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 ...

Herbert Sharples Rayner

DSC DSC or Dsc may refer to: Education * Doctor of Science (D.Sc.) * District Selection Committee, an entrance exam in India * Doctor of Surgical Chiropody, superseded in the 1960s by Doctor of Podiatric Medicine Educational institutions * Dyal Sin ...

& Bar, CD (16 January 1911 – 30 May 1976) was a

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 ...

officer who served as Chief of the Naval Staff from 1 August 1960 to 16 July 1964.

Career

Herbert Sharples Rayner joined the Royal Canadian Navy in 1928.Rayner, Herbert Sharples
The Nauticapedia He served in 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 ...

as Commanding Officer of the

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 ...

and then of the destroyer HMCS ''St. Laurent'' during 1940, as Staff Officer Operations to the Commander Atlantic Coast from 1942 and as Commanding Officer of the destroyer from 1943 before becoming Director of Plans in 1944. He was awarded the

Distinguished Service Cross The Distinguished Service Cross (D.S.C.) is a military decoration for courage. Different versions exist for different countries. *Distinguished Service Cross (Australia) *Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) *Distinguished Service Cross (U ...

for "courage and enterprise in action against enemy submarines in the Western Approaches" and a bar to his DSC for an action "against four German destroyers trying to break through to attack the Allied invasion fleet off Normandy".Herbert Rayner
Home from the War He went on to be Commanding Officer of the destroyer in 1946, Commanding Officer of the Naval Air Section at the shore establishment HMCS ''Stadacona'' in 1947 and Commandant of the Canadian Services College Royal Roads in 1948. After that he became Secretary to the Chiefs of Staff Committee in 1950, Commanding Officer of the

aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and hangar facilities for supporting, arming, deploying and recovering carrier-based aircraft, shipborne aircraft. Typically it is the ...

in 1953 and Naval Assistant to the Chief of the Naval Staff 1955. His last appointments were as Chief of Naval Personnel in 1955, Commander

Maritime Forces Pacific In the Canadian Armed Forces, Maritime Forces Pacific (MARPAC, ) is responsible for the fleet training and operational readiness of the Royal Canadian Navy in the Pacific Ocean. It was once referred to as Canadian Pacific Station. The commander ...

in 1957 and as Chief of the Naval Staff from 1960 until retiring in 1964.

Awards and decorations

Rayner's personal awards and decorations include the following:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rayner, Herbert Canadian admirals Canadian recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) Canadian military personnel of World War II 1911 births 1976 deaths Commanders of the Royal Canadian Navy Canadian military personnel from Ontario