Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

Sir Guy Herbrand Edward Russell, (14 April 1898 – 25 September 1977) was a senior

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. He served as Commander-in-Chief, Far East Fleet from 1951 to 1953 during the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

Second Sea Lord The Second Sea Lord and Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff (formerly Second Sea Lord) is deputy to the First Sea Lord and the second highest-ranking officer currently to serve in the Royal Navy and is responsible for personnel and naval shore estab ...

from 1953 to 1955, and Commandant of the Imperial Defence College from 1956 until his retirement in 1958.

Early life

Born on 14 April 1899 in

St George Hanover Square St George Hanover Square was a Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the metropolitan area of London, England. The creation of the parish accompanied the building of the St George's, Hanover Square, Church of St George's, Hanover Square, ...

, London, Russell was the second son of Oliver Russell, 2nd Baron Ampthill, and his wife

Margaret Margaret is a feminine given name, which means "pearl". It is of Latin origin, via Ancient Greek and ultimately from Iranian languages, Old Iranian. It has been an English language, English name since the 11th century, and remained popular thro ...

.The Peerage.com
/ref> Educated at Stonehouse School, Russell entered the

in 1911Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
/ref> and attended the Royal Naval College, Osborne and Dartmouth.

Naval career

During the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Russell went to sea as a

midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest Military rank#Subordinate/student officer, rank in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Royal Cana ...

aboard , which supported the Dardanelles landings. He would later serve aboard during 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 ...

, and was

mentioned in despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches) 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 of t ...

for his war service. Russell saw service on a variety of ships,

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 ...

cruiser A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several operational roles from search-and-destroy to ocean escort to sea ...

battleship A battleship is a large, heavily naval armour, armored warship with a main battery consisting of large naval gun, guns, designed to serve as a capital ship. From their advent in the late 1880s, battleships were among the largest and most form ...

s, shore training establishments, and on the staff of the Commander-in-Chief Mediterranean, before his relatively early 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 ...

in 1931. This well-rounded record was combined with a reputation for adaptiveness and innovation. He completed the naval staff course at

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 ...

in 1931 and became

executive officer An executive officer is a person who is principally responsible for leading all or part of an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization. In many militaries and police forces, an executive officer ...

of , flagship of the Mediterranean fleet under Sir William Fisher. Russell continued to excel in this position, and was promoted to

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

in 1936. After further studies at the Imperial Defence College, Russell became Assistant Director of Plans in 1938. LaToucheBissetAndRussell

On the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Russell first commanded the net layer , and then the cruiser . In late 1941, Russell became naval liaison officer to the

Governor of Gibraltar The governor of Gibraltar is the representative of the British monarch in the British overseas territories, British overseas territory of Gibraltar. The governor is appointed by the monarch on the advice of the British government. The role of ...

, Viscount Gort, and subsequently followed Gort to

Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...

as his chief of staff. After the relief of the island by Operation Stone Age, Russell would move on to command and then , flagship of the Home Fleet. It was under his command that ''Duke of York'' sank the ''Scharnhorst'' at the Battle of North Cape, and he was awarded the

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 ...

as a result, having already been twice mentioned in despatches during the war. A year later, he was appointed to a staff position, naval assistant to the

, and promoted

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 ...

in 1945. He was made a

Commander of 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 ...

in 1943. Russell returned to the Imperial Defence College from 1946 until 1948, was appointed a

Companion of the Order of the Bath Companion may refer to: Relationships Currently * Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance * A domestic partner, akin to a spouse * Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach * Companion (caregiving), a caregi ...

that year, and then spent a year commanding the

2nd Cruiser Squadron The 2nd Cruiser Squadron was a formation of cruisers of the British Royal Navy from 1904 to 1919 and from 1921 to 1941 and again from 1946 to 1952. History First formation The 2nd Cruiser Squadron was first formed in December, 1904 then placed ...

of Home Fleet, earning the respect of the then Commander-in-Chief, Sir Rhoderick McGrigor. Admiral Commanding, Reserves until 1951, he was then appointed Commander-in-Chief, Far East Fleet and made a

Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior British Armed Forces, military officers or senior Civil Service ...

. He served on that station until 1953, taking part in the

, and was promoted

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

in 1952. Returning from the Far East, he was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire and served as Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel until 1955. Russell's acute intelligence and bluff but kindly manner, combined with his broad experience, served him well in this position. He was Commandant of the Imperial Defence College from 1956 until his retirement in 1958.

Later life

After retiring, Russell devoted himself to education and the training of young people, at Wellington College, Cranleigh School, Gordon Boys' School, and Radley College. An excellent oarsman (like his father), avid golfer and good shot, he died at his home in Wisborough Green in 1977.

Family

He married (Helen) Elizabeth Blades, daughter of Rowland Blades, 1st Baron Ebbisham, in 1939. They had two sons and a daughter: * Dr. James Rowland Russell (28 March 1940 – 2 March 2015) married and left children. * Oliver Henry Russell (b. 7 May 1942) married to Clare Macpherson-Grant, cookbook author, and has children. The elder son has assumed his mother's family name. * Margaret Elizabeth Russell (b. 11 October 1945) married and has children.

References

* , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, Guy Herbrand Edward 1898 births 1977 deaths Graduates of Britannia Royal Naval College Graduates of the Royal College of Defence Studies Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Graduates of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire Lords of the Admiralty Royal Navy admirals of World War II Royal Navy personnel of the Korean War Royal Navy officers of World War I Guy Younger sons of barons People educated at the Royal Naval College, Osborne People from Wisborough Green Military personnel from the City of Westminster