Geoffrey Bennett
   HOME

TheInfoList



Click Here for Items Related To - Geoffrey Bennett
OR:
Geoffrey Bennett on:   [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Amazon]

Captain Geoffrey Martin Bennett, (7 June 1909 – 5 September 1983), was a British
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 and author.


Career

Geoffrey Bennett was born in 1909 into a naval family, the son of Paymaster Rear-Admiral Martin Gilbert Bennett, OBE. He attended the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, and entered the service. After his promotion to Lieutenant he qualified as a signals specialist. He became Flag Lieutenant to a number of admirals. In
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 ...
he was first in
Freetown, Sierra Leone Freetown is the capital and largest city of Sierra Leone. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean and is located in the Western Area of the country. Freetown is Sierra Leone's major urban, economic, financial, cultural, educational and po ...
, and then served as signals officer
Force H Force H was a British naval formation during the Second World War. It was formed in 1940, to replace French naval power in the western Mediterranean removed by the French armistice with Nazi Germany. The force occupied an odd place within the ...
in the Mediterranean where he earned 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 1932 he married Rosemary Bechervaise, always known as "Bud", the daughter of a
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 ...
solicitor whose family originated in
Jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label=Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependencies, Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west F ...
. They had two sons, but after the war Rosemary had a serious mental breakdown which was to recur at intervals for the rest of her life. Bennett was promoted to Commander at the end of World War II. He captained HMS ''St Brides Bay'' in the
Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...
, and then served in the Admiralty at Bath. He was promoted to Captain at the beginning of 1953, and spent two years as naval attaché in
Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
, also covering
Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...
and
Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
where he alerted the Admiralty to the potential growth of the Soviet Navy. Retiring soon after his return to Britain, he joined the household of the
Lord Mayor of London The Lord Mayor of London is the mayor of the City of London and the leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded precedence over all individuals except the sovereign and retains various traditional powe ...
. In 1960 he became Secretary to the Lord Mayor of Westminster, where he became an authority on civic protocol.


Writing

Bennett always wrote, and was awarded the
Royal United Services Institution The Royal United Services Institute (RUSI, Rusi), registered as Royal United Service Institute for Defence and Security Studies and formerly the Royal United Services Institute for Defence Studies, is a British defence and security think tank. ...
gold medal for an essay three times. At the end of World War II he published his first novel ''Phantom Fleet'', a naval yarn, under the pseudonym "Sea Lion": as a serving officer he could not use his own name. Over the next two decades he produced about twenty such novels for both adults and children. He also wrote a number of radio plays for the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
, including several serials for ''
Children's Hour ''Children's Hour'', initially ''The Children's Hour'', was the BBC's principal recreational service for children (as distinct from "Broadcasts to Schools") which began during the period when radio was the only medium of broadcasting. ''Childre ...
'' which featured the adventures of two
midshipmen 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 ...
, "Tiger" Ransome and "Snort" Kenton. His novels included ''This Creeping Evil'', an
allegory As a literary device or artistic form, an allegory is a narrative or visual representation in which a character, place, or event can be interpreted to represent a hidden meaning with moral or political significance. Authors have used allegory th ...
; ''The
Diamond Rock Diamond Rock (french: rocher du Diamant) is a 175-metre-high (574 ft)Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...
near
Martinique Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in th ...
during the
Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...
and was based on a true incident; and ''The Quest of John Clare'', about a family cursed over generations. After retiring he took to naval history. He published studies of the main battles of both world wars and
Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...
; a biography of Admiral
Lord Charles Beresford Admiral Charles William de la Poer Beresford, 1st Baron Beresford, (10 February 1846 – 6 September 1919), styled Lord Charles Beresford between 1859 and 1916, was a British admiral and Member of Parliament. Beresford was the second son of J ...
, ''Charlie B''; and ''Cowan's War'', an account of the
British campaign in the Baltic (1918–19) British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
under Admiral Sir
Walter Cowan Admiral Sir Walter Henry Cowan, 1st Baronet, (11 June 1871 – 14 February 1956), known as Tich Cowan, was a Royal Navy officer who saw service in both the First and Second World Wars; in the latter he was one of the oldest British servicemen o ...
, which successfully thwarted
Soviet Russia The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Russian SFSR or RSFSR ( rus, Российская Советская Федеративная Социалистическая Республика, Rossíyskaya Sovétskaya Federatívnaya Soci ...
from seizing control of the three Baltic states,
Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
,
Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
and
Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
. He was elected a fellow of the
Royal Historical Society The Royal Historical Society, founded in 1868, is a learned society of the United Kingdom which advances scholarly studies of history. Origins The society was founded and received its royal charter in 1868. Until 1872 it was known as the Histori ...
. He was passionately fond of the theatre and music. On his return from the Soviet Union he gave two long talks on the
BBC Third Programme The BBC Third Programme was a national radio station produced and broadcast from 1946 until 1967, when it was replaced by Radio 3. It first went on the air on 29 September 1946 and quickly became one of the leading cultural and intellectual f ...
on the
Bolshoi Ballet The Bolshoi Ballet is an internationally renowned classical ballet company based at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, Russia. Founded in 1776, the Bolshoi is among the world's oldest ballet companies. In the early 20th century, it came to internatio ...
, which he had had opportunity to see in Moscow before they were well known outside the Soviet Union.


Retirement

Following his retirement, Bennett lived in
Ludlow Ludlow () is a market town in Shropshire, England. The town is significant in the history of the Welsh Marches and in relation to Wales. It is located south of Shrewsbury and north of Hereford, on the A49 road which bypasses the town. The t ...
, Shropshire, in a 17th-century cottage opposite a hotel where Nelson had once stayed. At the end of the 20th century there was renewed interest in his histories and most have been republished. ''Cowan's War'' was retitled ''Freeing the Baltic'' and has been translated into Estonian and Latvian. ''Charlie B'' has never been republished: it remains rare because the original publisher went out of business, and most copies were pulped. Bennett died in 1983. His wife, despite her health problems, outlived him by five years, dying in 1988. His ashes are buried in the churchyard of
St Laurence's Church, Ludlow St Laurence's Church, Ludlow, is a Church of England parish church in Ludlow, Shropshire, England. It is a grade I listed building. The church is a member of the Greater Churches Group and is the largest parish church in Shropshire. It was one o ...
. Details of his career may be found in ''Who Was Who'', and obituaries appeared in ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' and ''
Daily Telegraph Daily or The Daily may refer to: Journalism * Daily newspaper, newspaper issued on five to seven day of most weeks * ''The Daily'' (podcast), a podcast by ''The New York Times'' * ''The Daily'' (News Corporation), a defunct US-based iPad new ...
''. A collection of his papers relating to his writing career is held by the Caird Library at the
National Maritime Museum The National Maritime Museum (NMM) is a maritime museum in Greenwich, London. It is part of Royal Museums Greenwich, a network of museums in the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site. Like other publicly funded national museums in the United ...
in
Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...
, numbered MS 85/098 and MS 85/132.


Partial bibliography (histories)

* * * ** Republished as: —. (2001). ''Freeing the Baltic''. Edinburgh:
Birlinn The birlinn ( gd, bìrlinn) or West Highland galley was a wooden vessel propelled by sail and oar, used extensively in the Hebrides and West Highlands of Scotland from the Middle Ages on. Variants of the name in English and Lowland Scots inclu ...
. **Also translated into Estonian and Latvian. * **Also translated into German as ''Die Skagerrakschlacht'' **Also translated into Polish as ''Jutlandia 1916. Bitwa morska'' * (Copies of this are rare, as the original publisher went out of business shortly after publication and it has not been republished). * * * *


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bennett, Geoffrey 1909 births 1983 deaths British naval historians Fellows of the Royal Historical Society Graduates of Britannia Royal Naval College Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) Royal Navy officers of World War II British expatriates in the Soviet Union 20th-century British novelists 20th-century British historians British male novelists 20th-century British male writers 20th-century British writers