| Taiping War Cemetery | |
|---|---|
| Commonwealth War Graves Commission | |
 | |
| Used for those deceased 1939–1945 | |
| Established | 1946 |
| Location | 4°51′31″N100°45′27″E / 4.85861°N 100.75750°E /4.85861; 100.75750 near Taiping, Perak, Malaysia |
| Designed by | J. H. Ingram |
| Total burials | Over 850 |
Unknowns | Over 500 |
| Burials by nation | |
Specific figures are not available | |
| Burials by war | |
World War II: Over 850 | |
| Statistics source:Commonwealth War Graves Commission | |
TheTaiping War Cemetery (Malay:Tanah Perkuburan Perang Taiping) is the final resting place forAllied personnel who were killed duringWorld War II, particularly theMalayan Campaign and theJapanese occupation of Malaya following the British occupation and colonization ofMalaya. Servicemen who died after the war or during their posting in northern Malaya prior to theMalayan Emergency are also interred here. The cemetery is located inBukit Larut,Taiping,Perak,Malaysia and was erected and maintained by theCommonwealth War Graves Commission.
There are more than 850 World War II casualties commemorated in this cemetery, including more than 500 who remain unidentified.
Taiping was on the British line of retreat during the Japanese attempt to overtake the control of Malay Peninsula from the British along theWest Coast of the peninsular. Normally hosting agarrison of oneIndian Armyinfantrybattalion, the forces in Taiping had been augmented with a casualty receiving station set up and the Indian 20th Combined General Hospital had been posted there.
The town was also used as a rest and refitting centre for the6th and15th Indian Infantry Brigade during the ongoing battles in northern Malaya with numerous medical units being stationed there before retreating towards Singapore.
After thesurrender of Japan and the ending of World War II, the task of identifying of British and Commonwealth war dead in the area was assigned toMajor J. H. Ingram who led a War Graves Registration Unit. He designed and supervised the erection of the cemetery for the reception of graves brought from the battlefields, from numerous temporary burial grounds, and from village and other civil cemeteries where permanent maintenance would not be possible.
The cemetery is divided into two parts with Christian graves located on the southeastern side of the road while non-Christian graves being located on the opposite side. On the Christian section, aCross of Sacrifice stands on the southeastern boundary while on the non-Christian section, aStone of Remembrance stands on the northwestern boundary.
A stone dwarf wall flanks both sides ofJalan Bukit Larut, a road which forms the boundary between the Christian and non-Christian sections of the cemetery.
The graves are marked with an upright white granite headstone depicting the deceased's regimental insignia, if known. Muslim graves are aligned facingMecca as required by their religious convictions.
