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 ...

Wilfred Neville Custance CB (25 June 1884 – 13 December 1939) 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 ...

. He was the Rear Admiral Commanding HM Australian Squadron from April 1938 to September 1939.

Naval career

Born on 25 June 1884 in

South Kensington South Kensington, nicknamed Little Paris, is a district just west of Central London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Historically it settled on part of the scattered Middlesex village of Brompton. Its name was supplanted with ...

, England, the eldest child of Henry Neville Custance and Alice Georgina, née Custance. His grandfather was Admiral Sir Reginald Custance. He joined the Royal Navy on 15 January 1899 as a cadet. He was rated

midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Afr ...

on 15 May 1900 and served aboard HMS ''Ocean''. Promoted to

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 ...

on 15 July 1903 he served aboard HMS ''Foam'' in the

Mediterranean Station The British Mediterranean Fleet, also known as the Mediterranean Station, was a military formation, 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 vita ...

between 1904 and 1905. He served upon HMS ''Venerable'' in 1905 and promoted to lieutenant on 15 January 1905. He was the Gunnery Officer aboard HMS ''Vanguard'' between 1913 and 1917, and was having dinner aboard another ship at

Scapa Flow Scapa Flow viewed from its eastern end in June 2009 Scapa Flow (; ) is a body of water in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, sheltered by the islands of Mainland, Graemsay, Burray,S. C. George, ''Jutland to Junkyard'', 1973. South Ronaldsay and ...

in 1917 when HMS ''Vanguard'' suffered an internal explosion and sank with the loss of lives of 843 men. He served aboard HMS ''Vanguard'' during

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 was present during the

battle of Jutland The Battle of Jutland (german: Skagerrakschlacht, the Battle of the Skagerrak) was a naval battle fought between Britain's Royal Navy Grand Fleet, under Admiral John Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe, Sir John Jellicoe, and the Imperial German Navy ...

in 1916. He was promoted to

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 1925 and went on to command HMS ''Yarmouth'' in 1926, HMS ''Castor'' in 1928 and HMS ''York'' in 1930. He commanded the Devonport Gunnery School between 1932 and 1934, HMS ''Rodney'' of the

2nd Battle Squadron The 2nd Battle Squadron was a naval squadron of the British Royal Navy consisting of battleships. The 2nd Battle Squadron was initially part of the Royal Navy's Grand Fleet. After World War I the Grand Fleet was reverted to its original name, t ...

Home Fleet The Home Fleet was a fleet of the Royal Navy that operated from the United Kingdom's territorial waters from 1902 with intervals until 1967. In 1967, it was merged with the Mediterranean Fleet creating the new Western Fleet. Before the First ...

between 1934 and 1936. He was appointed Aide-de-camp to

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Que ...

in 1935. He was promoted to real admiral in 1936 and commanded the Naval Brigade formed for ceremonial duties during the

coronation A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a coronation crown, crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the ...

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of Ind ...

on 12 May 1937. He was appointed Rear Admiral Commanding HM Australian Squadron on 22 April 1938, however due to ill health he was forced to relinquish the command on 2 September 1939. While returning to England he died aboard ship and was buried at sea off

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. ...

. He was survived by his wife, Winifred Olive Cave—whom he married on 18 February 1911—and their three children, Hambleton, Rosemary and Peter. He is commemorated on the

Commonwealth War Graves Commission The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations mil ...

Portsmouth Naval Memorial The Portsmouth Naval Memorial, sometimes known as Southsea Naval Memorial, is a war memorial in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England, on Southsea Common beside Clarence Esplanade, between Clarence Pier and Southsea Castle. The memorial commemorates ...

Citations

{{DEFAULTSORT:Custance, Wilfred 1884 births 1939 deaths Companions of the Order of the Bath People from South Kensington Royal Navy admirals of World War II Royal Navy officers of World War I People who died at sea Military personnel from London