Wilfred Custance
Rear Admiral Wilfred Neville Custance CB (25 June 1884 – 13 December 1939) was a senior officer in the Royal Navy. He was the Rear Admiral Commanding HM Australian Squadron from April 1938 to September 1939. Naval career Born on 25 June 1884 in South Kensington, England, the eldest child of Henry Neville Custance and Alice Georgina, née Custance. His grandfather was Admiral Sir Reginald Custance. He joined the Royal Navy on 15 January 1899 as a cadet. He was rated midshipman on 15 May 1900 and served aboard HMS ''Ocean''. Promoted to sub-lieutenant on 15 July 1903 he served aboard HMS ''Foam'' in the Mediterranean Station between 1904 and 1905. He served upon HMS ''Venerable'' in 1905 and promoted to lieutenant on 15 January 1905. He was the Gunnery Officer aboard HMS ''Vanguard'' between 1913 and 1917, and was having dinner aboard another ship at Scapa Flow in 1917 when HMS ''Vanguard'' suffered an internal explosion and sank with the loss of lives of 843 men. He served ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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South Kensington
South Kensington, nicknamed Little Paris, is a district just west of Central London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Historically it settled on part of the scattered Middlesex village of Brompton. Its name was supplanted with the advent of the railways in the late 19th century and the opening (and shutting) and naming of local tube stations. The area has many museums and cultural landmarks with a high number of visitors, such as the Natural History Museum, the Science Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum. Adjacent affluent centres such as Knightsbridge, Chelsea and Kensington, have been considered as some of the most exclusive real estate in the world. Geography As is often the case in other areas of London, the boundaries for South Kensington are arbitrary and have altered with time. This is due in part to usage arising from the tube stops and other landmarks which developed across Brompton. A contemporary definition is the commercial area around the Sout ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fighting occurring throughout Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Pacific, and parts of Asia. An estimated 9 million soldiers were killed in combat, plus another 23 million wounded, while 5 million civilians died as a result of military action, hunger, and disease. Millions more died in genocides within the Ottoman Empire and in the 1918 influenza pandemic, which was exacerbated by the movement of combatants during the war. Prior to 1914, the European great powers were divided between the Triple Entente (comprising France, Russia, and Britain) and the Triple Alliance (containing Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy). Tensions in the Balkans came to a head on 28 June 1914, following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdin ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Coronation Of The British Monarch
The coronation of the monarch of the United Kingdom is a ceremony (specifically, initiation rite) in which they are formally invested with regalia and crowned at Westminster Abbey. It corresponds to the coronations that formerly took place in other European monarchies, all of which have abandoned coronations in favour of inauguration or enthronement ceremonies. A coronation is a symbolic formality and does not signify the official beginning of the monarch's reign; ''de jure'' and ''de facto'' their reign commences from the moment the preceding monarch dies, maintaining the legal continuity of the monarchy. The coronation usually takes place several months after the death of the previous monarch, as it is considered a joyous occasion that would be inappropriate while mourning continues. This interval also gives the planners enough time to complete the elaborate arrangements required. For example, Queen Elizabeth II was crowned on 2 June 1953, having ascended the throne ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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George V Of The United Kingdom
George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Queen Victoria, George was the second son of Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, and was third in the line of succession to the British throne behind his father and his elder brother, Prince Albert Victor. From 1877 to 1892, George served in the Royal Navy, until the unexpected death of his elder brother in early 1892 put him directly in line for the throne. On Victoria's death in 1901, George's father ascended the throne as Edward VII, and George was created Prince of Wales. He became king-emperor on his father's death in 1910. George's reign saw the rise of socialism, communism, fascism, Irish republicanism, and the Indian independence movement, all of which radically changed the political landscape of the British Empire, which itself reache ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Home Fleet
The Home Fleet was a fleet of the Royal Navy that operated from the United Kingdom's territorial waters from 1902 with intervals until 1967. In 1967, it was merged with the Mediterranean Fleet creating the new Western Fleet. Before the First World War, it consisted of the four Port Guard ships. In 1905 it was disestablished, and from 1905 to 1907 remaining ships at a lesser state of readiness were split into the reserve divisions (Devonport Division, Nore Division, and Portsmouth Division). During the First World War, it comprised some of the older ships of the Royal Navy. During the Second World War, it was the Royal Navy's main battle force in European waters. Pre-First World War In the first years of the 20th century, the Royal Navy had four 'Port Guard' ships, stationed in the major naval bases, partially to act as flagships for the admirals commanding at those ports. These vessels appear to have been stationed at the Nore, Portsmouth, and Plymouth, as well as one other ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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2nd Battle Squadron (United Kingdom)
The 2nd Battle Squadron was a naval squadron of the British Royal Navy consisting of battleships. The 2nd Battle Squadron was initially part of the Royal Navy's Grand Fleet. After World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ... the Grand Fleet was reverted to its original name, the Atlantic Fleet (United Kingdom), Atlantic Fleet. The squadron changed composition often as ships were damaged, retired or transferred. History First World War As an element in the Grand Fleet, the Squadron participated in the Battle of Jutland.#MacIntyre, MacIntyre August 1914 On 5 August 1914, the squadron was constituted as follows:#Dittmar, Dittmar & Colledge * HMS King George V (1911), HMS ''King George V'' * HMS Ajax (1912), HMS ''Ajax'' * HMS Audacious (1912), HMS ''Audacious'' * ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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HMS Rodney (29)
HMS ''Rodney'' was one of two s built for the Royal Navy in the mid-1920s. The ship entered service in 1928, and spent her peacetime career with the Atlantic and Home Fleets, sometimes serving as a flagship when her sister ship, , was being refitted. During the early stages of the Second World War, she searched for German commerce raiders, participated in the Norwegian Campaign, and escorted convoys in the Atlantic Ocean. ''Rodney'' played a major role in the sinking of the German battleship ''Bismarck'' in mid-1941. After a brief refit in the United States, she escorted convoys to Malta and supported the Allied invasion of French Algeria during Operation Torch in late 1942. The ship covered the invasions of Sicily (Operation Husky) and Italy (Operation Baytown) in mid-1943. During the Normandy landings in June 1944, ''Rodney'' provided naval gunfire support and continued to do so for several following offensives near the French city of Caen. The ship escorted one convoy th ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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HMS York (90)
HMS ''York'' was the lead ship of her class of two heavy cruisers built for the Royal Navy in the late 1920s. She mostly served on the North America and West Indies Station before World War II. Early in the war the ship escorted convoys in the Atlantic and participated in the Norwegian Campaign in 1940. ''York'' was transferred to the Mediterranean theatre in late 1940 where she escorted convoys and the larger ships of the Mediterranean Fleet. She was wrecked in an attack by Italian explosive motorboats of the 10th Flotilla MAS at Suda Bay, Crete, in March 1941. The ship's wreck was salvaged in 1952 and scrapped in Bari. Design and description ''York''s design was based on the earlier County classes but was intended to be smaller and cheaper, although better armoured. She was easily distinguishable from her sister ship, , as the latter had straight masts and funnels, while those of ''York'' were angled to the rear. In addition, ''York'' also had a very tall bridge desig ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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HMS Castor (1915)
HMS ''Castor'' was one of the ''Cambrian'' subclass of the of light cruisers. She saw service during the First World War and the Russian Civil War. Construction Design of the ''Cambrian'' subclass was based on the earlier light cruisers and , which, in turn, were based on the subclass, using the same hull as the ''Caroline''s but with two funnels and a maximum armor thickness of as opposed to in the ''Caroline''s. ''Castor'' was built by Cammell Laird at Birkenhead, England. Laid down on 28 October 1914, she was launched on 28 July 1915 and completed in November 1915.Preston, p. 59 Service history World War I Commissioned in November 1915, ''Castor'' was the flagship of Commodore (D), assigned to the 11th Destroyer Flotilla in the Grand Fleet. She fought in the Battle of Jutland, in which she was damaged by German gunfire and suffered 10 casualties. On 4 October 1917, the United States Navy patrol vessel suffered an uncontrollable leak in her hull while on pat ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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HMS Yarmouth (1911)
HMS ''Yarmouth'' was a light cruiser of the Royal Navy launched on 12 April 1911 from the yards of the London & Glasgow Co. She was part of the ''Weymouth'' subgroup. On the outbreak of the First World War, ''Yarmouth'' was on the China Station, and later in 1914, she was involved in the hunt for the German commerce raider . In October that year she captured two German colliers. She returned to home waters in December 1914 and was assigned to the 2nd Light Cruiser Squadron of the Grand Fleet, and in February 1915 to 3rd Light Cruiser Squadron. Whilst serving with this squadron, she took part in the Battle of Jutland on 31 May-1 June 1916. On 28 June 1917, Royal Naval Air Service Flight Commander F. J. Rutland took off in a Sopwith Pup from a flying-off platform mounted on the roof of one of ''Yarmouth''s gun turrets, the first such successful launch of an aircraft in history. On 21 August a Pup flown by Flight Sub-Lieutenant B. A. Smart flown from ''Yarmouth'' shot ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |