George Roylance Ash was better known as 'Roy' to his friends, but to Beacon readers he will be fondly remembered as one of Monmouth's last surviving soldiers from the Second World War.

He joined the armed forces at Hereford on 2nd June 1940 and became a sapper driver with a Territorial Army unit. He was with the Royal Engineers when he was part of an advance party sent out to Greece where their first task was to prepare a bridge to be blown up.

After a number of daring escapades, he was ordered to Athens to be evacuated.

"About 500 of us boarded a ship," George told the Beacon in June 2010.

"The German airforce flew over and started dropping bombs.

"The first two missed, but the third hit right in the middle of the ship, about 15 feet from where I was standing..

"I said to the people around me 'Lads, we had better get off this ship'. I looked around and they were all dead.

"Out of 500 on board, only 26 were left. It was a complete massacre – we had no chance," he added.

He eventually made his way to Kalamata in Southern Greece where there were 10,000 troops waiting for the navy to evacuate them, but only 2,000 troops were taken off.

But it was four days until George was finally picked up by the navy.

"They picked 500 men in groups of 15. I was in the last one to get on board, and the 7,500 left behind were taken prisoner later that morning." he said.

George served the rest of the war in Egypt and Greece, taking pictures of the landscapes and his comrades, clearing minefields and even celebrating Christmas with a pint of rum.

He returned to Monmouth and ran the Monmouth Steam Laundry in Monnow Street, having had a laundry business in Whitecross Street before the war.

George then expanded the business and re-located to Hadnock Road. But by 1964, the advent of the domestic washing machine meant the writing was on the wall for the laundry business, and by 1976, there was no private laundry service remaining.

He retired in 1976 and joined the Probus Club and became their chairman in 1961.

George celebrated his 100th birthday at his home in Wyesham in July 2011.

He died at Monnow Vale Hospital on Tuesday 10th April 2012 at the age of 100.