Charles Cassie died on 26 April 2002 aged 86.
He enlisted into the Royal Tank Corps on 29 April 1936, subsequently transferring to the 3rd The King’s Own Hussars at Tidworth on 24 June 1938.
He served with the Regiment in the Western Desert, Libya and Cyrenaica as a squadron mechanist sergeant and was Mentioned in Despatches for his service during that period.
After the desert, he moved with ‘B’ Squadron to the Far East and shortly afterwards was reported missing in the Netherlands East Indies with the rest of the squadron.
He became a prisoner of war in Java with the Japanese, being released at the end of the war in 1945.
He rejoined the Regiment in 1948 and moved to BAOR with ‘B’ Squadron, eventually joining up with the rest of the Regiment in Lubeck. Promoted SQMS in 1949, an appointment he kept until 1951 when he decided on a change of career, as he would not agree to a transfer to the REME, which was to become the fate of all tradesmen who wished to retain their trade. He was then appointed SSM of ‘B’ Squadron shortly after which, he was appointed RSM.
In 1955 he was commissioned and took up the appointment of Quartermaster. He was the last Quartermaster of the 3rd Hussars and the first of the Queen’s Own Hussars.
In 1959 he became Quartermaster of the Warwickshire and Worcestershire Yeomanry with whom he served until his retirement in 1966. He married Margaret (Peg) Cameron in 1936 who pre-deceased him. His two sons and daughter survive him.
