Lieutenant-Colonel C.H. Bowker
1/5th Battalion, Welch Regiment

 

The C.O. was away when I was with the unit, and the second in command, Major C.H. Bowker, was my next introduction. He has had a long experience in the Army and a deep understanding of men. We had some really keen arguments on several occasions on a variety of subjects, but I am sure we understood each other’s point of view, and so far as I am concerned I left him with a deep regard and respect for a fine officer and gentleman.

(T. Longville Bowen, Merthyr Express, 7 Apr 1945, 3)

Born on 28 August 1905 in Bath, Somerset, Charles Harington Bowker was commissioned into the Prince of Wales Volunteers in 1926. Prior to be posted second-in-command of the 1/5th Welch Regiment by 1945, he served in India, including a period reportedly with the Long Range Penetration Groups, the special operations unit known as the Chindts.

During the final weeks of the war, editor of the Merthyr Express T. Longville Bowen toured the frontlines held by 1/5th Battalion, Welch Regiment. He relished conversations and arguments with Bowker, reported: “One night we had a discussion over supper, during which we were all in good debatable form. The meal was solid and satisfying and the surroundings far from palatial, but it made no difference—the Major and I slammed away, with the others butting in quite impartially on either side.”

On 3 April 1945, Bowker took command after Lieutenant-Colonel Jack Morrison-Jones was killed when his jeep hit a mine. He led the 1/5th Welch until the end of the war, and continued his army career for another twelve years, serving in Germany and Singapore.

He had suffered an eye injury during the war, and in older age began to lose sight in both eyes. In 1975, he became a permeant resident at St. Dunstan’s Home for Blind Ex-Servicemen in Brighton, where he died on 1 April 1977.