Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

Sir Guy Herbrand Edward Russell, (14 April 1898 – 25 September 1977) was a senior Royal Navy officer. He served as

Commander-in-Chief, Far East Fleet The Far East Fleet (also called the Far East Station) was a fleet of the Royal Navy which existed between 1952 and 1971. During the Second World War, the Eastern Fleet included many ships and personnel from other navies, including those of t ...

from 1951 to 1953 during the Korean War, Second Sea Lord from 1953 to 1955, and Commandant of the Imperial Defence College from 1956 until his retirement in 1958.

Early life

Born on 14 April 1899 in

St George Hanover Square St George Hanover Square was a civil parish created in 1724 in the Liberty of Westminster, Middlesex, which was later part of the metropolitan area of London, England. The creation of the parish accompanied the building of St George's, Hanove ...

, London, Russell was the second son of Oliver Russell, 2nd Baron Ampthill, and his wife

Margaret Margaret is a female first name, derived via French () and Latin () from grc, μαργαρίτης () meaning "pearl". The Greek is borrowed from Persian. Margaret has been an English name since the 11th century, and remained popular througho ...

.The Peerage.com
/ref> Educated at Stonehouse School, Russell entered the Royal Navy in 1911Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
/ref> and attended the Royal Naval College, Osborne and

Dartmouth Dartmouth may refer to: Places * Dartmouth, Devon, England ** Dartmouth Harbour * Dartmouth, Massachusetts, United States * Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada * Dartmouth, Victoria, Australia Institutions * Dartmouth College, Ivy League university i ...

Naval career

During the First World War, Russell went to sea as a

midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Afr ...

aboard , which supported the Dardanelles landings. He would later serve aboard during the

Battle of Jutland The Battle of Jutland (german: Skagerrakschlacht, the Battle of the Skagerrak) was a naval battle fought between Britain's Royal Navy Grand Fleet, under Admiral John Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe, Sir John Jellicoe, and the Imperial German Navy ...

, and was

mentioned in despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

for his war service. Russell saw service on a variety of ships,

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 ...

cruiser A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several roles. The term "cruiser", which has been in use for several hu ...

battleship A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of large caliber guns. It dominated naval warfare in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The term ''battleship'' came into use in the late 1880s to describe a type of ...

s, shore training establishments, and on the staff of the Commander-in-Chief Mediterranean, before his relatively early promotion 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 1931. This well-rounded record was combined with a reputation for adaptiveness and innovation. He completed the naval staff course at Royal Naval College, Greenwich in 1931 and became

executive officer An executive officer is a person who is principally responsible for leading all or part of an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization. In many militaries and police forces, an executive officer, o ...

of , flagship of the Mediterranean fleet under Sir William Fisher. Russell continued to excel in this position, and was promoted to

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 ...

in 1936. After further studies at the Imperial Defence College, Russell became Assistant Director of Plans in 1938. On the outbreak of the Second World War, Russell first commanded the net layer , and then the cruiser . In late 1941, Russell became naval liaison officer to the Governor of Gibraltar, Viscount Gort, and subsequently followed Gort to Malta as his chief of staff. After the relief of the island by Operation Stone Age, Russell would move on to command and then , flagship of the

Home Fleet The Home Fleet was a fleet of the Royal Navy that operated from the United Kingdom's territorial waters from 1902 with intervals until 1967. In 1967, it was merged with the Mediterranean Fleet creating the new Western Fleet. Before the First ...

. It was under his command that ''Duke of York'' sank the ''Scharnhorst'' at the Battle of North Cape, and he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order as a result, having already been twice mentioned in despatches during the war. A year later, he was appointed to a staff position, naval assistant to the Second Sea Lord, 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 regarde ...

in 1945. He was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1943. Russell returned to the Imperial Defence College from 1946 until 1948, was appointed a

Companion of the Order of the Bath Companion may refer to: Relationships Currently * Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance * A domestic partner, akin to a spouse * Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach * Companion (caregiving), a caregive ...

that year, and then spent a year commanding the

2nd Cruiser Squadron The 2nd Cruiser Squadron was a formation of cruisers of the British Royal Navy from 1904 to 1919 and from 1921 to 1941 and again from 1946 to 1952. History First formation The 2nd Cruiser Squadron was first formed in December, 1904 then placed ...

of Home Fleet, earning the respect of the then Commander-in-Chief, Sir Rhoderick McGrigor. With the reserves until 1951, he was then appointed

and made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath. He served on that station until 1953, taking part in the Korean War, and was promoted

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

in 1952. Returning from the Far East, he was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire and served as

Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel The Second Sea Lord and Deputy Chief of Naval Staff (formerly Second Sea Lord) is deputy to the First Sea Lord and the second highest-ranking officer to currently serve in the Royal Navy and is responsible for personnel and naval shore establish ...

until 1955. Russell's acute intelligence and bluff but kindly manner, combined with his broad experience, served him well in this position. He was Commandant of the Imperial Defence College from 1956 until his retirement in 1958.

Later life

After retiring, Russell devoted himself to education and the training of young people, at Wellington College, Cranleigh School, Gordon Boys' School, and Radley College. An excellent oarsman (like his father), avid golfer and good shot, he died at his home in Wisborough Green in 1977.

Family

He married (Helen) Elizabeth Blades, daughter of

Rowland Blades, 1st Baron Ebbisham George Rowland Blades, 1st Baron Ebbisham, GBE (15 April 1868 – 24 May 1953) was an English Conservative politician, printer, and Lord Mayor of London. Blades was born in Sydenham, Kent, and educated at King's College School. In 1886, he join ...

, in 1939. They had two sons and a daughter: * Dr. James Rowland Russell (28 March 1940 – 2 March 2015) married and left children. * Oliver Henry Russell (b. 7 May 1942) married to Clare Macpherson-Grant, cookbook author, and has children. The elder son has assumed his mother's family name. * Margaret Elizabeth Russell (b. 11 October 1945) married and has children.

References

* , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, Guy Herbrand Edward 1898 births 1977 deaths Graduates of Britannia Royal Naval College Graduates of the Royal College of Defence Studies Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Graduates of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire Lords of the Admiralty Royal Navy admirals of World War II Royal Navy personnel of the Korean War Royal Navy officers of World War I Younger sons of barons People educated at the Royal Naval College, Osborne People from Wisborough Green Military personnel from London