The Lord Lewin | |
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Admiral Sir Terence Lewin
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Born |
Dover, Kent |
19 November 1920
Died | 23 January 1999 Ufford, Suffolk |
(aged 78)
Allegiance | United Kingdom |
Service/branch | Royal Navy |
Years of service | 1939–1982 |
Rank | Admiral of the Fleet |
Commands held |
Chief of the Defence Staff First Sea Lord Naval Home Command Commander-in-Chief Fleet HMS Hermes HMS Tenby HMS Urchin HM Yacht Britannia HMS Corunna |
Battles/wars |
Second World War Falklands War |
Awards |
Knight of the Order of the Garter Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order Distinguished Service Cross Mentioned in Despatches (3) |
Admiral of the Fleet Terence Thornton Lewin, Baron Lewin, KG, GCB, LVO, DSC (19 November 1920 – 23 January 1999) was a Royal Navy officer. He served in the Second World War and then commanded a destroyer, the Royal yacht, two frigates and an aircraft carrier before achieving higher command. He was First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff in the late 1970s and in that role he worked hard to secure a decent wage for servicemen and helped win them a 32% pay rise. He went on to be Chief of the Defence Staff during the Falklands War, serving as chief war planner and as Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's chief advisor during the war. He was also the first Chief of Defence Staff to act as head of the Armed Forces rather than just Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee.
Born the son of Eric Lewin and Maggie Lewin (née Falconer) and educated at The Judd School in Tonbridge, where he was head prefect in 1938, Lewin joined the Royal Navy as a cadet in 1939. He was initially posted to the training ship HMS Vindictive but when the Second World War broke out in September 1939 he transferred to the cruiser HMS Belfast and then two months later to the battleship HMS Valiant.