John Brown's Service in North Africa

The contributor's father, John Watson Brown, and uncle, Robert Brown, were conscripted. Father was a fishmonger in Joppa and drove the van before the war. Father was conscripted, after initial training, to North Queensferry with the anti-aircraft unit. Then, father was sent to Scapa Flow and set up on an island in the middle of Scapa Flow. Father thought it would be miserable, but a fishing boat turned up from Peterhead and his cousin was the captain, so supplies were plentiful.

In 1942, father was posted to Tunisia with City of London Yeomanry 'Rough Riders' as anti-aircraft. Father served in Algiers, Tunis, Sicily, Italy then Austria, ending up at Klagenfurt. In Klagenfurt, there was a black market of deserters from the German, Italian, US and British army, so this was the place to go to for anything you needed.

Father did four journeys back and forward across Europe to return troops to the UK.