Family, friends, soldiers and veterans will be gathering to celebrate the life of Wales’ former Army chief at a memorial service at St Mary’s Church in Monmouth this Saturday (April 30).

Major-General Lennox Napier, an OBE and Companion of the Order of the Bath who retired to live in the town with wife Jennifer, died in July 2020 at the age of 92.

The fourth generation of his family to serve in the military since 1859, the father-of-three also had a considerable impact after retiring from service as chairman of the Central Rail Users’ Consultative Committee, championing better services for passengers.

His son Brigadier Philip Napier extended the family military line to five generations and served as the Regimental Colonel of the Royal Welsh Regiment from 2011 to 2016.

Maj Gen Napier was born on the family farm near Broadway in Worcestershire on June 28, 1928, into a family whose tradition of military service included Sir William Napier, soldier and historian who served at Corunna, and Admiral Sir Charles Napier, who commanded the Baltic Fleet during the Crimean War.

He was commissioned into the South Wales Borderers in 1948, and after service in Eritrea, Sudan and Egypt went to Malaya during the communist insurrection.

He quickly won a reputation as a brave and competent jungle operator, winning the Military Cross for leading the charge of a patrol into a terrorist camp and following a fleeing leader into the dense undergrowth.

Five years later he returned to southeast Asia to work with the Singapore authorities in improving relations between British forces and the local population and was appointed MBE.

He became commanding officer of the 1st Battalion South Wales Borderers in 1967 and commanding officer of the 1st Battalion Royal Regiment of Wales in 1969.

Maj Gen Napier went on to be commander of the Berlin Infantry Brigade in 1974, Divisional Brigadier for the Prince of Wales’ Division in 1976 and General Officer Commanding Wales in 1980 before retiring in 1983.

Appointed chairman of the Central Rail Users’ Consultative Committee in 1985, the former infantry officer, proved a skilled advocate for better passenger services, frequently appearing on television to argue the case.

But he was no fan of rail privatisation, foreseeing problems with the separation of responsibility for the tracks and trains, with unprofitable competition for funding and resources.

The memorial service is at St Mary’s at 2.30pm this Saturday (April 30) and all are welcome.