Captain Raymond Savage was born in Ealing on 2 December 1919, the youngest of three sons, to Charles and Margaret Savage. His father had been a wartime officer in The Middlesex Regiment.

He was educated at Chiswick Grammar School which, being on the Thames, had its own boathouse. He rowed in the school eight and when he later joined the National Provincial Bank in the City, rowed for them at all the Thames regattas, including Henley.

At the suggestion of an uncle who had won an MC with The Artists Rifles, he enlisted in 1937 as a Territorial cadet in that Regiment for which throughout his life he retained a great affection. Prior to his death he was acknowledged, by their Association, to be their last surviving member.

In December 1939 he was commissioned into The Leicestershire Regiment and posted to ‘A ‘Company of the 1/5th (County) Territorial Battalion commanded by Lt Col Guy German. On 18 April the Battalion embarked for Norway which had been invaded by the Germans. Having landed without opposition, the second Merchant ship, Cedarbank, carrying anti-tank artillery, bren-gun carriers, communication equipment and other vital supplies, was torpedoed. Together with the 8th Bn The Sherwood Foresters, they formed the 148th Infantry Brigade. The Brigade occupied a blocking position at Tretten. However, they were fighting in deep snow against experienced German parachute troops and strong artillery. After several days of fighting in arctic conditions, with little sleep or food and impossible to dig trenches in the frozen ground, their positions were overrun and the Brigade, as such, ceased to exist. The evacuation of allied troops took place on 2/3 May. Raymond said that it was rather a one-sided fight but they fought back. The Leicesters’ cemetery at Lillehammer, with the graves of sixteen who were killed, bears testament to their actions.

In the withdrawal by land or sea, ‘A’ Company was cut–off. They were approached by a small boy who said ”come with me”. Trusting him they were led to safety and where skis were found. Thus began the eighty mile journey to the Swedish border. None of the group had skied before, but they soon learnt.

Upon reaching Sweden the group were interned for six months, after which the Red Cross negotiated their repatriation in exchange for captured German pilots. From Finland, they returned by ship to England – and the Blitz. Subsequently, as a result of Norwegian research, it was established that Raymond at the age of ninety seven, was ‘the last man standing’ from the British Army’s involvement in the defence of Norway. In 2017 The Norwegian Chief of Defence awarded him a diploma, and later a medallion in recognition of his contribution in 1940. He accepted these awards as a tribute to those with whom he had served and for those who did not return.

Upon repatriation, he was attached to a training unit and then to the 1st Battalion in Agra, India, which then moved to Penang Garrison on the Siamese border, and Alor Star. The Leicesters, part of the 15th Indian Infantry Brigade in the 11th Indian Division, bore the brunt of the fighting in the West. Raymond, now a Captain, was the Battalion’s Liaison Officer with Brigade HQ. His batman was Private Reg Twigg. After a gap of sixty years, they were reunited in Leicester which Raymond described as ”a heart warming experience”. They had last seen each other in the POW camp at Kinsayok when building the notorious Siam Burma railway.

Following the battles at Alor Star and Gurun, the Battalion had been severely mauled as had the 2nd East Surreys. Thus the British Battalion was formed from the surviving members of both. This unique unit fought with great distinction at Kampar, for which a Battle Honour was awarded, and in several other well documented battles. After the withdrawal to Singapore, Raymond served as staff captain at Brigade HQ and was taken prisoner when after giving stiff resistance, all allied units were forced to capitulate. He, with many others, was incarcerated in the infamous Changi Jail, before being taken in cattle trucks to work on the notorious Burma railway. Officers and other ranks were not separated as Japan was not a signatory of the Geneva Convention.

Conditions were harsh and severe punishments were meted out for even minor infringements of the regulations. However, efforts were made to provide entertainment where possible, even concerts, a choir, bridge, and chess. Having found an abandoned library in Singapore, a broad selection of books provided a welcome relief. He was an avid and critical reader. During captivity he had secretly written an almost daily diary which was later recorded by The Imperial War Museum.

After the surrender of the Japanese following the dropping of the Atom Bombs, the camp guards collapsed mentally and physically. The Japanese Camp Commandant, as an act of surrender, handed his sword to Colonel Toosey, the senior British officer. This was a great disappointment as it had been hoped by the POWs that he would commit hara-kiri.

Huge supplies of food, much of it rotten, and medicines supplied by the Red Cross were released after years in store. Raymond was subsequently treated both in Rangoon and on his return to England, for malnutrition and tropical disease.

He had said that “in a funny way, and lucky to have come back, my experiences were the highlight of my life”.

Later he received some long awaited letters. The first words he saw in his mother’s letter were, that his fiancée had ‘handed back your ring and was married in a week and in America in a fortnight’. Her wait of nearly four years had proved too long. It was the biggest shock of his short life, and he was only glad that he didn’t learn about it whilst a POW.

Upon returning home and having recuperated, he was forced to leave his beloved Army; he was discharged in August 1946 and did not serve in any further part of the Armed Forces. In 1978 he was belatedly awarded the Territorial Efficiency Medal. He decided not to return to the Bank and life in the City. In 1951 he applied to join Kraft Foods as a salesman, rising to become a Depot Manager with a thirty-strong team. He had personal responsibility for negotiations with multi-store retailers such as Tesco, with whom he formed a very strong relationship. Prior to his official retirement at sixty five, he was made Trade Relations Director. However, his American employers decided that with his relationship brilliance he was far too valuable to lose and persuaded him to stay on for a further twenty years. He was regarded as a gentleman, honest, charming and with high values.

For many years he had hosted corporate guests during Cheltenham Gold Cup Week, in what became known as ‘The Raymond Savage Suite’. An invitation to be there was highly valued.

Raymond, a proud Tiger, will be remembered for his deep devotion to his Regiment. Leaving his home in Devon at 0730 on each Sunday of Royal Tigers’ Weekend, he regularly attended the Cathedral Sunday service, and parade. After lunch, he would then return to his home; a five hundred mile round trip. He also regularly attended the 4/5th Officers’ Dinner each October. He was immaculate in manner and appearance, always interesting and good company.

He was a member of Probus and gave talks about his wartime experiences. He had a longstanding interest in cars and was an active member of the MG Owners’ Club attending countrywide rallies with his devoted companion Patricia.

Having lived for many happy years in his flood prone Riverside Cottage near Sidmouth, he decided about four years ago to move to a nearby residential home where he was well cared for. One of his great pleasures, in addition to a good breakfast, reading the Telegraph and a glass of good claret at dinner, was being visited by Bertie, Patricia’s dog, with whom he had previously enjoyed a daily walk.

He died on 5 January 2022 aged 102, just into his 103rd year. He had the distinction of being four times the ‘Last Man Standing’ – The last survivor of the British involvement in the defence of Norway in 1940; The last surviving member of the British Battalion; The last surviving member of The Leicestershire Regiment to have been a prisoner of the Japanese; The last man to have been a member of The Artists Rifles.

In 1948 he married Marie Jenks to whom their daughter Caroline was born and who survives him. The marriage ended in divorce in 1959.

In 1969 he married Ann Saunders who died in 1989.

For twenty seven years Patricia Newton had been his devoted companion to whom we express our sincere condolences.