Ralph Lyall Clayton
Lieutenant-Commander Ralph Lyall Clayton (28 March, 1885 – 31 May, 1916) served in the Royal Navy.
Contents
Life & Career
The son of a Retired Rear-Admiral F. S. Clayton, Ralph gained three and a half months' time on passing out of Britannia. His first naval appointment was in Hannibal in the Channel on 1 June, 1901. In January, 1902, he moved on to Grafton in the Pacific, where Captain Keppel noted he possessed "exceptional mental abilities."[1]
Clayton was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant on 30 July, 1905.[2] On 10 November, he was appointed in command of T.B. 52.
Superseded in the torpedo boat on 1 November, 1906, Clayton was appointed to King Edward VII. On 5 March, 1907, he was appointed from her to Queen in the Mediterranean, where he remained until being appointed to Vernon to qualify in torpedoes on 2 September 1907. He qualified as a Lieutenant ("T') on 26 September 1908 with 1,778 of 2,000 marks. On 1 October, he proceeded to the Royal Naval College, Greenwich for an advanced torpedo course.[3]
On 18 April, 1910 he was appointed to Blenheim as torpedo officer. In October, this appointment was broadened to include duty with T.B.Ds. On 7 September 1912, he returned to Vernon to requalify in torpedoes. Upon completing this, on 1 February 1913 Clayton was appointed to Queen Mary as her torpedo officer. He was to be the only man ever to serve in that capacity.[4]
Clayton was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-Commander on 30 July, 1913.
Great War
Clayton was Lieutenant-Commander (T) in Queen Mary from the outset of the war through her loss at the Battle of Jutland, where he was lost with her.[5]
See Also
| Naval Appointments | ||
| Preceded by Hugh T. England |
Captain of H.M. T.B. 52 10 Nov, 1905[6][7] – 1 Nov, 1906[8] |
Succeeded by Guy C. C. Royle |
Footnotes
- ↑ Clayton Service Record The National Archives. ADM 196/49/253. f. ?.
- ↑ The Navy List. (March, 1913). p. 15.
- ↑ Clayton Service Record The National Archives. ADM 196/49/253. f. ?.
- ↑ Clayton Service Record The National Archives. ADM 196/49/253. f. ?.
- ↑ Kindell. Royal Navy Roll of Honour Part 2. p. 202.
- ↑ The Monthly Navy List. (December, 1905). p. 399.
- ↑ Clayton Service Record, in our PDF for Richard Hugh Loraine Bevan. The National Archives. ADM 196/49/253. Unnumbered folio.
- ↑ Clayton Service Record, in our PDF for Richard Hugh Loraine Bevan. The National Archives. ADM 196/49/253. Unnumbered folio.
