Peter Gerald Charles Dickens DSO,

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

DSC DSC may refer to: Academia * Doctor of Science (D.Sc.) * District Selection Committee, an entrance exam in India * Doctor of Surgical Chiropody, superseded in the 1960s by Doctor of Podiatric Medicine Educational institutions * Dalton State Col ...

, RN (6 April 1917 – 25 May 1987) was a

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 during

World War II 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 ...

and a great-grandson of

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to ...

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...

Life and career

The son of

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

Gerald Charles Dickens Admiral Sir Gerald Louis Charles Dickens (13 October 1879 – 19 November 1962) was a senior Royal Navy officer and the grandson of Victorian novelist Charles Dickens. Early life and career Born in Kensington, London, Dickens was the son of ...

and Kathleen Pearl Birch, Peter Dickens was born in

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

in 1917. Dickens joined the

as a naval cadet in September 1934, being promoted to

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 ...

in May 1935, when he was serving aboard in the

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 ...

. Dickens was acting

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 ...

in September 1937 and sub-lieutenant in May 1938 while serving aboard 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 ...

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

.Dickens on Royal Navy Officers 1939-1945
/ref> In 1940 he took part in the evacuation from

Dunkirk Dunkirk (french: Dunkerque ; vls, label=French Flemish, Duunkerke; nl, Duinkerke(n) ; , ;) is a commune in the department of Nord in northern France.MTB 234 and the senior officer of 21st MTB Flotilla when, in August 1942, he was awarded the

for saving his mined ship through damage control, and 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) The Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) is a military decoration awarded to ...

in December 1942 for attacks on enemy shipping. In July 1943 he was awarded the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typ ...

for skillful and daring attacks "in enemy coastal waters". Dickens was the commanding officer of from April 1944 to July 1945 and was promoted to lieutenant commander on 20 March 1945 with seniority from 1 December 1944. He then transferred to the Staff of RN College, Eaton and later RN College, Dartmouth, where he served from July 1945 to 1948. Promotion to commander came in June 1947, and he served on the staff of the Commander-in-Chief, Far East Station, until April 1952 when he was appointed commanding officer of , and from 1953 to April 1954 of . From April 1955 to January 1956 he was based at , a shore establishment, and was promoted to captain in December 1955 before being appointed Assistant Deputy Chief of Staff (Plans), Allied Forces Mediterranean (NATO) at

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

from October 1956 to January 1957. He was a staff officer for

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

based at

İzmir İzmir ( , ; ), also spelled Izmir, is a metropolitan city in the western extremity of Anatolia, capital of the province of the same name. It is the third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara and the second largest urban agglo ...

from 1958 to 1959, and from 1959 to 1961 was the commanding officer of . Dickens was captain of

Chatham Dockyard Chatham Dockyard was a Royal Navy Dockyard located on the River Medway in Kent. Established in Chatham in the mid-16th century, the dockyard subsequently expanded into neighbouring Gillingham (at its most extensive, in the early 20th century, ...

and Queen's Harbour Master and chief staff officer to

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 ...

Beloe between March 1961 to February 1964, and served as naval aide-de-camp to

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

from July 1964 to January 1965. Peter Dickens was the president of the

Dickens Fellowship The Dickens Fellowship was founded in 1902, and is an international association of people from all walks of life who share an interest in the life and works of Victorian era novelist Charles Dickens. The Dickens Fellowship's head office is based ...

, a worldwide association of people who share an interest in the life and works of Charles Dickens, and was president of the Coastal Forces Association. With his wife, Mary Alice Blagrove (the daughter of Rear-Admiral Henry Blagrove), he is the grandfather of the actor

Harry Lloyd Harry Charles Salusbury Lloyd (born 17 November 1983) is an English actor. His performance in the Channel 4 miniseries '' The Fear'' (2012) earned him a British Academy Television Award nomination. He gained prominence through his roles as Will ...

and uncle to the actor/performer

.Dickens Family Tree website
Accessed 2 December 2022. Dickens died in 1987 at

Tunbridge Wells Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in Kent, England, southeast of central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the Weald, High Weald, whose sandstone geology is exemplified by the rock formation High Roc ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

Publications

*'HMS Hesperus' Profile Publications (1972) *'Night Action : MTB Flotilla at War' Bantam Books (1974) *'Narvik : Battles in the Fjords' Classics of Naval Literature. U.S. Naval Institute (1974) . *'SAS : the Jungle Frontier : 22 Special Air Service Regiment in the Borneo Campaign, 1963–1966' (1983)

Honours and awards

*19 July 1940 –

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 ...

– Lieutenant Peter Gerald Charles Dickens, Royal Navy – for ''naval operations off the coast of Norway''. *11 June 1942 –

– Lieutenant Peter Gerald Charles Dickens, Royal Navy – ''As Celebration of His Majesty's Birthday, for outstanding zeal, patience and cheerfulness, and for never failing to set an example of wholehearted devotion to duty, without which the high tradition of the Royal Navy could not be upheld.'' *11 August 1942 –

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

Lieutenant Peter Gerald Charles Dickens, Royal Navy – ''For bravery and devotion to duty''. *29 December 1942 –

– Lieutenant Peter Gerald Charles Dickens, M.B.E., Royal Navy – ''For courage and skill in attacks on enemy shipping off the French coast.'' *13 April 1943 –

– Lieutenant Peter Gerald Charles Dickens, M.B.E., D.S.C., Royal Navy – ''For good services in action against the enemy off the Dutch Coast''. *22 June 1943 –

– Lieutenant Peter Gerald Charles Dickens, M.B.E., D.S.C., Royal Navy – ''For bravery and skill in a successful attack of enemy shipping, while serving in light coastal forces''. *13 July 1943 –

Companion of the Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, ty ...

– Lieutenant Peter Gerald Charles Dickens, M.B.E., D.S.C., Royal Navy – ''For skill and daring in many successful attacks on enemy forces, made in enemy waters, while serving in light coastal craft.''

References

External links

Dickens's war service
in ''

Time Magazine ''Time'' (stylized in all caps) is an American news magazine based in New York City. For nearly a century, it was published weekly, but starting in March 2020 it transitioned to every other week. It was first published in New York City on Mar ...

''
Dickens on Royal Navy Officers 1939-1945
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dickens, Peter Gerald Charles 1917 births 1987 deaths Royal Navy officers of World War II Charles Dickens English people of Czech-Jewish descent Members of the Order of the British Empire Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) People from Fulham 20th-century English novelists

Life and career

Publications

Honours and awards

See also

References

External links