Charles Forbes (Royal Navy officer)
| Sir Charles Forbes | |
|---|---|
Admiral of the Fleet Sir Charles Forbes
|
|
| Born | 22 November 1880 Colombo, Ceylon |
| Died |
28 August 1960 (aged 79) Queen Alexandra's Military Hospital, London |
| Allegiance |
 United Kingdom
|
| Service/branch |
 Royal Navy
|
| Years of service | 1894–1943 |
| Rank | Admiral of the Fleet |
| Commands held |
HMS Galatea HMS Queen Elizabeth HMS Iron Duke 1st Battle Squadron Home Fleet Plymouth Command |
| Battles/wars |
World War I World War II |
| Awards |
Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Distinguished Service Order |
Admiral of the Fleet Sir Charles Morton Forbes GCB DSO (22 November 1880 – 28 August 1960) was a Royal Navy officer. He served in the First World War seeing action in the Dardanelles Campaign and at the Battle of Jutland and, as captain of a cruiser, was present at the surrender of the German fleet. During the Second World War he served initially as Commander-in-Chief, Home Fleet: his fleet suffered heavy losses including the aircraft carrier HMS Glorious and nine destroyers during the Norwegian Campaign in Spring 1940. He went on to be Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth in May 1941 and in that capacity he organised the defence of Plymouth from air attack, prosecuted attacks on enemy shipping using the harbour at Brest as well as other ports along the French coast, and also initiated the St Nazaire Raid in March 1942 before retiring in August 1943.
Born the son of James Forbes and Caroline Forbes (née Delmege), Forbes was educated at Dollar Academy and Eastman's Royal Naval Academy. He joined the training ship HMS Britannia as a cadet on 15 July 1894. He was promoted to midshipman on 15 July 1896 and posted to the battleship HMS Magnificent in the Channel Fleet in September 1896 and to the armoured cruiser HMS Imperieuse on the Pacific Station in January 1898. Promoted to acting sub-lieutenant on 15 January 1900, he returned to the United Kingdom for his promotion courses. Promoted to lieutenant on 15 January 1901, he was appointed to the battleship HMS Royal Oak in the Mediterranean Fleet.
...
Wikipedia