Service to be held 80 years after soldiers killed in Second World War battle

A memorial service to commemorate 80 years since the Battle of Kohima is set to take place.

At 10.30am on Saturday June 29, the Royal Scots Regimental Association (RSRA) will lay wreaths and lead the service at Lauriston Castle, Edinburgh, in honour of those who died in the battle, which took place in India during the Second World War.

Regimental records say 89 members of the 1st Battalion The Royal Scots lost their lives during the battle, which took place from April 4 to June 22.

A further 200 were wounded in the battle, which involved the UK, India and Nepal against Japan.

The names of all 89 soldiers who died will be read out during the ceremony.

The Battle of Kohima is often regarded as a pivotal moment in the war against Japan in the Far East, with the success of the UK and its allies turning the tide against the Japanese forces in South East Asia.

The Royal Scots contingent will meet in Lauriston Castle car park ahead of the service, where they will march up to the Royal Scots Memorial Garden, led by a piper.

The service will then be conducted by Reverend Ian May, padre of the RSRA.

The wreath-laying will then be led by Brigadier George Lowder, president of the RSRA.

He said: “The Royal Scots feel very strongly that we should mark the Battle of Kohima which witnessed some of the fiercest fighting of the war.

“Some Royal Scots who took part in crucial battles to delay the German advance to Dunkirk in May 1940 subsequently found themselves in the Far East where the war continued for a further three months after victory in Europe was declared in May 1945.

“Many made the ultimate sacrifice; we will remember them”.

Malcolm Warrack, son of Lt Col Morren Warrack who fought and survived at Kohima with the regiment, added: “A group of Royal Scots veterans felt very strongly about the lack of some form of local memorial specifically for their fellow soldiers who did not come back from the Burma campaign and Kohima in particular.

“George Rogers, Ian Henderson and Morren Warrack co-ordinated the preparation and creation of this Memorial Garden in the 1990s.

“They spoke often about the ‘Forgotten Army’ in the Far East so it is particularly fitting that 80 years later on June 29 2024 we remember them”.