Cosmo Bowyer Hastings
Commander Cosmo Bowyer Hastings, O.B.E. (19 April, 1887 – 14 November, 1955) was an officer in the Royal Navy.
Life & Career
Born in Chigwell the son of W. T. Hastings, Hastings gained three months time on passing out of Britannia on 15 January, 1904. His first appointment in Cornwallis was just four months long, as he was invalided with Mediterranean Fever. After three months, he was ready for his next appointment, to Swiftsure of the Home Fleet.
Hastings was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant on 15 April, 1909. On 1 May 1909 he was appointed to Mercury for work with submarines. However, on 21 July he was admitted to Haslar Hospital with gonorrhea. He was discharged on 30 November at his own request and withdrew from the submarine service.[1]
Hastings was appointed to Fox, additional, for command of an armed launch Masbona (?) on the East Indies station from 26 January, 1910 to April, 1911. Though his evaluations later in his career would be less dismal, he did not impress Fox's Captain Allen Thomas Hunt, whose parting evaluation of the Lieutenant was: "Tired." A Commander Lefroy offered that Hastings was "thoroughly wanting in initiative & resource." Hastings arrived home in the S.S. Malwa on 24 February, 1912 and was given seven days extra leave on account of his having been employed in the suppression of arms traffic in the Persian Gulf. Thereafter, he was in the barracks at Devonport where he remained until late in 1913.[2]
On 10 December, 1913, Hastings was appointed to the destroyer Paragon. He would serve in her until being appointed in command of the first-class torpedo boat T.B. 5 on 14 November, 1914.[3]
Hastings was admitted to Haslar on 4 May 1915 with catarrh. He was fit on 8 May.
Hastings was admitted to Haslar on 4 March 1916 with kidney stones. He was fit on 11 March.
On 18 June, 1916 Hastings was appointed in command of the sweeping sloop Poppy.
Hastings was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-Commander on 15 April, 1917.[4]
On 15 September, 1917, Hastings in Poppy helped salve S.S. Idomeneus, which had been torpedoed by U 67 north of Ireland. This pleased the Admiralty enough to prompt an expression of appreciation.[5]
On 11 May, 1918 Hastings was appointed in command of the sweeping sloop Silvio.
Hastings was mentioned in despatches for his work in convoy sloops during 1917.[6]
Post-War
Hastings enjoyed a 10 day command of Clio before being tasked with taking H.M.S. Andromache home to England on 29 August, 1919, completing the journey on 13 September.
On 27 July, 1920, Hastings was appointed in command of the gunboat Gnat.[7]
Hastings was promoted to the rank of Commander on 31 December, 1921.[8]
In 1924, Hastings was lent to the Royal Canadian Navy and sent to serve as Supervising Intelligence Officer in Ottawa. Hastings was working there when he was diagnosed with depression psychosis later in the year. He was sent back to England early and was placed on the Retired List as medically unfit on 28 September, 1925.[9]
World War II
In 1940, Hastings was made Naval Officer in Charge, Poole.
Hastings was awarded an O.B.E. for his work in the planning operations that culminated in the Normandy invasion.
See Also
| Naval Appointments | ||
| Preceded by Owen C. Hare |
Captain of H.M. T.B. 5 14 Nov, 1914[10][11][12] – 18 Jun, 1916[13] |
Succeeded by James C. N. MacMillan |
| Preceded by Edward A. Digby |
Captain of H.M.S. Poppy 18 Jun, 1916[14][15] – 11 May, 1918[16] |
Succeeded by Robert S. Hulme-Goodier |
| Preceded by ? |
Captain of H.M.S. Silvio 11 May, 1918[17] – 19 Aug, 1919[18][19] |
Succeeded by John A. Edgell as Captain of H.M.A.S. Moresby |
| Preceded by Vernon S. Rashleigh |
Captain of H.M.S. Clio 19 Aug, 1919[20] – 29 Aug, 1919[21] |
Succeeded by Charles H. Jones |
| Preceded by Charles T. Borrett |
Captain of H.M.S. Andromache 29 Aug, 1919[22] – 13 Sep, 1919[23] |
Succeeded by ? |
| Preceded by George F. A. Mulock |
Captain of H.M.S. Bee 6 Jan, 1920[24][25] – 11 May, 1920[26] |
Succeeded by Gerald L. Hodson |
| Preceded by Gerald L. Hodson |
Captain of H.M.S. Gnat 27 Jul, 1920[27] |
Succeeded by Charles K. Adam |
| Preceded by James R. C. Cavendish |
Captain of H.M.S. Gibraltar 7 Apr, 1923[28] – 23 Apr, 1923[29] |
Succeeded by ? |
Footnotes
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ The Navy List. (January, 1921). p. 781.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ "Naval Appointments." The Times (London, England), 17 Nov. 1914, p. 5.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ The Navy List. (October, 1915). p. 400.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ The Navy List. (August, 1917). p. 396m.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ The Navy List. (July, 1919). p. 907.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ The Navy List. (June, 1920). p. 737.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ The Navy List. (January, 1921). p. 781.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
- ↑ Hastings Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/116. f. 124.
