Maurice Rowley: RAF Corporal's Middle East Memories

Fifty years after his experiences in service during the war, Maurice Rowley wrote his memoir covering the years 1941-1946. Maurice grew up in the country village of Langford, Bedfordshire, and his memoir begins with his experiences in the Home Guard. He would always tell us that he remembered seeing the glow of fires from the Blitz from Langford Water Tower as he stood on guard.

In 1942, he joined up and became a clerk in the Accounts department of RAF Middle East. Over the next four years, he traveled extensively with the RAF, including South Africa, India, Persia, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, and Kenya. His memoir serves as a reminder of how many ordinary people from rural backgrounds were thrust into exotic locations and situations during the war. The memoir ends with Maurice's return to Langford in 1946 and being greeted with "Yew 'ome then, boy?" Some things don't change.