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 ...

John Luce, (4 February 1870 – 22 September 1932) was a senior 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 ...

during and after 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 played a significant role in the early development of British naval aviation and held command during the

Battle of Coronel The Battle of Coronel was a First World War Imperial German Navy victory over the Royal Navy on 1 November 1914, off the coast of central Chile near the city of Coronel. The East Asia Squadron (''Ostasiengeschwader'' or ''Kreuzergeschwader'') ...

and the

Battle of the Falkland Islands The Battle of the Falkland Islands was a First World War naval action between the British Royal Navy and Imperial German Navy on 8 December 1914 in the South Atlantic. The British, after their defeat at the Battle of Coronel on 1 November, sen ...

in the South Atlantic.

Early and family life

John Luce was born on 4 February 1870 at Halcombe,National Maritime Museum
/ref>

Malmesbury Malmesbury () is a town and civil parish in north Wiltshire, England, which lies approximately west of Swindon, northeast of Bristol, and north of Chippenham. The older part of the town is on a hilltop which is almost surrounded by the up ...

, in the English county of Wiltshire. In 1902, he married Mary Dorothea Tucker;The Peerage
/ref> and they had three children. The eldest, Alfred, born on 6 November 1903, also joined the Navy and was

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 during the pursuit of the German battleship ''Bismarck''. He died in a training exercise on 20 October 1941. Alfred had two daughters. Sir David Luce, born on 23 January 1906, joined the Navy and served as

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 ...

from 1963 to 1966. Sir William Luce was born the following year and in later life became the Governor of Aden from 1956 to 1960. His great-granddaughter is comedian and actress

Miranda Hart Miranda Katherine Hart Dyke (born 14 December 1972) is an English actress and writer. Following drama training at the Academy of Live and Recorded Arts, Hart began writing material for the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and making appearances in va ...

Naval career

Luce joined the Royal Navy as a naval cadet in January 1883. 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 sub ...

on 1 January 1892. From 25 January 1900 he was in command of the training brig , based at Portsmouth. He was with this ship when she took part in the

fleet review A fleet review or naval review is an event where a gathering of ships from a particular navy is paraded and reviewed by an incumbent head of state and/or other official civilian and military dignitaries. A number of national navies continue to ...

held at

Spithead Spithead is an area of the Solent and a roadstead off Gilkicker Point in Hampshire, England. It is protected from all winds except those from the southeast. It receives its name from the Spit, a sandbank stretching south from the Hampshire ...

on 16 August 1902 for the

coronation A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a coronation crown, crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the ...

of King

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria an ...

. In June 1909, Luce 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 ...

and from October 1910 to January 1912 he was the captain of the battleship . In September 1912, Luce took command of , a light cruiser. and was still in command at the start of the

. In November 1914, he took part in the

in the South Atlantic. During the battle, ''Glasgow'' together with the cruisers and engaged the German East Asia Cruiser Squadron, including the new cruisers SMS ''Scharnhorst'' and SMS ''Gneisenau''. The German light cruisers had only guns, which had left ''Glasgow'' relatively unscathed, but these were now joined by the 8.2-inch guns of ''Gneisenau''. Luce determined that nothing was to be gained by staying and attempting to fight. It was noticed that each time he fired, the flash of his guns was used by the Germans to aim a new salvo, so he also ceased firing. One compartment of the ship was flooded, but she could still manage . He returned first to ''Monmouth'', which was now dark but still afloat. Nothing was to be done for the ship, which was sinking slowly but would attempt to beach on the Chilean coast. ''Glasgow'' turned south and departed. Having inflicted little damage on the enemy, ''Glasgow'' escaped with moderate damage considering that an estimated 600 shells were fired at her, although the other British cruisers were lost with all hands. The following month, Luce, still commanding ''Glasgow'', took part in the

. During the battle ''Glasgow'' and the

armored cruiser The armored cruiser was a type of warship of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was designed like other types of cruisers to operate as a long-range, independent warship, capable of defeating any ship apart from a battleship and fast eno ...

had chased down the German light cruiser SMS ''Leipzig''; ''Glasgow'' closed to finish ''Leipzig'' which had run out of ammunition but was still flying her battle ensign. ''Leipzig'' fired two flares, so ''Glasgow'' ceased fire. At 21:23, more than 80 mi (70 nmi; 130 km) southeast of the Falklands, ''Leipzig'' rolled over, leaving only 18 survivors. On 15 March 1915, Luce cornered SMS ''Dresden'', which was scuttled at the end of the

Battle of Más a Tierra The Battle of Más a Tierra was a World War I sea battle fought on 14 March 1915, near the Chilean island of Más a Tierra, between a British squadron and a German light cruiser. The battle saw the last remnant of the German East Asia Squadron d ...

in neutral waters. In 1917, Luce was appointed Commodore of the

Royal Naval Air Service The Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) was the air arm of the Royal Navy, under the direction of the Admiralty's Air Department, and existed formally from 1 July 1914 to 1 April 1918, when it was merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps t ...

's Central Depot and Training Establishment at

Cranwell Cranwell is a village in the North Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. It is part of the civil parish of Cranwell and Byard's Leap and is situated approximately north-west from Sleaford and south-east from the city and county town o ...

. However, the following year when Cranwell became part of the newly founded

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

(RAF), Luce was replaced by Brigadier General

Harold Douglas Briggs Brigadier General Harold Douglas Briggs, (29 September 1877 – 13 September 1944) was a senior Royal Navy and Royal Air Force officer who played a leading role in British naval aviation during the First World War. Background Briggs was born 29 ...

who had transferred from the Navy to the RAF. In February 1919, Luce took command of and remained as captain until some point in 1920. Towards the close of 1921, Luce was appointed Admiral Superintendent,

Malta Dockyard Malta Dockyard was an important naval base in the Grand Harbour in Malta in the Mediterranean Sea. The infrastructure which is still in operation is now operated by Palumbo Shipyards. History Pre-1800 The Knights of Malta established dockyard ...

Later life

After he had retired from the Navy, Luce served as

High Sheriff of Wiltshire This is a list of the Sheriffs and (after 1 April 1974) High Sheriffs of Wiltshire. Until the 14th century, the shrievalty was held ''ex officio'' by the castellans of Old Sarum Castle. On 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the Local Gov ...

from 1930 to 1931. He was promoted admiral on the Retired List on 1 April 1930. Luce died on 22 September 1932 at Little Cheverell House, Wiltshire. There is a memorial to him in

Malmesbury Abbey Malmesbury Abbey, at Malmesbury in Wiltshire, England, is a religious house dedicated to Saint Peter and Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul. It was one of the few English houses with a continuous history from the 7th century through to the dissolution ...

Notes

External links

Royal Navy Flag Officers 1904–1945 – Rear-Admiral John Luce C.B.

, - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Luce, John 1870 births 1932 deaths Military personnel from Wiltshire Companions of the Order of the Bath Royal Navy rear admirals Royal Navy officers of World War I