Choosing a title is always difficult. From a publishers point of view, it must be catchy and have all the buzz words that will make it attractive on the bookshelves in the shops, but it also has to reflect the content of the book!
Having offered several suggestions, I was delighted when the publishers agreed to go with ‘A Battalion in Burma’, which was taken from a copy of the 1944 ‘Suffolk Regimental Gazette’.
Due to the restrictions of wartime censorship, the Second Battalion could not be referred to by name, so at first they were known as the ‘Old Dozen’ - ‘old’ referring to the Second Battalion, who had started the Gazette in 1890, with their counterparts in the 1/Suffolk being referred to ‘First Dozen’. Later when censorship was a little
more relaxed, Second Suffolk became known as ‘A Battalion in the East’ whilst 1/Suffolk became ‘A Battalion ex-BEF’ showing (between the lines), that they had already been in action in France in 1940.
As the war in the Far East developed, they were finally referred to as ‘A Battalion in Burma’ as with several gallantry awards being gazettes to members of the Battalion, there was no secret as to which front they were fighting on, so 'A Battalion in Burma' seems an appropriate title.
The sub-title thatvhas been agreed upon, will be ‘Second Suffolk in the Arakan and at Imphal, 1943-44’ so hopefully that covers all bases!
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