Admiral of the Fleet An admiral of the fleet or shortened to fleet admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to field marshal and marshal of the air force. An admiral of the fleet is typically senior to an admiral. It is also a generic ter ...

Sir John Julian Robertson Oswald (11 August 1933 – 19 July 2011) 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. After training as a gunnery specialist, Oswald commanded a frigate and then a destroyer before achieving higher command in the navy. He served as

First Sea Lord First Sea Lord, officially known as First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff (1SL/CNS), is the title of a statutory position in the British Armed Forces, held by an Admiral (Royal Navy), admiral or a General (United Kingdom), general of the ...

and Chief of Naval Staff in the early 1990s. In that capacity he advised the British Government on the reduction in the size of the fleet under the

Options for Change Options for Change was a restructuring of the British Armed Forces in summer 1990 after the end of the Cold War. Until this point, UK military strategy had been almost entirely focused on defending Western Europe against the Soviet Armed Forces ...

restructuring programme and on the deployment of Naval Support for the

Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

in 1991: he also made the decision that members 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 ...

should be allowed to serve in Royal Navy ships.

Naval career

Oswald was born to Captain George Hamilton Oswald, RN and his wife Margaret Elliott Oswald (née Robertson). The Oswalds were a landed gentry family of Cavens,

Dumfries Dumfries ( ; ; from ) is a market town and former royal burgh in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, near the mouth of the River Nith on the Solway Firth, from the Anglo-Scottish border. Dumfries is the county town of the Counties of Scotland, ...

and

Auchincruive Auchincruive is a former country house and estate in South Ayrshire, Scotland. It is located east of Ayr, on the north bank of the River Ayr. Auchincruive House was built in the 18th century on the site of an earlier mansion. In 1927, the estat ...

(now named "Oswald Hall"),

South Ayrshire South Ayrshire (; , ) is one of thirty-two council areas of Scotland, covering the southern part of Ayrshire. It borders onto Dumfries and Galloway, East Ayrshire and North Ayrshire. South Ayrshire had an estimated population in 2021 of 112,45 ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, descending from merchant

George Oswald George Oswald of Scotstoun (1735–1819) was a Scottish merchant of Glasgow. In 1797 he was elected Rector of the University of Glasgow. Life He was the son of the Rev. James Oswald (1703–1793), and nephew of the merchant Richard Oswald (merc ...

Rector of the University of Glasgow The (Lord) Rector of the University of Glasgow is one of the most senior posts within the institution, elected every three years by students. The theoretical role of the rector is to represent students to the senior management of the university ...

from 1797 to 1799, Oswald was educated at

Beaudesert Park School Box is a small village in Gloucestershire, England. It is in the civil parish of Minchinhampton, and is located south of Stroud and west of Cirencester. Minchinhampton is about away and Nailsworth is about away. Box has a population of a ...

and the

Royal Naval College, Dartmouth Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family or royalty Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, ...

.''

Who's Who A Who's Who (or Who Is Who) is a reference work consisting of biographical entries of notable people in a particular field. The oldest and best-known is the annual publication ''Who's Who (UK), Who's Who'', a reference work on contemporary promin ...

2010'',

A & C Black A & C Black is a British book publishing company, owned since 2002 by Bloomsbury Publishing. The company is noted for publishing ''Who's Who'' since 1849 and the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' between 1827 and 1903. It offers a wide variety of boo ...

, 2010, He joined the

as a

cadet A cadet is a student or trainee within various organisations, primarily in military contexts where individuals undergo training to become commissioned officers. However, several civilian organisations, including civil aviation groups, maritime ...

on 1 May 1947.Heathcote, p. 203 During his early career he served in the

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 ...

HMS ''Devonshire'' and was commissioned 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 ...

on 1 January 1952. He then served in the

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 ...

HMS ''Vanguard'' and then the

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...

HMS ''Verulam''. Promoted to sub-lieutenant on 1 May 1953, he was posted to 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 February 1955. Promoted 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 1 June 1955, he subsequently served in the

HMS ''Newfoundland'' and then the

minesweeper A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping. History The earliest known usage of ...

. After qualifying in gunnery Oswald joined the aircraft carrier in 1960. He was given command of the minesweeper in April 1962 and was promoted to lieutenant commander on 1 June 1963. After attending the Royal Navy Staff College in 1964, he was posted to the shore establishment HMS ''Excellent'' at

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 ...

as Air Weapons Officer in 1965.Heathcote, p. 204 HMS ''Excellent'' maintains the gun carriage used for state funerals, and Oswald was the Funeral Gun Carriage Officer for the Funeral of

Sir Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

on 30 January 1965. He was posted to the frigate HMS ''Naiad'' in September 1966 and promoted 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 31 December 1968 on his appointment to the Directorate of Naval Plans at the

Ministry of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...

. Oswald was given command of the frigate HMS ''Bacchante'' in January 1971 and then joined the staff of the Assistant Chief of the Defence Staff at the Ministry of Defence in 1972. 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 ...

on 31 December 1973, he attended 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 1976 before being given command of the destroyer HMS ''Newcastle'' in January 1977 and joining the Royal Navy Presentation Team in 1979. He went on to be Captain of the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth in June 1980. He was appointed Aide-de-Camp to the Queen on 7 July 1982 and was promoted to

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 2 September 1982 on his appointment as Assistant Chief of the Defence Staff (Programmes). Oswald became Assistant Chief of the Defence Staff (Policy and Nuclear) in January 1985 and went on to become Flag Officer, Third Flotilla and Commander, Anti-Submarine Warfare Striking Fleet in October 1985. Promoted to

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 vic ...

on 3 January 1986, he was appointed 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 ...

in the 1987

New Year Honours The New Year Honours is a part of the British honours system, with New Year's Day, 1 January, being marked by naming new members of orders of chivalry and recipients of other official honours. A number of other Commonwealth realms also mark this ...

. He was promoted to full

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 ...

on 29 May 1987, on appointment as

Commander-in-Chief Fleet The Commander-in-Chief Fleet (CINCFLEET) was the admiral responsible for the operations of the ships, submarines and aircraft of the British Royal Navy from 1971 until April 2012. The post was subordinate to the First Sea Lord, the professional h ...

and

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 ...

Commander-in-Chief, Channel and Commander-in-Chief Eastern Atlantic. Advanced to

Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior military officers or senior civil servants, and the monarch awards it on the advice of His ...

in the 1989

, Oswald became

and Chief of the Naval Staff in May 1989. In that capacity he advised the British Government on the reduction in the size of the fleet under the

restructuring programme and on the deployment of Naval Support for the

in 1991: he also made the decision that members of the

should be allowed to serve in Royal Navy ships. He was promoted to

on his retirement in March 1993.

Later career

In retirement Oswald became Chairman of Aerosystems International and of

Sema Group Sema Group plc was an Anglo-French IT services company. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. It was acquired by Schlumberger in 2001. History The company was founded in 1988 by the merger of th ...

plc, an Information Technology business, until the latter was acquired in 2001. He was also President of the Sea Cadet Association, vice-president of the

Royal United Services Institute The Royal United Services Institute (RUSI, Rusi) is a defence and security think tank with its headquarters in London, United Kingdom. It was founded in 1831 by the Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, Duke of Wellington, Arthur Wellesley ...

and a Trustee of the

National Maritime Museum The National Maritime Museum (NMM) is a maritime museum in Greenwich, London. It is part of Royal Museums Greenwich, a network of museums in the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site. Like other publicly funded national museums in the Unit ...

. His interests included walking, stamp-collecting, family and fishing. He died at his home at

Shedfield Shedfield is a village and civil parish in the City of Winchester district of Hampshire, England. In the 2001 UK Census, Shedfield had a population of 3,914, falling to 3,842 at the 2011 Census. Shedfield parish includes the neighbouring vill ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

on 19 July 2011.

Family

In 1958 he married Veronica Thompson; they had two sons and three daughters. His nephew is the playwright

Peter Oswald Peter Charles Patrick Oswald (born 1965) is an English playwright specialising in verse drama. He was a resident at Shakespeare's Globe theatre in London from 1998 to 2009. Early life Oswald was born the second of four children (eldest of thr ...

.Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage, 107th edition, vol. 2, ed. Charles Mosley, Burke's Peerage Ltd, p. 1987

References

Sources

External links

Imperial War Museum Interview
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Oswald, Julian 1933 births 2011 deaths Graduates of the Royal College of Defence Studies Graduates of Britannia Royal Naval College Graduates of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich First Sea Lords and Chiefs of the Naval Staff Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath People educated at Beaudesert Park School Military personnel from Ross and Cromarty Royal Navy admirals of the fleet Royal Navy personnel of the Falklands War