John Denison (Royal Navy officer)

Rear Admiral John Denison (1853 – March 6, 1939) was a Canadian member of the Royal Navy.

John Denison
John Denison in 1877
Born1853
Toronto
DiedMarch 6, 1939(1939-03-06) (aged 85–86)
Alverstock, Portsmouth, England
NationalityCanada
Occupationsailor
Known forSaid to be the first Admiral, RN, born in Canada
ChildrenBertram Denison
Parent(s)

His great-grandfather, grandfather, father, and five brothers served as army officers, but Denison joined the Navy in 1867, as a midshipman.[1] From 1893 to 1896 he commanded the royal yacht HMY Victoria and Albert (1855).[2] He was described as the first Canadian to command a fleet.

He served as naval aide de camp to King Edward VII from 1905 to 1906.[2]

He retired in 1909, as a Rear Admiral.[2]

His son, Bertram Denison, followed him into the Royal Navy, serving as a midshipman during the Boer War.[1] He would later transfer to the Army. He was wounded in the head, and left for dead, leading his men in an attack, during the first battle of World War One.[3]

Denison died in Alverstock, near Portsmouth, England on March 9, 1939.[2]

References
  1. David Gagan (1973). The Denison Family of Toronto: 1792-1925. University of Toronto Press. p. 22. ISBN 9781487597368. George Taylor Denison 1783 OR 1853.
  2. "Admiral John Denison; Retired British Officer, King's Yacht Commander, Held D.S.O." The New York Times. 1939-03-10. p. 23. Retrieved 2019-06-09.
  3. Paul Hunter (2014-09-08). "Toronto's first casualty of World War 1". The Star. Retrieved 2019-06-09.


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