20-667: Captain Bernard Armitage Warburton Warburton-Lee , VC (13 September 1895 – 10 April 1940) was a senior officer in the Royal Navy and a posthumous recipient of the Victoria Cross , the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Warburton-Lee attended the British Army 's Staff College, Camberley , from 1931 to 1932, where Brian Horrocks , later
40-462: A lieutenant general and a corps commander, was among his fellow students. Horrocks wrote that it "was the practice for a naval officer to join the course for the final year, and our sailor turned out to be that remarkable all-rounder Warburton-Lee who won the V.C. at Narvik". In 1936, due to the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War and because there was fear of social unrest in the naval station,
60-619: A staff. Formerly equivalent to the Army rank of major , a commander is now equivalent in rank to a lieutenant colonel in the British Army or a wing commander in the Royal Air Force . The rank of wing commander was derived from the naval rank of commander via the usage in the World War ;I Royal Naval Air Service . The rank insignia of a commander features three rings of gold braid with
80-466: Is a senior officer rank of the Royal Navy . It ranks above commander and below commodore and has a NATO ranking code of OF-5. The rank is equivalent to a colonel in the British Army and Royal Marines , and to a group captain in the Royal Air Force . There are similarly named equivalent ranks in the navies of many other countries. In the Royal Navy, the officer in command of any warship of
100-615: The First Battle of Narvik , Captain Warburton-Lee of HMS Hardy commanded the British 2nd Destroyer Flotilla , consisting of five destroyers (HMS Hardy , Havock , Hostile , Hotspur and Hunter ), in a surprise attack on German destroyers and merchant ships in a blinding snowstorm. This attack was successful, but was almost immediately followed by an engagement with five more German destroyers, during which Captain Warburton-Lee
120-703: The Foreign Office in London organized a ship to repatriate the remaining British citizens and on 22 July 1936 HMS Witch , captained by Warburton-Lee, departed from Ferrol in northwestern Spain for Britain. Warburton-Lee was 44 years old and a captain when the following action took place during the Second World War , for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross . On 10 April 1940 in Ofotfjord in Narvik , Norway, in
140-479: The United Kingdom . It is immediately junior to captain and immediately senior to the rank of lieutenant commander . Officers holding the junior rank of lieutenant commander are not considered to be commanders. The title (originally 'master and commander') originated in around 1670 to describe Royal Navy officers who commanded ships of war too large to be commanded by a lieutenant, but too small to warrant
160-634: The Norwegian War Cross . Bernard Warburton-Lee's VC citation reads as follows: For gallantry, enterprise and daring in command of the force engaged in the First Battle of Narvik, on 10th April, 1940. On being ordered to carry out an attack on Narvik, Captain Warburton-Lee learned that the enemy was holding the place in much greater force than had been thought. He signalled to the Admiralty that six German destroyers and one submarine were there, that
180-400: The assignment of a post-captain , or (before about 1770) a sailing-master who was in charge of a ship's navigation. These ships were usually unrated sloops-of-war of no more than 20 guns, fireships , hospital ships and store ships. The commanding officer of this type of ship was responsible for both sailing and fighting the ship and was thus its 'master and commander'. Before 1750,
200-484: The channel might be mined, and that he intended to attack at dawn. The Admiralty replied that he alone could judge whether to attack, and that whatever decision he made would have full support. Captain Warburton led his flotilla of five destroyers up the fjord in heavy snow-storms, arriving off Narvik just after daybreak. He took the enemy completely by surprise and made three successful attacks on warships and merchantmen in
220-626: The harbour. As the flotilla withdrew, five enemy destroyers of superior gunpower were encountered and engaged. The captain was mortally wounded by a shell which hit the bridge of H.M.S. Hardy . His last signal was "Continue to engage the enemy". This was the first VC to be gazetted in the Second World War. Warburton-Lee married Elizabeth Campbell Swinton, the daughter of Captain George Swinton of Kimmerghame (see Clan Swinton ), on 9 October 1924. Captain (Royal Navy) Captain ( Capt )
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#1733085207066240-592: The more junior Army and Royal Marines rank , and in naval contexts, as a "four-ring captain" (referring to the uniform lace) to avoid confusion with the title of a seagoing commanding officer. In the Ministry of Defence , and in joint service establishments, a captain may be referred to as a "DACOS" (standing for deputy assistant chief of staff) or an "AH" (assistant head), from the usual job title of OF5-ranked individuals who work with civil servants. The rank insignia features four rings of gold braid with an executive curl in
260-452: The rank of commander and below is informally referred to as "the captain" on board, even though holding a junior rank, but formally is titled "the commanding officer" (or CO). Until the nineteenth century, Royal Navy officers who were captains by rank and in command of a naval vessel were referred to as post-captains ; this practice is now defunct. Captain (D) or Captain Destroyers, afloat,
280-556: The rank of master and commander, with the intention of establishing seniority as a guide to promotion, but there is little evidence that this carried through into actual appointments. Over the later 18th century, the rank evolved into a more regular stage of service between lieutenant and captain. The Royal Navy shortened 'master and commander' to 'commander' in 1794; however, the term 'master and commander' remained (unofficially) in common parlance for several years. The term 'master commanding' (abbreviated as 'master com.' or 'mast. com.')
300-479: The rank was broadly considered as the limit of advancement for those without patronage , especially those who had been promoted from among a ship's crew. By contrast, those with Parliamentary supporters or family connections were more likely to spend only a nominal period as master and commander of a sloop, before being elevated to post-captain. From 1718, the Navy List began recording an officer's date of appointment to
320-400: The upper ring. When in mess dress or mess undress, officers of the rank of captain and above wear gold-laced trousers (the trousers are known as "tin trousers", and the gold lace stripes thereon are nicknamed "lightning conductors"), and may wear the undress tailcoat (without epaulettes). Commander (Royal Navy) Commander ( Cdr ) is a senior officer rank of the Royal Navy of
340-613: Was addressed from 1827 with the introduction of commanders as a second-in-command on larger vessels. In the 20th and 21st centuries, the rank has been assigned the NATO rank code of OF-4, matching the army rank of lieutenant colonel . A commander in the Royal Navy is senior to an officer holding the rank of lieutenant commander but junior to a captain. A commander may command a frigate , destroyer , submarine , mine countermeasures squadron, fishery protection squadron, patrol boat squadron, aviation squadron or shore installation, or may serve on
360-544: Was an operational appointment commanding a destroyer flotilla or squadron , and there was a corresponding administrative appointment ashore, until at least a decade after the Second World War . The title was probably used informally up until the abolition of frigate and destroyer squadrons with the Fleet FIRST reorganisation circa 2001. Ashore, the rank of captain is often verbally described as "captain RN" to distinguish it from
380-408: Was mortally wounded by a shell which hit Hardy ' s bridge. For his exploits in this engagement he was posthumously awarded Britain's highest decoration for valour in combat, the Victoria Cross . During the Second World War, only 23 Victoria Crosses were awarded to members of the Royal Navy and Royal Naval Reserve , of whom only approximately 11 survived. In 1942 he was also, posthumously, awarded
400-611: Was still recognised in 1851, with the Navy List for that year listing 21 ships commanded by Masters with this appellation . The rank of commander was a popular recognition of service during the Napoleonic Wars , resulting in promotion of more commanders than there were commands; in 1812 the Navy List recorded 586 commanders against 168 available vessels. Commanders unable to secure a ship were left ashore on half-pay, with limited prospects for future advancement. This promotions bottleneck
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