Admiral of the Fleet An admiral of the fleet or shortened to fleet admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to field marshal and marshal of the air force. An admiral of the fleet is typically senior to an admiral. It is also a generic ter ...

Terence Thornton Lewin, Baron Lewin (19 November 1920 – 23 January 1999) was a career

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

officer, best known for his service as Chief of the Defence Staff during the

Falklands War The Falklands War () was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British Overseas Territories, British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and Falkland Islands Dependenci ...

in 1982, in which he acted both as chief war planner and senior military advisor for Prime Minister

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013), was a British stateswoman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of th ...

. Joining the Royal Navy in 1939, Lewin served at sea throughout the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, taking part in numerous campaigns and receiving the Distinguished Service Cross for heroism in 1942. First promoted to command his own ship in 1955, Lewin commanded the destroyer HMS ''Corunna'', the

Royal yacht A royal yacht is a ship used by a monarch or a royal family. If the monarch is an emperor the proper term is imperial yacht. Most of them are financed by the government of the country of which the monarch is head. The royal yacht is most often c ...

, two frigates and an aircraft carrier before achieving higher command. He served as the 88th

First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff First Sea Lord, officially known as First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff (1SL/CNS), is the title of a statutory position in the British Armed Forces, held by an admiral or a general of the Royal Marines. As the highest-ranking officer to ...

in the late 1970s, fighting to secure a decent wage for British servicemen, helping to win them a 32% pay rise. Lewin rose to become the 9th Chief of the Defence Staff in 1979 and held the office for three years, the first holder of that office to act directly as head of the British military, rather than just as Chairman of the

Chiefs of Staff Committee The Chiefs of Staff Committee (CSC) is composed of the most senior military personnel in the British Armed Forces, who advise on operational military matters and the preparation and conduct of military operations. The committee consists of the Ch ...

. Lewin retired from the Royal Navy in October 1982, becoming Chairman of the Trustees of the

National Maritime Museum The National Maritime Museum (NMM) is a maritime museum in Greenwich, London. It is part of Royal Museums Greenwich, a network of museums in the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site. Like other publicly funded national museums in the Unit ...

and President of the

Society for Nautical Research The Society for Nautical Research is a British society that conducts research and sponsors projects related to maritime history worldwide. Founded in 1910, the Society initially encouraged research into seafaring, ship-building, the language and ...

among other roles, also maintaining interest as a military historian. He died in 1999 at the age of 78.

Naval career

Born the son of Eric Lewin and Maggie Lewin (née Falconer) and educated at The Judd School in

Tonbridge Tonbridge ( ) (historic spelling ''Tunbridge'') is a market town in Kent, England, on the River Medway, north of Royal Tunbridge Wells, south west of Maidstone and south east of London. In the administrative borough of Tonbridge and Mall ...

, where he was head prefect in 1938, Lewin joined the Royal Navy as a

cadet A cadet is a student or trainee within various organisations, primarily in military contexts where individuals undergo training to become commissioned officers. However, several civilian organisations, including civil aviation groups, maritime ...

in 1939.Heathcote, p. 155 He was initially posted to the training ship HMS ''Vindictive'' but when the

broke out in September 1939 he transferred to the cruiser and then two months later to the

battleship A battleship is a large, heavily naval armour, armored warship with a main battery consisting of large naval gun, guns, designed to serve as a capital ship. From their advent in the late 1880s, battleships were among the largest and most form ...

.Heathcote, p. 156 HMS Ashanti

In the Valiant he took part in the Norwegian Campaign in April and May 1940 and then in the attack on the French Fleet at Mers-el-Kébir in July 1940. He transferred to the

destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, maneuverable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy, or carrier battle group and defend them against a wide range of general threats. They were conceived i ...

in October 1941 and then to the destroyer in January 1942. During a long period of service in the Ashanti he took part in the Arctic Convoys, and having been promoted to lieutenant on 1 July 1942, he took part in

Operation Pedestal Operation Pedestal (, Battle of mid-August), known in Malta as (), was a British operation to carry supplies to the island of Malta in August 1942, during the Second World War. British ships, submarines and aircraft from Malta attacked Axis p ...

to relieve

Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...

in August 1942 and then the allied landings in North Africa in November 1942 before returning to the Arctic Convoys again and finally taking part in the allied landings in Normandy in June 1944. He served with distinction being

mentioned in despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches) 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 of t ...

three times and being awarded the Distinguished Service Cross in 1942 for saving the lives of many fellow servicemen when the destroyer was hit by a

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, such ...

. Lewin attended the gunnery school at in Spring 1945 and then joined the staff there in May 1945. He was posted to the cruiser as gunnery officer in April 1946 and, after attending the advanced gunnery course at the

Royal Naval College Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family or royalty Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, ...

, Greenwich, in 1947, he returned to the staff at HMS ''Excellent'' in December. Promoted to lieutenant commander on 1 July 1949, he became gunnery officer of the First Destroyer Flotilla in the

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 ...

.Heathcote, p. 157 He rejoined the staff of HMS Excellent in January 1952 and, having been promoted to

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

on 31 December 1952, he joined the staff of the

Second Sea Lord The Second Sea Lord and Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff (formerly Second Sea Lord) is deputy to the First Sea Lord and the second highest-ranking officer currently to serve in the Royal Navy and is responsible for personnel and naval shore estab ...

at the Admiralty in December 1953. Lewin was given command of the destroyer in October 1955 before joining HMY ''Britannia'' in April 1957 as the executive officer. Promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

on 30 June 1958, he went back to the Admiralty as Assistant Director of the Tactical Ship Requirements and Staff Duties Division in November 1958 and then, having been appointed a Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order in the 1959

New Year Honours The New Year Honours is a part of the British honours system, with New Year's Day, 1 January, being marked by naming new members of orders of chivalry and recipients of other official honours. A number of other Commonwealth realms also mark this ...

, he became Assistant Director of the Tactical and Weapons Policy Division in 1960. After attending the

Imperial Defence College The Royal College of Defence Studies (RCDS) instructs the most promising senior officers of the British Armed Forces, His Majesty's Diplomatic Service and Civil Service in national defence and international security matters at the highest level ...

in 1961, he was appointed Captain (F) of the 17th Frigate Squadron in December 1961 sailing successively in the frigates and then . He went back to the Admiralty again as Director of Tactical and Weapons Policy in December 1963 and took 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 hangar facilities for supporting, arming, deploying and recovering carrier-based aircraft, shipborne aircraft. Typically it is the ...

in May 1966.

Flag rank

Lewin was appointed Naval Aide-de-Camp to the Queen on 7 July 1967 and promoted to

rear admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

on 7 January 1968, on appointment as Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff (Policy) before becoming Flag Officer Second in Command Far East Fleet in August 1969. Promoted to

vice admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of Vice ...

on 7 October 1970, he became Vice Chief of the Naval Staff in January 1971.Heathcote, p. 158 He was appointed

Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior British Armed Forces, military officers or senior Civil Service ...

in the 1973

. As VCNS two of his most important projects were the approval of the

Sea Harrier The British Aerospace Sea Harrier is a naval short take-off and vertical landing/vertical take-off and landing jet fighter, reconnaissance and attack aircraft. It is the second member of the Harrier family developed. It first entered servic ...

and the beginning of "group deployments," as the UK's far-flung naval forces had mostly disappeared. He was promoted to full

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many 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. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

on 1 December 1973, on appointment as

Commander-in-Chief Fleet The Commander-in-Chief Fleet (CINCFLEET) was the admiral responsible for the operations of the ships, submarines and aircraft of the British Royal Navy from 1971 until April 2012. The post was subordinate to the First Sea Lord, the professional h ...

and

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

Commander-in-Chief, Channel and Commander-in-Chief Eastern Atlantic and became Commander-in-Chief Naval Home Command in November 1975 before being advanced to

Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior military officers or senior civil servants, and the monarch awards it on the advice of His ...

in the 1976

Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning monarch's official birthday in each realm by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are ...

HMS Bristol storing at Ascension Island 1982

Lewin was appointed

First Sea Lord First Sea Lord, officially known as First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff (1SL/CNS), is the title of a statutory position in the British Armed Forces, held by an Admiral (Royal Navy), admiral or a General (United Kingdom), general of the ...

and Chief of Naval Staff on 1 March 1977. In that role he worked hard to secure a decent wage for servicemen and helped win them a 32% pay rise. Promoted to

on 6 July 1979, he went on to be Chief of the Defence Staff in September 1979 and served as a member of the War Cabinet during the

giving Prime Minister

his resolute support when losses began to be suffered. Lewin was the first Chief of Defence Staff to act as professional head of the Armed Forces rather than just Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee.Heathcote, p. 159 He was created a

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...

, as Baron Lewin, of

Greenwich Greenwich ( , , ) is an List of areas of London, area in south-east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London, east-south-east of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime hi ...

in Greater London in October 1982 on his retirement.

Later life

In retirement, Lewin became Chairman of the Trustees of the

, President of the

, a Liveryman of the Skinners' Company and of the Shipwrights' Company and an elder brother of

Trinity House The Corporation of Trinity House of Deptford Strond, also known as Trinity House (and formally as The Master, Wardens and Assistants of the Guild Fraternity or Brotherhood of the most glorious and undivided Trinity and of St Clement in the ...

.People of Today 1994, Debrett, His interests included military history: he was an expert on the life of

Captain Cook Captain James Cook (7 November 1728 – 14 February 1779) was a British Royal Navy officer, explorer, and cartographer famous for his three voyages of exploration to the Pacific and Southern Oceans, conducted between 1768 and 1779. He complet ...

. He was appointed a

Knight Companion of the Order of the Garter The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. The most senior order of knighthood in the British honours system, it is outranked in precedence only by the decorations of the Victoria Cr ...

in April 1983. He died at his home at Ufford in Suffolk on 23 January 1999.

Family

In 1944, Lewin married Jane Branch-Evans; they had two sons and a daughter.

Coat of Arms

References

Sources

* * * Prince, Stephen. "British command and control in the Falklands Campaign." ''Defense & Security Analysis'' 18.4 (2002): 333–349.