John de Robeck

Sir John de Robeck, Bt
Sir John de Robeck
Born	10 June 1862 Naas, County Kildare, Ireland,
Died	20 January 1928
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	Royal Navy
Years of service	1875–1924
Rank	Admiral of the Fleet
Battles/wars	World War I
Awards	Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order

Admiral of the Fleet Sir John Michael de Robeck, 1st Baronet GCB, GCMG, GCVO (10 June 1862 – 20 January 1928) was an admiral in the British Royal Navy who commanded the Allied naval force in the Dardanelles during World War I.

De Robeck was born in Naas, County Kildare, Ireland, the second son of John Henry Edward Fock, fourth Baron de Robeck (1823–1904), to a family of Swedish/Estonian/German origin ^[1] , long settled in Ireland.

Dardanelles Campaign

De Robeck joined the Royal Navy in 1875.^[2] In 1914 he was given command of the 9th Cruiser Squadron.^[2]

He was second in command, to Admiral Sir Sackville Carden, of the Allied naval forces at the Dardanelles from February through March 1915, when he succeeded Carden as Commander in Chief.^[2] He assumed command a mere three days before the planned attempt to force the Straits on March 18.

The 1914/15 naval campaign to win the straits and push on to Constantinople was nearly successful due to a lack of ammunition on the Turkish side. Mines laid in the straits sank or damaged 5 allied battleships.^[2]

The arrival of General Hamilton and his troops gave Admiral de Robeck the possibility to turn over responsibility of taking the straits to the army.^[2]

He went on to become Commander of the 2nd Battle Squadron of the Grand Fleet in November 1916.^[3] In July 1919 he became Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean Fleet also serving as British High Commissioner in Constantinople during Autumn 1919.^[3] He became Commander-in-Chief, Atlantic Fleet from 1922 and retired in 1924.^[2]

De Robeck was appointed Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (GCB) in the 1921 New Year Honours.^[4]

References

1. ^ Turtle Bunbury
2. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Sir John de Robeck at First World War.com
3. ^ ^{a b} John de Robeck at Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
4. ^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 32178. p. 4. 1 January 1921.

External links

• Transcription of Official Service Records on www.admirals.org.uk
• Admiral John de Robeck's Despatch on the Gallipoli landings
• Admiral John de Robeck's Despatch on the evacuation of Gallipoli

Military offices
Preceded by Sir Somerset Gough-Calthorpe	Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean Fleet 1919–1922	Succeeded by Sir Osmond Brock
Preceded by Sir Charles Madden	Commander-in-Chief, Atlantic Fleet 1922–1924	Succeeded by Sir Henry Oliver

Persondata
Name	Robeck, John de
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	10 June 1862
Place of birth	Naas, County Kildare, Ireland
Date of death	20 January 1928
Place of death