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 ...

Frederick Michael Alexander Torrens-Spence, (10 March 1914 – 12 December 2001) 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 F ...

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 ...

pilot in 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 ...

. Torrens-Spence earned the distinction of holding commissions in the Royal Navy, the

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 ...

, the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

and the

Royal Ulster Constabulary The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) was the police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001. It was founded on 1 June 1922 as a successor to the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC)Richard Doherty, ''The Thin Green Line – The History of the Royal ...

Early life

Known as "Tiffy", Torrens-Spence was born in

Whiteabbey , translit_lang1 = , translit_lang1_type = Derivation: , translit_lang1_info = , translit_lang1_type1 = Meaning: , translit_lang1_info1 = , translit_lang2 = , translit_lang2_type = Derivation: , tra ...

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, ) is one of six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has a population o ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

the son of a professional soldier. Educated at Mourne Grange Public School,

Kilkeel Kilkeel () is a small town, civil parish and townland (of 554 acres and 6521inh) in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is the southernmost town in Northern Ireland. It lies within the historic barony of Mourne. Kilkeel town is the main fishing ...

, at the age of 13 he attended

Dartmouth Royal Naval College Britannia Royal Naval College (BRNC), commonly known as Dartmouth, is the naval academy of the United Kingdom and the initial officer training establishment of the Royal Navy. It is located on a hill overlooking the port of Dartmouth, Devon, E ...

.Michael Torrens-Spence
''The Daily Telegraph''. Retrieved 27 February 2007

Military career

After initial service in the fleet Torrens-Spence volunteered for flying duties with the

, which at that time was under the command of the Royal Air Force. After flying training, he was commissioned as a pilot in both the RAF and the Navy. His first postings were on the carriers and, in 1937, .

Second World War

When war broke out, Torrens-Spence was serving on ''Glorious'' which was sent through the

Suez Canal The Suez Canal ( arz, قَنَاةُ ٱلسُّوَيْسِ, ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia. The long canal is a popular ...

to hunt German surface raiders. He was then sent home from

Aden Aden ( ar, عدن ' Yemeni: ) is a city, and since 2015, the temporary capital of Yemen, near the eastern approach to the Red Sea (the Gulf of Aden), some east of the strait Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000 people. ...

to join the new carrier . Whilst serving on ''Illustrious'', which had been dispatched to the Mediterranean in September 1940, he took part in the attack on Italian

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 in the

Battle of Taranto The Battle of Taranto took place on the night of 11–12 November 1940 during the Second World War between British naval forces, under Admiral Andrew Cunningham, and Italian naval forces, under Admiral Inigo Campioni. The Royal Navy launched ...

as a

Swordfish Swordfish (''Xiphias gladius''), also known as broadbills in some countries, are large, highly migratory predatory fish characterized by a long, flat, pointed bill. They are a popular sport fish of the billfish category, though elusive. Swordfis ...

torpedo bomber A torpedo bomber is a military aircraft designed primarily to attack ships with aerial torpedoes. Torpedo bombers came into existence just before the First World War almost as soon as aircraft were built that were capable of carrying the weight ...

pilot. During the Swordfish attack in

Taranto Taranto (, also ; ; nap, label= Tarantino, Tarde; Latin: Tarentum; Old Italian: ''Tarento''; Ancient Greek: Τάρᾱς) is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto, serving as an important com ...

harbour, he torpedoed one of Italy's newest and largest battleships, the , sinking her in shallow water. He was awarded 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 this action.Obituary 13 December 2001

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

He was also involved when ''Illustrious'' was badly damaged; ''Illustrious'' was escorting a convoy to

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

when she was attacked by three squadrons of German Stuka

dive bombers A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy for the bomb it drops. Diving towards the target simplifies the bomb's trajectory and allows the pilot to keep visual contact throughou ...

. Suffering multiple bomb hits (including to Torrens-Spence's wardroom) and more than 200 casualties, ''Illustrious'' limped to Malta and eventually to America for repairs. Her aircraft were disembarked in Malta, and Torrens-Spence flew to

Eleusis Elefsina ( el, Ελευσίνα ''Elefsina''), or Eleusis (; Ancient Greek: ''Eleusis'') is a suburban city and Communities and Municipalities of Greece, municipality in the West Attica regional unit of Greece. It is situated about northwest ...

, near

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

, with elements of

815 __NOTOC__ Year 815 (Roman numerals, DCCCXV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Byzantine–Bulgarian Treaty of 815, Byzantine–Bulgaria ...

and 819 Squadrons for an active anti-shipping campaign which later earned him the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typ ...

. At the

Battle of Cape Matapan The Battle of Cape Matapan ( el, Ναυμαχία του Ταινάρου) was a naval battle during the Second World War between the Allies, represented by the navies of the United Kingdom and Australia, and the Royal Italian navy, from 27 ...

, Torrens-Spence was ordered to find and attack a large Italian naval force. After observing an attack by aircraft from the carrier achieve no result, he found a hole in the enemy smokescreen and was confronted with the , which he torpedoed from close range. The cruiser immediately slowed to six knots and the Italian admiral decided to divide his force, leaving a large detachment to escort ''Pola'' and sail for home. That night, the Royal Navy engaged with the Italian force off Cape Matapan, and with the aid of radar sank the major part of them. ''Pola''s captain was rescued by the destroyer and was heard to remark, "Either that pilot was mad or he is the bravest man in the world". Admiral Andrew Cunningham wrote in his dispatch after the battle: "An example of the spirit of these young officers is the case of Lieutenant F.M.A. Torrens-Spence who rather than be left out, flew with the only available aircraft from Eleusis to Maleme ... arranged his own reconnaissance and finally took off with a second aircraft in company and took part in the dawn attack." Fairey Swordfish on Airfield

From March to October 1941, Torrens-Spence commanded 815 Squadron in

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

, where he added to his tally. Unfortunately, this included a hospital ship which the Italians had failed to mark and illuminate. No blame was ever attached to Torrens-Spence, but he was forever saddened by the incident. From 1942, Torrens-Spence was posted to the UK to become a leading Admiralty

test pilot A test pilot is an aircraft pilot with additional training to fly and evaluate experimental, newly produced and modified aircraft with specific maneuvers, known as flight test techniques.Stinton, Darrol. ''Flying Qualities and Flight Testing ...

at RAF

Boscombe Down MoD Boscombe Down ' is the home of a military aircraft testing site, on the southeastern outskirts of the town of Amesbury, Wiltshire, England. The site is managed by QinetiQ, the private defence company created as part of the breakup of the Def ...

where he remained for the next three years, and worked closely with fellow former HMS Glorious and 819 Naval Air Squadron pilot Lieutenant

Roy Sydney Baker-Falkner Roy Sydney Baker-Falkner (3 June 1916 – 18 July 1944) was a Canadian Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm naval aviator and wing leader during the Second World War, who attained the rank of Lieutenant commander. He was a veteran of the evacuation of Dunk ...

in developing and test flying the

Fairey Barracuda The Fairey Barracuda was a British carrier-borne torpedo and dive bomber designed by Fairey Aviation. It was the first aircraft of this type operated by the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm (FAA) to be fabricated entirely from metal. The Barracuda ...

aircraft prior to its operational service in the Fleet Air Arm. He was posted back to ''Illustrious'' for the closing stages of the war.

Post-war

He remained in the Navy after the war, becoming chief inspector of the

Empire Test Pilots' School The Empire Test Pilots' School (ETPS) is a British training school for test pilots and flight test engineers of fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft at MoD Boscombe Down in Wiltshire, England. It was established in 1943, the first of its type. T ...

. He then served in the carrier , and as commanding officer of

RNAS Eglinton Royal Naval Air Station Eglinton or RNAS Eglinton was a Royal Naval Air Station located north east of Eglinton, County Londonderry, Eglinton, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It opened as a Royal Air Force Station (RAF Eglinton) in 1941, be ...

(HMS ''Gannet'') in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

.''Obituary: Capt F M A Torrens-Spence''

The News Letter The ''News Letter'' is one of Northern Ireland's main daily newspapers, published from Monday to Saturday. It is the world's oldest English-language general daily newspaper still in publication, having first been printed in 1737. The newspape ...

, 6 November 2001 In 1952, he was promoted captain and sent to the Admiralty to look after future aircraft requirements as deputy director of the Air Warfare Division, naval staff. He wrote the staff requirement for the

Buccaneer Buccaneers were a kind of privateers or free sailors particular to the Caribbean Sea during the 17th and 18th centuries. First established on northern Hispaniola as early as 1625, their heyday was from Stuart Restoration, the Restoration in 16 ...

strike aircraft and steered it through the

Admiralty Board The Admiralty Board is the body established under the Defence Council of the United Kingdom for the administration of the Naval Service of the United Kingdom. It meets formally only once a year, and the day-to-day running of the Royal Navy is ...

. In 1955, he took command of , a Daring class destroyer deploying in British and

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 and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

waters. Afterwards he commanded a training establishment,

RNAS Lossiemouth Lossiemouth ( gd, Inbhir Losaidh) is a town in Moray, Scotland. Originally the port belonging to Elgin, it became an important fishing town. Although there has been over 1,000 years of settlement in the area, the present day town was formed over ...

(HMS ''Fulmar''), before taking command of the

aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a ...

in 1959 where he spent the next two years, most of it in the Far East.

Northern Ireland

After leaving the Royal Navy Torrens-Spence was appointed as the Commandant of the

Ulster Special Constabulary The Ulster Special Constabulary (USC; commonly called the "B-Specials" or "B Men") was a quasi-military reserve special constable police force in what would later become Northern Ireland. It was set up in October 1920, shortly before the par ...

(the "B" Specials) in

County Armagh County Armagh (, named after its county town, Armagh) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the southern shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and ha ...

. When the Specials were disbanded in 1970 and replaced by the

Ulster Defence Regiment The Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR) was an infantry regiment of the British Army established in 1970, with a comparatively short existence ending in 1992. Raised through public appeal, newspaper and television advertisements,Potter p25 their offi ...

, Torrens-Spence took control of the County Armagh Battalion (2 UDR), as a

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

, to get it up and running. He retired in 1972.

Later life

In 1981, he became

Lord Lieutenant of Armagh This is a list of people who have served as Lord-Lieutenant of Armagh. There were lieutenants of counties in Ireland until the reign of James II, when they were renamed governors. The office of Lord Lieutenant was recreated on 23 August 1831. L ...

, after

Norman Stronge Sir Charles Norman Lockhart Stronge, 8th Baronet, MC, PC, JP (23 July 1894 – 21 January 1981) was a senior Ulster Unionist Party politician in Northern Ireland. Before his involvement in politics, he fought in the First World War as a junio ...

was killed by the

Provisional Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA; ), also known as the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and informally as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary organisation that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland, facilitate Irish reun ...

in an armed assault on his home,

Tynan Abbey Tynan Abbey in County Armagh, Northern Ireland, was a large Gothic Revival architecture, neo-gothic-romantic country house built c. 1750 (later renovated c. 1815) and situated outside the village of Tynan. It was home to the Stronge Baronets, ...

. During this time, he resided at Laurelvale House, Laurelvale – originally the home of industrialist

Thomas Sinton Thomas Sinton, JP (February 1826 – 20 August 1887) was an Irish industrialist and magistrate. Sinton made a significant impact upon the Irish linen trade; not least establishing the village of Laurelvale, County Armagh. Thomas Sinton was born ...

. He was also a

justice of the peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

, served as

High Sheriff of Armagh The High Sheriff of Armagh is the Sovereign's judicial representative in County Armagh. Initially an office for lifetime, assigned by the Sovereign, the High Sheriff became annually appointed from the Provisions of Oxford in 1258. Besides his/her ...

in 1979 and was aide-de-camp to the Queen. He was never overtly involved in politics, but remained throughout his life a committed Unionist, holding senior office in the Co. Armagh Unionist Association, yet saddened by what he saw as the government's appeasing of terrorism. He married Rachel Torrens-Spence, with whom he had four children. One of his sons, Brigadier Edward John (Johnny) Torrens-Spence CBE, was British Embassy military attaché to the United States.A story of love.

The Washington Times ''The Washington Times'' is an American conservative daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., that covers general interest topics with a particular emphasis on national politics. Its broadsheet daily edition is distributed throughout ...

; 13 May 2005

References

Bibliography

* Lamb, Charles, ''War in a Stringbag''. Cassell and Collier Macmillan (1977) * Wragg, David, ''Stringbag: The Fairey Swordfish at War''. Leo Cooper Ltd (2004) {{DEFAULTSORT:Torrens-Spence, Michael 1914 births 2001 deaths People from County Antrim Graduates of Britannia Royal Naval College High Sheriffs of Armagh Lord-Lieutenants of Armagh Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) Recipients of the Air Force Cross (United Kingdom) Royal Air Force officers Ulster Defence Regiment officers Royal Navy officers Fleet Air Arm personnel of World War II British World War II pilots British World War II bomber pilots British test pilots Fleet Air Arm aviators Ulster Special Constabulary officers