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The Papers of Rear-Admiral Malcolm Walter St Leger Searle

 Fonds
Reference Code: GBR/0014/SRLE

Scope and Contents

The Searle papers comprise the reminiscences of Admiral Searle of his service as a gunnery expert before and during the Second World War.

Dates

  • Creation: 1917 - 1981

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for consultation by researchers at Churchill Archives Centre, Churchill College, Cambridge.

Conditions Governing Use

Researchers wishing to publish excerpts must obtain prior permission from the copyright holder and should seek advice from Archives Centre staff.

Biographical / Historical

Searle was born in Cape Colony, South Africa in December 1900 and having been accepted as Dominion cadet to enter the Royal Navy by Gen. Jan Smuts in 1912, studied at the Naval Colleges at Osborne and Dartmouth, 1914-17.

He served in the European War, 1914-19 (Grand Fleet and Baltic, 1917-19); he then specialised in gunnery, in 1927 and was made Commander in 1936 (Anti-aircraft). Searle served in the War of 1939-45 as: Fleet Gunnery Officer, Home...
Fleet, 1939-41; was posted to HMS Sheffield, Mediterranean and Arctic, 1941-43; became Captain in 1943; was Chief Staff Officer to Vice-Admiral, E Fleet, 1943-44 and Chief of Staff to the Commander-in-Chief East Indies Fleet, 1944-46. After the war he became Director of Plans (Q), Naval Staff, 1948-51, then Commodore, RN Barracks, Portsmouth, 1951, Rear-Admiral 1952, Deputy Chief of Naval Personnel, 1953-55 and finally retired in 1956.

He was awarded CB in 1955 and CBE 1945. He died in 1994.

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Extent

17 folder(s)

Language of Materials

English

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