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 regarde ...

Basil Charles Godfrey Place, (19 July 1921 – 27 December 1994), known as Godfrey Place, was an officer 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 F ...

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 gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British 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.

Naval career

Place was 22 years old, and 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 sub ...

in the

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 opposin ...

, when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC. On 22 September 1943 at Kåfjord, North Norway, Lieutenant Place, commanding Midget Submarine ''X7'', and another lieutenant (

Donald Cameron Donald Cameron may refer to: Scottish Clan Cameron * Donald Cameron of Lochiel (c. 1695 or 1700–1748), 19th Chief, and his descendants: ** Donald Cameron, 22nd Lochiel (1769–1832), 22nd Chief ** Donald Cameron of Lochiel (1835–1905), Scott ...

) commanding Midget Submarine X.6, carried out a most daring and successful attack on the German Battleship '' Tirpitz''. The two submarines had to travel at least 1,000 miles from base, negotiate a mine-field, dodge nets, gun defenses and enemy listening posts. Having eluded all these hazards they finally placed the charges underneath the ship where they went off an hour later, doing so much damage that ''Tirpitz'' was out of action for months. The full citation was published in a supplement to the ''

London Gazette London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

'' of 18 February 1944 (dated 22 February 1944) and read: VCBasilCharlesGodfreyPlaceMedals

Place was awarded the Polish Cross of Valour for his service as liaison officer in the Polish submarine ORP ''Sokół'' 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 ...

for his role in the sinking of the Italian submarine ''Guglielmotti'' by off Sicily in March 1942. In 1950, Place took the unusual step for a submariner of transferring to the

Fleet Air Arm The Fleet Air Arm (FAA) is one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy and is responsible for the delivery of naval air power both from land and at sea. The Fleet Air Arm operates the F-35 Lightning II for maritime strike, the AW159 Wil ...

, training as a pilot and gaining his "wings" in 1952. Later that year he saw action in the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

, flying the Sea Fury in 801 Squadron from the deck of the carrier . He later achieved the rank of

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 regarde ...

The medal

Place's 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 ...

in London.

Notes

External links

Location of grave and VC medal
''(Somerset)'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Place, Basil Charles Godfrey 1921 births 1994 deaths Burials in Somerset Military personnel from Worcestershire British World War II prisoners of war British World War II recipients of the Victoria Cross Commanders of the Order of Aviz Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order Companions of the Order of the Bath Fleet Air Arm aviators People from Malvern Hills District Recipients of the Cross of Valour (Poland) Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) Royal Navy rear admirals Royal Navy officers of World War II Royal Navy personnel of the Korean War Royal Navy recipients of the Victoria Cross Royal Navy submarine commanders World War II prisoners of war held by Germany