Admiral Sir William Eric Campbell Tait (12 August 1886 – 17 July 1946) was a senior British naval officer, courtier and the fifth

Governor of Southern Rhodesia The Governor of Southern Rhodesia was the representative of the British monarch in the self-governing colony of Southern Rhodesia from 1923 to 1980. The Governor was appointed by The Crown and acted as the local head of state, receiving instruct ...

after his naval retirement in 1944, serving from 1945 to 1946. He commanded various cruisers between 1928 and 1937. He became

Commander-in-Chief, South Atlantic The Commander-in-Chief South Atlantic was an operational commander of the Royal Navy from 1939. The South American area was added to his responsibilities in 1960, and the post disestablished in 1967. Immediately before the outbreak of the Sec ...

in 1942.

Naval career

Born in

Morice Town Morice Town is a suburb of Plymouth in the English county of Devon. It named after Sir William Morice who owned the land at the time that it was being developed for housing for the employees in the Dockyard. It was originally a part of the ...

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

to Deputy Surgeon-General and author, William Tait, and his wife Emma, Tait entered the

Britannia Royal Naval College Britannia Royal Naval College (BRNC), commonly known as Dartmouth, is the naval academy of the United Kingdom and the initial officer training establishment of the Royal Navy. It is located on a hill overlooking the port of Dartmouth, Devon, En ...

in Dartmouth in 1902. Following his graduation, Tait became a career naval officer, serving in the Pacific, Atlantic,

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...

and China. He became a friend of the royal household of King George V, serving as a mentor to his two oldest sons, the future kings Edward VIII and George VI. After serving in

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 ...

, during which he was made a

Member of the Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, o ...

(MVO), Tait married Katie Grenfell, daughter of Captain Hubert Grenfell, inventor of illuminated night sights for naval guns, on 3 November 1919. They had two daughters.ed. Matthew, H & Harrison, B. (2004) Oxford ''Dictionary of National Biography'', vol. 53, Oxford University Press. Under the name Cynthia Tait (1894–1962) his wife became a well-known botanical illustrator, particularly of South African flowers. Tait was promoted to Commander in 1921 and Captain in 1926, gaining his first command in 1928 as Commanding Officer of . There followed commands of and before service as Deputy Director of Naval Intelligence before returning to the sea as Commanding Officer of . Made Rear Admiral, Tait was Naval Aide-de-camp to King

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of I ...

in 1938,"Royal Navy (RN) Officers 1939–1945", ''Unit Histories'', Accessed 8 September 2008
/ref> a Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) in 1940 and Vice Admiral in 1941. before becoming Commodore of the principal naval depot at

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

. It was in this position that Tait was recognised for the smooth mobilisation of the fleet at outbreak of

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 opposing ...

.Little, C (1946) "Admiral Sir Campbell Tait: An Appreciation", ''The Times'', 22 July 1946. After serving as Director of Personal Services at the Admiralty, Tait served as

from 1942, and in this capacity, he established and headed a Combined Headquarters in

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

, where he led the

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 ...

, South African Army and

South African Air Force "Through hardships to the stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment ...

, which was considered an important factor in maintaining allied domination around the Cape. Tait was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB) in 1943 and a Grand Officer of the

Order of Orange-Nassau The Order of Orange-Nassau ( nl, Orde van Oranje-Nassau, links=no) is a civil and military Dutch order of chivalry founded on 4 April 1892 by the queen regent, Emma of the Netherlands. The order is a chivalric order open to "everyone who has ...

1945 and was appointed Governor of

Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a landlocked self-governing British Crown colony in southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally kno ...

on 20 February 1945.Rasmussen, R. Kent, & S. Rubert (1990) ''Historical Dictionary of Zimbabwe'', Second Edition, The Scarecrow Press, London. . Tait's tenure as Governor proved to be fleeting as, ailing for some time, Tait relinquished the Governorship in February 1946 after twelve months and died at Government House,

Salisbury Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath. Salisbury is in the southeast of ...

, five months later, less than a month before his 60th birthday.''The Times'', "Sir Campbell Tait", 20 July 1946 There is an Admiral Tait Primary School in Harare, Zimbabwe, named in honour of Tait.

References

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Tait, Campbell Royal Navy admirals Graduates of Britannia Royal Naval College Governors of Southern Rhodesia 1886 births 1946 deaths Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Members of the Royal Victorian Order Grand Officers of the Order of Orange-Nassau Royal Navy officers of World War I Royal Navy officers of World War II Military personnel from Plymouth, Devon