Kenneth Dewar
| Kenneth Gilbert Balmain Dewar | |
|---|---|
Vice-Admiral Kenneth Dewar
(as a Captain) |
|
| Born | 21 September 1879 |
| Died | 8 September 1964 (aged 84) |
| Allegiance |
 United Kingdom |
| Service/branch |
 Royal Navy
|
| Years of service | 1893–1929 |
| Rank | Vice-Admiral |
| Commands held | HM Gunnery School, Devonport HMS Roberts, HMS Calcutta HMS Cape Town, HMS Royal Oak HMS Tiger, HMS Iron Duke |
| Battles/wars | |
| Awards | Commander of the Order of the British Empire |
| Relations | Rear-Admiral Alan Ramsay Dewar, RN Captain Alfred Charles Dewar, RN |
 "Syncopated discipline recital on the Royal Oak"The "Mutiny" Courts-martial were both criticised and satirised in the press, as exemplified by this Evening Standard cartoon by David Low |
Vice-Admiral Kenneth Gilbert Balmain Dewar, CBE, RN (21 September 1879 – 8 September 1964) was an officer of the Royal Navy. After specialising as a gunnery officer, Dewar became a staff officer and a controversial student of naval tactics before seeing extensive service during the First World War. He served in the Dardanelles Campaign and commanded a monitor in home waters before serving at the Admiralty for more than four years of staff duty. After the war ended he became embroiled in the controversy surrounding the consequences of the Battle of Jutland. Despite this, he held a variety of commands during the 1920s.
In 1928 he was at the heart of the "Royal Oak Mutiny", when as Captain of the battleship Royal Oak he forwarded his executive officer's letter of complaint about their immediate superior, Rear-Admiral Collard, to higher authority. This came in the wake of a series of incidents aboard ship. All three men were ordered back to Britain, and Dewar and his executive officer requested Courts-martial so that they might defend themselves. The trials were held in Gibraltar and garnered widespread media coverage.
Dewar, though found partially guilty, survived with a severe reprimand. His executive officer was found guilty and resigned, while Collard was compelled to resign his commission for provoking the situation. Having then commanded successively the two oldest capital ships in the fleet, Dewar retired on promotion to Rear-Admiral. His memoirs, published as The Navy from Within in 1939, were a vitriolic indictment of the Navy's practices.
Dewar was born in Queensferry on 21 September 1879, the son of Dr. James and Mrs. Flora Dewar. In July, 1893 he was nominated as a naval cadet, passed the entrance examination and joined the training ship Britannia, where he studied for two years. Two of his brothers joined the navy; Alfred Charles (born 1876) who was promoted to Captain on the Retired List and was appointed Head of the Historical Section of the Naval Staff, and Alan Ramsay (born 1887) who achieved Flag Rank in 1938. Dewar performed so well in Britannia, that upon graduation, he was appointed Midshipman straight away, which normally required a year's service at sea and passing an examination. He joined the protected cruiser Hawke on 20 August 1895. The following year he was appointed to the battleship Magnificent on 30 October 1896. Promoted Acting Sub-Lieutenant, Dewar was confirmed in that rank and promoted to Lieutenant on 8 March 1900. Upon promotion he was posted to the Devonport destroyer Osprey on 15 March. On 12 June he was appointed to the torpedo-boat destroyer Fervent.
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