A right royal welcome was extended to war veteran Reg Samways when he returned to Norway 63 years after playing his part in the rescue of King Haakon.

Reg, a member of the Saltash branch of the Royal Naval Association, always wanted to return, but when he could afford to make the trip, his wife – who died last year – was too ill to travel.

His last visit to the port of Molde was aboard cruiser HMS Glasgow, sent to bring King Haakon, the Crown Prince, and 35 tons of gold to safety.

After a perilous journey up the narrow fjord, Glasgow dropped anchor at Molde on April 30, 1940 – to find the town a smoking ruin as a result of a Luftwaffe raid.

The Germans had got wind of an escape plan and, having been wrongly informed that the King was sheltering in a red house, targeted all such properties.

Reg, part of the ship’s gunnery ammunition party, says the King was not in a house, but watched the destruction of the town from beneath a silver birch tree, now the site of the King’s Birch memorial.

By the time the gold was loaded aboard Glasgow, the jetty was on fire, and a nearby church, which had taken a direct hit, was in flames, its steeple on the point of collapse.

With no time to lose, the Captain of Glasgow put the ship full astern, and as the cruiser made her getaway in darkness, she took half the jetty with her – “a night I will never forget,” said Reg.

The King and his son were taken north to Tromso, from where they sailed to Scotland in another cruiser, HMS Devonshire.

In gratitude, the King sent a letter of thanks to the Captain and ship’s company of Glasgow, with every man on board receiving a copy.

When Reg (83) decided to make the visit this year and had bought his air ticket, he contacted the Norwegian Embassy in London, enclosing a copy of the King’s letter, asking if it was possible to meet other war veterans during his visit.

In reply, he received an invitation from Ottar Befring, the local Governor, to come as his guest. Reg was met on arrival by the Governor and his wife, and was booked into a lovely hotel close to where Glasgow dropped anchor in 1940.

From arrival to departure, the friendship and hospitality extended to Reg were overwhelming.

He was wined and dined by both the Governor and the Mayor of Molde, Bitten Linge,, taken sightseeing all over the region – a beautiful part of Norway, with wild coastline, spectacular mountains and fjords – and everywhere he went, people were keen to shake the hand of a man who helped rescue the King.

During his stay, Reg attended a service in the rebuilt church which he had seen burning in 1940, visited the store where the gold had been kept before being loaded on to the British warship, and the King’s Birch memorial.

The visit, said Reg, was a dream come true, and he plans to return next Spring, to attend the HMS Glasgow reunion.

On leaving HMS Glasgow, Reg went on to HMS Eagle, which sank in minutes after being torpedoed. Despite a broken leg, he managed to swim to safety and stay afloat until he was rescued.