Regimental Museum Trainee and Lily the Communications and Marketing Trainee and the project has provided both of them with valuable experience which they will be able to take with them into their future careers.

A number of events relating to the exhibition and the anniversary of VJ Day are being planned and will be announced soon.