Commander

Commander

Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...

 Cortlandt James Woore Simpson CBE

Order of the British Empire

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...

, DSC

Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom)

The Distinguished Service Cross is the third level military decoration awarded to officers, and other ranks, of the British Armed Forces, Royal Fleet Auxiliary and British Merchant Navy and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries.The DSC, which may be awarded posthumously, is...

, PM

Polar Medal

The Polar Medal is a medal awarded by the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. It was instituted in 1857 as the Arctic Medal and renamed the Polar Medal in 1904.-History:...

, RN

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

 (2 September 1911 – 9 May 2002) was a British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 naval officer and polar explorer. He led the British North Greenland Expedition

British North Greenland Expedition

British North Greenland Expedition was led by Commander James Simpson RN.North Ice was the name of a research station of the expedition, on the inland ice of Greenland.List of BNGE members, with their particulars...

 (B.N.G.E.) of 1952-1954.

Naval career

Born into a Naval family, he was commissioned into the Royal Navy following graduation from the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth. After service on several vessels, he resigned his commission in 1936 in order to study electrical engineering at the University of London

University of London

-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...

. He returned to the Royal Navy in 1939 as an electrical officer, serving as an anti-submarine specialist, and in destroyers. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross in the 1945 Birthday Honours List. He retired from the Royal Navy in 1961.