Admiral Sir Herbert Fitzherbert, KCIE, CB, CMG (10 August 1885 – 30 October 1958) 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 ...

admiral who served as the third Flag Officer Commanding,

Royal Indian Navy The Royal Indian Navy (RIN) was the naval force of British India and the Dominion of India. Along with the Presidency armies, later the Indian Army, and from 1932 the Royal Indian Air Force, it was one of the Armed Forces of British India. F ...

, from 1937 to 1943.

Life and career

Fitzherbert was born at

Kingswear Kingswear is a village and civil parish in the South Hams area of the English county of Devon. The village is located on the east bank of the tidal River Dart, close to the river's mouth and opposite the small town of Dartmouth. It lies within ...

Totnes Totnes ( or ) is a market town and civil parish at the head of the estuary of the River Dart in Devon, England, within the South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It is about west of Paignton, about west-southwest of Torquay and abo ...

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 ...

, the son of Samuel Wyndham Fitzherbert. He joined the

in 1900 and was educated aboard the cadet training ship HMS ''Britannia''. He was commissioned as an acting Sub-Lieutenant in 1905, and was confirmed as a Sub-Lieutenant the following year. He was promoted to

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 ...

in 1907. 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 ...

, he served as a Flag Lieutenant to Admiral of the Fleet Sir

John Jellicoe Admiral of the Fleet John Rushworth Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe, (5 December 1859 – 20 November 1935) was a Royal Navy officer. He fought in the Anglo-Egyptian War and the Boxer Rebellion and commanded the Grand Fleet at the Battle of Jutlan ...

(later the

Earl Jellicoe Earl Jellicoe is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created, along with the subsidiary title Viscount Brocas, of Southampton in the County of Southampton, on 29 June 1925 for Admiral of the Fleet John Jellicoe, 1st Viscoun ...

) at the Battle of Jutland, for which he was appointed a CMG in 1919. He was also awarded the

Legion d'Honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon B ...

and the Russian Order of St. Anne for his service during the battle. Fitzherbert was promoted to Commander in 1917 and to Captain in 1924. From 1926 to 1928, he commanded the cruiser HMS ''Coventry'', also serving as the Chief Staff Officer to the Rear-Admiral (Destroyers) Commanding Destroyer Flotillas of the Mediterranean Fleet. He then served as the Naval Assistant to the

First Sea Lord The First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff (1SL/CNS) is the military head of the Royal Navy and Naval Service of the United Kingdom. The First Sea Lord is usually the highest ranking and most senior admiral to serve in the British Armed Fo ...

, Sir Frederick Field, from 1929 to 1930. From 1931 to 1932, he took the Imperial Defense Course at the

Imperial Defence College The Royal College of Defence Studies (RCDS) instructs the most promising senior officers of the British Armed Forces, His Majesty's Diplomatic Service and Civil Service in national defence and international security matters at the highest level ...

, and was then appointed as Commanding Officer of the Signal School 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 ...

aboard HMS ''Victory'', holding the position until 1934. He then commanded the cruiser HMS ''Devonshire'' in the

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 ...

until 1936, when he received a promotion to

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 ...

. Fitzherbert was appointed a CB in the 1937 Coronation Honours and after attending the Senior Officers' War Course at Greenwich, was appointed Flag Officer Commanding, Royal Indian Navy in November of that year. He was promoted to Vice-Admiral in 1939, was knighted with the KCIE in 1941 and retired in 1943. He was subsequently appointed as the Flag Officer in Charge, Tunisia and served there until 1944. In 1946, he was promoted to Admiral on the retired list and died in 1958, aged 73. He married Rachel Hanbury, and the couple had one son.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fitzherbert, Herbert Royal Navy admirals Royal Indian Navy admirals Royal Navy officers of World War I Royal Navy personnel of World War II Knights Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire Companions of the Order of the Bath Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George 1885 births 1958 deaths Military personnel from Devon