THE UK’s once highest-ranking soldier and a long-time Crondall resident, Lord Bramall, has given his first television interview since he was acquitted in a child abuse probe by the Metropolitan Police.

A Scotland Yard inquiry into claims that a VIP Westminster paedophile ring abused children in the 1970s and 1980s collapsed without any charges being brought.

Speaking to the BBC, Lord Bramall, 92, said the investigation caused him a “great deal of distress over a very long period” and criticised Scotland Yard for acting on “the single, uncorroborated allegation of one man”.

He added the first he knew that he was under investigation was when police officers turned up at his cottage in Crondall on March 4 last year and demanded to search his home.

Lord Bramall said: “Suddenly out of the blue at 9am in the morning and without any warning, 20 police officers descended on me with a warrant to search the house. I asked them what is the problem, and they said an allegation has been made about you. All they would tell me was that 40 years ago I had abused an under-aged male.

“I knew that wasn’t in my psyche, but it was extremely worrying to have that hanging over you and of course the media made the most of it. They thought there must be some presumption of guilt so of course every time my name or picture appeared in the paper, it was in connection with a wider sex scandal.

“It was very disturbing and I had to tell my family and friends. Luckily anyone who knew me knew it was a load of rubbish but you’re always worried about what you may call the ‘no smoke without fire’ brigade.”

The Met’s investigation began in November 2014 following allegations by a man in his 40s known only as ‘Nick’, who claimed he was abused for nine years from 1975 when he was seven, to 1984. Nick also alleged that three boys were murdered by members of the supposed paedophile ring.

Lord Bramall’s wife, Avril, died last summer before he was cleared of any wrongdoing and another of those accused, Lord Brittan, also died last year unaware that the investigation into a rape claim against him, which he denied, had been dropped.

Lord Bramall continued: “I’ve never complained about being investigated, only the heavy handed and very unintelligent way the police went about it.

“If they’d put any effort into questioning the so-called victim I think they would have found it was very unlikely and they wouldn’t have gone through the process of searching my house. They could’ve sent somebody down to discuss it with me.

“The trouble was, right at the beginning of the investigation they had no evidence at all. They said they can’t do the investigation unless people come forward, and pleaded with people to come forward, saying if you do you will be believed.

“Gratuitously one of the policemen [detective superintendent Kenny McDonald] then said not only was Nick a credible witness, but he was also telling the truth. Well that’s turning the law upside down and it was absolutely monstrous.

“An apology to me is completely immaterial. There is no need to apologise for investigating because I’ve never questioned that. What I do hope is to see [Det Supt MacDonald] so I can tell him face-to-face why I feel so aggrieved at the way I’ve been treated.

“I hope they recognise that although they may have thought they have done what the public required of them after the Jimmy Saville case - to leave no stones unturned, not be the respecter of persons, spread their net wide and not to gainsay any victims - they had actually made mistakes and lacked judgement over my case. I hope people will realise they shouldn’t conduct operations like this ever again.”

Lord Bramall, an Eton-educated field marshal and baron, also told the BBC he has “served Britain pretty well” over the years and criticised the police for having little concern for his decorated career and reputation.

A career soldier for much of his life, Lord Bramall was commissioned into the King’s Royal Rifle Corps in May 1943 and commanded a platoon in the D-Day landings, later receiving the Military Cross in 1945.

After the war, he commanded UK land forces between 1976 and 1978 and was eventually appointed Chief of the General Staff - the professional head of the Army - in July 1979.

He added: “I hope the whole issue just goes away now, but I don’t expect it will. I just think what is necessary is for everybody, ministers included, to look at the way the police carried out this inquiry and to see that they don’t go about these things in the same way in future.

“The police have a very difficult job to do and they are under tremendous pressure after getting it wrong over Jimmy Saville. But in my case the whole thing went to the other extreme, a witch hunt, and one shouldn’t allow that to happen.”