WWII's forgotten army: West Africa's soldiers in Burma | Guardian Features

Nigerians made up more than half of the total second world war force of 90,000 West African soldiers deployed to south east Asia after 1943, as part of the British army’s 81st and 82nd (West Africa) Divisions.
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But while the role of Indians and Gurkhas in the campaign to drive the Japanese out of Burma is well-known, allied commander General William Slim did not mention the African soldiers in his speech thanking the 14th army.

Seventy years after the end of world war two, many remain bitter that their contribution was never recognised fully. This is their story, of surviving two years of intense jungle warfare, of helping secure Victory over Japan, through exclusive, never before seen footage of West Africa divisions fighting in Burma, courtesy of the Imperial War Museum, and Royal Commonwealth Ex-Services League.

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