The Death Railway Over Kwai River - Bridge of Kwai - Bridge 277 and Hellfire Pass by The Prisoners of War

The Bridge Over River Kwai - The Death Railway also named Burma Railway, Thailand-Burma Railway

Death Railway or rail line to death: Thailand-Burma Railway is the unofficial name of the railway line, built by the Japanese army during World War II from June 1942 to October 1943 between the former Burma and Thailand with forced laborers and prisoners of war.

The railway line has a length of nearly 415 km from Thanbyuzayat in Myanmar to Nong Pladuk Junction in Ban Pong district of the province Changwat, Ratchaburi, Thailand, which are located 111 km in Myanmar and the remaining 304 km on Thai territory. The single-track line was created in Japan in the usual gauge of 1067 mm.

The Death Railway has a known film "The Bridge on the River Kwai". It was also known as a prisoner in hell. Approximately 94,000 Asian (forced) labor, and about 14,000 Allied prisoners lost their lives during construction of the route.

In Kanchanaburi, 111 km west-northwest of Bangkok, prisoners of war were forced to build two bridges. First a wooden bridge built and five months later, a steel bridge. Both were destroyed by the Allies, the first wooden bridge. The steelbridge was rebuilt in 1946 by a Japanese company. It was repaired in 1971, and is still in operation today.

The most famous part of the railway is Bridge 277, 'the bridge over the River Kwai', built over the vast river later known as part of the Mae Klong.

Hellfire Pass, largest rocks railway cutting. It is known because of the forced labor of the prisoners with poor and harsch conditions that many prisoners died during the construction of the line. The prisoners worked 18 hours day and night. The prisoners who worked at night were using torchlight which gave a scenery reflection of HELL. Many have died from exhaustion, starvation, cholera, diarrhea.

A total of 108,000 people were killed in the construction of the railway line including about 94,000 from various Asian countries, 6540 British, 2830 Dutch, 2710 Australians, 131 Americans and 413 prisoners of other nationalities. Also deported Korean and Japanese laborers were among the dead.

The "Death Railway" was just one of many war crimes that were committed by the imperialist Japan.

One can see the works of artistIn in the Imperial War Museum in London, Australian War Memorial and State Library of Victoria, which were evidence in the trials of Japanese war criminals. The paintings described the cruel horrifying living conditions of the laborers and life in the POW camps. Human hair were used for brushes, plant juices and blood for painting, and as canvas, toilet papers.

The artist were: Ronald Searle, Jack Bridger Chalker, Ashley George OLd and Philip Meninsky.

Several memorials were built after the war on the side of Thailand. Kanchanaburi is the largest war cemetery where more than 90,000 victims of all Allied nations were buried, who were involved in building of the Death Railway. Many graves have no names because the Japanese often thrown the bodies into the river or on the edge of the track left behind, where they were later found.

Directly to the cemetery is the JEATH War Museum. JEATH consists of the initials of the names of countries involved in the war (Japan, England, America, Australia, Thailand and Holland). In the bamboo-built museum, pictures of the prisoners in the camps from the war days and found objects from the construction of the route are displayed. Also parts of the bridges which were destroyed from bombing can be seen.

Another small museum is located on the east side of the Kwai Bridge.

The Hellfire Pass Memorial Museum was built by the Australians and was opened by the Australian Prime Minister at the end of April 1998. One can take a tour of the Hellfire Pass and the whipped breach where many tools are displayed.