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 Desmond Parry Dreyer, (6 April 1910 – 15 May 2003) was a senior

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 Fr ...

officer who served as Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel from 1965 to 1967.

Naval career

Born the second son of Admiral Sir Frederic Charles Dreyer, Desmond Dreyer joined the

in 1924.Sir Desmond Parry Dreyer
Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives 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 opposi ...

at sea and in the

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong *Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral *Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings * Admiralty, Traf ...

. He distinguished himself as Gunnery Officer on at the

Battle of the River Plate The Battle of the River Plate was fought in the South Atlantic on 13 December 1939 as the first naval battle of the Second World War. The Kriegsmarine heavy cruiser , commanded by Captain Hans Langsdorff, engaged a Royal Navy squadron, command ...

in December 1939, winning 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 ...

for his role in this action.Obituary: Sir Desmond Dreyer
Daily Telegraph, 21 May 2003 He served on during the Norwegian campaign and from 1941 to 1943 on the battleships and . From July 1953 to April 1955, Dreyer commanded the 3rd Destroyer Squadron in the Mediterranean. He was appointed

Chief of Staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...

to the Commander-in-Chief,

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 ...

in 1955 and was involved in the

Suez Crisis The Suez Crisis, or the Second Arab–Israeli war, also called the Tripartite Aggression ( ar, العدوان الثلاثي, Al-ʿUdwān aṯ-Ṯulāṯiyy) in the Arab world and the Sinai War in Israel,Also known as the Suez War or 1956 Wa ...

in 1956. He went on to be

Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff The Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff (A.C.N.S.) is a senior appointment in the Royal Navy usually a two-star rank and has a NATO ranking code of OF-7. History The Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff was originally directly responsible to the Fir ...

in 1958, Flag Officer (Flotillas) for the Mediterranean Fleet in 1960 and

Flag Officer, Air (Home) A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes' ...

in 1961. He was appointed Commander-in-Chief, Far East Fleet in 1962: following the

Malayan Emergency The Malayan Emergency, also known as the Anti–British National Liberation War was a guerrilla war fought in British Malaya between communist pro-independence fighters of the Malayan National Liberation Army (MNLA) and the military forces ...

he co-ordinated Commonwealth naval forces in their successful resistance to

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Gui ...

n incursions into the newly formed

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Mal ...

. Dreyer became Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel in 1965. He was also Principal Naval Aide-de-camp to

the Queen In the English-speaking world, The Queen most commonly refers to: * Elizabeth II (1926–2022), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 1952 until her death The Queen may also refer to: * Camilla, Queen Consort (born 1947), ...

from 1965 to 1968. His last appointment was as Chief Advisor (Personnel and Logistics) to

Denis Healey Denis Winston Healey, Baron Healey, (30 August 1917 – 3 October 2015) was a British Labour politician who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1974 to 1979 and as Secretary of State for Defence from 1964 to 1970; he remains the longe ...

, the

Secretary of State for Defence The secretary of state for defence, also referred to as the defence secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the business of the Ministry of Defence. The incumbent is a membe ...

in 1967: he retired in 1968.

Later life

In retirement, Dreyer became a member of the Prices and Incomes Board and the Armed Forces' Pay Review Board. He was also Deputy Lieutenant of

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...

. From 1970 to 1971 he was Chairman of the Royal Navy Club of 1765 & 1785 (United 1889).Royal Navy Club of 1765 & 1785 (United 1889)
.

Family

In 1934, Dreyer married Elisabeth Chilton: they went on to have two sons and a daughter. In 1959, following his first wife's death, he married Majorie Whiteley.

References

, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Dreyer, Desmond 1910 births 2003 deaths British military personnel of the Suez Crisis Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Deputy Lieutenants of Hampshire Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) Royal Navy admirals Royal Navy officers of World War II People from Warwick