Dozens pay respects as SAS veteran laid to rest near Stafford

The service for Special Air Service veteran Rupert Chetwynd, who died aged 87, was held at the Church of St Mary the Virgin in Ingestre, near Stafford.

He served in the SAS three times in the 1950s and saw active service in Cyprus and Suez with the rank of captain, but precise details are covered by the Official Secrets Act of 1911.

The service began outside the church with a bugler sounding the Last Post followed by two minutes’ silence.

The organist then played Lili Marlene, a song popular in France and among British servicemen during the Second World War. It is perhaps best known for having been sung by Marlene Dietrich.

Mr Chetwynd died on April 26, but his funeral service was delayed to enable his many friends and relatives to gather.

Nearly 100 socially-distanced mourners were at the 17th-century church on May 27. Mr Chetwynd’s widow Luciana attended, as did five of his six sons and both daughters. His second son, Dominic, died in an accident in Japan in 2005.

Son Aaron said: "As a family, we had a wonderful celebration of his life, in the Ingestre Church, which he loved and admired so much."

Ingestre Church was built by Mr Chetwynd’s remote kinsman Walter Chetwynd to a design attributed to Sir Christopher Wren, architect of St Paul’s Cathedral and 51 other London churches, 32 of which survive including one rebuilt in Missouri in the United States.

Mr Chetwynd was a member of the group of volunteers who raised roughly £650,000 to restore Ingestre Church. In May 2000, an infestation of death-watch beetle grubs in the oak timbers of the roof led to the church being closed for four years.

The damage threatened the survival of the ornate plaster ceiling in the nave which expert restorers Sandy and Co of Stafford estimated would cost £5 million to rebuild.

The feared collapse was avoided and the church was reopened to the public by the Right Rev Jonathan Gledhill, Bishop of Lichfield, on Passion March 28, 2004. The church was packed for the occasion and worshippers at the service of thanksgiving and rededication included the present 22nd Earl of Shrewsbury, Charles Chetwynd-Talbot who was born at nearby Ingestre Hall.

The Chetwynds have lived in Ingestre since the 13th century. Sir Walter Chetwynd who built the Hall and was the grandfather of the church’s builder was also a direct ancestor of both Mr Chetwynd and Lord Shrewsbury. The present Chetwynd family, Lord Shrewsbury and other members of the family belong to different branches of the Chetwynd clan, which is widespread around the world.

Mourners at the service were welcomed by the Rev Dr Carl Rudd, the Rector of Ingestre.

A eulogy was given by Anna Chetwynd, Mr Chetwynd’s daughter-in-law and mother of three of his nine grandchildren.

There followed an organ recital of Jerusalem, words by William Blake to a setting by Hubert Parry, Jonathan Chetwynd, the eldest son, then recalled thoughts by friends and family.

Tony Young, chairman of the Restoration Project Team for Ingestre Church from 2001 to 2006 and now a churchwarden then gave a reading and Andrew Gay, a business friend, then gave a talk and read “If” by Rudyard Kipling.

There was also a flute recital of Lord of the Dance and the coffin was led out by family pallbearers during which was played an organ recital of Nimrod from the Enigma Variations by Sir Edward Elgar.

The cremation was at Stafford Crematorium.

A collection taken for the Church of St Mary the Virgin raised £375 while donations to Medecins Sans Frontieres and Help for Heroes stand at £1,000.

A wake was held in the Orangery, another listed building in the grounds of Ingestre Hall, now used as a residential arts centre by Sandwell Council.

Mr Chetwynd's son, Aaron, was founding chairman of the Friends of Ingestre Orangery which restored the building with the help of £1.5 million from the Heritage Lottery Fund and other sources. It is now used as a community centre for the villagers of Ingestre.