The Forgotten Railway: Building the Thai-Burma Railway During World War II

🚂The Japanese built the Thai-Burma Railway during World War II, forcing prisoners of war into slave labor.

💀The railway became known as the Death Railway due to the high death toll among prisoners.

💣In the last year of the war, the Americans used a smart bomb to successfully destroy parts of the railway.

🌴The railway, including its famous bridge on the River Kwai, remains as a reminder of the war.

🔍Rod Beatty, an expert and director of a railway museum, has extensively studied and rediscovered the history of the railway.

How many prisoners of war were forced into slave labor?

—Around a quarter of a million prisoners of war, including Dutch, Australian, British, and American, were forced into slave labor.

How many prisoners died during the construction of the railway?

—More than one in five prisoners, around 100,000, were worked to death during the construction of the railway.

What was the success of the American bombing raids on the railway?

—The American bombing raids, including the use of a smart bomb, resulted in the successful destruction of parts of the railway.

What is the current state of the railway?

—The railway, including its famous bridge on the River Kwai, remains as a reminder of the war and has been rediscovered and studied by experts like Rod Beatty.

What makes the Thai-Burma Railway significant?

—The Thai-Burma Railway is significant for its brutal construction, high death toll, and as a symbol of the atrocities committed during World War II.

00:04The Japanese decided to carve the Thai-Burma Railway during World War II.

00:36The railway became known as the Death Railway due to the high death toll among prisoners.

01:11The Americans unleashed a smart bomb on the railway in the last year of the war.

01:27The famous bridge on the River Kwai is a surviving monument of the railway.

04:16Rod Beatty, an expert and director of a railway museum, has rediscovered and studied the history of the railway.