The Kohima Educational Trust is delighted to announce this webinar with Dr Robert Lyman MBE who will introduce our guest speaker, Rodney W Anderson. Rodney was born and raised in Montreal, Quebec, Canada and is now retired from the Canadian Department of National Defence. He was inspired to write his first book by the story of his father-in-law, Patrick Reginald Maddox, MC. After obtaining Maddox’s detailed military records and wartime diaries, Rodney knew he wanted to share Maddox’s story with other war and history enthusiasts.
Often referred to as the Forgotten War, the Battle for Burma was fought in a geographically challenging and isolated region far from the major population centers of the time.
But for the people who took part in it, the battle was a personal struggle to defend their homes from imminent Japanese invasion. Lieutenant Colonel Patrick Reginald Maddox was one such soldier.
Born in Burma to a single mother, Patrick Maddox and his twin sister were adopted by the very doctor who oversaw their birth, Dr. Maddox.
In 1941, Patrick enlisted in the Burma Rifles and was seconded to the Office of Strategic Services - Detachment 101. He spent the majority of the war behind enemy lines, using guerrilla warfare tactics to take down enemies in the hot, humid jungles.
This talk, based on the book Shadows in the Burmese Jungle, combines Patrick Maddox's personal diaries with military records and first-person accounts from fellow soldiers to convey the challenges, sacrifices, and dangerous environment faced during the famous Battle for Burma.
A perfect story for history enthusiasts: part memoir and part autobiography, it chronicles the physical and psychological toll of war, the heroism and sacrifice demanded from both soldiers and civilians, and the resilience of the human spirit in the face of adversity.
To register and book your place on this webinar on Thursday 22nd October at 8pm, please click the button below:
Speakers:
Dr Robert Lyman MBE - Military Historian, Author and Trustee of KET Born in New Zealand in January 1963 and educated in Australia, Robert Lyman was, for twenty years, an officer in the British Army. Educated at Scotch College, Melbourne he was commissioned into the Light Infantry from the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, in April 1982. In addition to a business career he is an author and military historian, publishing books in particular on the war in the Far East. He is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. Robert is married to Hannah, has two sons, and lives in Berkshire. For information about Robert's publications please visit his website: robertlyman.com
Rodney W. Anderson was born and raised in Montreal, Quebec, Canada and is now retired from the Canadian Department of National Defence. He was inspired to write his first book by the story of his father-in-law, Patrick Reginald Maddox, MC. After obtaining Maddox’s detailed military records and wartime diaries, Rodney knew he wanted to share Maddox’s story with other war and history enthusiasts.
In his free time, Rodney enjoys woodworking, building wooden model boats, pencil drawing, oil painting, and doing genealogy research which is a popular pastime with his family. Rodney currently lives in Napanee, Ontario, Canada with his wife PatriciaTownshend (nee Maddox).
Sylvia May - Managing Trustee of The Kohima Educational Trust Sylvia May was born in New Jersey, USA in 1957. Her parents moved to England in 1963. Educated at High Wycombe School for Girls, she decided to pursue a career in the world of books. Sylvia worked for HarperCollins for 37 years, the last eleven of which she headed up their UK-based International Sales team. Sylvia May is the daughter of the late Gordon Graham, Founder and President of the Kohima Educational Trust. She is proud that her father has inspired many people to share his vision to commemorate those who fought and died in Kohima, and the wonderful Naga people who have done so much for the British in the past. She first visited India in 1994 with her husband Robert, and has returned on numerous occasions, staying in Kohima several times. In 2000, they followed the WWII route of the Queens Own Cameron Highlanders, her father’s regiment. The regiment’s first main engagement in this theatre of war was at Zubza shortly before the Battle of Kohima.
