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 William Richard Scott Thomas, (22 March 1932 – 13 December 1998) 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 and the Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod (or simply

Black Rod The usher of the Black Rod is an official in the parliaments of several countries of the Commonwealth of Nations. The title is often shortened to Black Rod, and in some countries, formally known as Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod or Lady Usher ...

) in the British Parliament's

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

from January 1992 to 8 May 1995.

Naval career

Educated at

Downside School Downside School (formally The College of St Gregory the Great, Downside but simply referred to as Downside) is an 11–18 mixed, Roman Catholic, independent, day and boarding school in Stratton-on-the-Fosse, Somerset, England. It was establish ...

, Thomas joined the

in 1951.Obituary, The Independent, 21 December 1998
/ref> He was given command 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 ...

in 1966. He went on to be Staff Officer Operations to the Flag Officer, Scotland and Northern Ireland and saw action in the

Second 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 fishing rights in the North Atlantic. Each of the disputes ended with an Icelandic victo ...

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 ...

, he took part in

Polaris Polaris is a star in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Minor. It is designated α Ursae Minoris (Latinisation of names, Latinized to ''Alpha Ursae Minoris'') and is commonly called the North Star or Pole Star. With an ...

development 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 ...

before being given command of the assault ship . He went on to be Director of Seaman Officers' Appointments in 1982,

Naval Secretary The Naval Secretary is the Royal Navy officer who advises the First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff on naval officer appointing (and General Officers). Their counterpart in the British Army is the Military Secretary. The Royal Air Force equi ...

in 1983 and Flag Officer, Second Flotilla in 1985. Promoted to vice admiral, he became Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic at

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...

, in 1987 and the UK Military Representative to NATO from 1989 to 1992, when he retired from the Royal Navy. In retirement Thomas became Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod. Amongst other honours, he was awarded a papal knighthood in the

Order of Pope Pius IX The Order of Pope Pius IX (), also referred as the Pian Order (, ), is a papal order of knighthood originally founded by Pope Pius IV in 1560. It is the highest honor currently conferred by the Holy See (two higher honors, the Supreme Order of C ...

Family

Thomas was born on 22 March 1932 in

Rhyl Rhyl (; , ) is a seaside town and community in Denbighshire in Wales. The town lies on the coast of North Wales, at the mouth of the River Clwyd. To the west is Kinmel Bay and Towyn, to the east Prestatyn, and to the south-east Rhuddlan ...

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

, the son of Mary Hilda Bertha "Maimie" (née Hemelryk) and Commander William Scott Thomas (who commanded during the Second World War) and brother of Lieutenant Commander Simon Scott Thomas. In 1959, he married Paddy Cullinan; they had 8 children. He was the uncle of actresses

Kristin Scott Thomas Dame Kristin Ann Scott Thomas (born 24 May 1960) is a British actress. A five-time BAFTA Award and Olivier Award nominee, she won the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for ''Four Weddings and a Funeral'' (1994) and the Olivi ...

and

Serena Scott Thomas Serena Harriet Scott Thomas (born 21 September 1961) is an English actress and documentary producer. Her television roles include Diana, Princess of Wales in '' Diana: Her True Story'' in 1993. Her film appearances include ''The World Is Not Eno ...

(the "Scott" portion of their last names coming from another British naval officer, Captain Robert F. Scott, the ill-fated explorer of the South Pole).On the move: Kristin Scott Thomas
The Times, 10 June 2007

References

, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Richard 1932 births 1998 deaths Royal Navy admirals Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Knights Commander of the Royal Victorian Order Officers of the Order of the British Empire People educated at Downside School Ushers of the Black Rod Welsh military personnel People from Rhyl