Chetfield, Ernie

He was the only son of Admiral Alfred John. He graduated from St. Andrew School in Tenby .

In 1886, he entered the Royal Navy as a cadet on the training 121-gun helical battleship of the first rank HMS Britannia . In 1888, he was received by the midshipman for the corvette HMS Cleopatra (1878), and from 1890 he served on the cruiser HMS Warspite (1884), the flagship of the British Pacific Fleet. Since 1894, with the rank of lieutenant - on the battleship HMS Royal Sovereign (1891), the flagship of the Channel Fleet . He studied at the fire training courses at HMS Excellent (1895), and then - HMS Cambridge (1897).

In 1899 he entered the service as an artillery officer on the battleship HMS Caesar (1896) of the Mediterranean fleet ; HMS Wildfire (1900), an artillery officer of the Atlantic Fleet armored cruiser HMS Good Hope (1902), was hired as a commander in 1904 as part of the headquarters of fire training courses HMS Wildfire. In 1904 he was transferred to the HMS Venerable battleship of the Mediterranean Fleet. In 1906 he returned to HMS Excellent and was its captain until 1909, when he became the head of the battleship HMS Albemarle (1901). The following year he became captain of the battleship HMS London (1899).

After attending a course at the Royal Naval College in Portsmouth, he served as captain of the converted RMS Medina (1911), from 1912 commanded the armored cruiser HMS Aboukir of the Reserve Fleet, and then the cruiser HMS Southampton (1912).

In March 1913, becomes the captain of the cruiser HMS Lion , the flagship of the squadron of Vice-Admiral David Beatty . During the First World War, he participated in the Battle of Helgoland Bay (1914), was at Dogger Bank (1915) and the Battle of Jutland . He commanded the battleship HMS Iron Duke , and from November 1916 - the head dreadnought of HMS Queen Elizabeth , the new flagship of Vice Admiral David Beaty.

After the end of the First World War, from 1919 he served as the Fourth Sea Lord, and in January 1920 he was appointed Naval Adjutant to the King. In 1922 he became commander of the Third Light Squadron of the battle cruisers. In 1925-1928 he was the third lord of the Admiralty and inspector of the Navy. In 1929-1930 commanded the Atlantic fleet, and in 1930-1932. - Mediterranean fleet.

In 1930, he became an admiral, and in 1935 - an admiral of the fleet.

In May 1937, King George VI was granted the title of Peer, as Baron Chetfield of Ditchin in Sussex. In August 1938, he retired from military service in the Royal Navy.

In 1939-1940 - Minister of Defense Coordination of Great Britain. In this post, advocated an increase in the production of ammunition. After retiring, he headed the committee for the evacuation of hospitals in London. and then went to his estate in Buckinghamshire.

Almiral Fleet (1935).

Knight of the Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath, member of the Order of Merit, Knight Commander of the Order of St. Michael and St. George, Commander of the Royal Victorian Order.

Alastair Wilson, Joseph F. Callo: Who's Who in Naval History: From 1550 to the present. Abingdon: Routledge, 2004.