Commandant Commandant ( or ; ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ...

Anthea Larken

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(born 1938) served as Director of the

Women's Royal Naval Service The Women's Royal Naval Service (WRNS; popularly and officially known as the Wrens) was the women's branch of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy. First formed in 1917 for the World War I, First World War, it was disbanded in 1919, then revived in ...

(WRNS) between 1988-1991, while also acting as aide-de-camp to Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

. Larken has since served as president of the

Not Forgotten Association The Not Forgotten Association (known as 'The Not Forgotten') is a British Armed Forces registered charity for serving and ex-servicemen and women that operates throughout the United Kingdom. The Not Forgotten combats isolation and loneliness in the ...

and the Association of Wrens. President, TS Dreadnought, Greenwich SCC

Naval career

Anthea Larken was born in 1938, and joined the

(WRNS) in 1956. Her initial role was as a range assessor, and became a photographic interpreter five years later. After a further four years, she was posted as a

staff officer A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, enlisted, and civilian staff who serve the commander of a division or other large milita ...

to the

Singapore Naval Base His Majesty's Naval Base, Singapore, also Her Majesty's Naval Base, Singapore (HMNB Singapore), alternatively known as the Singapore Naval Base, Sembawang Naval Base and HMS Sembawang, was situated in Sembawang at the northern tip of Singapore ...

in 1964. In 1967, Larken became a secretarial officer, and in 1976 became the officer in charge of the WRNS officer training programme at the

Britannia Royal Naval College Britannia Royal Naval College Dartmouth, also known as Dartmouth, is the naval academy of the United Kingdom and the initial officer training establishment of the Royal Navy. It is located on a hill overlooking the port of Dartmouth, Devon, En ...

Dartmouth, Devon Dartmouth () is a town and civil parish in the England, English county of Devon. It is a tourist destination set on the western bank of the estuary of the River Dart, which is a long narrow tidal ria that runs inland as far as Totnes. It lies w ...

. In 1981, she joined the Military Agency for Standardisation in

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

, and in 1985 became the chief services officer to the flag officer at

HMNB Devonport His Majesty's Naval Base, Devonport (HMNB Devonport) is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy (the others being HMNB Clyde and HMNB Portsmouth) and is the sole nuclear repair and refuelling facility for the Roya ...

. Larken joined the

Royal College of Defence Studies 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 leve ...

in 1987, before becoming the Director of the WRNS between 1988-1991. At the same time, she also held the position of aide-de-camp to Queen

. Larken was an advocate of the opinion that WRNS should be able to go to sea on Royal Navy warships, ever since she visited the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

and

Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; , ''MRC'') is the Navy, naval force of Canada. The navy is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of February 2024, the RCN operates 12 s, 12 s, 4 s, 4 s, 8 s, and several auxiliary ...

in the late 1970s. While Larken was Director of the WRNS, in 1990 women went to sea for the first time on HMS ''Brilliant''. In 1992, she was promoted to

. At the end of her service as Director, Larken was named to the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

as a

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

. The WRNS were merged into the Royal Navy in November 1993, with Larken remaining Director and Company Secretary for the Operational Command Training Organisation, a post she held until 1996.

In retirement

Larken was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Laws by the

University of Greenwich The University of Greenwich is a public university located in London and Kent, United Kingdom. Previous names include Woolwich Polytechnic and Thames Polytechnic. The university's main campus is at the Old Royal Naval College, which along wi ...

in 2000. By 2012, she was president of the

. Larken later became President of the Association of Wrens.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Larken, Anthea Living people 1938 births Graduates of the Royal College of Defence Studies Women's Royal Naval Service officers Commanders of the Order of the British Empire