John Gilchrist Inglis
Encyclopedia
Vice Admiral
Sir John Gilchrist Thesiger "Tommy" Inglis KBE
, CB
(8 June 1906 – 29 October 1972) was a British Royal Navy
officer who became Head of Naval Intelligence
. In this capacity, he attempted to cover-up
the "Buster Crabb affair" in 1956.
, near Cranbrook
, Kent, the second child and only son of Rev. Rupert Inglis
(1863–1916) and Helen Mary Gilchrist. His father was a former England international rugby
player who became a chaplain
to the British Army and was killed during the Battle of the Somme.
In 1945, Inglis married Maude Dorien "Franky" Frankland; they had one daughter, Sarah (born 1948), who married twice, first to Hugh Poole-Warren and then to Brig. Hedley Duncan, who was Yeoman Usher of the Black Rod
until his retirement in March 2009.
His cousin, Frank Inglis
was head of RAF Intelligence
during World War II.
Dartmouth
. He graduated as a midshipman
in May 1924 and first saw service on the C-class
light cruiser
with the Atlantic Fleet between September 1924 and January 1925.
In November 1925, he was posted to the battlecruiser
until May 1926. He was then promoted to (acting) sub-lieutenant
in September 1926 before attending a promotion course at the Royal Naval College, Greenwich until July 1927. On completion of the course, he achieved the full rank of sub-lieutenant before serving on board the Arabis class sloop
in the West Indies until August 1929. In April 1929 he was promoted to Lieutenant
. He then returned to the Atlantic Fleet on board the County-class
heavy cruiser
until February 1931.
In December 1931, he qualified for signal duties at HM Signal School, Portsmouth
. After completing the course in September 1932, he was posted as signal officer to with the Mediterranean Fleet
before returning to shore as signal officer at at Shotley
in April 1936. Having been promoted to the rank of lieutenant commander
in April 1937, he served as flag lieutenant-commander to Vice-Admiral John Tovey
, the commander of the destroyer flotillas of the Mediterranean Fleet and then as squadron signal and wireless/telegraphy officer on board the destroyer depot ship , later transferring to the Arethusa-class
light cruiser
.
Following the outbreak of the Second World War, he continued to serve under Vice-Admiral Tovey, on board until April 1940. In December 1940, he was promoted to commander
and, in August 1941, he was posted as fleet wireless/telegraphy officer with the Home Fleet on board , before transferring to its sister ship, .
In November 1943, he was posted to the signal school at , near Petersfield
for eight months, following which he was again promoted, to the rank of captain
. As captain, his first command came in October 1945 on the escort carrier .
After six months, he returned to shore in January 1947 to join the Admiralty
at in London, being appointed as Naval Assistant to the Deputy Chief of Naval Personnel. In March 1949, he was transferred to in Malta, as captain of the fleet on the Mediterranean station, until May 1950. He then returned to the U.K. to take up the post of captain of the Signals School at HMS Mercury from September 1950 until October 1951. From June 1952 to May 1953, he was in command of the Town class cruiser
and flag captain to the Flag Officer (Heavy Squadron) of the Home Fleet.
In July 1954, he was promoted to rear admiral
and appointed director of Naval Intelligence
, in which role he served until his retirement in January 1960, having reached the rank of vice admiral
in January 1958.
In April 1956, the Soviet leaders Nikita Khrushchev
and Nikolai Bulganin
visited England on a diplomatic mission on board the cruiser Ordzhonikidze. While the vessel was in Portsmouth
, a former Royal Navy diver Lionel "Buster" Crabb
was recruited to investigate her propeller. On 19 April, Crabb dived into the harbour and disappeared in mysterious circumstances; ten days later British newspapers published stories about Crabb's disappearance in an underwater mission. The incident caused a major diplomatic row, with the Russians accusing British Intelligence of a bungled attempt to spy on their warship.
As Crabb was no longer an enlisted sailor and the Royal Navy had not been officially involved, the Admiralty had difficulty in producing any credible explanation for Crabb’s disappearance. On 27 April, Inglis (as Director of Naval Intelligence), instructed the Admiralty to announce that Crabb had been specially employed in connection with trials of certain underwater apparatus; he had not returned from a test dive in Stokes Bay
and must be presumed drowned. This explanation was clearly not in accordance with the known facts and the British prime minister Anthony Eden
was challenged on the matter in Parliament on 14 May; Eden released a statement that
On 21 June, Inglis issued a memo explaining that the Royal Navy "considered it essential" to avoid implicating top officers in Portsmouth; in a "bona fide" operation, there would have been "immediate and extensive rescue operations" but these were not possible because "a search could not be carried out beside the Russian warships". Inglis pointed out that, instead, "the moment it became clear that a mishap had occurred (name blanked out) was ordered to return to his ship and take no further part in the affair". "Any cover story purporting to show that this was a bona fide naval operation would only have exposed (name blanked out) and the C. in C. (Admiral of the Fleet George Creasy
) to charges of negligence, lack of humanity and error of judgement". The memo mentions "discussions in Admiralty in search of a convincing cover story", and expresses concern that, if the unidentified serviceman had to testify in any legal proceedings, it would involve "further risk of compromise of the true nature of the operation".
Some of the Government papers relating to this incident were released in October 2006, fifty years later. These reveal that blame for the embarrassing intelligence failure fell on Inglis, as the director of naval intelligence. Inglis was censured, but he kept his job, and the two permanent secretaries were told they were guilty of an error of judgment in not informing ministers. Many of the Government documents regarding Crabb's disappearance are not scheduled to be released until 2057.
, and Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) in January 1957. Shortly before his retirement, he became a knight on promotion to Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) in the 1959 Queen's Birthday Honours
.
Vice Admiral
Vice admiral is a senior naval rank of a three-star flag officer, which is equivalent to lieutenant general in the other uniformed services. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral...
Sir John Gilchrist Thesiger "Tommy" Inglis KBE
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...
, CB
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(8 June 1906 – 29 October 1972) was a British Royal Navy
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...
officer who became Head of Naval Intelligence
Naval Intelligence Division
The Naval Intelligence Division was the intelligence arm of the British Admiralty before the establishment of a unified Defence Staff in 1965. It dealt with matters concerning British naval plans, with the collection of naval intelligence...
. In this capacity, he attempted to cover-up
Cover-up
A cover-up is an attempt, whether successful or not, to conceal evidence of wrong-doing, error, incompetence or other embarrassing information...
the "Buster Crabb affair" in 1956.
Family
Inglis was born in FrittendenFrittenden
Frittenden is a village and civil parish in the Tunbridge Wells District of Kent, England. The parish is located on the flood plain of one of the tributaries of the River Medway, 15 miles to the east of Tunbridge Wells: the village is three miles south of Headcorn. It is in a very rural...
, near Cranbrook
Cranbrook
-People:* Earl of Cranbrook, title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom** Gathorne Gathorne-Hardy, 1st Earl of Cranbrook , British Conservative politician** John Stewart Gathorne-Hardy, 2nd Earl of Cranbrook , Conservative Member of Parliament...
, Kent, the second child and only son of Rev. Rupert Inglis
Rupert Inglis
Rupert Edward Inglis was an England international rugby player who later became a Church of England rector. During the First World War, Inglis was a chaplain to the British Army and was killed during the Battle of the Somme....
(1863–1916) and Helen Mary Gilchrist. His father was a former England international rugby
Rugby football
Rugby football is a style of football named after Rugby School in the United Kingdom. It is seen most prominently in two current sports, rugby league and rugby union.-History:...
player who became a chaplain
Military chaplain
A military chaplain is a chaplain who ministers to soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines and other members of the military. In many countries, chaplains also minister to the family members of military personnel, to civilian noncombatants working for military organizations and to civilians within the...
to the British Army and was killed during the Battle of the Somme.
In 1945, Inglis married Maude Dorien "Franky" Frankland; they had one daughter, Sarah (born 1948), who married twice, first to Hugh Poole-Warren and then to Brig. Hedley Duncan, who was Yeoman Usher of the Black Rod
Black Rod
The Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod, generally shortened to just Black Rod, is an official in the parliaments of several Commonwealth countries. The position originates in the House of Lords of the Parliament of the United Kingdom...
until his retirement in March 2009.
His cousin, Frank Inglis
Frank Inglis
Air Vice-Marshal Francis "Frank" Frederic Inglis CB, CBE was a British officer in the Royal Air Force who became the head of RAF Intelligence Staff during World War II reporting to Winston Churchill. In 1942 he was sent to America by Churchill, where he successfully persuaded President Franklin D...
was head of RAF Intelligence
RAF Intelligence
Intelligence services in the Royal Air Force is delivered by Officers of the Royal Air Force Operations Support Intelligence Branch and Airmen from the Intelligence Analyst Trade and Intelligence Analyst Trade...
during World War II.
Naval career
Inglis was educated at the Royal Navy Colleges at Osborne House andDartmouth
Britannia Royal Naval College
Britannia Royal Naval College is the initial officer training establishment of the Royal Navy, located on a hill overlooking Dartmouth, Devon, England. While Royal Naval officer training has taken place in the town since 1863, the buildings which are seen today were only finished in 1905, and...
. He graduated as a midshipman
Midshipman
A midshipman is an officer cadet, or a commissioned officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Kenya...
in May 1924 and first saw service on the C-class
C class cruiser
The C class was a group of twenty-eight light cruisers of the Royal Navy, and were built in a sequence of seven classes known as the Caroline , Calliope , Cambrian , Centaur , Caledon , Ceres and Carlisle classes...
light cruiser
Light cruiser
A light cruiser is a type of small- or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck...
with the Atlantic Fleet between September 1924 and January 1925.
In November 1925, he was posted to the battlecruiser
Battlecruiser
Battlecruisers were large capital ships built in the first half of the 20th century. They were developed in the first decade of the century as the successor to the armoured cruiser, but their evolution was more closely linked to that of the dreadnought battleship...
until May 1926. He was then promoted to (acting) sub-lieutenant
Sub-Lieutenant
Sub-lieutenant is a military rank. It is normally a junior officer rank.In many navies, a sub-lieutenant is a naval commissioned or subordinate officer, ranking below a lieutenant. In the Royal Navy the rank of sub-lieutenant is equivalent to the rank of lieutenant in the British Army and of...
in September 1926 before attending a promotion course at the Royal Naval College, Greenwich until July 1927. On completion of the course, he achieved the full rank of sub-lieutenant before serving on board the Arabis class sloop
Arabis class sloop
The Arabis class was the third class of minesweeping sloops to be built under the Emergency War Programme for the Royal Navy in World War I as part of the larger "Flower Class", which were also referred to as the "Cabbage Class", or "Herbaceous Borders"...
in the West Indies until August 1929. In April 1929 he was promoted to Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
. He then returned to the Atlantic Fleet on board the County-class
County class cruiser
The County class was a class of heavy cruisers built for the British Royal Navy in the years between the First and Second World Wars. They were the first post-war cruiser construction for the Royal Navy and were designed within the limits of the Washington Naval Conference of 1922...
heavy cruiser
Heavy cruiser
The heavy cruiser was a type of cruiser, a naval warship designed for long range, high speed and an armament of naval guns roughly 203mm calibre . The heavy cruiser can be seen as a lineage of ship design from 1915 until 1945, although the term 'heavy cruiser' only came into formal use in 1930...
until February 1931.
In December 1931, he qualified for signal duties at HM Signal School, Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
. After completing the course in September 1932, he was posted as signal officer to with the Mediterranean Fleet
Mediterranean Fleet
Several countries have or have had a Mediterranean Fleet in their navy. See:* Mediterranean Fleet * French Mediterranean Fleet* Mediterranean Squadron * United States Sixth Fleet...
before returning to shore as signal officer at at Shotley
RNTE Shotley
RNTE Shotley, known in the Royal Navy as HMS Ganges, was a naval training establishment at Shotley, near Ipswich in Suffolk. Starting in 1905, it trained boys for naval service until it closed in 1976, following the raising of the school leaving age from 15 to 16...
in April 1936. Having been promoted to the rank of lieutenant commander
Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant Commander is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander...
in April 1937, he served as flag lieutenant-commander to Vice-Admiral John Tovey
John Tovey, 1st Baron Tovey
Admiral of the Fleet John Cronyn "Jack" Tovey, 1st Baron Tovey GCB, KBE, DSO, DCL was a Royal Navy admiral who served in both World Wars. He signed himself as "Jack", not "John". Tovey joined the Royal Navy before World War I, and commanded destroyers in that war. He rose, with several senior...
, the commander of the destroyer flotillas of the Mediterranean Fleet and then as squadron signal and wireless/telegraphy officer on board the destroyer depot ship , later transferring to the Arethusa-class
Arethusa class cruiser (1934)
The Arethusa class was a class of four light cruisers built for the Royal Navy between 1933 and 1937 and that served in World War II. It had been intended to construct six ships, but the last pair, Polyphemus and Minotaur were ordered in 1934 as the 9,100 ton Town class Southampton and...
light cruiser
Light cruiser
A light cruiser is a type of small- or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck...
.
Following the outbreak of the Second World War, he continued to serve under Vice-Admiral Tovey, on board until April 1940. In December 1940, he was promoted to 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...
and, in August 1941, he was posted as fleet wireless/telegraphy officer with the Home Fleet on board , before transferring to its sister ship, .
Petersfield
Petersfield can refer to any of the following places:*Petersfield, Hampshire, a market town in England*Petersfield, Jamaica, a small town in the parish of Westmoreland*Petersfield, Manitoba, in Canada*Petersfield, an area of Cambridge, England...
for eight months, following which he was again promoted, to the rank of captain
Captain (naval)
Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The NATO rank code is OF-5, equivalent to an army full colonel....
. As captain, his first command came in October 1945 on the escort carrier .
After six months, he returned to shore in January 1947 to join the Admiralty
Admiralty
The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...
at in London, being appointed as Naval Assistant to the Deputy Chief of Naval Personnel. In March 1949, he was transferred to in Malta, as captain of the fleet on the Mediterranean station, until May 1950. He then returned to the U.K. to take up the post of captain of the Signals School at HMS Mercury from September 1950 until October 1951. From June 1952 to May 1953, he was in command of the Town class cruiser
Town class cruiser (1936)
The Town-class was a 10-ship class of light cruisers of the Royal Navy. The Towns were designed to the constraints imposed by the London Naval Treaty of 1930....
and flag captain to the Flag Officer (Heavy Squadron) of the Home Fleet.
In July 1954, he was promoted to rear admiral
Rear Admiral (Royal Navy)
Rear Admiral is a flag officer rank of the British Royal Navy. It is immediately superior to Commodore and is subordinate to Vice Admiral. It is a two-star rank and has a NATO ranking code of OF-7....
and appointed director of Naval Intelligence
Naval Intelligence Division
The Naval Intelligence Division was the intelligence arm of the British Admiralty before the establishment of a unified Defence Staff in 1965. It dealt with matters concerning British naval plans, with the collection of naval intelligence...
, in which role he served until his retirement in January 1960, having reached the rank of vice admiral
Vice Admiral
Vice admiral is a senior naval rank of a three-star flag officer, which is equivalent to lieutenant general in the other uniformed services. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral...
in January 1958.
"Buster Crabb Affair"
Nikita Khrushchev
Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev led the Soviet Union during part of the Cold War. He served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964, and as Chairman of the Council of Ministers, or Premier, from 1958 to 1964...
and Nikolai Bulganin
Nikolai Bulganin
Nikolai Alexandrovich Bulganin was a prominent Soviet politician, who served as Minister of Defense and Premier of the Soviet Union . The Bulganin beard is named after him.-Early career:...
visited England on a diplomatic mission on board the cruiser Ordzhonikidze. While the vessel was in Portsmouth
HMNB Portsmouth
Her Majesty's Naval Base Portsmouth is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the British Royal Navy...
, a former Royal Navy diver Lionel "Buster" Crabb
Lionel Crabb
Lionel "Buster" Crabb OBE, GM was a British Royal Navy frogman and MI6 diver who vanished during a reconnaissance mission around a Soviet cruiser in 1956.-Early life:...
was recruited to investigate her propeller. On 19 April, Crabb dived into the harbour and disappeared in mysterious circumstances; ten days later British newspapers published stories about Crabb's disappearance in an underwater mission. The incident caused a major diplomatic row, with the Russians accusing British Intelligence of a bungled attempt to spy on their warship.
As Crabb was no longer an enlisted sailor and the Royal Navy had not been officially involved, the Admiralty had difficulty in producing any credible explanation for Crabb’s disappearance. On 27 April, Inglis (as Director of Naval Intelligence), instructed the Admiralty to announce that Crabb had been specially employed in connection with trials of certain underwater apparatus; he had not returned from a test dive in Stokes Bay
Stokes Bay
Stokes Bay is an area of the Solent that lies just south of Gosport, between Portsmouth and Lee-on-the-Solent, Hampshire. There is a shingle beach that has a great view of Ryde and East Cowes on the Isle of Wight to the south and also Fawley in the south west. The village of Alverstoke is close by...
and must be presumed drowned. This explanation was clearly not in accordance with the known facts and the British prime minister Anthony Eden
Anthony Eden
Robert Anthony Eden, 1st Earl of Avon, KG, MC, PC was a British Conservative politician, who was Prime Minister from 1955 to 1957...
was challenged on the matter in Parliament on 14 May; Eden released a statement that
It would not be in the public interest to disclose the circumstances in which Commander Crabb is presumed to have met his death. I think it necessary, in the special circumstances of this case, to make it clear that what was done was done without the authority or the knowledge of Her Majesty's Ministers. Appropriate disciplinary steps are being taken.
On 21 June, Inglis issued a memo explaining that the Royal Navy "considered it essential" to avoid implicating top officers in Portsmouth; in a "bona fide" operation, there would have been "immediate and extensive rescue operations" but these were not possible because "a search could not be carried out beside the Russian warships". Inglis pointed out that, instead, "the moment it became clear that a mishap had occurred (name blanked out) was ordered to return to his ship and take no further part in the affair". "Any cover story purporting to show that this was a bona fide naval operation would only have exposed (name blanked out) and the C. in C. (Admiral of the Fleet George Creasy
George Creasy
Admiral of the Fleet Sir George Elvey Creasy GCB CBE DSO MVO was a senior Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth.-Naval career:...
) to charges of negligence, lack of humanity and error of judgement". The memo mentions "discussions in Admiralty in search of a convincing cover story", and expresses concern that, if the unidentified serviceman had to testify in any legal proceedings, it would involve "further risk of compromise of the true nature of the operation".
Some of the Government papers relating to this incident were released in October 2006, fifty years later. These reveal that blame for the embarrassing intelligence failure fell on Inglis, as the director of naval intelligence. Inglis was censured, but he kept his job, and the two permanent secretaries were told they were guilty of an error of judgment in not informing ministers. Many of the Government documents regarding Crabb's disappearance are not scheduled to be released until 2057.
Honours
Inglis was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 1943 New Year HonoursNew Year Honours
The New Year Honours is a part of the British honours system, being a civic occasion on the New Year annually in which new members of most Commonwealth Realms honours are named. The awards are presented by the reigning monarch or head of state, currently Queen Elizabeth II...
, and Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) in January 1957. Shortly before his retirement, he became a knight on promotion to Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) in the 1959 Queen's Birthday Honours
Queen's Birthday Honours
The Queen's Birthday Honours is a part of the British honours system, being a civic occasion on the celebration of the Queen's Official Birthday in which new members of most Commonwealth Realms honours are named. The awards are presented by the reigning monarch or head of state, currently Queen...
.