Spirit of Normandy Trust Prize

The Spirit of Normandy Trust Essay Competition is aimed at young historians and organised by the Historical Association (as part of the annual Young Historian Awards). The 2023 winner in the Key Stage 3 (lower secondary school) category is Ayan Sinha, a pupil at Queen Elizabeth Grammar School in Wakefield. In this abridged version of his essay, he tells the story of the covert operations undertaken by Z Unit against the Japanese during World War II. It is a story that highlights both the importance of Allied co-operation and the impact such operations could have on occupied communities.