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 Michael Patrick Pollock, (19 October 1916 – 27 September 2006) was a senior officer in the

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 ...

who rose to become

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 the Naval Staff in the early 1970s. 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 ...

, he was an officer on ships tasked with protecting

convoy A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used ...

s in the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

and the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

, and was

gunnery officer The gunnery officer of a warship was the officer responsible for operation and maintenance of the ship's guns and for safe storage of the ship's ammunition inventory. Background The gunnery officer was usually the line officer next in rank to the ...

on 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 ...

when she fought the German

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 ...

''Scharnhorst'' during the Battle of North Cape. He later commanded 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 ...

, and hosted

Ian Smith Ian Douglas Smith (8 April 191920 November 2007) was a Rhodesian politician, farmer, and fighter pilot who served as Prime Minister of Rhodesia (known as Southern Rhodesia until October 1964 and now known as Zimbabwe) from 1964 to 1979. He w ...

on . In retirement, he held the position of King of Arms 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 ...

and Gloucester King of Arms, with responsibility for

heraldry Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, Imperial, royal and noble ranks, rank and genealo ...

in Wales.

Early career

Born the son of Charles Albert Pollock and Gladys Pollock (née Mason), Pollock was educated at the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth.People of Today 1994, Debrett, He joined the Royal Navy 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 ...

in 1930, and was posted to the training

HMS ''Frobisher'' in January 1934, receiving promotion to

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 September 1934, on transfer to the

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...

of the

Home Fleet The Home Fleet was a fleet of the Royal Navy that operated from the United Kingdom's territorial waters from 1902 with intervals until 1967. In 1967, it was merged with the Mediterranean Fleet creating the new Western Fleet. Before the First ...

.Heathcote, p. 212 He was deployed to the Mediterranean in 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 ...

HMS ''Express'' in September 1935 and saw service with her during the

Abyssinian crisis The Abyssinia Crisis, also known in Italy as the Walwal incident, was an international crisis in 1935 that originated in a dispute over the town of Walwal, which then turned into a conflict between Fascist Italy and the Ethiopian Empire (then com ...

. He was promoted sub-lieutenant on 1 May 1937, and appointed to the cruiser HMS ''York'', flagship of the

America and West Indies Station The North America and West Indies Station was a formation or command of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy stationed in North American waters from 1745 to 1956, with main bases at the Imperial fortresses of Bermuda and Halifax, Nova Scotia. The ...

in October 1937 and, 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 1 August 1938, he transferred to the battleship HMS ''Warspite'', based in

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 ...

in June 1939.Heathcote, p. 213

Second World War

Pollock served in the

, becoming first lieutenant of the old destroyer in October 1939, escorting shipping across the

English Channel The English Channel, also known as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busi ...

to supply the British Expeditionary Force in northern France, and protecting convoys in the eastern Atlantic Ocean. His ship was badly damaged by German aircraft off

Dover Dover ( ) is a town and major ferry port in Kent, southeast England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies southeast of Canterbury and east of Maidstone. ...

in July 1940. HMSNorfolk28Countyclasscruiser

Pollock joined the shore establishment HMS ''Excellent'' to train as a gunnery specialist in January 1941, and, having qualified, became a gunnery instructor there, but was then appointed gunnery officer on the light cruiser HMS ''Arethusa'' in

Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

, where he was involved in the struggle to get supplies to

. On 18 November 1942, taking part in Operation Stoneage, the mission which effectively relieved the siege of Malta, ''Arethusa'' was hit by a

torpedo bomber A torpedo bomber is a military aircraft designed primarily to attack ships with aerial torpedoes. Torpedo bombers came into existence just before the World War I, First World War almost as soon as aircraft were built that were capable of carryin ...

. A fuel tank caught fire, and over a quarter of the crew were killed. Despite severe damage and a rising gale, the ship was towed 450 miles back to Alexandria for repairs. Pollock 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 actions. Pollock was appointed gunnery officer on the heavy cruiser in October 1943, tasked with protecting convoys to and from north

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. Alerted by Enigma intercepts decoded at

Bletchley Park Bletchley Park is an English country house and Bletchley Park estate, estate in Bletchley, Milton Keynes (Buckinghamshire), that became the principal centre of Allies of World War II, Allied World War II cryptography, code-breaking during the S ...

, and assisted by

radar Radar is a system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), direction ( azimuth and elevation angles), and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It is a radiodetermination method used to detect and track ...

, his ship and fellow cruisers and twice intercepted ''Scharnhorst'' and its six accompanying destroyers when they attempted to attack two

Arctic convoys The Arctic convoys of World War II were oceangoing convoys which sailed from the United Kingdom, Iceland, and North America to northern ports in the Soviet Union – primarily Arkhangelsk (Archangel) and Murmansk in Russia. There were 78 convoys ...

( JW 55B travelling to and RA 55A travelling from

Murmansk Murmansk () is a port city and the administrative center of Murmansk Oblast in the far Far North (Russia), northwest part of Russia. It is the world's largest city north of the Arctic Circle and sits on both slopes and banks of a modest fjord, Ko ...

) in late December 1943. The 8-inch guns of ''Norfolk'' recorded two hits on ''Scharnhorst'', but ''Norfolk'' was damaged by return fire from Scharnhorst's 11-inch guns on 26 December. Pollock was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) for his actions. ''Scharnhorst'' was attacked by the battleship HMS ''Duke of York'' later that day and sunk, in the Royal Navy's last battleship action. He remained with ''Norfolk'' while she was repaired on the Tyne, and so missed

D-Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during the Second World War. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

, and was involved in further action off the coast of

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

. He was on ''Norfolk'', visiting Malta en route to the Far East, when the Japanese surrendered on 15 August 1945. In addition to the DSC, Pollock was mentioned in dispatches on two further occasions for his actions on ''Norfolk''.

Post-war naval career

After the war, Pollock was involved in actions by ''Norfolk'' to provide gunfire support against insurgents in the

Malayan Emergency The Malayan Emergency, also known as the Anti–British National Liberation War, was a guerrilla warfare, guerrilla war fought in Federation of Malaya, Malaya between communist pro-independence fighters of the Malayan National Liberation Arm ...

and also in

Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...

. He returned to HMS Excellent as a gunnery instructor in January 1946 and, having been promoted to lieutenant commander on 1 June 1946, became an application officer at the Admiralty Signals Research Establishment in August 1947. He became Fleet Gunnery Officer to the Commander-in-Chief, America and West Indies Station in October 1949. 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 30 June 1950, he became Commander (G) at the Chatham Gunnery School in November 1950 and helped organise the funeral of

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of In ...

, at which he was second-in-command of the naval contingent, in February 1952; it was in recognition of this that he was subsequently appointed a

Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order () is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of the ...

. He became Commander of the Junior Officers' War Course at the

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 September 1952 and second-in-command of the light cruiser , the flagship of the

Far East Fleet The Far East Fleet (also called the Far East Station) was a fleet of the Royal Navy from 1952 to 1971. During the Second World War, the Eastern Fleet included many ships and personnel from other navies, including the navies of the Netherlands, ...

, in June 1954.Heathcote, p. 214 In ''Newcastle'' he saw action in 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 ...

and then in the

. 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 30 June 1955, he became Assistant Director of Plans (Warfare) 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 ...

in January 1956 and then became as Captain (D) 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 well as Commanding Officer of the destroyer HMS ''Vigo'' in February 1958. After a tour as Director, Surface Weapons at the Admiralty's shore establishment at

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

commencing in January 1960, he was considered for command of the cruiser HMS ''Blake'', but instead was given command of the

HMS ''Ark Royal'' in January 1963. At this time HMS Ark Royal was carrying out the first trials of the Hawker P. 1127 which subsequently developed into the

Hawker Siddeley Harrier The Hawker Siddeley Harrier is a British jet-powered attack aircraft designed and produced by the British aerospace company Hawker Siddeley. It was the first operational ground attack and reconnaissance aircraft with vertical/short takeo ...

. He became Assistant Chief of Naval Staff in March 1964, with promotion 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 7 July 1964, in the lead up to a defence review by the Labour government which resulted in the

1966 Defence White Paper The 1966 Defence White Paper (Command Papers 2592 and 2901) was a major review of the United Kingdom's defence policy initiated by the Labour government under Prime Minister Harold Wilson. The review was led by the Secretary of State for Defence, ...

. He was appointed

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 ...

in the 1966

Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning monarch's official birthday in each realm by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are ...

. Pollock became second-in-command of the

in May 1966 with his flag in the cruiser HMS ''Tiger''. HMS Tiger became the location for the "Tiger talks" between Prime Minister

Harold Wilson James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx (11 March 1916 – 23 May 1995) was a British statesman and Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, from 1964 to 1970 and again from 197 ...

and the

UDI Udi may refer to: Places * Udi, Enugu, a local government areas and city in Nigeria * Udi Hills, Enugu State, Nigeria * Udi, a place in the Etawah district of Uttar Pradesh, India People Given name * Udi Aloni (born 1959), Israeli-American film ...

inclined premier

about the future of

Rhodesia Rhodesia ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state, unrecognised state in Southern Africa that existed from 1965 to 1979. Rhodesia served as the ''de facto'' Succession of states, successor state to the ...

. He led the Royal Navy delegations to the

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 ...

's centennial celebration of

Canadian Confederation Canadian Confederation () was the process by which three British North American provinces—the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick—were united into one federation, called the Name of Canada#Adoption of Dominion, Dominion of Ca ...

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and most populous municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the most populous municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of 2024, it is estimated that the population of the H ...

in 1967, and to

Expo 67 The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, commonly known as Expo 67, was a general exhibition from April 28 to October 29, 1967. It was a category one world's fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of the most s ...

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, Quebec. He was promoted

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 26 December 1967 on appointment as Flag Officer Submarines 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 Submarines in the Eastern Atlantic. He was in this post when the first

Polaris missile The UGM-27 Polaris missile was a two-stage solid-fuel rocket, solid-fueled nuclear warhead, nuclear-armed submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM). As the United States Navy's first SLBM, it served from 1961 to 1980. In the mid-1950s the Navy ...

was tested and the Faslane submarine base was developed. Advanced to

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 1969

, he became Third Sea Lord and Controller of the Navy in January 1970 and received promotion 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 21 April 1970. Admiral Sir Michael Le Fanu, the Chief of the Defence Staff-designate, retired suddenly due to ill health in late 1970. The new First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir Peter Hill-Norton, was promoted in Le Fanu's place, and Pollock, having been 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

1971 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1971 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced in supplements to the ''Lon ...

, was suddenly invited to replace Hill-Norton as First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff in March 1971. During Pollock's term as First Sea Lord, the Navy was involved in the "

Cod War The Cod Wars (; also known as , ; ) were a series of 20th-century confrontations between the United Kingdom (with aid from West Germany) and Iceland about Exclusive economic zone, fishing rights in the North Atlantic. Each of the disputes ended ...

" with

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

in 1972, the

1973 oil crisis In October 1973, the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) announced that it was implementing a total oil embargo against countries that had supported Israel at any point during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, which began after Eg ...

and deep cuts in defence expenditure. He was also involved in the decisions that led to the creation of the "through deck cruiser", which became the small s. Pollock was First and Principal Naval Aide de camp to the Queen from August 1972 to March 1974. Promoted to

on 1 March 1974, he retired that month.

Later life

In retirement Pollock was Chairman of the Naval Insurance Trust from 1975 to 1985. He was also King of Arms of the

and Gloucester King of Arms, with responsibility for

in Wales from 1976 to 1985. After he left the Navy, he lived in

Churchstoke Churchstoke (; also spelled as Church Stoke) is a village, community and electoral ward in Montgomeryshire, Powys, Wales. Located in the southeast of the Vale of Montgomery, it is overlooked by Todleth Hill, Roundton Hill and Corndon Hill. Th ...

Powys Powys ( , ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county and Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county in Wales. It borders Gwynedd, Denbighshire, and Wrexham County Borough, Wrexham to the north; the English Ceremonial counties of England, ceremo ...

. His interests included walking, shooting, fishing and local affairs in Powys. He died in

Martock Martock is a large village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Somerset, England. It is situated on the edge of the Somerset Levels, north-west of Yeovil in the South Somerset district. The parish includes Hurst, approximately one ...

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

on 27 September 2006.

Family

Pollock married Margaret (Peg) Steacy in 1940, and they had two sons and a daughter. His first wife died in 1951. He remarried in 1954, to Marjory (Midge) Reece (née Bisset), acquiring a stepdaughter. His second wife died in 2001. One of his sons became a lieutenant-commander in the Navy and his grandson, Barney Pollock, who also joined the Navy, passed out at Dartmouth in December 2004 with the Commandant Talbot prize for leadership and the Queen's Sword.

References

Sources

* , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Pollock, Michael 1916 births 2006 deaths British military personnel of the Malayan Emergency First Sea Lords and Chiefs of the Naval Staff Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Lieutenants of the Royal Victorian Order People from Altrincham Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) Royal Navy admirals of the fleet Royal Navy personnel of the Korean War Royal Navy officers of World War II Military personnel from Manchester Graduates of Britannia Royal Naval College