British naval commander. As a radio communications specialist he served in the Dardanelles (1915) and in the Grand Fleet (191518). In the West Indies (19389), he was invalided home with suspected tuberculosis, but recalled to the active list in 1940. As vice-admiral in the Mediterranean, he sank the French ships at Oran (1940), shelled Genoa (1941), helped in the sinking of the Bismarck (1941), and took part in the Malta convoy battle (1941). After the entry of the Japanese into the War, he became commander-in-chief of the British fleet in the Indian Ocean. In 1945 he was promoted Admiral of the Fleet.
Admiral of the Fleet Sir James Fownes Somerville, GCB GBE DSO, (17 July 1882 – 19 March 1949) was one of the most famous British Admirals of World War II.
Early career
The son of Arthur Fownes Somerville (1850-1942, who appears to have spent some time farming sheep in New Zealand), James Fownes Somerville was born in Weybridge, Surrey.
Somerville stayed in the service after the war, and in 1921 he was promoted to captain.
Somerville commanded the Mediterranean Fleet destroyer flotillas from 1936 to 1938, and during the Spanish Civil War helped protect Majorca from the Republicans.
European operations, 1939-1942
He was recalled to duty on special service to the Admiralty later in 1939 with the start of World War II, and for the next year performed important work on naval radar development. Churchill wrote to him:
Although privately he felt that his orders to attack if all other avenues failed were a mistake, Somerville executed his orders, and eventually attacked the French fleet as they rode at anchor.
At the head of Force H, on 9 February 1941 Somerville organized a bombardment raid on Genoa, and also played an important role in the pursuit and sinking of the Bismarck on 26 May 1941.
Indian Ocean, 1942-1944
Somerville became commander of the British Eastern Fleet in March 1942, replacing Admiral Sir Geoffrey Layton. The Eastern Fleet had been established at Trincomalee, Ceylon (Sri Lanka), after the surrender of Singapore, but Somerville was unhappy with the base's security and he ordered the construction of an alternative forward base at Addu Atoll in the Maldives.
Admiral Chuichi Nagumo's powerful Indian Ocean Raid in April demonstrated the wisdom of Somerville's move from Trincomalee.
Later career
Somerville was replaced as commander of the Eastern Fleet by Admiral Bruce Fraser in August, 1944.
He was promoted to Admiral of the Fleet on 8 May 1945, and retired from the service following the war.
External References
See a photograph of Admiral Somerville. Donald MacIntyre, Fighting Admiral: The Life of Admiral of the Fleet Sir James Somerville (Evans Brothers, London, 1961) James Somerville, The Somerville Papers: Selections from the Private and Official Correspondence of Admiral of the Fleet Sir James Somerville, GCB, GBE, DSO (Navy Records Society, London, 1996)| Military Offices | ||
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Preceded by: Sir Thomas Phillips |
Commander-in-Chief British Eastern Fleet 1942–1944 |
Succeeded by: Bruce Fraser |
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Preceded by: Thomas Thynne, 5th Marquess of Bath |
Lord Lieutenant of Somerset 1949–1967 |
Succeeded by: William Jolliffe, 4th Baron Hylton |
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