The Rangoon Welsh Society in the British Armed Forces, 1945–1946

Between 1945 and 1946, a Welsh Society was active within the British armed forces in Rangoon, formed by members recently engaged in Burma and India, and awaiting repatriation or redeployment. Based on bilingual materials from the National Library of Wales, this article traces the development of this shortlived society, examining its organisational formation, key events, and expressions of Welsh identity. Situated within the broader context of British colonies in Asia, I argue that this wartime edition of an ethnic society from the British Isles was both a conscious assertion of Welshness, and a product of colonial exclusivity and privileges tied to Britishness.