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 Robert Lindsay Burnett, (22 July 1887 – 2 July 1959) was an 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 ...

Naval career

Educated at

Eastman's Royal Naval Academy Eastman's Royal Naval Academy, originally in Southsea and later at Winchester, both in England, was a preparatory school. Between 1855 and 1923 it was known primarily as a school that prepared boys for entry to the Royal Navy. Thereafter, it wa ...

and

Bedford School :''Bedford School is not to be confused with Bedford Girls' School, Bedford High School, Bedford Modern School, Old Bedford School in Bedford, Texas or Bedford Academy in Bedford, Nova Scotia.'' Bedford School is a public school (English indep ...

, Burnett joined the

in 1902.Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
/ref>Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
/ref> He served on the

China Station The Commander-in-Chief, China was the admiral in command of what was usually known as the China Station, at once both a British Royal Navy naval formation and its admiral in command. It was created in 1865 and deactivated in 1941. From 1831 to 18 ...

from 1904 and then with the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

and

Mediterranean Fleet The British Mediterranean Fleet, also known as the Mediterranean Station, was a formation of the Royal Navy. The Fleet was one of the most prestigious commands in the navy for the majority of its history, defending the vital sea link between t ...

s from 1908. He became an instructor at the Navy Physical Training Schools in 1911. Burnett, Alexander and Tovey on HMS Belfast June 1942 IWM A 13926

Burnett served in

World War I 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 ...

and saw action at the Battle of Heligoland Bight in 1914, at the Battle of Dogger Bank in 1915 and served in destroyers in the

Grand Fleet The Grand Fleet was the main battlefleet of the Royal Navy during the First World War. It was established in August 1914 and disbanded in April 1919. Its main base was Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands. History Formed in August 1914 from the ...

. He was promoted to

lieutenant commander Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding rank i ...

in April 1918,

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 December 1923 and

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 December 1930.Robert Burnett
/ref> In 1933 Burnett was made Director of Physical Training and Sports. He was 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 January 1941, appointed

flag officer A flag officer is a commissioned officer in a nation's armed forces senior enough to be entitled to fly a flag to mark the position from which the officer exercises command. The term is used differently in different countries: *In many countr ...

minelayer A minelayer is any warship, submarine or military aircraft deploying explosive mines. Since World War I the term "minelayer" refers specifically to a naval ship used for deploying naval mines. "Mine planting" was the term for installing controll ...

s and from March 1942 flag officer of the Destroyer Flotillas of the Home Fleet. From January 1943 he was flag officer of the

10th Cruiser Squadron The 10th Cruiser Squadron, also known as Cruiser Force B was a formation of cruisers of the British Royal Navy from 1913 to 1917 and then again from 1940 to 1946. First formation The squadron was established in July 1913 and allocated to the T ...

and was promoted to vice admiral in that role on 9 December 1943. Flying his flag in , he saw action in the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...

and in the

Arctic Ocean The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceans. It spans an area of approximately and is known as the coldest of all the oceans. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) recognizes it as an ocean, a ...

off the coast of

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

in convoy escort duty, particularly on 26 December at the

Battle of North Cape The Battle of the North Cape was a Second World War naval battle that occurred on 26 December 1943, as part of the Arctic campaign. The , on an operation to attack Arctic Convoys of war materiel from the Western Allies to the Soviet Union, was ...

, where he played a major role in the sinking of the (in most accounts of the battle he is described as a rear admiral). He was Commander-in-Chief,

South Atlantic Station The Commander-in-Chief South Atlantic was an operational commander of the Royal Navy from 1939. The South American area was added to his responsibilities in 1960, and the post disestablished in 1967. Immediately before the outbreak of the Sec ...

from 1944. He became

Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth The Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth, was a senior commander of the Royal Navy for hundreds of years. Plymouth Command was a name given to the units, establishments, and staff operating under the admiral's command. Between 1845 and 1896, this offic ...

in 1947 and retired from active service in May 1950. He then served as the first director of the White Fish Authority, from its foundation in 1951 until his retirement in November 1954.

Family

In 1915 Burnett married Ethel Constance Shaw; they had no children. He was the younger brother of Air Chief Marshal Sir Charles Burnett.

References

External links

RL Burnett at unithistories.com
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Burnett, Robert 1887 births 1959 deaths Scottish military personnel People educated at Bedford School Royal Navy admirals Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Commanders of the Order of St John People from Banff and Buchan People educated at Eastman's Royal Naval Academy Royal Navy admirals of World War II Recipients of the Order of Suvorov, 1st class