Sir Geoffrey William Vavasour, 5th Baronet (5 September 1914 – 28 July 1997) was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

-born

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

first-class cricketer and

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 ...

officer. He served 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 ...

with distinction, where he was

mentioned in dispatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

and 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) *Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) *Distinguished Service Cross (U ...

. After the war he played

first-class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is one of three or more days' scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officiall ...

for the

Combined Services cricket team The Combined Services cricket team represents the British Armed Forces. The team played at first-class level in England for more than forty years in the mid-twentieth century. Their first first-class match was against Gentlemen of England at Lo ...

. He succeeded his father as the 5th Baronet of Hazelwood in 1961.

Early life and WWII

The son of Sir Leonard Vavasour and his wife, Ellice Margaret Nelson, Vavasour was born at Queenstown,

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 ...

. He attended the Royal Naval Dartmouth, graduating in September 1935 as a

sub-lieutenant Sub-lieutenant is usually a junior officer rank, used in armies, navies and air forces. In most armies, sub-lieutenant is the lowest officer rank. However, in Brazil, it is the highest non-commissioned rank, and in Spain, it is the second high ...

. He was promoted to the rank of

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 ...

in September 1937. He married his first wife, Joan Millicent Kirkland Robb, in 1940, with the couple having two daughters. He served in the Royal Navy in the

, during which he was

in March 1942. He was resident at

Rowland's Castle Rowland's Castle is a village and civil parish in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England. It is 2.9 miles (4.7 km) north of Havant, on the Hampshire/West Sussex border. The focal point of the village is the village green which i ...

in Hampshire in 1944. Vavasour was awarded the

in April 1944. He was again mentioned in dispatches in May 1944. In the final month of the war he was promoted to the rank of

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 ...

Post-war and later life

Following the war, Vavasour played one

match for the

against

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...

in 1947 at

Northampton Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England; ...

. Batting twice in the match, Vavasour was dismissed for 8 runs in the Combined Services first-innings by

William Nevell William Thomas Nevell (1916-1978) was an English cricketer active from 1936 to 1947 who played for Middlesex and Surrey before the Second World War and then for Northamptonshire in the 1946 and 1947 seasons. He appeared in 51 first-class matches ...

, while in their second-innings he was dismissed by

John Timms John Edward Timms (3 November 1906 – 18 March 1980) was an English first-class cricketer who played for Northamptonshire. He was a right-handed middle order batsman and a part time right arm medium pace bowler. Timms made his first-class debu ...

for 6 runs. He was divorced from his wife in the same year. He was promoted to the rank of

in December 1949. He was promoted to the rank of

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. ...

between 1950 and 1958, with Vavasour retiring from active service in February 1958. Vavasour succeeded his father as the 5th Baronet of Hazelwood in September 1961. He was the director of W M Still & Sons, a kitchen equipment manufacturer, in 1962. He married Marcia Christine Lodge in 1971, with the couple divorcing in 1980. Vavasour died at

Wandsworth Wandsworth Town () is a district of south London, within the London Borough of Wandsworth southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan The London Plan is the statutory spatial development strategy for the Gre ...

in July 1997. He was succeeded by his cousin, Eric Vavasour, as the 6th Baronet.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vavasour, Geoffrey 1914 births 1997 deaths Military personnel from County Cork People from Cobh Graduates of Britannia Royal Naval College Royal Navy officers Royal Navy personnel of World War II Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) English cricketers Combined Services cricketers Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom Geoffrey People from Rowland's Castle