Navy News July 2010

NAVY NEWS, JULY 2010

37

Trophy lives Calling all Sea Dogs

WOOD’S 100 are on the hunt for Britain’s best sea dog.

In a bid to find Britain’s Best Sea Dog, Wood’s 100 Old Navy Rum has launched a nationwide competition offering entrants the chance to win £500 off a battlefield tour with Leger Holidays*. The competition opens on Thursday July 1 2010 and entries must be received by Sunday July 25 2010. We want to hear all about your sea- faring tales, be they funny, scary, sad, quirky or inspiring acts of heroism. But, they must be your own true story, or that of a relative.

IN THE late 16th Century England, then a Protestant country ruled by

Elizabeth I, was providing support to the Protestants in Holland – then known as the Spanish Netherlands.

Queen

The Dutch wished for independence from Spain and the Spanish were having difficulty in supporting their troops in the Netherlands. King Philip II of Spain

believed that a successful invasion of England would give him control of the English Channel and also return the nation to the Catholic faith. His invasion fleet of 130 ships – the ‘Great Enterprise’, or Spanish Armada – was first sighted off the south coast of Devon on July 20 1588 and the English Fleet of 90 ships, under the overall command of Lord Howard of Effingham, sailed at about 1500 that day and gave chase.

The following day there was, unfortunately for the Spanish, what can possibly be described as a lack of attention to detail during Officer of the Watch manoeuvres as two of their ships collided with one, the Nuestra Señora del Rosario (Our Lady of Rosario) losing her foremast.

vessels – and any treasure they might be carrying. His departure from the main fleet was not popular with his brother commanding officers but he did catch and engage the Nuestra Señora del Rosario. With her manoeuvrability impeded and speed reduced the Spanish ship eventually conceded defeat and Admiral de Valdéz surrendered his sword to Drake on board the Revenge.

While his ship went into Dartmouth after her capture, de Valdéz stayed onboard the Revenge with Drake and was able to witness much of the destruction of his nation’s Fleet.

de Valdéz’s sword by Drake was subsequently painted by John Seymour Lucas, Royal Academician, and Trophy 13899, a reproduction of this

incident. painting, depicts this

The Armada lost a further two ships while making their way up the English Channel but, with the English Fleet preventing their

She was the flagship of Admiral Don Pedro de Valdéz and as a result of the damage was unable to keep up with the remainder of the Armada. Francis Drake in HMS Revenge, one of Howard of Effingham’s subordinate commanders, left the main English Fleet signalling that he was “in pursuit of certain hulks” and while this was undoubtedly true the greater truth was that he was actually hoping to capture the enemy

Contact sheet

www.mod.uk Royal Navy recruitment: 0845 607 5555,

Ministry of Defence: 0870 607 4455,

www.royalnavy.mod.uk Veterans Agency: 0800 169 2277, www. veterans-uk.info RN and RM Service records: 01283

www.royal-naval-association.co.uk Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity: 023 9254 8076, www.rnrmc.org.uk RNBT: 023 9269 0112 (general), 023 9266 0296 (grants), www.rnbt.org.uk British Legion: 08457 725725, www. britishlegion.org.uk Naval Families Federation: 023 9265 4374, www.nff.org.uk

227912, navysearchpgrc@tnt.co.uk Royal Naval Association: 023 9272 3823,

seafarers-uk.org SSAFA Forces Help: 0845 1300 975,

www.royalnavalmuseum.org Fleet Air Arm Museum: 01935 840565,

www.ssafa.org.uk RN Community: www.rncom.mod.uk Medals enquiries: 0800 085 3600 Royal Naval Museum: 023 9272 7562,

www.fl eetairarm.com Royal Marines Museum: 023 9281 9385,

www.royalmmarinesmuseum.co.uk RN Submarine Museum: 023 9252 9217, www.rnsubmus.co.uk

www.iwm.org.uk

6565, www.nmm.ac.uk Imperial War Museum: 020 7416 5320,

National Maritime Museum: 020 8312 NOTICEBOARD ENTRIES

■ Notices for this page should be brief, clearly written or typed and addressed to – The Editor, Navy News, HMS Nelson, Portsmouth. PO1 3HH or email: edit@navynews.co.uk. If you are sending your notice in via email, please include your full address and telephone number.

■ Reunions appear in date order, and requests to place an entry in a particular edition cannot be guaranteed.

■ Please send in Reunions at least three months (preferably four) before the month of the event.

■ There may be a delay before items appear, due to the volume of requests.

■ Entries are free to non-commercial organisations. Items pertaining to commercial work, books and publications for profit can only appear as paid-for advertising.

■ The Editor reserves the right to edit or refuse publication of submitted notices.

■ Space does not allow us to accept more than one free insert. Any subsequent notice will have to be paid for at advertising rates.

Entries for the Deaths’ column and Swap Drafts in August’s Noticeboard must be received by July 12

Seafarers UK: 020 7932 0000, www.

through the Channel they had no option but to head north around the British Isles if they were to return to Spain. Foul weather off the north of Scotland caused them further ship losses and an attempt to re-victual their ships at Galway in Ireland – also a Catholic country – was unsuccessful as the Irish saw the Spanish as invaders and attacked any men who landed from the Armada.

In all the Spanish lost 63 of their ships and over 20,000 sailors and soldiers; in contrast, the English lost no ships and only 100 men.

return The acceptance of Admiral

first three runners up and the first three entries will win a bottle of Wood’s 100 Old Navy Rum.

Entries can be made via: ■ Email – woods@lucre.co.uk ■ Post – Wood’s Rum, Steel House, Alexander Place, 13-17 Princess Road, Richmond, Surrey, TW10 6DQ. ■ Entries are strictly limited to 300

In addition to the winning prize, the

judging panel will review all the entries and winners will be informed by Monday August 2 2010.

Terms and Conditions

This competition is open to all UK residents, (including Northern Ireland, Eire, and the Channel Islands) except for employees of the promoter, their immediate family and anyone else connected to the creation or administration of the promotion. Entries must be received by Sunday July 25 2010 and the winners will be notifi ed by Monday August 2 2010. The winner’s prize is a £500 voucher for a two-person battlefi elds tour in conjunction with Leger Holidays.

The winner should log on to the Leger website for more information.

By entering the competition, entrants

agree to be bound by these rules and by any other requirements set out in the promotional material.

By entering the competition, entrants

agree that their entries can be posted on the Wood’s 100 Old Navy Rum website and on other related online and print platforms. Winner’s names and counties

are available 28 days after the closing date. Send a SAE to Wood’s Rum, Steel House, Alexander Place, 13-17 Princess Road, Richmond, Surrey, TW10 6DQ.

The winner can choose between the Armistice in Normandy, All Quiet on the Western Front or Poets on the Somme packages.

Prize is subject to availability and is non- transferable. Entries are limited to one per person. There is no cash alternative available. In the event of unforeseen circumstances,

words each and must be received by Sunday July 25 2010. ■ Please include your name, address and telephone number. ■ The Wood’s 100 Old Navy Rum

Deaths

Chief Petty Offi cer Andrew Brookes. Died as a result of injuries received in a road traffi c accident in the Juffair district of Manama in the Kingdom of Bahrain May 16. Corporal Stephen Walker RM. 40 Commando serving as part of Combined Force Sangin. Killed in Afghanistan May 21. Aged 42.

Corporal Stephen Paul Curley RM. 40 Commando serving as part of Combined Force Sangin. Killed while on a foot patrol in Helmand province May 26. Aged 26. Marine Scott Gregory Taylor RM. Alpha Company, 40 Commando serving as part of Combined Force Sangin. Killed in Afghanistan May 30. Aged 21. Marine Anthony Dean Hotine RM. Alpha

Company, 40 Commando serving as part of Combined Force Sangin. Killed in Aghanistan June 2. Aged 21.

Company, 40 Commando, serving as part of Combined Force Sangin. Died as a result of a gunshot wound he suffered in Afghanistan at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham. June 14.

Marine Steven James Birdsall RM. Bravo

Company, 40 Commando serving as part of Combined Force Sangin. Died from wounds sustained in Afghanistan at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham. June 20. Aged 23.

Marine Richard Hollington RM. Bravo

qualifi ed as a glider pilot and in 1965 followed his brother into the Navy. After general service at sea he volunteered for the Fleet Air Arm serving in Blake, Hermes and commanding 706 Naval Air Squadron and in 1979 commanded Wilton. In 1982 his 825 Squadron had been hastily re- formed from an anti-submarine training unit and various spare aircraft that were awaiting modernisation; the squadron was immediately used to support ground forces on the front-line of the Falklands war. On one occasion he fl ew his Sea King into battle at Mount Kent during a blizzard with a heavy load of ammunition under-slung and was hit by a sudden downdraught, narrowly avoiding a fatal crash; he once spent nine- and-a-half hours fl ying in a single day at the height of the confl ict. He was in Fitzroy in East Falkland on June 8 when he saw three enemy bombs hit the landing ship Sir Galahad, he immediately summoned every available helicopter, and within minutes, despite the exploding ammunition, aircraft were fl ying into the smoke and winching men from the burning decks or hovering low to use the downwash to push life-rafts away from the wreck; he received the DSC for his “major contribution to the support of the troops”. After the Falklands war he was promoted commander and following loan service in Oman and several staff appointments in 1996 he became Defence Services Attaché in Muscat (he spoke both French and Arabic) and retired two years later. He was a Royal Yachting Association examiner. April 29. Aged 62. Cdr Archie Strachan. On exercise at sea with the RNVR when hostilities were declared in 1939 and was immediately drafted into active service where he had a series of lucky escapes. He served in Acasta and was posted to Coventry just before the Acasta was sunk with the loss of all but

Admiral Sir Peter White. Entered the RN as a paymaster cadet 1937 and served in the Far East on board Birmingham spending some time in gunboats on the Yangtze; awarded the Gedge gold medal. He took part in the Norwegian campaign, then evacuation at Dunkirk. Serving in the Home Fleet fl agship he was present on board the battleship King George V at the sinking of the Bismarck; as the link between the C-in-C, the Admiralty and Bletchley Park; later North Russian convoy duties; awarded a mention in dispatches for his part in the sinking of the Scharnhorst. He returned to the Far East and was present at the Japanese surrender on board the American battleship Missouri and was sent to liberate PoW camps in Japan; also with the fi rst British team to visit Nagasaki after the bomb had dropped. Over a period of years, he was secretary and naval assistant to Admiral Sir Michael Denny. Commanded the ratings’ new entry school at Plymouth. Promoted to rear-admiral and appointed Director of Fleet Services in 1969. He remained in the Fleet Support fi eld as Port Admiral, Rosyth and fi nally Chief of Fleet Support as a full admiral where he was at the heart of the rationalisation of the Navy’s shore assets worldwide including the initiation of the Polaris refi tting programme from 1962 until his retirement in 1977. He was chairman of the Offi cers’ Pension Society 1982-90. May 22. Aged 91. Cdr Hugh Clark DSC. At age 16 he

one; the Coventry later sank off Tobruk, by which time he was on board Marguerite. Whilst on convoy duties he escaped disaster again when he avoided a merchant ship on collision course with his vessel at night. In 1943 he was made fi rst lieutenant on the corvette Nasturtium and took command when the captain was ashore and the ship was ordered to the Azores to defend a convoy under U-boat attack. While off Sri Lanka he survived a Japanese bombing raid which destroyed his sister ship by lying low and outwitting the enemy. He was mentioned in dispatches while aboard Loch Quoich after being drafted in to act as anaesthetist he helped to save the life of a seaman who needed emergency surgery; and it was on the same vessel in Sumatra that he forced the surrendering Japanese to leave their ceremonial swords behind before boarding his ship. He became one of the youngest wartime naval captains. May 9. Aged 90. Maurice Chauvet. Quartier-maitre. (Marine Cpl). Member of the Kieffer Commando. Signed up as a gunner on the naval cruiser George Leygues which initially patrolled the Atlantic but after the German invasion of France attempted to join the fl edgling Free French navy (FNFL) but heard that he had been condemned to 10 years’ hard labour by the Vichy government for deserting the standing navy so he tried to fl ee to England via Spain in early 1941 but was arrested and spent almost 18 months in the notorious Miranda de Ebro concentration camp in northern Spain. On June 6 1943 he fi nally reached England and enlisted in the FNFL volunteering as a commando he found himself at Achnacarry, near Fort William where his training was harsh; it was also there that he designed the French Marines’ shield emblem, still worn on their green berets today. After fi nal training in Hampshire he boarded LCI 528 at the mouth of the river Hamble; the only French unit to take part in the D-Day landings he waded ashore in the ‘Queen Red’ sector of Sword Beach but fi ve days after landing he was seriously wounded and shipped back to England. In 2008 at Ouistreham, President Nicolas Sarkozy greeted D-Day survivors and designated Chauvet an Offi cer de la Legion d’honneur May 21. Aged 91. Peter Holt. Telegraphist. Served in Euryalus (1944-46) and Woodcock (1946). HMS Euryalus Association and Secretary of the Isle of Wight Burma Star Association. February 26. Aged 84. Anthony ‘Tony’ Whitty. Tel. Served in Ganges, Orwell, HMY Britannia, Ceylon West W.T., Halfar RNAS. March. Aged 71. James ‘Dancing Jim’ Vint. Served the duration of World War 2 from 1941 on MTBs, in India and Australia. Lymington branch of Royal British Legion. May 19. Aged 87. Supply Lt Francis ‘Jock’ Young. Served 1945-72 in Royal Arthur, Glendower, Pembroke, Cochrane, Perseus (SORFFA), Aisne, Malabar, Glasgow, Superb, Sheffi eld, Ganges, Swiftsure, Jamaica, Ceres, Wildfi re, Albion, Terror, Victory, Victorious, Greenwich, Condor, Fulmar, Centaur, Vernon, Forth, Neptune and Daedalus. Aged 82. Michael ‘Tanks’ Warren. MAA. Served 1952-79. Joining as a junior stoker he transferred to the regulating branch in 1966 and served in Implacable, Maralinga, Ark Royal, Osprey, Shape, Neptune and Ambuscade. Regulating Branch Association. May 2. Aged 75. C E ‘Ted’ Glover. CPO SPT1. Senior Instructor at ‘old’ Temeraire and short-listed for gymnastic team Rome Olympics 1960. Served in submarines and Terror and Eagle. May 29. Aged 80. John ‘Slinger’ Woods. AB. Served 1947-58 in Ganges, Ocean, St Brides Bay, Defi ance, Osprey, Zambesi, Helmsdale, Diana (fi rst commission 1954-56) and Drake. HMS Diana Association. James Arthur Whitehead. LSA/V. Served 1952-65 in Ceres, Valiant,

82 in Caron, Ashanti, Teazer, Devonshire, Bulwark and Hermes. June 2. Aged 70. Raymond Sidney ‘Sid’ Newbold. LCH. Served 1949-61 in Reward and submarines Sanguine, Astute and Seraph; also Valetta, Malta. Past member of Duddeston and Nechells ex-servicemen’s club, The Nautical Club, Birmingham, Submariners Association and International Submariners Association. May 25. Aged 77.

Unicorn 1949-51 and a member of the association. April 20. Aged 83. Michael Brown. CPO(Sea). Served

Alan ‘Slaps’ Davies. L/Stoker on board

Torquay, Duncansby Head, Cochrane and Cassandra; was advance party of the fi rst commission of HMS Diana 1954-56. HMS Diana Association. Terry Parish. CPO Stoker. Served 1960-

Sanderling,

1951-91 at St Vincent then Implacable, Cadiz, Battleaxe, Apollo, Ceylon, Puma, Llandaff, Hardy and Achilles; also Vernon, Drake, Raleigh and CCF. HMS St Vincent Association. Meritorious Service Medal 1985. May 13.

PO. Retired 1991. Joined in 1966 at Raleigh. Served in many ships including Devonshire, Jupiter, Fife, Tartar, Matapan, Norfolk, Newcastle, Cardiff and lots of shore establishments. His last (and favourite) ship was Kingfi sher. March. Michael Seagrove. Able Seaman. Served 12 years in Ganges, Indefatigable, Superb, Swiftsure, Adamant, Rampura and Ursa. HMS Ganges Association. May 2. Aged 74.

Stuart ‘Jock’ McKenzie Carruthers.

ROYAL NAVAL ASSOCIATION Anthony ‘Dicko’ Dixon. Seaman. Ganges Boy 1949. Served in Illustrious, Bressingham, Comet, Orion and Cockade and as AB(UW3) in Unicorn 1951-54 (Korean War); also Drake and Vernon. Past member of the main committee, vice chairman, standard-bearer, chairman of Leamington Spa RNA and vice president after resigning as chairman due to ill health. 8th Destroyer Group Association and HMS Unicorn Association. April 13. Aged 77. Terence Charles Gull. AB. Served 1943- 46 in Collingwood, Brontosaurus and LCTs 2235 and 7013. Uxbridge RNA, Normandy Veterans Association and Landing Craft Association. May 15. Norman Gifford. Chef. Served 1940-45. Posted to Victory Barracks, Portsmouth then in January 1941 he was drafted to Alexandra, however on transit in the Dutch merchant steamer SS Barnveld she was stopped by the pocket battleship Admiral Sheer, prisoners were taken and she was sunk. He eventually arrived in Cherbourg and was sent to the Prison Camp Blechhammer in Poland where in 1944 he managed to escape arriving back in Liverpool early 1945. St Helens RNA. May 15. Aged 91. Frederick Flint. Served 1951-73 including Diamond (67-70). Whitstable branch. May 11. Aged 76.

Desmond Burgess. Chief Engineering Mech. Served 1936-48 in Malaya and Frobisher. Founder member of the Carlisle and District branch. Aged 91. May 2. Roy Reeves. Stoker. Joined Merchant Navy at 16 and went on to the RN to do National Service and served in Jutland. 40 years service with Sunbury and Walton Sea Cadets becoming Lt Cdr (SCC) and CO. Hanworth RNA. May 10. Aged 79. Stanley Paul Hurley. Service in RN and

RFA. Founder member and former treasurer Caerphilly RNA. May 26. Aged 84. Phil Smith. CPO Writer. Served 1958- 82 in Tiger, Ark Royal, Sheba, 849 and 892 Squadrons. RNAS Lossiemouth

54 in Caledonia, Berwick (Russian Convoys), Jamaica, Bigbury Bay (British Pacifi c Fleet and Palestine), LCT 4097, Buchan Ness, Mull of Galloway, Creole, Crispin, Adamant and Tenacious. Upon leaving the RN he joined NI Prison Service and retired as Governor One. Ex-president and chairman Limavady RNA. April 29. Aged 86. Ted Slater DSM. CPO SRI. Served 1938-53 in Caledonia (boy), Ceres, Octavia, Franklin, Scott, STU Pembroke, Owen, Cook, Sharpshooter and Shackleton. Spalding branch. May 16. Aged 86. Alan Beet. L/Stoker. Served 1942-46 in Duke (Malvern), Pembroke and ships Suffolk and Zest. Life member of Lincoln RNA serving various roles, his last being treasurer. May 15. Aged 86.

Hugh N Cunningham. ERA. Served 1940-

Mountaineering Club and Chatham RNA. May 20.

Joe Rigby. Able Seaman. Served 1940- 46 in Dorsetshire (when she was sunk by Japanese bombing spending several days adrift before being rescued) and Comet. Atherton branch. May 28. Aged 89.

William Chippendale. OD. Served in Pickle. May 24. Aged 84. Harry Sayer. Sig(TO). Served in Espiegle. May 31. Aged 84. John Bowers. Ldg/Sto. Served in Waterwitch. June 7. Aged 87.

LST & LANDING CRAFT ASSOCIATION W Carr. Served with LCA Flotilla 508 and LCS. May 2. D Oliver. Served on board LCI(L) 173.

May 12. T C. Gull. Served on board LCTs 2355 and 7013. May 15.

SUBMARINERS ASSOCIATION B E ‘Brian’ Chapman. L/Sea UC1. Submarine service 1962-70 in Alliance and Dreadnought. Sussex branch. Aged 66. D J ‘Dave’ Evans. CPO.WEA. Submarine service 1970s in Renown and Resolution. West of Scotland branch. Aged 72. A R ‘Allan’ Fitton. WO TAS. Submarine service 1968-98 in Otter, Revenge, Renown, Repulse, Courageous and Churchill. Merseyside branch. Aged 71. A W ‘Jock’ Gillies. ERA3. Submarine service 1940-43 in Trident and Trooper. West of Scotland branch. Aged 91. R ‘Ron’ Graham. CC EL. Submarine service 1955-73 in Alaric, Tabard, Thermopylae, Excalibur, Amphion and Resolution. West of Scotland branch. Aged 76.

R W ‘Sandy’ Saunders. LEM. Submarine service 1957-60 in Seraph, Turpin and Truncheon. Lincoln branch. Aged 75. R A P ‘Ray’ Wellstead. L/Sea LTO. Submarine service 1943-46 in Tribune and Amphion. Poole and district branch. Aged 86.

Talking Navy News goes digital

Navy News is available free of charge as a digital file Portsmouth Area Talking News for those with difficulty reading normal type. Contact 023 9269 0851, or email patn-rec@hotmail.com. A speaker that will take a USB plug is required but this can be obtained from the Talking News, or the file can be played back through a computer.

J M ‘John’ Herron. CPO(Ops). Submarine service 1959-82 in Artemis, Finwhale, Amphion and Revenge. Gosport branch. Aged 70.

Aged 84. Bill Kyte. AB. Served in Laertes. May 18. ALGERINES ASSOCIATION

the promoter reserves the right to offer an alternative prize of equal or greater value. The promoter’s decision is fi nal and binding.

No correspondence will be entered into. Entries become the absolute property of the promoter and will not be returned.

Prize winners may be required to participate in publicity involving print and broadcast media. All text copy and images

provided in this competition remains copyright of Wood’s 100 Old Navy Rum and may be used in future.

By entering the competition, entrants agree that their stories and/or images may be used by Wood’s 100 Old Navy Rum as they wish without prior notice to the entrant.

By entering the competition you give permission for your story and/ or images to be reproduced online and in print media.

Speak to John Lister

01395 568028 www.burialatsea.co.uk email@burialatsea.co.uk

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