When the Operations Branch was established in 1974, the Gunnery Branch officially disappeared from the Royal Navy. Gunnery training was dispersed away from HMS EXCELLENT, which became the centre for Naval General Training. In 1981, a feeling had arisen between Gunnery Officers, notably Admiral Sir David Williams, that in view of Whale Island's new role, the responsibility for arranging the Annual Reunion Dinner should no longer lie with the Captain of HMS EXCELLENT. In October 1981, an ad hoc Committee was convened by Captain John Wells, who proposed to Admiral Williams that an Association be formed of Gunnery and Ordnance Engineer Officers, qualified by Long Course, and how it might function. In January 1982 Admiral Williams wrote to all those addresses were known, asking for their support.
The response from both serving and retired officers was distinctly encouraging, on 1 October 1982, the Inaugural Meeting of the Saint Barbara Association agreed the rules, and a life subscription of £10 was set. Admiral Williams, who had headed the Steering Committee throughout the year, was elected Chairman and presided over the dinner that followed. The Steering Committee was elected as the Association Committee.
The following day, Admiral Williams handed over the Chairmanship to Vice Admiral Sir John Forbes. At the second Annual General Meeting on 22 June 1984, the Chairman reported a healthy membership of 500 spread over the United Kingdom and the old Commonwealth.
It was soon realised that, if the Association was to have a long-term future, there had to be an infusion of new blood. Discussions with the Captain of HMS DRYAD, the School of Maritime Operations, who had conducted a survey of Above Water Warfare Officers, showed that a majority were in favour of joining.
In view of this, and the uncertain future of HMS EXCELLENT, the Captain of HMS DRYAD issued a formal invitation to the Association to hold all future functions in HMS DRYAD, the home of Warfare Officers. This was gratefully accepted and in April 1985 the first Reunion Dinner was held in HMS DRYAD, which became the Association's headquarters. Significant proportions of the membership are now Principal Warfare Officers of the Above Water Warfare specialisation: the post of Commander (A) at HMS DRYAD being a standing Committee member.
Meanwhile, in view of the imminent closure of HMS EXCELLENT, members of the Association Committee had spent over a year making an inventory of all the mementoes, trophies, pictures and artefacts held in HMS EXCELLENT and recommended their subsequent disposal. There were over 1400 items on the list. When, on 30 September 1985, the White Ensign was formally hauled down, for what was expected to be the last time, HMS EXCELLENT was formally closed and Whale Island became an accommodation unit of HMS NELSON.
After some years in the wilderness, either Saint Barbara or fate intervened, because Whale Island was chosen to be the site of the new NBCD & Firefighting School, resulting from the Falklands Campaign lessons. Major redevelopment was approved and, on 18 March 1994, HMS EXCELLENT was recommissioned as the Royal Navy's Centre for Naval General Training, with expectations of a long-term future.
The 1985 inventory then became indispensable because many items had been returned to the RN trophy store and reissued to other establishments. Most of these have since returned to HMS EXCELLENT or their location established for future reference. The statuette of Saint Barbara is held in HMS EXCELLENT, for Reunion Dinners, familiar silver trophies make their appearance, and the port is passed in silver wheeled gun carriages to the strains of "Braganza".
Late 2000, the Saint Barbara Association membership was 883, including members residing in Australia (81), New Zealand (7), Canada (13), USA (11), and 9 in various other far flung countries.
In 1904, a member of the Lieutenant's Gunnery Long Course discovered that Saint Barbara was the Patron Saint of Artillerists, and, after considerable research, found a picture of the Saint in Saint Mark's Cathedral, Venice. The members of the course decided to commission a silver statuette based on the picture, which they presented to the Wardroom in Whale Island. So began the Association of the Saint with all Gunnery and Ordnance Long course Officers who qualified in HMS EXCELLENT.
On 21 June 1934, the Bishop of Portsmouth dedicated the Church of Saint Barbara in HMS EXCELLENT. It was closed in 1985 for some years, and reopened on 18 March 1994 as a shared church.
Saint Barbara is a mythical figure - there is no reference to her in authentic early historical authorities for Christian antiquity. The first written reference to her is in the Golden Fleece and her legend seems to date from the Seventh Century, after which it was embroidered upon in the martyrologies composed in Western Europe during the ninth Century.
It is related that Barbara was the daughter of a rich heathen named Dioscorus, who kept her shut up in a tower to preserve her from the outside world. She rejected an offer of marriage, which was received through him. There are various versions as to what happened when her father was away on a journey - but basically she had a third window inserted into her bathroom, which was either in the tower or in an adjoining bath house and she may have let a priest into the tower, who baptised her. The end result was that, when her father returned, she told him that she was now a Christian and that she had had the third window built to represent the Trinity. Her father was enraged, but she managed to escape into the mountains where a shepherd betrayed her (his sheep were subsequently changed to locusts). She was dragged before the Roman Prefect of the Province, Martinianus, who had her tortured, and as she would not give up her faith she was sentenced to death. Her father himself carried out the death sentence, being struck by lightning and consumed by fire as he did so.
Her martyrdom in the Church of Rome took place somewhere between AD 245 and AD 303, in a place unknown, but there is a temple dedicated to Saint. Barbara at Heliopolis.
There are several different versions of the legend and all indicate how popular Saint Barbara was. Basically, she was the Saint for those who faced sudden death, be it by explosion, fire or the sea. As well as befriending artillerists, miners and firemen Saint Barbara is also the Patron Saint of the Italian Navy and all seamen in Italy. In Greek and recent Roman calendars, Saint Barbara's day falls on 4 December and is still celebrated officially by the Italian Navy and at sailors' memorials throughout Italy.
Saint Barbara is often depicted in art. She may be displayed with any combination of her three windowed tower, carrying the palm of a martyr in her hand, holding a chalice and wafer (implying the giving of the last sacrament) or with peacock feathers (the symbol of immortality). A cannon is shown at her feet and she is, sometimes, in the company of Saint George. The Saint Barbara Association members' tie depicts a three windowed tower, in gold, on a background of navy blue.