Jimmy Zorn, always last on the list.
Missing in action list for 5 Column in 1943.
Pte. 3862040 James Zorn was born on the 23rd December 1915, in Earlestown, part of Newton-le-Willows in Merseyside. At the time of his war service James gave his home address as, 293 Wargrave Road, Newton-le-Willows, Lancashire.
Due to the alphabetical nature of his surname, James Zorn features last on almost every personnel listing I have ever seen in regards to Operation Longcloth, whether this be for men stated as missing in action in 1943, or for those who eventually became prisoners of war that year. He has therefore, always been a fixed point of reference in my mind and a soldier that I could not possibly overlook within these pages.
Pte. Zorn was an original member of the 13th Battalion that voyaged to India aboard the troopship 'Oronsay' in December 1941. He was a soldier in A' Company of the King's, which duly became the mainstay of Chindit Column 5. Many of the original 13th King's could not stand up to the rigours of Chindit training and soon began to fall out through illness and fatigue. James Zorn however, was made of sterner stuff.
Once inside Burma, Column 5 were one of the units designated by Wingate to demolish the Myitkhina-Mandalay Railway at a place called Bonchaung. The column moved quickly over the next few weeks to reach their objective. They succeeded in demolishing the railway line and the bridge at Bonchaung on the 6th March before moving on eastwards towards the Irrawaddy River, where they managed to cross at a place called Tigyaing.
There is a strong possibility that Pte. Zorn was a member of Rifle Platoon 8 on Operation Longcloth, led by Lieutenant John Kerr formerly of the Welch Regiment. If this was indeed the case, he would have been involved in the first real action against the Japanese at a village called Kyaik-in, located on the outskirts of the railway line close to Bonchaung. The evidence for his possible placement with this unit will become clear later on in this story.
During the third week of March 1943, Column 5 had been given orders to create a diversion for the rest of the Chindit Brigade, which was now trapped in a three-sided bag between the Irrawaddy and Shweli Rivers to the west and north and the Mongmit-Myitson motor road to the south. Brigadier Wingate had instructed Fergusson to "trail his coat" and lead the Japanese pursuers away from the general direction of the Irrawaddy and in particular the area around the town of Inywa, where Wingate had hoped to cross.
By March 28th the column had reached the village of Hintha which was situated in an area of thick and tight-set bamboo scrub. Any attempt to navigate around the settlement proved impossible, reluctantly, Fergusson decided to enter the village by the main track and check for the presence of any enemy patrols. He unluckily stumbled upon such a patrol and a fire-fight ensued. Hintha became 5 Column's 'Waterloo' and they suffered many casualties in their struggle to extricate themselves from the village.
On their travels away from Hintha and whilst attempting to rejoin the rest of the Brigade, 5 Column were attacked by the Japanese a second time about 3 miles north-east of Hintha, causing a split in the column and the loss of around one hundred men. Pte. Zorn had managed to stay with the bulk of the unit at this point and continued on in an westerly direction with commander Bernard Fergusson as he marched towards the town of Inywa on the banks of the Irrawaddy River. 5 Column never reached Inywa or regained the acquaintance of the Brigade.
On the 29th March, while Fergusson's column were attempting to catch up, Wingate's HQ and columns 7 and 8 had began crossing the river at Inywa, but their progress was blocked by a Japanese patrol on the far bank and the crossing had to be abandoned. Brigadier Wingate called an emergency meeting with his Column commanders and it was decided that the Chindit units would separate and attempt to make their own way back to India. On hearing these new orders, Fergusson turned his men around and headed east towards the fast flowing but comparatively narrower river Shweli.
By April 1st the unit were finally fording the fast flowing Shweli River near the village of Pyindaunggale. They had managed to reach what they thought was the far bank, but discovered to their horror that they were actually on a large sandbank in the middle of the river, with still some 80 yards of fast flowing water between them and their ultimate goal.
Exhausted and by now starving, this proved too much for some of the men and they slumped down on to the sands to rest. Fergusson and his officers urged the men to rise up and attempt this final hurdle, as, by this time a Japanese patrol had closed in on the now desperate Chindits. A section of Burma Riflemen decide to attempt the crossing, but two were quickly swept away by the foaming waters, this was the final straw for the other men and they refused to carry on. One member of this beleaguered group was Pte. James Zorn.
Seen below are two images in relation to the Shweli sandbank incident on April 1st 1943. Firstly, a map showing Column 5's journey during the days leading up to the Shweli crossing between the villages of Pyindaunggale and Tokkin and secondly, an aerial photograph of the same general area taken in 1944. The sandbank shown in the photograph cannot be confirmed as being the one in question. Please click on either image to bring it forward on the page.
Due to the alphabetical nature of his surname, James Zorn features last on almost every personnel listing I have ever seen in regards to Operation Longcloth, whether this be for men stated as missing in action in 1943, or for those who eventually became prisoners of war that year. He has therefore, always been a fixed point of reference in my mind and a soldier that I could not possibly overlook within these pages.
Pte. Zorn was an original member of the 13th Battalion that voyaged to India aboard the troopship 'Oronsay' in December 1941. He was a soldier in A' Company of the King's, which duly became the mainstay of Chindit Column 5. Many of the original 13th King's could not stand up to the rigours of Chindit training and soon began to fall out through illness and fatigue. James Zorn however, was made of sterner stuff.
Once inside Burma, Column 5 were one of the units designated by Wingate to demolish the Myitkhina-Mandalay Railway at a place called Bonchaung. The column moved quickly over the next few weeks to reach their objective. They succeeded in demolishing the railway line and the bridge at Bonchaung on the 6th March before moving on eastwards towards the Irrawaddy River, where they managed to cross at a place called Tigyaing.
There is a strong possibility that Pte. Zorn was a member of Rifle Platoon 8 on Operation Longcloth, led by Lieutenant John Kerr formerly of the Welch Regiment. If this was indeed the case, he would have been involved in the first real action against the Japanese at a village called Kyaik-in, located on the outskirts of the railway line close to Bonchaung. The evidence for his possible placement with this unit will become clear later on in this story.
During the third week of March 1943, Column 5 had been given orders to create a diversion for the rest of the Chindit Brigade, which was now trapped in a three-sided bag between the Irrawaddy and Shweli Rivers to the west and north and the Mongmit-Myitson motor road to the south. Brigadier Wingate had instructed Fergusson to "trail his coat" and lead the Japanese pursuers away from the general direction of the Irrawaddy and in particular the area around the town of Inywa, where Wingate had hoped to cross.
By March 28th the column had reached the village of Hintha which was situated in an area of thick and tight-set bamboo scrub. Any attempt to navigate around the settlement proved impossible, reluctantly, Fergusson decided to enter the village by the main track and check for the presence of any enemy patrols. He unluckily stumbled upon such a patrol and a fire-fight ensued. Hintha became 5 Column's 'Waterloo' and they suffered many casualties in their struggle to extricate themselves from the village.
On their travels away from Hintha and whilst attempting to rejoin the rest of the Brigade, 5 Column were attacked by the Japanese a second time about 3 miles north-east of Hintha, causing a split in the column and the loss of around one hundred men. Pte. Zorn had managed to stay with the bulk of the unit at this point and continued on in an westerly direction with commander Bernard Fergusson as he marched towards the town of Inywa on the banks of the Irrawaddy River. 5 Column never reached Inywa or regained the acquaintance of the Brigade.
On the 29th March, while Fergusson's column were attempting to catch up, Wingate's HQ and columns 7 and 8 had began crossing the river at Inywa, but their progress was blocked by a Japanese patrol on the far bank and the crossing had to be abandoned. Brigadier Wingate called an emergency meeting with his Column commanders and it was decided that the Chindit units would separate and attempt to make their own way back to India. On hearing these new orders, Fergusson turned his men around and headed east towards the fast flowing but comparatively narrower river Shweli.
By April 1st the unit were finally fording the fast flowing Shweli River near the village of Pyindaunggale. They had managed to reach what they thought was the far bank, but discovered to their horror that they were actually on a large sandbank in the middle of the river, with still some 80 yards of fast flowing water between them and their ultimate goal.
Exhausted and by now starving, this proved too much for some of the men and they slumped down on to the sands to rest. Fergusson and his officers urged the men to rise up and attempt this final hurdle, as, by this time a Japanese patrol had closed in on the now desperate Chindits. A section of Burma Riflemen decide to attempt the crossing, but two were quickly swept away by the foaming waters, this was the final straw for the other men and they refused to carry on. One member of this beleaguered group was Pte. James Zorn.
Seen below are two images in relation to the Shweli sandbank incident on April 1st 1943. Firstly, a map showing Column 5's journey during the days leading up to the Shweli crossing between the villages of Pyindaunggale and Tokkin and secondly, an aerial photograph of the same general area taken in 1944. The sandbank shown in the photograph cannot be confirmed as being the one in question. Please click on either image to bring it forward on the page.
After several more attempts to cajole the reluctant men to cross, Major Fergusson realised he had a responsibility to the men already over the river and decided he must push on with this group. He agonised for many hours whether to stay longer on the east bank of the Shweli, in the hope that the men still stranded on the sandbank would find it in their hearts to attempt that final short, but dangerous crossing. In his book, 'Beyond the Chindwin' he wrote:
In the end I made the decision to come away. I have it on my conscience for as long as live; but stand by that decision and believe it to have been the correct one. Those who think otherwise may well be right. Some of my officers volunteered to stay, but I refused them permission to do so.
Nevertheless, the crossing of the Shweli River will haunt me all my life; and to my mind the decision which fell to me there, was as cruel as any which could fall on the shoulders of a junior commander.
There are also two witness statements given by men after the operation that describe the situation at the Shweli on the 1st April 1943. One from Lieutenant Bill Edge and the other from Pte. W. Ryan.
Bill Edge recalled:
In the small hours of the 1st April 1943, a dispersal group commanded by Major B. Fergusson crossed the Shweli River from west to east at a point near Tokkin village. Some men were ferried half-way across by boat to a sandbank, but failed to complete the crossing, which involved wading breast-high some fifty yards in a very fast current. These men did not rejoin the Column and have not been seen since.
Pte. Ryan remembered:
I was with No. 5 Column at the crossing of the River Shweli on the 1st April 1943. With Pte. Pierce, I was one of the last to leave the sandbank. On reaching the east bank we lost our way and did not finally leave the river bank until daybreak. Before leaving I saw a group of approximately 40 to 50 British Other Ranks and Gurkhas still on the sandbank. They did not seem to be attempting to cross. They had arms and ammunition. I had not gone more than thirty yards inland, when I heard a volley of shots close at hand, but I could not tell who was firing. There were Japs in the village just two miles away. We re-joined the Column which was approximately two miles away and were the last men to do so.
Some 40 men from Column 5 including James Zorn were captured by the enemy that day and were taken to a jungle holding camp close to the Shweli River. As the days of the operation wore on more and more exhausted Chindits were collected up by the Japanese and sent to various POW holding camps such as the one at Bhamo. Finally, in early June it was decided to send the entire group down to Rangoon Central Jail by train.
The men from the 13th King's listed as captured at the Shweli sandbank on the 1st and 2nd of April 1943 were:
In the end I made the decision to come away. I have it on my conscience for as long as live; but stand by that decision and believe it to have been the correct one. Those who think otherwise may well be right. Some of my officers volunteered to stay, but I refused them permission to do so.
Nevertheless, the crossing of the Shweli River will haunt me all my life; and to my mind the decision which fell to me there, was as cruel as any which could fall on the shoulders of a junior commander.
There are also two witness statements given by men after the operation that describe the situation at the Shweli on the 1st April 1943. One from Lieutenant Bill Edge and the other from Pte. W. Ryan.
Bill Edge recalled:
In the small hours of the 1st April 1943, a dispersal group commanded by Major B. Fergusson crossed the Shweli River from west to east at a point near Tokkin village. Some men were ferried half-way across by boat to a sandbank, but failed to complete the crossing, which involved wading breast-high some fifty yards in a very fast current. These men did not rejoin the Column and have not been seen since.
Pte. Ryan remembered:
I was with No. 5 Column at the crossing of the River Shweli on the 1st April 1943. With Pte. Pierce, I was one of the last to leave the sandbank. On reaching the east bank we lost our way and did not finally leave the river bank until daybreak. Before leaving I saw a group of approximately 40 to 50 British Other Ranks and Gurkhas still on the sandbank. They did not seem to be attempting to cross. They had arms and ammunition. I had not gone more than thirty yards inland, when I heard a volley of shots close at hand, but I could not tell who was firing. There were Japs in the village just two miles away. We re-joined the Column which was approximately two miles away and were the last men to do so.
Some 40 men from Column 5 including James Zorn were captured by the enemy that day and were taken to a jungle holding camp close to the Shweli River. As the days of the operation wore on more and more exhausted Chindits were collected up by the Japanese and sent to various POW holding camps such as the one at Bhamo. Finally, in early June it was decided to send the entire group down to Rangoon Central Jail by train.
The men from the 13th King's listed as captured at the Shweli sandbank on the 1st and 2nd of April 1943 were:
|
Pte. H. Akerman
Pte. W. Anders Pte. P. Biggs Pte. J. Boyle Pte. C. Broadhurst Pte. W. Brown Pte. C. Brookes Pte. T. Byrne Pte. P. Campbell Pte. J. Edwards Pte. A. Gabb Pte. S. Gittens Pte. H. Glynn Pte. J. Hampson Pte. A. Hartshorn |
Pte. V. Haynes
L/C. R. Mitchell Pte. H. Myhill L/C. H. Owen Pte. P. Parsons Pte. R. Renton Pte. E. Roberts Pte. T. Robertson Pte. S. Robinson Pte. C. Ross L/S. G. Skillander Pte. E. Sneade Pte. J. H. Taylor L/Sgt. A. Wray Pte. J. Zorn |
Of these thirty prisoners, only ten survived their time in Rangoon Jail. On arrival at the jail the Chindits were at first housed in the solitary confinement cells, where they were kept away from the main areas of the prison until they had been interrogated by the Japanese secret police, known as the Kempai-tai. Eventually, the men were released from solitary and sent over to Block 6 which became the new home for well over 200 Chindits POW's.
James was given the POW number 352 whilst inside Rangoon and had to recite this number at all roll calls (tenkos) and whenever he was addressed by a Japanese guard. James spent just over two years in Rangoon Jail until his liberation near the Burmese town of Pegu in late April 1945.
For more information about Rangoon Jail and the Chindits experiences as prisoners of war, please click on the following link: Chindit POW's
After his liberation, recuperation in hospital and repatriation to the United Kingdom, James was contacted by the Army Investigation Bureau, based at the Blue Coat School in Liverpool, to see if he could assist them with information in regards to men still listed as missing from Operation Longcloth. In a short three page letter, dated the 22nd November 1945 he gave as much information as he could about five soldiers from the first Wingate expedition. Sadly, I believe that some pages of his letter have been lost and that originally it was at least two further pages in length.
Here is what James Zorn told the investigation bureau:
Page one:
5627646 G.H. Grey: was ordered to stay behind near a village named, Taungmaw and guide Lt. Kerr up to our column. That was about the 5th March. Lt. Kerr caught us up, but Grey was not with him. Grey was about 5’9” and came from East London and once told me that his trade was a French polisher.
NB. This was George Harry Gray formerly of the Devonshire Regiment. Just as James told us, Gray was lost to the column whilst attempting to track down Lt. Kerr and his platoon. To view Pte. Gray's CWGC details, please click on the following link:
http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2510145/GRAY,%20GEORGE%20HARRY
3779439 J. Drummond: was my platoon Sergeant. He was very badly wounded at Kyaik-in on the 6th March 1943. I spoke to him there, but he could only mumble his words. He had a burst of machine-gun fire across his chest and was also wounded in the arms. He was from Liverpool and was about 5’6” tall. I did not know his civilian occupation.
NB. It is because James mentions that Drummond was his platoon Sergeant, that I believe that James was also a member of Lt. John Kerr’s Rifle Platoon on Operation Longcloth. There can be no doubt that he was at least with this unit during the early days of March 1943 and present at the village of Kyaik-in during or shortly after the engagement with the Japanese.
To view James Drummond's CWGC details, please click on the following link:
http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1291902/DRUMMOND,%20JAMES
Page two:
3781719 A. Johnson: was in my platoon and was also very badly wounded on March 6th at Kyaik-in. He got a burst of machine-gun fire across his back and when I spoke to him, he answered me back. He was left five or ten yards from Sgt. Drummond. We then had orders to move off and they were left behind. Cpl. Johnson was about 5’10” and lived in Manchester and told me he was a butcher in peace time.
To view Alfred Johnson's CWGC details, please click on the following link:
http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2513010/JOHNSON,%20ALFRED
3780056 C. Burke: was wounded and taken prisoner at the River Shweli on 2nd April. He died the same day and was buried in a small village where we had been staying at. I do not know the name of the place. He came from Liverpool.
To view Cyril Burke's CWGC details, please click on the following link: http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2506552/BURKE,%20CYRIL
Page three:
3658229 J. Royle: was brought into Bhamo Jail in a very bad condition during the month of April. The Japs decided to move us from Bhamo to Rangoon. All of us left, except Royle, who was unfit for travel. We never saw him again.
NB. Pte. John Royle, formerly of the South Lancashire Regiment was a member of Chindit Column 8 in 1943. From witness statements given by other survivors of Operation Longcloth, we know that he was a muleteer within his column and was lost to his unit close to the Irrawaddy River near a village called Zinbon. Much like James Zorn, others have stated that this man was in a terrible condition whilst inside the POW Camp at Bhamo and that he was suffering from dysentery, beri beri and severe jungle sores.
To view John Royle's CWGC details, please click on the following link: http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2523814/ROYLE,%20JOHN
Seen below are some more images in relation to this story, please click on any image to bring it forward on the page. To read more about Alfred Johnson and James Drummond and the battle at Kyaik-in, please click on the following link: Lt. Kerr and the fighting men of Kyaik-in
James was given the POW number 352 whilst inside Rangoon and had to recite this number at all roll calls (tenkos) and whenever he was addressed by a Japanese guard. James spent just over two years in Rangoon Jail until his liberation near the Burmese town of Pegu in late April 1945.
For more information about Rangoon Jail and the Chindits experiences as prisoners of war, please click on the following link: Chindit POW's
After his liberation, recuperation in hospital and repatriation to the United Kingdom, James was contacted by the Army Investigation Bureau, based at the Blue Coat School in Liverpool, to see if he could assist them with information in regards to men still listed as missing from Operation Longcloth. In a short three page letter, dated the 22nd November 1945 he gave as much information as he could about five soldiers from the first Wingate expedition. Sadly, I believe that some pages of his letter have been lost and that originally it was at least two further pages in length.
Here is what James Zorn told the investigation bureau:
Page one:
5627646 G.H. Grey: was ordered to stay behind near a village named, Taungmaw and guide Lt. Kerr up to our column. That was about the 5th March. Lt. Kerr caught us up, but Grey was not with him. Grey was about 5’9” and came from East London and once told me that his trade was a French polisher.
NB. This was George Harry Gray formerly of the Devonshire Regiment. Just as James told us, Gray was lost to the column whilst attempting to track down Lt. Kerr and his platoon. To view Pte. Gray's CWGC details, please click on the following link:
http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2510145/GRAY,%20GEORGE%20HARRY
3779439 J. Drummond: was my platoon Sergeant. He was very badly wounded at Kyaik-in on the 6th March 1943. I spoke to him there, but he could only mumble his words. He had a burst of machine-gun fire across his chest and was also wounded in the arms. He was from Liverpool and was about 5’6” tall. I did not know his civilian occupation.
NB. It is because James mentions that Drummond was his platoon Sergeant, that I believe that James was also a member of Lt. John Kerr’s Rifle Platoon on Operation Longcloth. There can be no doubt that he was at least with this unit during the early days of March 1943 and present at the village of Kyaik-in during or shortly after the engagement with the Japanese.
To view James Drummond's CWGC details, please click on the following link:
http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1291902/DRUMMOND,%20JAMES
Page two:
3781719 A. Johnson: was in my platoon and was also very badly wounded on March 6th at Kyaik-in. He got a burst of machine-gun fire across his back and when I spoke to him, he answered me back. He was left five or ten yards from Sgt. Drummond. We then had orders to move off and they were left behind. Cpl. Johnson was about 5’10” and lived in Manchester and told me he was a butcher in peace time.
To view Alfred Johnson's CWGC details, please click on the following link:
http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2513010/JOHNSON,%20ALFRED
3780056 C. Burke: was wounded and taken prisoner at the River Shweli on 2nd April. He died the same day and was buried in a small village where we had been staying at. I do not know the name of the place. He came from Liverpool.
To view Cyril Burke's CWGC details, please click on the following link: http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2506552/BURKE,%20CYRIL
Page three:
3658229 J. Royle: was brought into Bhamo Jail in a very bad condition during the month of April. The Japs decided to move us from Bhamo to Rangoon. All of us left, except Royle, who was unfit for travel. We never saw him again.
NB. Pte. John Royle, formerly of the South Lancashire Regiment was a member of Chindit Column 8 in 1943. From witness statements given by other survivors of Operation Longcloth, we know that he was a muleteer within his column and was lost to his unit close to the Irrawaddy River near a village called Zinbon. Much like James Zorn, others have stated that this man was in a terrible condition whilst inside the POW Camp at Bhamo and that he was suffering from dysentery, beri beri and severe jungle sores.
To view John Royle's CWGC details, please click on the following link: http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2523814/ROYLE,%20JOHN
Seen below are some more images in relation to this story, please click on any image to bring it forward on the page. To read more about Alfred Johnson and James Drummond and the battle at Kyaik-in, please click on the following link: Lt. Kerr and the fighting men of Kyaik-in
James Zorn's attempts to help give valuable information about the lost men from Operation Longcloth did not end with his letter to the Army Bureau in November 1945. He also paid a personal visit to the family home of Alfred Johnson at Higher Openshaw, near Manchester. Gill Simmonds, granddaughter of Alfred told me that:
My grandfather was Corporal Alfred Johnson of the 5th Column, he was killed on 6th March 1943, although we have never been quite sure where. My Gran did talk about him a great deal as she wanted my Mum, who was only four when her father was killed, to know as much about him as she could. I had a very quick word with Mum this afternoon, she mentioned Alf undertook driver training at Saugor. We know he also looked after a number of mules as he had experience of handling animals from his time as a butcher.
Your summary of what happened on the 6th March does confirm what we can remember. Pte. Jimmy Zorn visited my Gran after he was liberated from being a prisoner of war in 1945. He told her what he could remember of that day, and said someone had definitely gone back to the village, only to find Alf dead. So, we knew he had not suffered for long.
My Gran was never quite sure who went back, or why, but having looked at the tale of Tommy Roberts' platoon on your website and the note about Corporal William McGee going back to Htantabin village with the Riflemen on the 6th March, it seems possible that it may have been him. I know they found Htantabin had fallen into Japanese hands, but as Alf and Sgt. Drummond were left outside the village it is not impossible that they were able to find their bodies.
Some years after WW2 (1963) James Zorn married Doris Foulkes and they lived at 51 Park Road in Newton-le-Willows. James died in March 1996, his death was registered at Warrington, so it would seem that he lived his entire life in the area around Newton. He was, as many of the survivors of Operation Longcloth were, greatly affected by his experiences in the jungles of Burma and as a prisoner of war in Rangoon Jail. However, he never allowed these trials to overwhelm his subsequent life and as has been shown above, made a great effort to ensure that families who had been devastated by the loss of their loved ones, learned something of what had happened to them in Burma.
Update 12/02/2016.
I was pleased to receive the following email contact from Seve Gomez-Aspron, the great nephew of James Zorn:
Hi,
I hope you don't mind me making contact. Jimmy Zorn was my great uncle, his brother being my great Granddad. Thanks for the website, it was amazing to see the page about Jimmy. Charles Jakob Zorn was the most well known soldier from my family, as I led a local campaign to have his name added to the War Memorial in Earlestown, so the extra information around Jimmy was very interesting. I'll speak to my dad and see what we have, I know we have pictures of Granddad at home, so hopefully their might be some of Jimmy as well.
Many thanks, Sev.
Update 30/03/2017.
In August 1943, the family of James Zorn placed announcements in both the Liverpool Echo and the Liverpool Evening News in relation to his disappearance in Burma during the first Chindit expedition. From the Liverpool Echo, dated 27th August 1943:
My grandfather was Corporal Alfred Johnson of the 5th Column, he was killed on 6th March 1943, although we have never been quite sure where. My Gran did talk about him a great deal as she wanted my Mum, who was only four when her father was killed, to know as much about him as she could. I had a very quick word with Mum this afternoon, she mentioned Alf undertook driver training at Saugor. We know he also looked after a number of mules as he had experience of handling animals from his time as a butcher.
Your summary of what happened on the 6th March does confirm what we can remember. Pte. Jimmy Zorn visited my Gran after he was liberated from being a prisoner of war in 1945. He told her what he could remember of that day, and said someone had definitely gone back to the village, only to find Alf dead. So, we knew he had not suffered for long.
My Gran was never quite sure who went back, or why, but having looked at the tale of Tommy Roberts' platoon on your website and the note about Corporal William McGee going back to Htantabin village with the Riflemen on the 6th March, it seems possible that it may have been him. I know they found Htantabin had fallen into Japanese hands, but as Alf and Sgt. Drummond were left outside the village it is not impossible that they were able to find their bodies.
Some years after WW2 (1963) James Zorn married Doris Foulkes and they lived at 51 Park Road in Newton-le-Willows. James died in March 1996, his death was registered at Warrington, so it would seem that he lived his entire life in the area around Newton. He was, as many of the survivors of Operation Longcloth were, greatly affected by his experiences in the jungles of Burma and as a prisoner of war in Rangoon Jail. However, he never allowed these trials to overwhelm his subsequent life and as has been shown above, made a great effort to ensure that families who had been devastated by the loss of their loved ones, learned something of what had happened to them in Burma.
Update 12/02/2016.
I was pleased to receive the following email contact from Seve Gomez-Aspron, the great nephew of James Zorn:
Hi,
I hope you don't mind me making contact. Jimmy Zorn was my great uncle, his brother being my great Granddad. Thanks for the website, it was amazing to see the page about Jimmy. Charles Jakob Zorn was the most well known soldier from my family, as I led a local campaign to have his name added to the War Memorial in Earlestown, so the extra information around Jimmy was very interesting. I'll speak to my dad and see what we have, I know we have pictures of Granddad at home, so hopefully their might be some of Jimmy as well.
Many thanks, Sev.
Update 30/03/2017.
In August 1943, the family of James Zorn placed announcements in both the Liverpool Echo and the Liverpool Evening News in relation to his disappearance in Burma during the first Chindit expedition. From the Liverpool Echo, dated 27th August 1943:
The following men are reported missing in various theatres of war.
Pte. James Zorn of Wargrave Road, Earlstown, who was a member of the famous Wingate's Follies is missing. Aged 27, he was serving in Burma under Colonel Wingate.
Pte. James Zorn of Wargrave Road, Earlstown, who was a member of the famous Wingate's Follies is missing. Aged 27, he was serving in Burma under Colonel Wingate.
Liverpool Evening News, dated 14th August 1943.
Copyright © Steve Fogden, May 2015.