John Gray (Royal Navy officer)
Vice-Admiral Sir John Michael Dudgeon Gray KBE CB (13 June 1913 – February 1998) was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, South Atlantic and South America Station.
Sir John Gray | |
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Born | 13 June 1913 |
Died | February 1998 |
Allegiance | |
Service/ | |
Years of service | 1926–1967 |
Rank | Vice-Admiral |
Commands held | HMS Lynx HMS Victorious Director General of Training South Atlantic and South America Station |
Battles/wars | World War II Korean War |
Awards | Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire Companion of the Order of the Bath |
Naval career
Educated at the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth,[1] Gray joined the Royal Navy in 1926. He was promoted to lieutenant on 9 December 1935, with seniority from 1 December 1935.[2] He was promoted to lieutenant commander on 24 December 1943, with seniority from 1 December 1943.[3] He served with US forces at Anzio in Italy in 1944.[4] After the War, he became Naval Adviser to the UK Mission to Japan where he was present at the war crimes trials of senior Japanese military and political leaders.[5]
He then served in Korea in 1950.[4] Promoted to Captain on 31 December 1952,[6] he commanded HMS Lynx and then HMS Victorious.[1] On 7 January 1962, he was appointed a Naval Aide de Camp to The Queen.[7] He was appointed Director General of Training at the Ministry of Defence in 1964. On 19 November 1965, he was promoted to vice admiral.[8] He was appointed Commander-in-Chief, South Atlantic and South America Station in 1965 before retiring in 1967.[4]
Awards and decorations
On 7 June 1951, the then Commander Gray was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) "in recognition of non-operational services in Japan in connection with operations in Korea".[9]
As part of the 1964 New Year Honours, the then Rear-Admiral Gray was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB).[10]
As part of the 1967 Queen's Birthday Honours, Vice Admiral Gray was promoted to Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE).[11]
Personal life
In 1939 he married Margaret Helen Purvis; they had one son and one daughter.[1]
References
- Debrett's People of Today 1994
- "No. 34231". The London Gazette. 13 December 1935. p. 8037.
- "No. 36300". The London Gazette. 24 December 1943. p. 5596.
- Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
- "Fleet Air Arm Obituaries". Archived from the original on 8 June 2007. Retrieved 18 October 2010.
- "No. 39749". The London Gazette. 9 January 1953. p. 220.
- "No. 42569". The London Gazette. 12 January 1962. p. 277.
- "No. 43819". The London Gazette. 19 November 1965. p. 10842.
- "No. 39248". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 June 1951. p. 3107.
- "No. 43200". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 1963. p. 2.
- "No. 44326". The London Gazette (Supplement). 2 June 1967. p. 6273.
Military offices | ||
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Preceded by Sir Fitzroy Talbot |
Commander-in-Chief, South Atlantic Station 1965–1967 |
Succeeded by Post Disbanded |