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 regarded ...

Stanley Lawrence McArdle, (27 September 1922 – 4 December 2007) 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 ...

, and a recipient of the

George Medal The George Medal (GM), instituted on 24 September 1940 by King George VI,''British Gallantry Medals'' (Abbott and Tamplin), p. 138 is a decoration of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth, awarded for gallantry, typically by civilians, or in circ ...

for his efforts in the rescue of survivors from the ferry in 1953.

Early life

McArdle was born in

Lochmaben, Dumfriesshire Lochmaben (Scottish Gaelic language, Gaelic: ''Loch Mhabain'') is a small town and civil parish in Scotland, and site of a castle. It lies west of Lockerbie, in Dumfries and Galloway. By the 12th century the Bruce family had become the local land ...

, on 27 September 1922, the son of a colour sergeant in the

Royal Marines The Corps of Royal Marines (RM), also known as the Royal Marines Commandos, are the UK's special operations capable commando force, amphibious light infantry and also one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy. The Corps of Royal Marine ...

. He was educated at the

Royal Hospital School ) , established = 1694 Royal Charter1712 Greenwich1933 Holbrook, Suffolk, Holbrook , type = Public school (UK), Public School Independent school (UK), Independent day and boarding School Royal Foundation , founders = William ...

, Holbrook.

Navy career

McArdle joined HMS ''St Vincent'' at

Gosport Gosport ( ) is a town and non-metropolitan borough on the south coast of Hampshire, South East England. At the 2011 Census, its population was 82,662. Gosport is situated on a peninsula on the western side of Portsmouth Harbour, opposite t ...

in 1938 as a boy seaman, 2nd class and saw service worldwide as a torpedoman before being the only successful candidate at a fleet board for promotion to officer in Colombo at the end of 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 ...

. In January 1953 he was awarded a

for his part in HMS ''Contest''s rescue of survivors from the

ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

. His ship, the destroyer HMS ''Contest'', was at Rothesay when it picked up a distress signal. The ferry's stern doors had been ripped open by a storm, and water had flooded the car deck. When ''Contest'' arrived the ferry had already sunk, but McArdle and Chief Petty Officer Wilfred Warren managed to pluck several survivors to safety. He trained the naval guard for King George VI's funeral in 1952, for which he was appointed a Member of the

Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, o ...

. He served in the

Directorate of Naval Operations and Trade Directorate may refer to: Contemporary *Directorates of the Scottish Government * Directorate-General, a type of specialised administrative body in the European Union * Directorate-General for External Security, the French external intelligence ag ...

at the Admiralty in 1969 and he became Director General Personal Services and Training until 1977. His last appointment was as

Flag Officer Spithead The Flag Officer Spithead was a senior Royal Navy appointment first established in July 1971. The office holder was responsible for the command of Spithead and wider Portsmouth area command, that formed a part of Naval Home Command. The appointm ...

and

Port Admiral Portsmouth The Port Admiral, Portsmouth was a senior Royal Navy appointment first created in July 1971. In September 1971, all remaining flag officers in the Royal Navy holding the position of admiral superintendent at Royal Dockyards were re-designated as p ...

, when he was made Companion of the

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...

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 ...

Obituar
Lives in Brief: Rear-Admiral Stanley McArdle
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McArdle, Stanley 1922 births 2007 deaths Companions of the Order of the Bath Members of the Royal Victorian Order Recipients of the George Medal Royal Navy rear admirals Royal Navy personnel of World War II People from Dumfries and Galloway People educated at the Royal Hospital School