Hugh Percival Cotton

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Captain Hugh Percival Cotton, R.N., Retired (24 February, 1889 – 9 April, 1956) served in the Royal Navy.

Life & Career

Born in Sonning. After passing out of H.M.S. Britannia in January, 1905, Cotton served a year and a half in the battleship Implacable in the Mediterranean and a further two years in Swiftsure in the Channel.

After taking leave to enjoy an Easter vacation in France, Cotton was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant on 15 June, 1909. He was appointed to the armoured cruiser Drake in the Fifth Cruiser Squadron on 27 July, 1909.

On 31 July 1911 he was sent to Vernon to qualify in Torpedoes. He gained this credential on 16 August 1912, having attained 1,577 of 2,000 marks.

Cotton served as torpedo officer in the armoured cruiser Achilles in the Second Cruiser Squadron from 15 November 1912 until early 1917.

Cotton was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-Commander on 15 June, 1917. Following some time in hospital in September/October 1917 in a state of neurasthenia, he finished the war as torpedo officer in Canada from 27 December 1917.

Cotton left Canada when he was made torpedo officer in Ramillies on 7 April 1919.

Cotton was promoted to the rank of Commander on 30 June, 1922. In 1923, while he was in command of the destroyer Winchester, he helped refloat the Spanish cruiser Cataluña, which had run aground on 17 November, 1922 at Sálvora, off Galicia.

Cotton was placed on the Retired List at his own request with the rank of Captain on 25 February, 1935.

World War II

Cotton served inside the Admiralty throughout the conflict with the Director of Torpedoes and Mining. He reverted to the Retired List on 12 October 1946.

See Also

Bibliography

Naval Appointments
Preceded by
Francis D. Mowat
Captain of H.M.S. Winchester
1 Dec, 1922[1] – 16 Jun, 1924
Succeeded by
Frederic C. Bradley
Preceded by
Evelyn T. Wickham
Captain of H.M.S. Dahlia
15 Feb, 1927[2] – May, 1929
Succeeded by
Arthur R. Farquhar

Footnotes

  1. The Navy List. (January, 1923). p. 844.
  2. The Navy List. (February, 1929). p. 230.