A RENOWNED expert on military matters has died aged 91.

Tom Ford produced what is widely considered to be the standard work of reference for those seeking to learn about Colchester’s forces history.

His two volumes of British Army Units Stationed in Colchester cover the periods 1856 to 1939 and from 1940 to 2006, with copies stored in the Imperial War Museum.

Tom was born in December 1925 in the east end of London.

His home was destroyed during the Blitz and he joined the Army as a regular in 1943, serving five years with the 15th 5th Lancers in Germany, Austria, Italy and the Suez Canal Zone.

After finishing military service, he joined the Royal London Insurance Company and took the examinations to become a fellow of the Charted Institute of Insurance.

He met his wife, Betty, at the West Ham Young Conservatives and they were married for 63 years.

Betty still lives at their home in Shrub End, Colchester.

The couple came to Colchester when Royal London Insurance moved to the town. By then, Tom controlled three departments at its Octagon offices in Middleborough.

He was seconded to the Colchester Business Enterprise Agency and became its second chairman.

Tom was always keen on sport and guided the Colchester Gymnastics Club. He was also a governor of Philip Morant School and on joining Colchester Rotary Club, played a major role in many of its activities, most notably collecting old spectacles to help people in India with poor sight.

His interest in military matters led him to spend several years researching the stories of all the men who were on the Royal London Memorial who died in the First World War.

His best work was the two volume book on British Army Units Stationed in Colchester.

Fellow Colchester Rotarian and student of military matters William Ward said: “This took many years of detailed study to produce and is now a standard reference sourced for military historians and genealogists.

“Tom was always interested in serving others. He was an interesting chap and always had lots of stories.

“He met many members of the Royal Family, including the Queen and Queen Mother. He took such pride in going to see them and taking the taxi to St James’ Park.”