Alban Edward Trevor Tate

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Captain (retired) Alban Edward Trevor Tate, D.S.C. (27 November, 1890 – 5 September, 1943) served in the Royal Navy.

Life & Career

The son of Francis Alban Arthur Giffard Tate‎[1] passed out of the training establishment on 15 May 1908. He served first in the battleship H.M.S. Britannia in the Channel for a year, and then in Prince of Wales (four months) and Venus (eight) of the Atlantic Fleet. He then served in St. Vincent of the Home Fleet for a year before being called to the Royal Naval College for examinations in mid-May 1911. His examination scores were not strong, however – he received third class certificates in all but a first-class in Seamanship.

Tate served in the destroyer Star for the Annual Manoeuvres of 1911, and then in the armoured cruiser Drake on the Australian Station from 30 November 1911 to 12 November, 1912. He rounded out his time in the Australian station with four months in the destroyer Torch.

Tate was serving in Ringdove when he promoted to the rank of Lieutenant on 15 September, 1913. On 1 October, he was appointed to Bulwark. On 10 January, 1914 Tate was sent to the navigation school H.M.S. Dryad for a navigation course, finally passing for Lieutenant (N) in all but first-class ships on 19 June, 1914. In view of this, his first specialised appointment was a brief one as assistant navigator in the battlecruiser Lion.

His time in Lion proved brief, as with war breaking out, on 3 August 1914, he was appointed to the destroyer Lucifer as navigator. In mid-June 1915, he was appointed for extremely brief stints as navigator in some flotilla leaders before finally being assigned to the flotilla leader Lightfoot as Lieutenant (N) from late July 1915 until 28 September 1917. He was hospitalised at Shotley for one week with influenza in April 1917, emerging fit on 20 April. Navigating flotilla leaders became his metiér: he served as navigating officer in H.M.S. Shakespeare in October and November 1917, and then in Spenser through April, 1919.

Tate was awarded the D.S.C. on 30 June 1918 for his service as a navigating officer in the Harwich Force.

Tate married Millicent Helena Wilson, the sister of Lt. Cdr. Henry Percival Wilson on 9 June, 1919.[2]

Tate was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-Commander on 15 September, 1921.

Tate was promoted to the rank of Commander on 31 December, 1926.

Tate was placed on the Retired List at his own request on 1 May 1933 and was promoted to the rank of Captain on 27 November, 1935.

World War II

Tate was appointed to Chitral on 2 September 1939, to take command upon her commissioning but he was in ill health. In October the Rear-Admiral, Clyde reported that Tate "will be on sick list considerable time." His appointment was suspended on 18 October and it was discovered that "pleuro-pulmonary congestion" had developed in the wake of "general illness". Infection and other complications developed for the first week of 1940 when he was declared fit for duty.

Shore duties were found for him. He served as Deputy Captain and King's Harbour Master at Sheerness vice Humphreys from January 1940 through some time in 1943.

Tate was admitted to Royal Naval Hospital, Chatham with a pharynx condition on 10 August, 1943 and allotted time up to 10 November to recover. However, he passed away on 5 September.

See Also

Bibliography

Naval Appointments
Preceded by
Ernest W. Leir
Assistant Captain of Chatham Dockyard
20 Feb, 1931 – 19 Mar, 1933
Succeeded by
Lawrence F. N. Ommanney
Preceded by
Kenneth N. Humphreys
King's Harbour Master, Sheerness
20 Jan, 1940 – 5 Sep, 1943
Succeeded by
?

Footnotes

  1. Emails from Tate's grandson, Edward Keymer in January 2020.
  2. Emails from Tate's grandson, Edward Keymer in January 2020.