Col Brian Foster TD DL, who died on Christmas Day 2012, was the last commanding officer of a Royal Lincolnshire Regiment Battalion, the Territorial 4/6 Lincolns. A lawyer in his civilian life, he is particularly remembered in Poacher circles for saving the Austin Fund – a legacy from an American benefactor early in the 20th Century to fund an iconic annual Regimental Dinner to ‘Toast the King once year, on his birthday’.

Brian was born on 20th Nov 1927, growing up in Grantham, Lincolnshire and attending the King’s School there. In 1947 he won a place at St John’s College Cambridge to read Mathematics, taking a sabbatical after his first year to complete National Service in the Royal Lincolnshire Regiment, when he was commissioned after officer training at Eaton Hall. He graduated in 1950, going on to complete his Articles in London, becoming a solicitor in 1953.

Whilst at Cambridge he captained the University Water Polo team, winning a swimming blue. He also played rugby for his College alongside a ‘Who’s Who?’ of international rugby at the time including future British Lions Glyn Davies, Clem Thomas and Logie Bruce Lockhart.

Brian had a highly successful professional career. He joined the Godsons solicitors practice in 1954 and became a partner around 1964. In 1977 he became Clerk to the Justices in the Magistrates Courts at Bourne, Grantham and Stamford.

Brian had other strings to his bow though. He was able to combine his loves of rugby and law into being a successful first class referee. When he retired from refereeing in the late 60s he was one level short of being on the Rugby Football Union’s international panel.

More importantly for this journal, he followed his National Service in the Lincolns by becoming a Territorial Commissioned Officer in the Royal Lincolnshire Regiment, eventually becoming the last ever Royal Lincolnshire Regimental Commanding Officer, commanding the 4/6 Lincolns.

For the rest of his life he remained closely involved with the Regiment and its successor, The Royal Anglian Regiment. He provided and acted on the legal advice that ‘saved’ the Austin Fund when it was being contested by the Austin family, and he supported Gen Dick Gerrard-Wright and the Regimental Association in ensuring that the Lincolns were appropriately represented at the Royal Anglian Regimental Museum at Duxford when it opened in the late 90s.

In parallel to this Regimental activity after his retirement, he also had the honour of being selected to be a Deputy Lieutenant to the Lord Lieutenant of Lincolnshire, whose role was to represent Her Majesty The Queen within the County at all functions and ceremonies where she was unable to attend in person. He retired from this role around 1998.

Brian is survived by his daughters Frances and Lucy and by his son Andrew, who himself served with the Poachers from 1984 -1997. Lucy’s husband, Richard Colgan, was also a Poacher from 1986 – 1995.

AF