Gurkhas at war : in their own words : the Gurkha experience, 1939 to the present / edited by J.P. Cross and Buddhiman Gurung.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Cross, J. P.

Gurung, Buddhiman.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Great Britain. Army.

Gurkha soldiers--Interviews.

Gurkha soldiers.

Great Britain. Army--Biography.

Great Britain.

Genre:

Biographies.

Interviews.

Physical Description:

320 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

London : Greenhill Books ; Mechanicsburg, Pa. : Stackpole Books, 2002.

Summary:

The Gurkhas are a famed but mysterious band of warriors whose story has always been told by outsiders. For the first time, Gurkhas at War, the result of in-depth interviews with Gurkha soldiers past and present, depicts key military campaigns of the twentieth century in the words of the men who were there.

From World War II to the present day, these eyewitness accounts include the lengthy battles against the Japanese in Burma, the action against Communist rebels in Malaya and Hong Kong, plus more recent deployment of Gurkhas in the Falklands, Gulf, Balkans and East Timor. We also gain insight into the changes wrought by Indian independence in 1947, which resulted in the hasty transferral of a number of Gurkha battalions, sometimes to hostile environments. The tactless mismanagement of the various 'hand-overs', and the punitive measures directed at many Gurkhas who disputed their fate, remains a painful memory for many of those involved.

Editors J.P. Cross and Buddhiman Gurung -- who travelled 5,000 miles to rescue material from surviving soldiers, and translated the memoirs -- provide a thorough introduction to Gurkha culture and recruiting traditions, a historical overview of each campaign remembered, and record some of the peculiarities of their encounters with these most resilient of soldiers.

J.P. Cross spent nearly 39 years of service in Asia, the vast majority of which was with the Gurkhas. Conversant in nine Asian languages, and often mistaken for a native Nepali speaker, he has lived in Nepal for more than 20 years. He has lectured at the university of Kathmandu, published a number of books on the Gurkhas and on Nepalese history, and, uniquely, gained royal authority to be a house- and land-owner in Nepal. During his last army posting as Deputy Recruiting Officer, West Nepal, he battled sight impairment, and was assisted on his journeys by Buddhiman Gurung, now his surrogate son. Buddhiman himself has gained advance qualifications in English and Economics, is an official in all local community committees, and interpreter for foreign, English-speaking 'Habitat for Humanity' house-building volunteers. Both editors live in Pokhara.

Contents:

Part 1 Who are the Gurkhas? 13

Chapter 1 The Gurkha Soldier 15

Chapter 2 Interviewing the Gurkhas 23

Chapter 3 The Gurkha Order of Battle 31

Part 2 Gurkhas of the Indian Army 35

Chapter 4 Malaya 37

Chapter 5 Burma 41

The Loss of Burma, 1941-42 44

First Chindit Operation, 1943 66

The Arakan, Kohima and Imphal, 1943-44 85

The Reconquest of Burma, 1944-45 107

Chapter 6 War with Germany 127

Chapter 7 The Aftermath 161

Java 161

India 166

Part 3 Gurkhas of the British Army 176

Chapter 8 Malayan Emergency 178

Chapter 9 Brunei and Borneo 224

Brunei Rebellion, 1962-63 226

Confrontation in Borneo, 1963-66 231

Chapter 10 Hong Kong 275

Chapter 11 Cyprus 280

Chapter 12 The Falklands 285

Chapter 13 The Gulf War 299

Chapter 14 Former Yugoslavia 305

Chapter 15 East Timor 309

Chapter 16 Final Thoughts of an Old Soldier 313.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (page 314) and index.

ISBN:

185367494X

OCLC:

48628886