Vice Admiral Sir William Geoffrey Arthur Robson, (10 March 1902 – 25 December 1989) 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 ...

officer whose last Service appointment was

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 ...

Naval career

Educated at the

Royal Naval College, Osborne The Royal Naval College, Osborne, was a training college for Royal Navy officer cadets on the Osborne House estate, Isle of Wight, established in 1903 and closed in 1921. Boys were admitted at about the age of thirteen to follow a course lasting ...

, and the

Royal Naval College, Dartmouth Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a ci ...

, Robson joined the

as a cadet in 1915 during the

First World War 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 ...

and served as a midshipman on the battleship .Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
/ref> He commanded the destroyers from 1934 and from 1935. Robson also served 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 ...

, initially as Commander of the destroyer and then with combined operations from 1943 before commanding the 26th Destroyer Flotilla in 1944 and then Captain of Coastal Forces at

The Nore The Nore is a long bank of sand and silt running along the south-centre of the final narrowing of the Thames Estuary, England. Its south-west is the very narrow Nore Sand. Just short of the Nore's easternmost point where it fades into the ch ...

in 1945. After the War he was given command of the cruiser and then, from 1948, of the Royal Navy Training Establishment HMS ''Ganges''. Robson was appointed President of the Admiralty Interview Board in 1950, Flag Officer (Flotillas) for the Home Fleet in 1951 and then

Flag Officer Scotland and Northern Ireland The Flag Officer Scotland and Northern Ireland (FOSNI) was a senior post in the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom. It was based at HMNB Clyde, HM Naval Base Clyde, and the holder of the post was the Royal Navy’s senior officer in Scotland. The ...

in 1953. He went on to be

in 1956. He was made a Knight Commander of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in 1956. At Freetown in early 1957, wore Vice-Admiral Robson's flag as

. ''Veryan Bay'' proceeded to Plymouth, arriving on 11 March 1957, and was then paid-off. Sir Geoffrey Robson retired in July 1958. In retirement he served as Lieutenant Governor and Commander-in-Chief of Guernsey from 1958 to 1964.

Naval career

References

Further reading