20th Infantry Division (India)
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The 20th Indian Infantry Division was an
infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...
division of the Indian Army in the Second World War, formed in
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
, and took part in the
Burma Campaign The Burma campaign was a series of battles fought in the British colony of British rule in Burma, Burma as part of the South-East Asian theatre of World War II. It primarily involved forces of the Allies of World War II, Allies (mainly from ...
during the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. After the war, the bulk of the division was deployed to
French Indochina French Indochina (previously spelled as French Indo-China), officially known as the Indochinese Union and after 1941 as the Indochinese Federation, was a group of French dependent territories in Southeast Asia from 1887 to 1954. It was initial ...
to oversee the handover from Japanese to French rule. For nearly all is operational life the division was commanded by Major-General Douglas Gracey.


Formation

The division was formed at
Bangalore Bengaluru, also known as Bangalore (List of renamed places in India#Karnataka, its official name until 1 November 2014), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the southern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kar ...
in April, 1942. It was commanded by Major-General Douglas Gracey and at first it consisted of the Indian 32nd, 51st and 53rd Brigades. In July that year, the 51st and 53rd Brigades were detached to form the Indian 25th Infantry Division and replaced by the Indian 80th Infantry Brigade and Indian 100th Infantry Brigade (the latter brigade being transferred from the 34th Division which had recently disbanded in
Ceylon Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
). The division was intended from the start for operations in jungle and mountain and was on a Mixed Animal and Mechanical Transport establishment for maintenance in rough country. The division's insignia was a hand wielding a tulwar, in white on black. After training in Southern India and
Ceylon Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
, the division joined Indian XV Corps at Ranchi in
Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...
in December but from July 1943 it was transferred to IV Corps in Imphal.


Battle of Imphal

At the start of the Battle, the 20th Indian Division was deployed forward to Tamu in the Kabaw Valley. To avoid being cut off, it retreated to the Shenam Saddle in the hills surrounding the Imphal Plain. Because the 17th Indian Infantry Division was in difficulty in its sector, the 32nd Brigade was temporarily detached to it. With other detachments, the 20th Division was reduced to only five battalions, to defend the Saddle against the Japanese ''Yamamoto Force''. During April and the first part of May, the division held the saddle against attacks by infantry, tanks and heavy artillery. It was then relieved in place and ordered to counter-attack, north-east from Imphal to
Ukhrul Ukhrul District( Tangkhul pronunciation:/ˈuːkˌɹəl or ˈuːkˌɹʊl/ is one of the hilly disctrict in the state of Manipur, India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries an ...
. The
monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in Atmosphere of Earth, atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annu ...
had broken and movement was very difficult. After several Japanese counter-attacks, at the start of July the division was transferred to the XXXIII Indian Corps and slowly eliminated large numbers of Japanese in and around the village, which had been made into a Japanese communication and logistic centre.


Battle of Central Burma

During the remainder of the monsoon, the division rested around Dimapur. As the monsoon ended, it moved into a bridgehead across the
Chindwin River The Chindwin River (), also known as the Ningthi River (), is a river in Myanmar and is the largest tributary of the Irrawaddy River. Sources The Chindwin originates in the broad Hukawng Valley of Kachin State of Burma, roughly , where the Tanai, ...
at Kalewa. It attacked southward on 4 December and cleared Japanese rearguards from Monywa. On 13 February 1945, the division made a crossing of the
Irrawaddy River The Irrawaddy River (, , Ayeyarwady) is the principal river of Myanmar, running through the centre of the country. Myanmar’s most important commercial waterway, it is about 1,350 miles (2,170 km) long. Originating from the confluence of the ...
west of Mandalay. The boats used were leaky and other items of equipment already worn out. The first precarious footholds were counter-attacked every night for a week but eventually linked up into a solid bridgehead. On 13 March, the 20th Division attacked southward, gaining immediate success against the understrength Japanese 31st Division. A column formed from the divisional reconnaissance unit and an attached tank unit, known as ''Claudecol'', reached far into the Japanese rear, before turning north and mopping up the disorganised enemy.


Southern Burma

In early April, two brigades were converted to lorried infantry by acquiring the vehicles of the British 2nd Infantry Division which was being withdrawn to India. The division fought its way southward along the east bank of the Irrawaddy, until it met units of the XV Indian Corps, which had occupied Rangoon in Operation Dracula. During this period the 22nd (East Africa) Infantry Brigade was attached to the division, from 28 June to 11 August 1945.


Indochina

In August 1945, the Japanese surrendered after two atomic weapons were dropped on
Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui has b ...
and
Nagasaki , officially , is the capital and the largest Cities of Japan, city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. Founded by the Portuguese, the port of Portuguese_Nagasaki, Nagasaki became the sole Nanban trade, port used for tr ...
. The Allied South East Asia Command (SEAC) area of responsibility, was expanded to embrace several countries including French Indochina. While Chinese Nationalist troops occupied the northern part of the country, Gracey's division occupied the southern part in Operation Masterdom. The division was to release former Allied
prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...
and disarm and repatriate Japanese units. Later, the division was instructed to hand over to the returning French regime, before returning to India. There were several battles with
Viet Minh The Việt Minh (, ) is the common and abbreviated name of the League for Independence of Vietnam ( or , ; ), which was a Communist Party of Vietnam, communist-led national independence coalition formed at Pác Bó by Hồ Chí Minh on 19 May 1 ...
, who were intent on achieving independence. Major Richard Holbrook McGregor, on Gracey's Intelligence Section Staff, learned of an impending Viet Minh attack on
Saigon Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) ('','' TP.HCM; ), commonly known as Saigon (; ), is the most populous city in Vietnam with a population of around 14 million in 2025. The city's geography is defined by rivers and canals, of which the largest is Saigo ...
. Gracey, never one to mince his words, criticised the French for their dismissive attitude towards his Indian and Gurkha units. The division was disbanded in India in 1946.


Order of battle

The 20th Indian Division was constituted as follows in 1944–45: Note the division's British battalions were removed in April 1945 :General Officer Commanding:Major-General Douglas Gracey :Artillery :: Commander, Royal Artillery:Brigadier J. A. E. Hirst ::9th Field Regiment, RA :: 114th (Sussex) Jungle Field Regiment, RA :: 115th (North Midland) Field Regiment, RA (on transfer from 19th Indian Division on 14 June 1942, later rejoined 19th Indian Division) TNA WO 172/726 :: 23rd Mountain Regiment, IA :: 55th Light Anti-Aircraft/Anti-Tank Regiment, RA (later became 111th Anti-Tank Regiment, RA) :Engineers ::92nd, 422nd, 481st Field Companies, IE ::309th Field Park Company, IE ::9th Bridging Section, IE :Signals ::20th Indian Infantry Division Signal Regiment :'Divisional infantry ::4th Battalion, 3rd Madras Regiment (Divisional HQ battalion 1944) ::4th Battalion, 17th Dogra Regiment (HQ battalion 1945) ::4th Battalion, 2nd Gurkha Rifles (Reconnaissance battalion from March 1945) ::Machine Gun Battalion, 9th Jat Regiment (Divisional Machine gun unit) :' 32nd Indian Infantry Brigade' (Brigadier David Alexander Laurance Mackenzie; Brig E.C.J Woodford from 25 March 1945) ::1st Battalion, Northamptonshire Regiment (To 36th Division April 1945) ::9th Battalion, 14th Punjab Regiment ::1st Battalion, 1st Gurkha Rifles (From 36th Division April 1945) ::3rd Battalion, 8th Gurkha Rifles :' 80th Indian Infantry Brigade' (Brigadier Stuart Greeves; Brig D.E. Taunton from 18 March 1945) ::1st Battalion,
Devonshire Regiment The Devonshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that served under various titles and served in many wars and conflicts from 1685 to 1958, such as the Second Boer War, the World War I, First World War and the World War II, ...
(To 36th Division April 1945) ::9th Battalion, 12th Frontier Force Regiment(Major Mian Hayauddin MBE) ::1st Battalion, 19th Hyderabad Regiment (From 36th Division April 1945) ::3rd Battalion, 1st Gurkha Rifles :' 100th Indian Infantry Brigade' (Brigadier William Arthur Lester James; Brig C.H.B. Rodham 1945) ::2nd Battalion,
Border Regiment The Border Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, which was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 34th (Cumberland) Regiment of Foot and the 55th (Westmorland) Regiment of Foot. After service in ...
(To 36th Division April 1945) ::2nd Battalion, 8th Punjab Regiment (From 36th Division April 1945) ::14th Battalion, 13th Frontier Force Rifles ::4th Battalion, 10th Gurkha Rifles :'Medical ::42nd, 55th, 59th Indian Field Ambulances :'Divisional Units' ::604th Field Security Section


References


Sources

* * * * * Maj-Gen S. Woodburn Kirby, ''History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series: The War Against Japan'' Vol III, ''The Decisive Battles'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1961. * Maj-Gen S. Woodburn Kirby, ''History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series: The War Against Japan'' Vol IV, ''The Reconquest of Burma'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1955.


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:20 Indian Infantry Division Indian World War II divisions Military units and formations established in 1942 D Military units and formations disestablished in 1945