Photos show WWII soldiers enjoying life away from heat of battle

Life away from the heat of the battle: WWII soldiers hold balancing competitions and celebrate Christmas as they take a break from fighting Nazis in the Middle East and Italy

• Photos that capture the camaraderie between World War Two soldiers have come to light 80 years later
• The album includes pictures of the Rifle Brigade Service and covers the battalion’s training in Britain and operations in the Middle East and Italy
• The amusing photos show the soldiers laughing together and having fun away from the front-line

Amusing photos that capture the camaraderie between World War Two soldiers away from the heat of battle have come to light 80 years later.   

The charming album was put together by an unknown member of the Rifle Brigade Service and covers his battalion’s training in Britain and operations in the Middle East and Italy.

The images capture light-hearted moments away from the front-line with the comradeship in the group clear to see. 

One humorous snap shows a soldier giving another a fireman’s carry in a way that makes it look like he’s holding his head.

Another is of a balancing competition where the participant tries to pour liquid into a bowl while perched on a plinth on one leg.

The men pretend to go into battle in another comedic scene and joyous moments are photographed at a Christmas party.

Three young soldiers from the Rifle Brigade Service pretend to go into battle in a comedic scene, with one appearing to make a bow and arrow out of his gun 

The images capture light-hearted moments away from the front-line with the comradeship in the group clear to see – from the soldiers holding balancing competitions to celebrating Christmas together

From the captions it seems the battalion did their training in Trowbridge, Wiltshire, in 1941 and were based in Syria in 1943.

One image, of the men cooking together outside, has been captioned ‘PoW camp’, suggesting the soldiers spent time in captivity in North Africa before being liberated during the Allied advance. Another possibility is that it was a British camp for German PoWs.

The soldier who created the album of stunning photos spent the final months of the war in Greece, with details of his post-war life a mystery.

The photo album has now emerged for sale from a military collector with auctioneers Lockdales, of Martlesham, Suffolk.

A group of soldiers cook together outside – the image has been captioned ‘PoW camp’, suggesting the soldiers spent time in captivity in North Africa before being liberated during the Allied advance. Another possibility is that it was a British camp for German PoWs.

A group of young soldiers smile as they have their picture taken while they spend some time away from the heat of the battle 

The soldiers from the Rifle Brigade Service smile for the camera at Trowbridge in Wiltshire, England, in 1941 where they did their training

A soldier is pictured looking fondly at a black and white puppy in Syria in 1943 while they stand next to a military vehicle

The photo album has now emerged for sale from a military collector with auctioneers Lockdales, of Martlesham, Suffolk. Pictured: A group of men pose for a picture on a military base in Syria in 1943 

Lockdales specialist Chris Elmy hopes someone might be able to recognise an ancestor in the photos to shed more light on them.

He said: ‘This album has come to us from one of our regular vendors – a roving trader who under the current circumstances must have dug this out of storage.

‘It most likely turned up at a boot sale or similar, without family provenance, but some of the images are clear enough that someone out there might recognise faces.

‘It’s a fun little album and must have been of great sentimental value to somebody.

‘The PoW camp photos were possibly taken at a British camp for German prisoners, as his war career continued through Egypt in 1942, Beirut and Syria in 1943, Italy in 1944 and Greece 1945, although it might be possible he was taken prisoner by the Germans in North Africa, and liberated during the advance.’

The sale of the album, which is expected to fetch £50, takes place on January 23.

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