Vice-Admiral Sir Ian Lachlan Mackay McGeoch, KCB, DSO, DSC (26 March 1914 – 12 August 2007) was a commissioned officer in the

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 ...

of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. He commanded the submarine HMS ''Splendid'' during the

Second World War 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 opposi ...

, and was later Flag Officer Submarines (FOSM) and

Flag Officer Scotland and Northern Ireland The Flag Officer Scotland and Northern Ireland (FOSNI) was a senior post in the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom. It was based at HMNB Clyde, HM Naval Base Clyde, and the holder of the post was the Royal Navy’s senior officer in Scotland. The ...

(FOSNI).

Early life

McGeoch was born in

Helensburgh Helensburgh (; gd, Baile Eilidh) is an affluent coastal town on the north side of the Firth of Clyde in Scotland, situated at the mouth of the Gareloch. Historically in Dunbartonshire, it became part of Argyll and Bute following local gove ...

, on the north shore of the

Firth of Clyde The Firth of Clyde is the mouth of the River Clyde. It is located on the west coast of Scotland and constitutes the deepest coastal waters in the British Isles (it is 164 metres deep at its deepest). The firth is sheltered from the Atlantic ...

. A burly figure, he was educated at Pangbourne Nautical College, and joined the Royal Navy in 1931 as a special entry cadet. From 1933, he served as a midshipman on the battleship HMS ''Royal Oak'',Obituary: Vice-Admiral Sir Ian McGeoch
The Times, 20 August 2007 then on the destroyer HMS ''Boadicea'', and then the

heavy cruiser The heavy cruiser was a type of cruiser, a naval warship designed for long range and high speed, armed generally with naval guns of roughly 203 mm (8 inches) in caliber, whose design parameters were dictated by the Washington Naval T ...

HMS ''Devonshire''. He volunteered to serve on submarines, and attended the course at HMS ''Dolphin'' in 1936. Promoted to lieutenant, he joined HMS ''Clyde'', based in

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

, as navigator and third hand.

Second World War

McGeoch was serving with HMS ''Clyde'' when the

broke out, returning to England in January 1940. He then served as 1st lieutenant (second-in-command) of the old H-class submarine , engaged in landing secret agents on Guernsey. He was appointed as second-in-command of the new submarine in July 1940, but was selected for the Commanding Officers' Qualifying Course before he saw active service. The course, still run, is known as the "perisher" due to its high failure rate, and that failure means an end to a career on submarines. He passed and was returned to the

10th Submarine Flotilla The 10th Submarine Flotilla was formed during the First World War. In January 1915 it was based on the Humber but by January 1917 it had relocated to the Tees. During the Second World War it was formed at Malta in January 1941 and comprised Royal N ...

on Malta as a "spare" commanding officer, to cover for illness or injury. McGeoch took command of on one patrol, but was not confident in his own abilities, so, unusually, elected to return to England to take the "perisher" a second time. He passed again, and took command of the new S-class submarine ''P228'', just launched at

Chatham Dockyard Chatham Dockyard was a Royal Navy Dockyard located on the River Medway in Kent. Established in Chatham in the mid-16th century, the dockyard subsequently expanded into neighbouring Gillingham (at its most extensive, in the early 20th century ...

on 13 January 1942. He and his brand new ship (named January 1943) were posted to

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

to take part in Operation Torch, and then back to Malta. HMS Splendid

From November 1942 to May 1943 (the Operation Torch landings to the defeat of Axis forces in North Africa), ''Splendid'' sank more tonnage on its six patrols than any other submarine. Lieutenant McGeoch was awarded the DSO after his fourth patrol, and the DSC after his fifth. Under McGeoch's command, ''Splendid'' sank the Italian auxiliary submarine chaser ''San Paolo'', the Italian merchants ''Luigi Favorita'', ''Devoli'', and ''XXI Aprile'', the small Italian merchant ''Commercio'', the Italian auxiliary minesweeper No. 107 / ''Cleopatra'', and the Italian tanker ''Giorgio''. ''Splendid'' also sank the Italian , escorting the German transport ship ''Ankara'' with her sister ship ''Camicia Nera'' - ''Splendid'' also attacked ''Ankara'', but missed her. ''Splendid'' also sank the Italian merchant ''Emma'', despite her being heavily escorted by the Italian torpedo boats , and . The German merchant ''Sienna'' (the former French ''Astrée'') was missed in the same attack. ''Splendid'' also torpedoed and damaged the Italian destroyer ''Velite''. ''Splendid'' left Malta for the last time on 17 April 1943. Her sixth patrol would take her to the waters off

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

and Corsica. Off Capri on 21 April 1943, she ran into the German destroyer ''Hermes'' (formerly the British-built ). ''Splendid''s

periscope A periscope is an instrument for observation over, around or through an object, obstacle or condition that prevents direct line-of-sight observation from an observer's current position. In its simplest form, it consists of an outer case with ...

was spotted in the calm conditions in the

Tyrrhenian Sea The Tyrrhenian Sea (; it, Mar Tirreno , french: Mer Tyrrhénienne , sc, Mare Tirrenu, co, Mari Tirrenu, scn, Mari Tirrenu, nap, Mare Tirreno) is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy. It is named for the Tyrrhenian pe ...

. Three accurately-dropped patterns of depth charges forced ''Splendid'' to the surface, where McGeoch ordered the crew to abandon ship and

scuttled Scuttling is the deliberate sinking of a ship. Scuttling may be performed to dispose of an abandoned, old, or captured vessel; to prevent the vessel from becoming a navigation hazard; as an act of self-destruction to prevent the ship from being ...

the vessel. Five officers, including McGeoch, and 25 ratings were picked up; 18 men were lost with the ship.Submarine losses 1904 to present day
, RN Submarine Museum, Gosport McGeoch suffered a wound to his right eye, and never recovered its sight. McGeoch and the other survivors from her crew became prisoners of war in Italy. Despite blindness in one eye, McGeoch nevertheless made several escape attempts. After the surrender of Fascist Italy in September 1943, he was able to walk out of the camp gate and travelled to Switzerland, where a metal fragment was removed from his sightless right eye. He travelled across occupied south France in December 1943 to Spain. He was interned in

Figueres Figueres (, ; , es, Figueras, ) is the capital of the ''comarca'' of Alt Empordà, in the province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain. The town is the birthplace of artist Salvador Dalí, and houses the Teatre-Museu Gala Salvador Dalí, a large museu ...

, but British diplomats arranged for his release to

, and he returned to England on the old battleship . His escape won him a

mention in dispatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

. Returning to duty, McGeoch attended the Naval Staff Course in 1944. Promoted to lieutenant commander, he became Staff Officer (Operations) for the

4th Cruiser Squadron The 4th Cruiser Squadron and (also known as Cruiser Force H) was a formation of cruisers of the British Royal Navy from 1907 to 1914 and then again from 1919 to 1946. The squadron was first established in 1907, replacing the North America and ...

in the

British Pacific Fleet The British Pacific Fleet (BPF) was a Royal Navy formation that saw action against Japan during the Second World War. The fleet was composed of empire naval vessels. The BPF formally came into being on 22 November 1944 from the remaining ships o ...

in the run up to the surrender of Japan on 2 September 1945.

Post-war career

After helping to repatriate British prisoners of war, he returned to the United Kingdom in 1946 to take command of the . Promoted to commander in 1947, he worked in operations in

the Admiralty The Admiralty was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom responsible for the command of the Royal Navy until 1964, historically under its titular head, the Lord High Admiral – one of the Great Officers of State. For much of it ...

, commanded the 4th Submarine Squadron in Sydney from 1949. Promoted to captain in 1955, he served as naval liaison officer to

RAF Coastal Command RAF Coastal Command was a formation within the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was founded in 1936, when the RAF was restructured into Fighter, Bomber and Coastal Commands and played an important role during the Second World War. Maritime Aviation ...

in 1955 and 1956, and commanded the 3rd Submarine Squadron in 1957 and 1958. He became Director of Undersurface Warfare in

for two years, then studied at the

Imperial Defence College The Royal College of Defence Studies (RCDS) instructs the most promising senior officers of the British Armed Forces, His Majesty's Diplomatic Service and Civil Service in national defence and international security matters at the highest level ...

in 1961. He commanded the cruiser from 1962 to 1964. Promoted to

rear-admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

in 1964, he became Admiral President of the

Royal Naval College, Greenwich The Royal Naval College, Greenwich, was a Royal Navy training establishment between 1873 and 1998, providing courses for naval officers. It was the home of the Royal Navy's staff college, which provided advanced training for officers. The equi ...

. He then served as Flag Officer Submarines (FOSM) from May 1965 to December 1967. During his time in this post, - the Royal Navy's second

nuclear attack submarine An SSN is a nuclear-powered general-purpose attack submarine. ''SSN'' is the US Navy hull classification symbol for such vessels; the ''SS'' denotes a submarine and the ''N'' denotes nuclear power. The designation SSN is used for interoperabili ...

(and the first all-British) - was launched, as was the first Polaris ballistic missile submarine, . Promoted to vice-admiral in 1967, he became

(FOSNI). He was appointed CB in 1966 and advanced to KCB in 1969. He retired in 1970.

Later life

He studied social sciences at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

from 1970, and received an MPhil in 1975 after the direction of historian Professor John Erickson, writing a thesis on the origins, procurement and effect of the Polaris programme. He edited the ''

Naval Review A fleet review or naval review is an event where a gathering of ships from a particular navy is paraded and reviewed by an incumbent head of state and/or other official civilian and military dignitaries. A number of national navies continue to ...

'' from 1972 to 1980. He worked with other senior officers, including General Sir John Hackett, on '' The Third World War: The Untold Story'' (1978 and 1982). He published a memoir of his wartime service, ''An Affair of Chances: a Submariner's Odyssey, 1939-44'' in 1991, and his biography of

Earl Mountbatten of Burma Earl Mountbatten of Burma is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 28 October 1947 for Rear Admiral Louis Mountbatten, 1st Viscount Mountbatten of Burma. The letters patent creating the title specified the following r ...

, entitled ''Earl Mountbatten, The Princely Sailor'', was published in 1996. He was a member of the

Royal Company of Archers The Royal Company of Archers, The King's Bodyguard for Scotland is a ceremonial unit that serves as the Sovereign's bodyguard in Scotland—a role it has performed since 1822 during the reign of King George IV when the company provided a per ...

(the Queen's Bodyguard in Scotland) from 1969 to 2003. He was also a member of Royal Institute of Navigation, the Nautical Institute, the

Honourable Company of Master Mariners The Honourable Company of Master Mariners is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. While the other Livery Companies are entitled to the style '' Worshipful'', the Master Mariners are styled ''Honourable'', King George V having gran ...

, and the

Royal Yacht Squadron The Royal Yacht Squadron (RYS) is a British yacht club. Its clubhouse is Cowes Castle on the Isle of Wight in the United Kingdom. Member yachts are given the suffix RYS to their names, and are permitted (with the appropriate warrant) to w ...

. He was a trustee of the Imperial War Museum. He married Eleanor Somers Farrie in 1937, the daughter of the Anglican vicar of

Sliema Sliema ( mt, Tas-Sliema ) is a town located on the northeast coast of Malta in the Northern Harbour District. It is a major residential and commercial area and a centre for shopping, bars, dining, and café life. It is also the most densely po ...

. They had two daughters and two sons. He died on 12 August 2007 and was survived by his wife and children.

References

External links

Obituary, ''The Times'', 20 August 2007Obituary, ''The Daily Telegraph'', 17 August 2007Obituary, ''The Independent'', 25 August 2007Imperial War Museum Interview
, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:McGeoch, Ian 1914 births 2007 deaths People from Helensburgh Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Royal Navy vice admirals Royal Navy submarine commanders Royal Navy officers of World War II Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Admiral presidents of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich Members of the Royal Company of Archers British World War II prisoners of war World War II prisoners of war held by Italy