Philip Vian

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Philip Vian bigraphy, stories - Royal Navy admiral of the fleet

Philip Vian : biography

15 June 1894 – 27 May 1968

Admiral of the Fleet Sir Philip Louis Vian, (15 July 1894 – 27 May 1968) was a British naval officer who served in both World Wars.

Vian specialised in naval gunnery from the end of World War I, and subsequently received several appointments as gunnery officer. In the early 1930s, he was given command of a destroyer, , and, later, various destroyer flotillas. During this phase of his career, in early 1940, he commanded a force that forcibly released captured British merchant sailors from the German supply ship Altmark in Jøssingfjord in, then neutral, Norway and, later, his flotilla took an active role in the final action of the German battleship Bismarck.

Much of Vian’s wartime service was in the Mediterranean, where he commanded a cruiser squadron, defended several critical convoys and led naval support at the Allied invasions of Sicily and Italy. His wartime service was completed in command of the air component of the British Pacific Fleet, with successful actions against the Japanese in Sumatra and the western Pacific.

Post-war, Vian served in the United Kingdom, as a Sea Lord and as Commander-in-Chief, Home Fleet. He retired in 1952 with the rank of Admiral of the Fleet, took up commercial directorships and died at home, in 1968.

Inter-war

Following gunnery courses in 1916, 1918 and 1919 at the Royal Naval gunnery school (HMS Excellent), Vian obtained a First Class certificate in Gunnery in October 1919. Despite being slated for service with the British Military Mission in Southern Russia, he was loaned to the Royal Australian Navy for two years from January 1920 and served as Gunnery Officer of HMAS Australia, then the Australian flagship.

On his return to the Royal Navy, Vian was given a series of appointments as gunnery officer, first, in January 1923, to the battleship , then serving as a cadet training ship. During this appointment, he was promoted to Lieutenant-Commander on 15 February 1924. Promotion to lieutenant-commander This was followed in 1924 by two appointments to aging C class cruisers ( and ). There was a short period at the Devonport gunnery school (HMS Vivid) and another sea posting, to the battleship .

There followed two foreign postings, still as a gunnery specialist. First in February 1927 to , in the Mediterranean Fleet. This was followed, in November 1927, to , the then-flagship of the China Station, where he was promoted to Commander on 30 June 1929. Promotion to commander

Vian married, on 2 December 1929, Marjorie Price, daughter of Colonel David Price Haig, OBE, of Withyham, in Sussex. They were able, between his appointments, to take a three month honeymoon in Switzerland. The couple subsequently had two daughters.

For the two years up to January 1933, Vian had a "shore" appointment at the Admiralty in London, with the Director for Staff Training and Development (DTSD), analysing practice gunnery statistics. He then attended a short Tactical Course in Portsmouth and subsequently took command (his first), in March 1933, of the destroyer and a Division within the 3rd Destroyer Flotilla (part of the Mediterranean Fleet). Two incidents occurred during this command for which Vian was held to be at fault: damage to Active while going astern alongside a depotship in Malta and the loss of a torpedo from .

Vian’s commander-in chief, William Fisher, had remained well-disposed towards him, however, and these incidents had no ill effect on his career: he was promoted to Captain on 31 December 1934. Promotion to captain On his return to the UK in early 1935, he was told to expect to spend time on half-pay, but the Abyssinian crisis intervened and he was given command of the 19th Destroyer Flotilla (on board ), which had been activated from the reserve to reinforce Malta.

He returned to the UK in July 1935 at the end of the crisis and attended a Senior Officers Technical Course before rejoining the 19th DF. In May 1936, he was transferred to command the 1st Destroyer Flotilla, flotilla leader , also at Malta. In July, 1st DF returned to Portsmouth. En route home, however, Vian’s ships responded to a call from the British Consul in Vigo for protection for British residents at the start of the Spanish Civil War. His ships acted in various roles, including, after discussion, the evacuation of British residents. When relieved by the 2nd DF, Vian’s ships continued home.