An Element of Luck : To South Arabia and Beyond

This is an account of the last years of the British in South Arabia.

Michael Crouch joined the Colonial Service and served in South Arabia under Colonel Sir Hugh Boustead.

Crouch details the struggle between the British-run administration in Aden and South Arabia and the opposition groups.

He tells of the daily danger of assassination by radical nationalist groups, including attempts on his life and the lives of his family, and provides an insight into the violent events leading to British withdrawal and the establishment of the People's Republic of South Yemen.

In the final chapter he lays to rest the ghosts of the past when he joins a delegation to the Republic of Yemen in 1993, revisiting the places he once knew and assessing the present-day problems faced by the country, as well as the signs of progress.