Difference between revisions of "John Blyth Falls"

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Lieutenant-Commander John Blyth Falls, (3 May, 1892 – 19 March, 1934) served in the Royal Navy.

Life & Career

The son of a J.[?] Falls, J.P..^[1]

When war broke out, Falls was serving in the destroyer Staunch. He was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant on 15 January, 1915. On 5 February, he was appointed to the scout cruiser Patrol. He fell sick on 17 June and left the ship. On 23 June, he was appointed to the destroyer Laverock. Although his Service Record appears a bit jumbled and states that he commanded Racehorse for a few days in September 1916, he also spent some of his time in Moorsom before being superseded on 8 December, 1916.^[2]

In 1918, Falls lost a book, perhaps C.B. 1183 S, a "German Navy Book". He was informed by Rear-Admiral Commanding, First Light Cruiser Squadron that insufficient care had been taken to account for secret books. He was apparently acquitted at Court Martial.^[3]

Falls was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-Commander on 15 January, 1923.^[4]

In 1927, he was found, as commanding officer, to be borrowing money from the officer's steward in Splendid. His explanation for the affairs and his plans to repay the money were accepted, grudgingly. He was warned to exercise more caution and judgement in future.^[5]

Falls was appointed to the light cruiser Cleopatra in early 1929 for a trooping trip. On 15 November 1929, he was tried by Court Martial in H.M.S. Cleopatra on charges that included being drunk on board and using provocative speech. Both charges were proved, and he was dismissed from Cleopatra and severely reprimanded. His evaluations from this time echo the qualities that would explain these findings.^[6]

Falls was placed on the Retired List at his own request on 21 January, 1930. In 1932, it was decided that he was not to be promoted to Commander on the Retired List.^[7]

See Also

Bibliography

Footnotes