Captain Frederick Thornton "Fritz" Peters, &

Bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...

(17 September 1889 – 13 November 1942) was a Canadian-born sailor in 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 ...

and a recipient of 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 award for valour in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

Early life and career

Fritz Peters' parents were

Frederick Peters Frederick Peters (April 8, 1851 – July 29, 1919) was a lawyer and Prince Edward Island politician, who served as the sixth premier of Prince Edward Island. Early life and career Peters was born in Charlottetown and educated at King's Colle ...

(

Premier of Prince Edward Island The premier of Prince Edward Island is the first minister and head of government for the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island. The current premier of Prince Edward Island is Dennis King, from the Progressive Conservative Party. See also ...

, 1891–1897) and Roberta Hamilton Susan Gray (daughter of

John Hamilton Gray John Hamilton Gray may refer to two 19th-century Canadian politicians: *John Hamilton Gray (Prince Edward Island politician) (1811–1887), Premier of Prince Edward Island *John Hamilton Gray (New Brunswick politician) John Hamilton Gray, (1 ...

, who was Premier of Prince Edward Island at the time of the

Charlottetown Conference The Charlottetown Conference (Canada's Conference) was held in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island for representatives from colonies of British North America to discuss Canadian Confederation. The conference took place between September 1 thr ...

of 1864). He was educated at St. Peter's School on Prince Edward Island, at school in British Columbia and at Naval College in England. Two of Peters' brothers died in action on the Western Front during the First World War—John Francklyn Peters in April 1915 and Gerald Hamilton Peters in June 1916. Peters entered the

as midshipman in 1905 and began the First World War as a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

. He retired in 1919 at the age of thirty as a commander, having won the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, ty ...

and the

Distinguished Service Cross The Distinguished Service Cross (D.S.C.) is a military decoration for courage. Different versions exist for different countries. *Distinguished Service Cross (Australia) The Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) is a military decoration awarded to ...

(DSC) during the war. Peters then split his time between Britain, Canada and the

Gold Coast Gold Coast may refer to: Places Africa * Gold Coast (region), in West Africa, which was made up of the following colonies, before being established as the independent nation of Ghana: ** Portuguese Gold Coast (Portuguese, 1482–1642) ** Dutch G ...

Second World War

In October 1939 Peters re-volunteered for Royal Navy service. He was made the commander of an anti-submarine flotilla. In 1940 he was awarded a

to his DSC and was later appointed acting captain for special services. Peters was 53 years old, and a captain in the Royal Navy during the

Second World War 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 opposi ...

when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC:

Operation Reservist Operation Reservist was an Allied military operation during the Second World War. Part of Operation Torch (the Allied invasion of North Africa), it was an attempted landing of troops directly into the harbour at Oran in Algeria. Background The ...

(part of Operation Torch, the Allied landings in French North Africa) was an attempt to capture Oran Harbour,

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

and prevent it from being sabotaged by its French garrison. The two

sloops A sloop is a sailboat with a single mast typically having only one headsail in front of the mast and one mainsail aft of (behind) the mast. Such an arrangement is called a fore-and-aft rig, and can be rigged as a Bermuda rig with triangular ...

and were packed with

British Commandos The Commando, Commandos, also known as the British Commandos, were formed during the World War II, Second World War in June 1940, following a request from Winston Churchill, for special forces that could carry out Raid (military), raids against ...

, soldiers of the 6th United States Armored Infantry Regiment and a small detachment of

United States Marines The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through com ...

. On 8 November 1942 Captain Peters, commanding in ''Walney'', led his force through the boom towards the jetty in the face of point-blank fire from shore batteries, the sloop , and the destroyer . Blinded in one eye, he alone of 11 officers and men on the bridge survived. Besides him, 13 ratings survived ''Walney'' sinking. The destroyer reached the jetty disabled and ablaze and went down with her colours flying. Captain Peters and a handful of men managed to reach the shore, where they were taken prisoner. ''Hartland'' came under fire from the and blew up with the loss of half her crew. The survivors, like those of ''Walney'', were taken prisoner as they reached shore. Captain Peters was also awarded the United States Army's

for the same actions. The citation, issued in Allied Force Headquarters General Orders No. 19 23 November 1942, stated that: The survivors were released on 10 November 1942 when the French garrison surrendered. In the meantime, the French systematically destroyed the harbour facilities at Oran: Operation Reservist was thus a complete failure. In addition to his service with the Royal Navy, Fritz worked with British Naval Intelligence and advised Prime Minister

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

. British double agent

Kim Philby Harold Adrian Russell "Kim" Philby (1 January 191211 May 1988) was a British intelligence officer and a double agent for the Soviet Union. In 1963 he was revealed to be a member of the Cambridge Five, a spy ring which had divulged British secr ...

noted his admiration for Secret Intelligence Service instruction leader "Commander Peters" in his book ''My Silent War''.

Death

Captain Peters was killed in an air crash three days after his release, on 13 November 1942. He was coming back to Britain in a Sunderland flying boat, which crash-landed in

Plymouth Sound Plymouth Sound, or locally just The Sound, is a deep inlet or sound in the English Channel near Plymouth in England. Description Its southwest and southeast corners are Penlee Point in Cornwall and Wembury Point in Devon, a distance of abou ...

in thick fog, at the entrance to the Royal Navy's Devonport Dockyard, near

Plymouth, Devon Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth' ...

. In spite of efforts by the pilot, Flight Lieutenant Wynton Thorpe, RAAF, who held on to him for ninety minutes in the water, he was dead when the rescue launch reached them. He has no known grave and is remembered on the Portsmouth Naval Memorial, (Panel 61. Column 3)

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...

, England. Mount Peters near Nelson, British Columbia, where his mother lived in her last years with the family of her daughter Helen Dewdney and her husband E.E.L. Dewdney, was named in his honour in 1946. A display of photos and panels on his life is on the main floor of the Daniel J. MacDonald Building in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. His name, along with the names of his three brothers who served in the First World War, is on memorial plaques in the St. Peter's Anglican Church in Charlottetown. In 2012, a biography by Peters' great-nephew Sam McBride, based on family letters and titled ''The Bravest Canadian – Fritz Peters VC: The Making of a Hero of Two World Wars'', was published by Granville Island Publishing. The book earned a Heritage Award from the PEI Heritage Foundation and first place in the B.C. Genealogical Society's 2012 family history book awards.

References

External links

Captain F.T. Peters
in ''The Art of War'' exhibition at the

UK National Archives , type = Non-ministerial department , seal = , nativename = , logo = Logo_of_The_National_Archives_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg , logo_width = 150px , logo_caption = , formed = , preceding1 = , dissolved = , superseding = , juris ...

Canadian Government website biography and citation: PETERS, Frederick Thornton
*
Legion Magazine Article on Frederick Peters
{{DEFAULTSORT:Peters, Frederick Thornton 1889 births 1942 deaths Canadian Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Naval history of Canada Royal Navy officers of World War II Canadian World War II recipients of the Victoria Cross Royal Navy recipients of the Victoria Cross People from Charlottetown Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United States) Royal Navy officers of World War I Royal Navy personnel killed in World War II Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in England Canadian military personnel from Prince Edward Island Canadian recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) People educated at Bedford School