Commodore John Fairbairn (12 March 1912 – 20 March 1984) was a South African Naval officer. Fairbairn was born in

Plumstead, Cape Town Plumstead is a residential suburb situated in the Southern Suburbs of Cape Town in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. History Plumstead was first mentioned when, in 1762, a large portion of the land beyond Wynberg and the Constantia Val ...

. After being educated at

Diocesan College The Diocesan College (commonly known as Bishops) is a private, English medium, boarding and day high school for boys situated in the suburb of Rondebosch in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. The school was established on ...

Rondebosch Rondebosch is one of the Southern Suburbs of Cape Town, South Africa. It is primarily a residential suburb, with shopping and business districts as well as the main campus of the University of Cape Town. History Four years after the first Dutch s ...

, he started working at the

Standard Bank Standard Bank Group Limited is a major South African bank and financial services group. It is Africa's biggest lender by assets. The company's corporate headquarters, Standard Bank Centre, is situated in Simmonds Street, Johannesburg. History ...

in 1930. He joined the

Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve The Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) is one of the two volunteer reserve forces of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. Together with the Royal Marines Reserve, they form the Maritime Reserve. The present RNR was formed by merging the original R ...

(RNVR) on 1 July 1929 on a part-time basis while still working at the bank until the start of

World War II 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 opposing ...

, when he signed up to the South African Navy full-time on 4 September 1939 and was promoted to lieutenant on 12 November the same year. On 1 May 1946, he joined the SA Navy Permanent Force and was given the rank of lieutenant-commander. On 4 January 1948 while in command of the HMSAS ''Transvaal'', the Marion and Prince Edward islands were annexed from

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It i ...

. He commanded the SAS ''President Steyn'' before being appointed naval officer in charge (NoiC) of the Simon's Town Naval Base. Fairbairn retired in 1972 and died in

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

in March 1984.

Awards and decorations

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Notes

References

1912 births 1984 deaths Alumni of Diocesan College, Cape Town South African admirals Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve personnel South African military personnel of World War II {{SouthAfrica-mil-bio-stub