Railway of Hell

A first-hand account from a British POW, “not so much about the building of the Burma-Siam railway as it is about the existence of the men who built it” (BiblioBuffet.com).

A young captain in the Royal Norfolk Regiment, Reggie Burton was wounded in the closing stages of the disastrous defense of Malaya and Singapore. He vividly, yet calmly and with great dignity, describes the horror of captivity at the hands of the Japanese. After initial confusion, the true nature of their captors emerged as, increasingly debilitated, the POWs were forced into backbreaking work. This was only a taste of what was to come. Following a horrific journey in overcrowded cattle trucks, Burton and his dwindling band of colleagues were put to work building the notorious Burma Railway. Somehow, he survived to tell this moving and shocking story.

“Burton’s willingness to examine the reason for his treatment make this a particularly valuable piece of work, as well as being a harrowing account of his time in captivity and the appalling cruelty that he and his comrades suffered.” —History of War