Still Serving: Percy's Story
In 1942, with the Second World War raging on, sixteen‑year‑old Percy Bowpitt was working long shifts in a factory making generators for the Navy. Feeling as though he could do more, he forged a letter in his father’s name, claimed he was eighteen, and presented it to the recruiting sergeant. When challenged, Percy insisted he hadn’t written it.
The sergeant replied, “I believe you, but thousands wouldn’t” and signed him up. Within weeks, he was a boy in uniform and heading into a global war. His father was furious when he found out, but seeing Percy’s determination, his parents eventually gave their blessing.
After training, Percy was sent to India and assigned to the 14th Army, later known as the Forgotten Army — the British and Commonwealth forces fighting in the Burma campaign from 1942 to 1945. While Europe dominated the headlines, the men in Burma fought in one of the harshest environments of the entire war: dense jungle, monsoon rains, suffocating heat, disease, starvation and constant danger.
Percy carried a Bren gun through the Burmese jungle with his No. 2, Bill Cartwright, always beside him. He remembers nights filled with shellfire, days spent soaked to the skin, and the fear of not knowing who had survived each attack.
Percy speaks with deep admiration for the Gurkhas, who fought alongside British troops in Burma. “The bravest men I ever knew,” he says.
He was shot in early 1945 and later pulled from the line with malaria. In the field hospital, a matron told him he was lucky, the man in the next bed had lost an eye and an arm. Percy never saw Bill again.
While Britain celebrated VE Day in May 1945, Percy and his unit were still fighting. For him, the war did not end until VJ Day on 15 August 1945, a date he believes should be remembered with equal weight. He returned home quietly, medals tucked into his kit, including the Burma Star, awarded for service in one of the most gruelling campaigns of the war.
Today, at 100 years old, Percy lives in the RBVE Village, close to his daughter Chris, who visits often. Their relationship is full of warmth and affection. Percy remains sharp‑witted, clear in his memories and determined to ensure the story of the Forgotten Army is not forgotten again.
He shares his story now, in his own words, “so that others might know.”
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