Battle of Kohima

A decisive 1944 battle in northeastern India in which Allied forces stopped the Japanese advance toward India and helped begin the Japanese retreat from Burma.

Siege of Kohima: The encirclement and defense of the Allied position at Kohima by Japanese forces in April and May 1944. The siege formed the battle’s central struggle before Allied relief opened the road.
Operation U-Go: The 1944 Japanese offensive into British India, aimed at capturing Imphal and Kohima. This operation set the strategic objective that brought Japanese forces to Kohima.
Montagu Stopford: A British Army general who commanded the British XXXIII Corps during the 1944 battles of Imphal and Kohima. He directed the corps responsible for relieving Kohima and restoring the road to Imphal.
Battle of the Tennis Court: A close-range struggle around the tennis court of the Deputy Commissioner’s bungalow during the siege of Kohima. This concentrated episode became a vivid symbol of the battle’s desperate fighting.
Battle of Imphal: A 1944 battle in which Allied forces defended Imphal against a Japanese offensive in northeastern India. Its outcome was linked to Kohima through the road that connected the two besieged positions.
Burma Campaign: The series of Allied and Japanese military operations in Burma during World War II. Kohima was the northern edge of a campaign fought over control of Burma and its approaches.
Kotoku Sato: A Japanese Army general who commanded the 31st Division during the invasion of India in 1944. His division led the Japanese attack on Kohima before supply shortages forced its withdrawal.
Commonwealth War Cemetery, Kohima: A Commonwealth military cemetery in Kohima commemorating Allied soldiers who died in the battle and surrounding campaign. The cemetery marks the battle’s human cost and the site of the former garrison.
Dimapur: A city in northeastern India that served as a major Allied supply base during the Burma Campaign. Allied troops and supplies advanced from Dimapur to relieve Kohima and reopen the route to Imphal.
Subhas Chandra Bose: An Indian nationalist leader who headed the Provisional Government of Free India and the Indian National Army. The Indian National Army accompanied Japan’s 1944 invasion, seeking to end British rule in India.

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Japanese occupation of BurmaRelated: Its outcome helped reverse Japan’s campaign from the Burma frontier.