Michael Le Fanu

Michael Le Fanu
Admiral of the Fleet Sir Michael Le Fanu
Mlefanu.jpg
Then Rear Admiral Michael Le Fanu
(Crown Copyright)
Nickname "Dry Ginger"
Born 2 August 1913(1913-08-02)
Lindfield, Sussex, England
Died 28 November 1970(1970-11-28) (aged 57)
London, England
Allegiance United Kingdom United Kingdom
Service/branch Naval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svg Royal Navy
Years of service 1926 – 1970
Rank Admiral of the Fleet
Commands held HMS Eagle
Battles/wars Second World War
- Norwegian Campaign
- Mediterranean
Awards Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath
Distinguished Service Cross
Mentioned in Despatches
Legion of Merit (United States)

Admiral of the Fleet Sir Michael Le Fanu GCB, DSC (2 August 1913 – 28 November 1970) was a Royal Navy admiral and First Sea Lord.

Contents

Early life

Le Fanu was born at Lindfield, West Sussex, the son of Captain Hugh Barrington le Fanu RN. He was educated at Bedford School before joining Britannia Royal Naval College in 1926.[1]

Career

Le Fanu served as a Gunnery Officer on HMS Aurora and then HMS Howe during the Second World War. While aboard Aurora, he was Mentioned in Despatches for his services during the Norwegian Campaign in 1940,[2] and decorated with the Distinguished Service Cross in 1942.[3] He was promoted to commander on 31 December 1944.[4] From February to September 1945, Le Fanu was posted as the British Pacific Fleet Liaison Officer to the United States Fifth Fleet, and later the United States Third Fleet. For his services throughout this, he was awarded the United States Legion of Merit.[5]

Le Fanu was elevated to the rank of captain on 30 June 1949.[6] In 1957, he was given command of HMS Eagle and in 1958 went on to be Director-General, Weapons. He was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath in the Queen's Birthday Honours List of 1960.[7] In 1961, he became Controller of the Navy and in 1965 Joint Commander of the three services in the Middle East during the evacuation of British Nationals. He served as First Sea Lord from 1968 to 1970.

On 3 July 1970, Le Fanu was promoted to Admiral of the Fleet,[8] and was selected for the post of Chief of the Defence Staff but never held the office because he was suddenly discovered to be terminally ill and died shortly after his retirement.

Le Fanu married Prudence Grace Morgan, daughter of Admiral Sir Llewellyn Vaughan Morgan; they had two sons and a daughter.[1]

Le Fanu is the subject of a biography entitled Dry Ginger by the author Richard Baker.

Honours and awards

Notes

  1. ^ a b "Michael Le Fanu Information". http://www.royalnavalmuseum.org/info_sheets_michael_lefanu.htm. Retrieved 2007-02-02. 
  2. ^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 34953. p. 5710. 26 September 1940. Retrieved 24 June 2009.
  3. ^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 35466. p. 901. 24 February 1942. Retrieved 24 June 2009.
  4. ^ London Gazette: no. 36880. p. 230. 5 January 1945. Retrieved 24 June 2009.
  5. ^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 37805. p. 5912. 3 December 1946. Retrieved 24 June 2009.
  6. ^ London Gazette: no. 38658. p. 3300. 5 July 1949. Retrieved 24 June 2009.
  7. ^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 42051. p. 3974. 11 June 1960. Retrieved 24 June 2009.
  8. ^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 43010. p. 4794. 30 June 1970. Retrieved 24 June 2009.

Further reading

  • Dry Ginger - The biography of Admiral of the Fleet Sir Michael Le Fanu, Baker, R., 1977, W.H. Allan, ISBN 0-491-01788-X
  • The British Admirals of the Fleet 1734 - 1995, Heathcote T. A., Pen & Sword Ltd, 2002, ISBN 0 85052 835 6
Military offices
Preceded by
Sir Peter Reid
Third Sea Lord and Controller of the Navy
1961–1965
Succeeded by
Sir Horace Law
Preceded by
Sir Varyl Begg
First Sea Lord
1968–1970
Succeeded by
Sir Peter Hill-Norton



Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Michael Pollock — This article is about the British Royal Navy officer. For the American opera singer and director, see Michael Pollock (tenor). Sir Michael Patrick Pollock Admiral Sir Michael Pollock c.1974 Born …   Wikipedia

  • Michael Boyce, Baron Boyce — Admiral The Lord Boyce Boyce in 2002 Born 2 April 1943 (1943 04 02) (age 68) Cape Town, U …   Wikipedia

  • Michael Bradley (rugby union) — Date of birth 17 November 1962 (1962 11 17) (age 49) Place of birth County Cork Michael Bradley (born November 17, 1962, County Cork, Ireland) is a former Irish rugby union player and the director of rugby at Connacht since 2003. He played… …   Wikipedia

  • Sheridan Le Fanu — Infobox Writer name = Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu caption = Le Fanu birthdate = birth date|1814|8|28|df=y birthplace = Dublin, Ireland deathdate = death date and age|1873|2|7|1814|8|8|df=y deathplace = Dublin, Ireland occupation = Novelist movement …   Wikipedia

  • List of Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty — This is a list of Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty (incomplete before the Restoration, 1660). The Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, were the members of the Board of Admiralty, which exercised the office of Lord High Admiral when it was… …   Wikipedia

  • Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma — Admiral of the Fleet The Right Honourable The Earl Mountbatten of Burma KG GCB OM GCSI GCIE GCVO DSO PC FRS …   Wikipedia

  • William IV of the United Kingdom — William IV William IV, painted by Sir Martin A …   Wikipedia

  • Bedford School — Infobox UK school name = Bedford School size = latitude = longitude = dms = motto = Floreat Schola Bedfordiensis motto pl = established = 1552 approx = closed = c approx = type = Independent religion = president = head label = Headmaster head =… …   Wikipedia

  • Nigel Essenhigh — Sir Nigel Essenhigh Admiral Sir Nigel Essenhigh Crown Copyright Born 1944 Newcastle upon Tyne, England, UK …   Wikipedia

  • George Rooke — Sir George Rooke L amiral Sir George Rooke, 1650–1709 Huile sur toile par Michael Dahl, vers 1705 Nais …   Wikipédia en Français

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”