John Bernard Hughes
Captain (retired) John Bernard Hughes, (2 May, 1888 – c. 1965) served in the Royal Navy.
Life & Career
The son of Reverend W. C. Hughes, M.A., a rector in Cheshire.[1]
Hughes was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant on 15 October, 1908.[2]
Hughes was appointed to Aboukir as gunnery officer on 1 August, 1914. He survived her sinking on 22 September.
Appointed as Lieutenant (G) in Prince Rupert on 1 May, 1915.[3]
Hughes was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-Commander on 15 October, 1916.[4]
He served as gunnery officer in Bellerophon from 16 July, 1918 to 14 February, 1919. He then spent a month as first and gunnery officer in Erebus before being placed in the flotilla leader Spenser as gunnery officer, and to provide gunnery oversight to the flotilla.[5]
Hughes was promoted to the rank of Commander on 30 June, 1921.[6]
In 1923, he was thanked for his zeal and ingenuity in connection with the design of the Mark VIII Dumaresq.[7] It is not clear just when he contributed this work, and whether it impacted the early use of this device, which seems to have been before mid-1917.[8]
In 1932, Vice-Admiral Commanding, Reserve Fleet proposed cancelling Hughes's appointment as Cdr. (D), Devonport, owing to previous unsatisfactory performance with the Reserve Fleet. It was decided that Hughes was to be subject to a special report every three months, and that unfavourable findings might result in his removal. One such report by Captain Reyne in January 1933 indicated that Hughes was more zealous than before and was delivering good work.[9]
Hughes was placed on the Retired List at his own request at the rank of Captain on 2 May, 1934.[10]
World War II
Hughes fulfilled a variety of appointments, including Forth in command and as Maintenance Captain, Falmouth. He reverted to the Retired List on 27 August, 1945.[11]
Suffering from pneumonia at Royal Naval Hospital, Plymouth, he was placed on the seriously ill list 15 August, 1950 and moved to his home address.[12]
I cannot find record of his death, but details of his will's settlement appear in The Times in April, 1965. He left on the order of £12,000 in total, directing some of the estate toward the Meavy Parish Church and the "Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts."[13]
See Also
- Service Records
- The Live Bait Squadron Archives features some correspondence from Hughes in the aftermath of Aboukir's loss
Bibliography
| Naval Appointments | ||
| Preceded by John H. K. Clegg |
Captain of H.M.S. Bee 24 Aug, 1925[14] |
Succeeded by Colin A. G. Hutchison |
| Preceded by Henry V. Hudson |
Captain of H.M.S. Chrysanthemum 12 Oct, 1928 |
Succeeded by Neville D. B. Taylor |
| Preceded by W. E. Campbell Tait |
Captain of H.M.S. Capetown 19 Dec, 1929[15] – 26 Sep, 1932 |
Succeeded by John N. Pelly |
Footnotes
- ↑ Hughes Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/180. f. 181.
- ↑ The Navy List. (October, 1915). p. 61i.
- ↑ The Navy List. (October, 1915). p. 397d.
- ↑ The Navy List. (December, 1918). p. 96.
- ↑ Hughes Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/180. f. 181.
- ↑ Hughes Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/180. f. 181.
- ↑ Hughes Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/180. f. 181.
- ↑ N.B.: one seems to have been found in the sunk wreckage of H.M.S. Vanguard.
- ↑ Hughes Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/180. f. 181.
- ↑ Hughes Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/180. f. 181.
- ↑ Hughes Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/180. f. 181.
- ↑ Hughes Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51/180. f. 181.
- ↑ "Latest Wills." The Times (London, England), 7 Apr. 1965, p. 14.
- ↑ The Navy List. (February, 1926). p. 217.
- ↑ The Navy List. (July, 1931). p. 221.
