A new exhibition at London’s National Army Museum is spotlighting the long-overlooked contributions of African and Indian soldiers who served in the British Army during the Second World War’s South-East Asian campaign.
Titled Beyond Burma: Forgotten Armies, the exhibition opens on 16 September and seeks to reframe public memory of a conflict often overshadowed by Europe’s warfront.
More than 80,000 African troops from Britain’s former colonies, including Nigeria, Ghana, Sierra Leone, and the Gambia, were deployed to South Asia, joining what became known as the British 14th Army, alongside 340,000 Indian and 100,000 British soldiers.
Nigerian soldiers, in particular, made up the majority of troops within the 81st and 82nd (West Africa) Divisions after 1943. Despite their sacrifices, these soldiers were omitted from Allied commander Gen. William Slim’s public commendations.
During World War 2, nearly a third of the British army were from the Indian subcontinent. They made up the largest volunteer army ever in history.
But we still rarely remember these Sikhs, Muslims & Hindus.
This VE Day we must remain firm in our pursuit of the truth. #VEDay80 pic.twitter.com/IIPUSAPUIZ
— Jas Athwal MP (@Jas_Athwal) May 8, 2025
The exhibition features rare artifacts, including medals, photographs, and artwork, some created by soldiers themselves to convey the extreme conditions of jungle warfare. One such piece, And The World Was Covered in Darkness (1943) by Maj. Conrad “Dick” Richardson, vividly depicts the disorienting, claustrophobic atmosphere of the Burmese jungle.
Curator Dr Alan Jeffreys emphasizes the exhibition’s broader context: “The fighting wasn’t just in Burma, it continued in India, Indonesia, and Vietnam, shaping decolonization efforts up to Burma’s independence in 1948.”
Beyond Burma offers a long-overdue acknowledgment of the African and Indian soldiers who fought valiantly but remain underrepresented in mainstream war narratives, aiming to restore their rightful place in history.
