Maymyo Burma 1889, 1902 & 1910 (forum archive)

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 Posted by plbramham » Thu Oct 25, 2012 3:55 pm
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The 1st Battalion were based in Maymyo Burma from 1910, returning to England in 1914 when they were relieved by the 4th Btn territorials to enable the regulars to return home for service in France and Flanders.The 1st Btn. had previously been posted to Burma in 1889. The 2nd Btn also had a Burma posting in 1902. The 34th (Cumberland) Regiment of Foot were in Burma in 1875.

Maymyo played an important role in British military history. The British named the town (Maymyo is “May's Town” in Burmese), after Colonel May, an Indian Mutiny veteran and commander of the Bengal Regiment temporarily stationed at the town in 1887. It became a British hill station (3510 feet elevation) in 1896, and is situated in the Shan Highlands 42 miles East of Mandalay. Later it became the summer capital of Burma when the civil, commercial and military establishments moved to escape the heat and humidity in Rangoon. British settlers and colonial administrators sent their children to be educated in Maymyo at The Government English High Schools.

During The Second World War after the evacuation of Rangoon, Maymyo was the British seat of Government. The Japanese heavily bombed centres of communication at the rear of British forces including Maymyo. The town had a large Anglo-Burmese population, and during the Japanese occupation many of them were incarcerated for fear of their loyalty to the British. Now named Pyin U Lwin or Pyin Oo Lwin, the town’s two main tourist attractions are the Penkchin Mhyan Cave containing thousands of Buddha images, and the National Botanical Gardens with it’s orchid houses and rose beds which was established in 1915.

 Posted by plbramham » Thu Jan 17, 2013 1:25 pm
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Milnthorpe and Maymyo

By 1915 several 4th battalion territorials from Milnthorpe (then in Westmorland) were based in Maymyo, Burma, including R. Sharpe, R. Thompson and Lt Ernest Mashiter, an Oxford graduate whose father John, as the town postmaster, had to convey news of casualties to families in the area. All of the territorials survived the war (despite Ernest later fighting in France), but some had a close call with food poisoning after eating nuts from the Burmese jungle and were saved by surgeons with stomach pumps. When John retired from the Post Office in 1922 he built a rather grand house overlooking the town which he named “ Maymyo”. Several other large properties were built around it, as for a while that part of Milnthorpe was known as “Maymyo Town”. There was a Mashiter casualty in Milnthorpe – 20 year old Edward Crayston Mashiter of 8th Border who died 14/7/16. (I’m thinking maybe a nephew or similar of the postmaster?) Milnthorpe suffered very heavy casualties in WW1, especially from the 8th battalion, see Milnthorpe Memorial, St. Thomas’ Church.
Paul

 Posted by hussar1000 » Wed Jan 23, 2013 3:07 am
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I used to have Mashiters medals. He was awarded and MBE and TD with 4 bars as well as WW1 pair and GSM Iraq clasp. He later served with the MGC. Worked at Bromsgrove School where one of his pupils was the late actor Ian Carmichael. He was also a founder and keen supporter of the Toc H organisation. Served in WW2 but home service only.
 Posted by plbramham » Wed Jan 23, 2013 9:31 am
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Thanks for that, very useful info. I'll pass it on to local historians . (Plus there are still Mashiters in Milnthorpe - what an awful surname, I bet the female members of the family get "married off" to lose it as soon as they can!)

Cheers, Paul.

P.S. Have you seen Edward Mashiter's entry on Spike's Kendal Pals 8th Btn. site? - click this link then scroll down to the name (several photo links to click on there too):

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