Bertram Sutton Evans (17 December 1872 — 2 March 1919) was an English first-class

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

er and Royal Navy officer. He was commissioned into the Royal Navy from the Britannia Royal Naval College. Evans would hold a number of commands throughout his career, which was not without controversy, with him being reprimanded by 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, Tr ...

on three occasions. He would see action in the First World War and was present at the Battle of the Falkland Islands commanding the

armed merchant cruiser An armed merchantman is a merchant ship equipped with guns, usually for defensive purposes, either by design or after the fact. In the days of sail, piracy and privateers, many merchantmen would be routinely armed, especially those engaging in lo ...

. In addition to his naval career, Evans was also a first-class cricketer, representing Hampshire on five occasions between 1900 and 1909.

Life and naval career

The son of assistant-master at

Charterhouse School (God having given, I gave) , established = , closed = , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , president ...

, he was born in school grounds in December 1872. Evans attended the Britannia Royal Naval College, entering in 1886. After graduating, he was confirmed in the rank of

sub-lieutenant Sub-lieutenant is usually a junior officer rank, used in armies, navies and air forces. In most armies, sub-lieutenant is the lowest officer rank. However, in Brazil, it is the highest non-commissioned rank, and in Spain, it is the second high ...

in May 1893, antedated to February 1892. He was promoted to lieutenant in June 1894 and was lieutenant in command of as part of the Portsmouth instructional flotilla until she paid off at Portsmouth on 31 December 1900, and on the following day he and the crew transferred to . It was in 1900, that Evans made his debut in first-class cricket for Hampshire, with him playing two matches in the County Championship against Warwickshire and

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

at Portsmouth. He had previously played minor matches for the Royal Navy and the United Services. It was noted by '' Wisden'' that his cricket was restricted by his naval career. Evans was promoted to

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

in June 1905. In September 1902, he was posted to the Naval School of Telegraphy at for a signals course, and from 12 November 1902 he was posted as first lieutenant on the

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on her first commission, to the

Mediterranean Fleet The British Mediterranean Fleet, also known as the Mediterranean Station, was a formation of the Royal Navy. The Fleet was one of the most prestigious commands in the navy for the majority of its history, defending the vital sea link between t ...

. He resumed playing first-class cricket for Hampshire in 1909, making three appearances, which included playing against the touring Australians at Southampton. In five first-class matches, he scored 67 runs at an average of 11.16, with a highest score of 18 not out. In January 1910, he was placed in command of at Cape of Good Hope Station. He was appointed a Fourth Class Member of the Royal Victorian Order in January 1911, in recognition of his role in the visit to South Africa by the Duke of Connaught, who opened the

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at Cape Town in November 1910; upon the opening, ''Pandora'', commanded by Evans, fired a salute. Evans was the subject of a number of reprimands during his naval career. The first of these happened in early 1912, when he was chastised after a bad gun layer's test on ''Pandora'' manifested a "want of supervision of training and organisation for war disclosed in report." He was returned to the United Kingdom aboard to explain himself before the

, sending a letter of explanation ahead. It was the view of the Admiralty that the explanation offered in the letter did not fully exonerate him. Despite this, he was placed in command of in July 1912, however this appointment was superseded in August by his attendance of a war course which ran until December 1912. Evans was promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

in June 1913, and was appointed in command of . Only a matter of months into his command, Evans was reprimanded by the

Sea Lords This is a list of Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty (incomplete before the Restoration, 1660). The Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty were the members of The Board of Admiralty, which exercised the office of Lord High Admiral when it was n ...

for the "unsatisfactory manner in which he performed executive duties in ''Europa''." As a result, he was placed on half-pay for twelve months. Evans served in the First World War, being appointed captain of the

in August 1914. The ship later took part in the Battle of the Falkland Islands on 8 December 1914. From March 1917, he commanded the battleship , until she returned to the United Kingdom and paid off in July 1917 at Portsmouth to provide crews for anti-submarine vessels. From April 1918, he was appointed to command . In October 1918, there was a

mutiny Mutiny is a revolt among a group of people (typically of a military, of a crew or of a crew of pirates) to oppose, change, or overthrow an organization to which they were previously loyal. The term is commonly used for a rebellion among member ...

of sorts aboard the ship when large numbers of her crew disembarked without orders; Evans was adjudged to have been to blame for the incident and was relieved of his command two months later. After a period commanding the naval base at Moudros, he was reappointed as captain of ''Europa'' in January 1919; however, whilst undertaking his journey to the ship to take command, Evans was afflicted by Spanish flu and succumbed to the disease at a Paris hospital on 2 March 1919. He is buried at the City of Paris Cemetery.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Bertram 1872 births 1919 deaths People from Godalming Cricketers from Surrey Military personnel from Surrey Graduates of Britannia Royal Naval College Royal Navy officers English cricketers Hampshire cricketers Members of the Royal Victorian Order Royal Navy officers of World War I Deaths from the Spanish flu pandemic in France 19th-century Royal Navy personnel Royal Navy captains