Vice Admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of Vice ...

Sir Benjamin Charles Stanley Martin (18 July 1891 – 3 June 1957) was a

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

officer who was the first boy from the Royal Naval Hospital School,

Greenwich Greenwich ( , , ) is an List of areas of London, area in south-east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London, east-south-east of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime hi ...

, to reach flag rank in the Royal Navy. He was also the first officer from the lower deck to become a

rear admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

on the active list in modern times and only the second, after Sir Thomas Spence Lyne, to achieve flag rank at all in the same period.

Naval career

Martin was born on 18 July 1891 to Benjamin S. Martin and Alice (née Gawn). His father, a Petty Officer (1st class), was killed during the accidental sinking of on 22 June 1893. He attended the Royal Naval Hospital School in Greenwich, graduating into the

in 1907 as boy sailor, first class. Promoted to warrant rank as gunner (torpedo) on 28 May 1915, the following year he served at the

Battle of Jutland The Battle of Jutland () was a naval battle between Britain's Royal Navy Grand Fleet, under Admiral John Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe, Sir John Jellicoe, and the Imperial German Navy's High Seas Fleet, under Vice-Admiral Reinhard Scheer, durin ...

in in the

5th Battle Squadron The 5th Battle Squadron was a squadron of the British Royal Navy consisting of battleships. The 5th Battle Squadron was initially part of the Royal Navy's Second Fleet. During the First World War, the Home Fleet was renamed the Grand Fleet. His ...

under Rear-Admiral Hugh Evan-Thomas. On 13 October 1916, Martin was commissioned as Mate, and following a short transfer to a

destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, maneuverable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy, or carrier battle group and defend them against a wide range of general threats. They were conceived i ...

he returned to ''Malaya''. After promotion to

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

on 13 May 1919, Martin served as torpedo officer in the cruisers and . In 1924, Martin was given his first command on , attached to , the Royal Navy torpedo school in

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

. Later Martin commanded the destroyers and . Following his promotion to

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 ...

on 30 June 1931, Martin take charge of HMS ''Voyager'' as a division leader in the

1st Destroyer Flotilla The 1st Destroyer Flotilla, also styled as the First Destroyer Flotilla, was a naval formation of the British Royal Navy from 1909 to 1940 and again from 1947 to 1951. History Pre-war history In May 1906, the First Destroyer Flotilla was at ...

in the Mediterranean. With promotion to the rank of captain on 30 June 1935, Martin commanded the sloop on the

China Station The Commander-in-Chief, China, was the admiral in command of what was usually known as the China Station, at once both a British Royal Navy naval formation and its admiral in command. It was created in 1865 and deactivated in 1941. From 1831 to 1 ...

. Two years later, Martin was in command of and the destroyer flotillas of the Reserve Fleet during the Coronation Naval Review (in 1937). After a spell at the

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong * Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral *Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings * Admiralty, Tra ...

, Martin took command of the cruiser .

Sinking of ''Bismarck''

As captain of ''Dorsetshire'', Martin was ordered in May 1941 to steam north from her convoy escort duties off

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

convoy to assist in the operations against the . After intercepting the damaged ''Bismarck'', ''Dorsetshire'' was ordered to attack the German battleship with torpedoes, which helped sink the battleship on 27 May. Martin was awarded a

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a Military awards and decorations, military award of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, awarded for operational gallantry for highly successful ...

for his actions. In 1942 Martin was appointed Commodore in Charge at

Durban Durban ( ; , from meaning "bay, lagoon") is the third-most populous city in South Africa, after Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the largest city in the Provinces of South Africa, province of KwaZulu-Natal. Situated on the east coast of South ...

, and received a CBE in the 1944 New Year honours. With his promotion to rear admiral on 7 July 1944, Martin became the first officer in 87 years to reach active flag rank having started on the lower decks. Shortly afterwards he was given command of the landing force aboard of the

Eastern Fleet Eastern or Easterns may refer to: Transportation Airlines *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai * Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 192 ...

in 1945. Martin retired from the Royal Navy and in recognition of his service he was awarded a KBE in June 1946. He was promoted to vice admiral on the retired list on 2 September 1948.

Awards and honours

* Mention in Despatches, Captain Benjamin Charles Stanley Martin, Royal Navy, 1 January 1941. * To be Companions of the Distinguished Service Order: Captain Benjamin Charles Stanley Martin, Royal Navy, H.M.S. Dorsetshire. * To be Additional Knights Commanders of the Military Division of the said Most Excellent Order, Rear-Admiral Benjamin Charles Stanley Martin, C.B.E., D.S.O, 7 June 1946.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Martin, Benjamin Charles Stanley 1891 births 1957 deaths Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Royal Navy admirals of World War II Military personnel from the Isle of Wight