Chippy Goes to the Gambia : a Tour-of-Duty in the White Man's Grave. The Memoirs and Memorabilia of a Fifeshire Sergeant in the Royal West African Frontier Force

Chippy had the looks of a dashing 1940s film star, part of a family of five handsome brothers. Four were to become army sergeants during World War Two, one in Special Forces. Chippy, his real name Archie, had been a tearaway youngster. Brought up in a poor household in Fife on the east coast of Scotland, the war provided him with a perfect escape to adventure. However, at the same time he found love at home, and was married only weeks before being shipped overseas to disease-ridden West Africa to join the Royal West African Frontier Force. Subjected to tropical diseases, hardships and personal tragedies, he later returned to his beloved wife a matured and changed person. Always independent and with a fiery temper, he was also a kind and friendly man, who was much loved in the local Fife community and admired for his many different facets.