Dudley Rawson Stratford de Chair

Admiral SIR Dudley Rawson Stratford de Chair, K.C.B., K.C.M.G., M.V.O., Royal Navy (30 August, 1864 – 17 August, 1958) was an officer of the Royal Navy.

Life & Career

In his memoirs de Chair gave his account of the end of his tenure as Vice-Admiral Commanding the Third Battle Squadron:

A few days later, after Jellicoe had been so unjustly dismissed, and while my flagship was still coaling, I received an urgent telegram from Wemyss to go to the Admiralty. On arrival I was greeted warmly by him, but I was still boiling over with indignation about Jellicoe's dismissal, and the way Wemyss had betrayed him. When Wemyss began talking of filling vacancies at the Admiralty, and asked me to take one of the posts on the Board of Admiralty vacated by one of the admirals who had resigned in consequence of Jellicoe's dismissal, I told him that I would not and could not take and post at the Admiralty, as I felt so keenly the disgraceful manner in which Jellicoe had been treated. I added that I was surprised that any naval officer on the Board of Admiralty could remain there, as it looked as if they condoned this action of Jellicoe's dismissal. In fact, I expressed myself forcibly, and let myself go, and left him after a scene which did me no good and had disastrous results, in so far that, shortly afterwards I was relieved of my command and put on half-pay—and that in war-time, when I might have been of use afloat, as I was essentially a sea officer.

Bibliography

• "Adm. Sir Dudley de Chair" (Obituaries). The Times. Tuesday, 19 August, 1958. Issue 54233, col D, pg. 10.
• Clune, David; Griffith, Gareth (2006). Decision and Deliberation: The Parliament of New South Wales 1856-2003. Sydney: The Federation Press. ISBN 1-86287-591-X.
• de Chair, Admiral Sir Dudley (1961). The Sea is Strong. London: George G. Harrap & Co. Ltd..

Papers

• Private Papers in the possession of the Imperial War Museum

Service Records

• ADM 196/20
• ADM 196/42