Vice-Admiral Alfred Francis Blakeney Carpenter, VC (17 September 1881 – 27 December 1955) was a

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

officer who was selected by his fellow officers and men to receive the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

and

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

forces.

Family

Carpenter was born in

Barnes Barnes may refer to: People * Barnes (name), a family name and a given name (includes lists of people with that name) Places United Kingdom *Barnes, London, England **Barnes railway station ** Barnes Bridge railway station ** Barnes Railway Bri ...

, the son of Henrietta Maud née Shadwell (1858-1889) and Captain Alfred Carpenter RN, and grandson of Commander Charles Carpenter. He attended

Bedales School Bedales School is a co-educational, boarding and day independent school in the village of Steep, near the market town of Petersfield in Hampshire, England. It was founded in 1893 by John Haden Badley in reaction to the limitations of conventio ...

founded by his Uncle

Edward Carpenter Edward Carpenter (29 August 1844 – 28 June 1929) was an English utopian socialist, poet, philosopher, anthologist, an early activist for gay rightsWarren Allen Smith: ''Who's Who in Hell, A Handbook and International Directory for Human ...

's close friend

John Haden Badley John Haden Badley (21 February 1865 – 6 March 1967) was an English author, educator, and founder of Bedales School, which claims to have become the first coeducational public boarding school in England in 1893. Life Born in Dudley, Worcest ...

. In 1903 married to Emily Maud Mary Tordiffe (1881-1923) and after her death married Hilda Margaret Allison née Smith (1891-1958) in 1927.

Career

Carpenter joined the Royal Navy and saw naval service as a midshipman in Crete in 1898 and during the

Boxer Rebellion The Boxer Rebellion, also known as the Boxer Uprising, the Boxer Insurrection, or the Yihetuan Movement, was an anti-foreign, anti-colonial, and anti-Christian uprising in China between 1899 and 1901, towards the end of the Qing dynasty, by ...

of 1900–01. He was acting

sub-lieutenant Sub-lieutenant is usually a junior officer rank, used in armies, navies and air forces. In most armies, sub-lieutenant is the lowest officer rank. However, in Brazil, it is the highest non-commissioned rank, and in Spain, it is the second high ...

from 15 May 1901. In August 1902 he was temporarily posted to the

torpedo boat destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in 1 ...

HMS ''Havock'' for service during the

Coronation A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a coronation crown, crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the ...

Fleet review A fleet review or naval review is an event where a gathering of ships from a particular navy is paraded and reviewed by an incumbent head of state and/or other official civilian and military dignitaries. A number of national navies continue to ...

. From late October that year he was posted to the corvette HMS ''Cleopatra'', used as a training cruiser in home waters, and confirmed in the rank of sub-lieutenant. He specialised in

navigation Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navigation, ...

from 1903 and received the thanks of the

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong *Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral *Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings * Admiralty, Traf ...

for several inventions, and a Humane Society medal for saving life at sea. During

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 ...

he served on Admiral Jellicoe's staff 1914–15. He was promoted to

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

in 1915 and served as navigating officer of HMS ''Emperor of India'' 1915–17. On 22/23 April 1918,

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Carpenter was in command of HMS ''Vindictive'' which was to land a force of 200

Royal Marines The Corps of Royal Marines (RM), also known as the Royal Marines Commandos, are the UK's special operations capable commando force, amphibious light infantry and also one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy. The Corps of Royal Marine ...

on the

mole Mole (or Molé) may refer to: Animals * Mole (animal) or "true mole", mammals in the family Talpidae, found in Eurasia and North America * Golden moles, southern African mammals in the family Chrysochloridae, similar to but unrelated to Talpida ...

Zeebrugge Zeebrugge (, from: ''Brugge aan zee'' meaning "Bruges at Sea", french: Zeebruges) is a village on the coast of Belgium and a subdivision of Bruges, for which it is the modern port. Zeebrugge serves as both the international port of Bruges-Zeeb ...

at the start of the

Zeebrugge Raid The Zeebrugge Raid ( nl, Aanval op de haven van Zeebrugge; ) on 23 April 1918, was an attempt by the Royal Navy to block the Belgian port of Bruges-Zeebrugge. The British intended to sink obsolete ships in the canal entrance, to prevent German ...

. For his conduct during this action he was awarded the VC: (Rule 13 of the Royal Warrant provides that after an action in which all are equally brave and distinguished, where no special selection can be made, the officer in overall command may direct that one officer may be selected for the award by the officers and men who took part in the action.) Carpenter was also made an Officer of the Legion of Honour and awarded the Croix de Guerre with palm. He was sent on a lecturing tour through the US and Canada, 1918–19. After the war, Carpenter was in command of HMS ''Carysfort'' in the Atlantic Fleet 1921–23, Captain of

Chatham Dockyard Chatham Dockyard was a Royal Navy Dockyard located on the River Medway in Kent. Established in Chatham in the mid-16th century, the dockyard subsequently expanded into neighbouring Gillingham (at its most extensive, in the early 20th century, ...

1924–26, in command of HMS ''Benbow'' in 1926 and of

HMS Marlborough Six warships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS ''Marlborough'' after the Duke of Marlborough: * , a second rate, renamed ''Marlborough'' 1706; fought in the Seven Years' War; present in Sir George Pocock's fleet at the taking of Havana from t ...

1927–28. He was a naval aide-de-camp to the

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

(an honorary position) in 1929, and promoted

rear-admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarded ...

and placed on the retired list in the same year. He was promoted to vice-admiral (retired) in 1934. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

he commanded the Wye Valley section of the Gloucestershire

Home Guard Home guard is a title given to various military organizations at various times, with the implication of an emergency or reserve force raised for local defense. The term "home guard" was first officially used in the American Civil War, starting wi ...

. His Victoria Cross is displayed at the

Imperial War Museum Imperial War Museums (IWM) is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. Founded as the Imperial War Museum in 1917, the museum was intended to record the civil and military ...

, London, England.

Publications

*''The blocking of Zeebrugge'', Herbert Jenkins, London, 1925, translated into French as ''L'embouteillage de Zeebrugge'', Payot, Paris, 1924 *''De Raid op Zeebrugge'' door Carl Decaluwé en Tomas Termoteis (gebaseerd op 80 glasplaten van de kapitein van de Vindictive, Captain Alfred Carpenter, die in WO I de aanval op Zeebrugge leidde), ROULARTA MEDIA GROUP, , 15 April 2015

References

CARPENTER, Vice-Admiral Alfred Francis Blakeney
Who Was Who, A & C Black, 1920–2008; online edn, Oxford University Press, Dec 2007
Obituary – Vice-Adm. A.F. Carpenter – The Zeebrugge Raid
''The Times'', London, 28 December 1955, page 11 *

Monuments to Courage David Charles Harvey (29 July 1946 – 4 March 2004) was a historian and author. He is notable for his seminal work, ''Monuments To Courage'', which documents the graves of almost all recipients of the Victoria Cross, a task that took him over 36 ...

(David Harvey, 1999) *

The Register of the Victoria Cross ''The Register of the Victoria Cross'' is a reference work that provides brief information on every Victoria Cross awarded until the publication date. Each entry provides a summary of the deed, along with a photograph of the recipient and the fol ...

(This England, 1997) *

VCs of the First World War - The Naval VCs ''VCs of the First World War'' is a series of books that list the Victoria Cross recipients of the First World War. The series consists of 13 books written by four different authors, first published under the label Sutton Publishing Limited, part ...

(Stephen Snelling, 2002) *

External links

* *
Location of grave and VC medal
''(Gloucestershire)'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Carpenter, Alfred Francis Blakeney 1881 births 1955 deaths People from Barnes, London People educated at Bedales School Officiers of the Légion d'honneur Royal Navy vice admirals Military personnel from Surrey British World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross Royal Navy recipients of the Victoria Cross Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1914–1918 (France) Royal Navy personnel of the Boxer Rebellion Royal Navy officers of World War I British Home Guard officers Deputy Lieutenants of Gloucestershire British military personnel of the 1898 Occupation of Crete 19th-century Royal Navy personnel