Ban Tai in Amphoe Mueang Kanchanaburi, Kanchanaburi, Thailand — ประเทศไทย (Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula)

Tribute to Royal Dutch East Indies Army and the Royal Netherlands Navy Personnel Who Perished

Ter Ere van Gesneuvelde van Het Koninklijk Nederlands Indisch Leger en de Koninklijke Marine

— The Kanchanaburi War Cemetery at Don Rak —

Tribute to Dutch World War II P.O.W. image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Jj Karwacki, August 15, 2023

1. Tribute to Dutch World War II P.O.W.

Inscription. Click to hear the inscription.

1942 – 1945

ส่วยให้กองทัพอินเดียตะวันออกของเนเธอร์แลนด์และบุคลากรกองทัพเรือเนเธอร์แลนด์ที่เสียชีวิต
(Thai text could not be transcribed)

(Dutch language)
Ter eervolle nagedachtenis van de ruim 3.000 militairen van het Koninklijk Nederlands Indisch Leger en de Koninkijke Marine die tijdens de aanleg van de Burma spoorweg en bijbehorende constructies zim omgekomen in krijgsgevangenschap in de periode 1942-1945. Moge Zij rusten in Vrede.
(English language)
As a tribute to the more than 3,000 Royal

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Dutch Army and Navy Personnel who perished as prisoners of war, while being forced to construct the Burma railway and related structures during the period 1942 - 1945. May they rest in peace.

Erected by Committee remembrance plaques Kanchanaburi and Chungkai • Comité Gedenkplaten Kanchanaburi en Chungkai.

Topics and series. This memorial is listed in this topic list: War, World II. In addition, it is included in the The Thailand-Burma Railway series list.

Location. 14° 1.906′ N, 99° 31.559′ E. Marker is in Ban Tai, Kanchanaburi, in Amphoe Mueang Kanchanaburi. Memorial is on Sangshuto Road (Highway 323) north of Thawornwitee Road, on the left when traveling north. It is to the left of the entrance to the Kanchanaburi War Cemetery at Don Rak (สุสานทหารสัมพันธมิตรดอนรัก), facing Sangchuto Road. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1939 Sangchuto Rd, Ban Tai, Kanchanaburi 71000, Thailand. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 3 kilometers of this marker, measured as the crow flies. That Valiant Company Who Perished While Building the Railway (a few steps from this marker); Kanchanaburi War Cemetery (within shouting distance of this marker);

Photographed By Jj Karwacki, August 15, 2023

2. Tribute to Dutch World War II P.O.W.

Cemetery entrance is a few meters to the right of this sign.

The Kanchanaburi Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); Memorial to Dutch Prisoners of War (about 120 meters away, measured in a direct line); The Tomb of 10,000 Souls (approx. 0.2 kilometers away); Takashi Nagase (Fujiwara) (approx. 1.8 kilometers away); The JEATH War Museum (approx. 1.8 kilometers away); Thai-Anusorn (approx. 2.5 kilometers away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Ban Tai.

Also see . . .
1. Wikipedia entry for Royal Netherlands East Indies Army - World War II. Excerpt:

Dutch forces in the Netherlands East Indies were severely weakened by the defeat and occupation of the Netherlands itself by Nazi Germany in 1940. The KNIL was cut off from external Dutch assistance, except by Royal Netherlands Navy units. The KNIL, hastily and inadequately, attempted to transform into a modern military force able to protect the Dutch East Indies from foreign invasion. By December 1941, Dutch forces in Indonesia numbered around 85,000 personnel: regular troops consisted of about 1,000 officers and 34,000 enlisted soldiers, of whom 28,000
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were indigenous. The remainder were made up of locally organised militia, territorial guard units and civilian auxiliaries.

(Submitted on August 15, 2023, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio.)

2. Short story by Lilian Sluyter from a manuscript by Adrian Kannegieter, translated from the Dutch. Excerpt:

The first group of POWs consisted of 700 Royal Dutch Navy men [in Changi Prison in Singapore]. Early next morning they had to board a freight train with a steam loco. The wagons were completely covered with metal sheets, which became as hot as a furnace at midday, when the sun was at its hottest. The men were packed in cars that were too small to hold about thirty each. Cramped on the floor, trying not to touch the hot metal sheets, the journey became an ordeal. Smoke and soot from the loco penetrated the wagons. And during the whole trip, the train regularly stopped for hours in the blazing sun, to let opposing trains pass, the railroad being a single track. At night lying on the floor was quite impossible. Dysentery excretions, urine and sweat made the atmosphere inside the carriages unbearable. Food became a problem too. Their last meal was had at Changi and that was quite frugal. Thank God for the natives, who always tried to approach the waiting train to sell eatables, and on the pitiful sight of the men, even offered food for free.

(Submitted on August 15, 2023, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio.)

Additional commentary.
1. Number of POWs
There were more Dutch than Australians POWs among the laborers in both the Burma and the Thailand sectors of the railway:

		British	Dutch	AUS/NZ	US	Total
	Burma	  507	 5502	 5033	657	11699
	Thailand 28965	 9383	 7969	 36	46343
	Total	 29472	14885	13002	683	58042

Source: Prepared by Neil MacPherson and based upon the Captain Nelson Reports

— Submitted August 19, 2023, by Jj Karwacki of Tha Maka, Kanchanaburi.

Credits. This page was last revised on August 20, 2023. It was originally submitted on August 15, 2023, by Jj Karwacki of Tha Maka, Kanchanaburi. This page has been viewed 145 times since then and 37 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on August 15, 2023, by Jj Karwacki of Tha Maka, Kanchanaburi. • J. J. Prats was the editor who published this page.