Robert Atkinson (businessman)
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Sir Robert Atkinson DSC & Two Bars |
|
|---|---|
| Chairman of British Shipbuilders | |
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In office 1980–1984 |
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| Preceded by | Sir Anthony Griffin |
| Succeeded by | Sir Graham Day |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 7 March 1916 |
| Died | 25 January 2015 (aged 98) |
| Citizenship | United Kingdom |
| Nationality | British |
| Spouse(s) |
Joyce Forster (m. 1941–73) Margaret Hazel Walker (m. 1977–2015) |
| Alma mater | University of London |
| Civilian awards | Knight Bachelor (1983) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service/branch | Royal Navy |
| Years of service | 1939?–1946 |
| Military awards | Distinguished Service Cross (3) |
Sir Robert Atkinson, DSC & Two Bars (7 March 1916 – 25 January 2015) was a British businessman and decorated Royal Navy officer. He served in the Royal Navy during World War II and was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross three times. Later, he was a businessman involved in shipbuilding and served as Chairman of British Shipbuilders from 1980 to 1984.
Atkinson was born on 7 March 1916 in Tynemouth, England. He was one of three sons born to Nicholas Ridley Atkinson, a civil engineer with the Tynemouth Improvement Commission, and his wife Margaret. He was educated at a grammar school, and then studied engineering at the University of London.
His older brother was The Reverend Canon Professor James Atkinson, who was a Church of England priest and academic specialising in Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation. His other brother died in March 1943 with the sinking of a merchant ship on which he was serving. It had been torpedoed and Robert was close enough to his brother's vessel to hear its distress signal over his ship's radio but not close enough to reach it before it sank.
Following the completion of his university degree, Atkinson joined the Royal Naval Reserve. He was promoted from acting sub-lieutenant to sub lieutenant on 13 August 1939. His first command was a requisitioned private yacht, 'HMS 'Lorna, which he sailed from the United Kingdom to Gibraltar. From there, he was to conduct irregular operations in the Mediterranean Sea. One such operation was the seizure of an Italian tanker carrying aviation fuel, which he then sailed back to the UK. He later described the act, committed against a country that had yet to enter World War II, as 'pure act of piracy'. On 23 September 1940, he was promoted to lieutenant and granted seniority in that rank from 1 May 1940.
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