NEW CRUISER

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22406, 30 April 1936, Page 8

NEW CRUISER

COMMAND OF ACHILLES GAPTAIN i GLENNIE'S CAREER SEARCH FOR THE EMDEN NIGHT ACTION AT JUTLAND [from a special correspondent] LONDON. April S Captain Irvine G. Glennie, who has been appointed to command the cruiser Achilles for her next commission in the New Zealand Squadron, has had an eventful naval career of over 30 years. After early service in big ships, he commanded small craft during the war and later years. Ho has had training experience /of cadets at Dartmouth Naval College, is a staff course graduate with Admiralty. staff experience, and last year completed the Imperial defence course. In May, 1905, he entered Osborne College, five months before the keel of the first all-big gun battleship, H.M.S. Dreadnought, was iaid down at Portsmouth, and four years later was to serve in one of the early ships of this type. Rated midshipman on January 15, 1910, he was appointed to H.M.S. Superb, in the First Battle Squadron of the Home Fleet, being the thirteenth of 14 "snotties" in a gunroom mess which included H.S.H. Prince George of Battenburg. Service in China A year later, with two of his messmates, he transferred to H.M.S. Liverpool, a cruiser attached to the First " Battle Squadron, for cruiser experience, and after twelve months this trio of midshipmen made another move into H M S. Orioh, flagship of Rear-Admiral H. G. King-Hall in the Second Battle Squadron. Commissioned on April 4, 1913, subLieutenant Glennie, as he then was, received a foreign service appointment to the cruiser Hampshire on the China station, and in the winter of 1913-14 served in the river gunboat Britomart, returning to the Hampshire in June. At the outbreak of war this ship, with the cruisers Newcastle and Minotaur, flagship of Vice-Admiral T. H. M. Jerram, the Commander-in-Chief, proceeded to Yap, tha German telegraph centre in the Pelew Group,. as part of the large-scale search for the cruiser Emden and to destroy the enemy wireless station. Before reaching Yap, the German collier Elsbeth was captured, and, as the bad weather prevented coaling, she ■was sunk. The Hampshire, short of coal, was sent back to Hongkong, taking the Elsbeth's crew. New Zealand Convoy At the end of August the Hampshire was sent to Sum&tra in search of the Konigsberg, and four days later narrowly missed the Emden near Snnalur. She was then engaged in the hue and cry for this vessel, which did not end until the epic cruiser action off the Cocos Islands, when H.M.A.S. Sydney engaged her and she was beached in a linking condition. When the alarm was given, the Hampshire was sent to meet the great Australian and New Zealand convoy which had 'sailed from St. George s Sound on November 1, and was only 50 odd miles from Cocos. With the Emden's destruction the convoy ships were reduced to the Hampshire and the Japanese Ibuki. ■ The Hampshire was ordered home to join Admiral, Jellicoe's flag in the Sixth Cruiser Squadron of the Grand Fleet, and,'later, was to survive the Battle of Jutland only to meet a tragic end after striking a mine when en route to Russia with Lord Kitchener. Receiving his next promotion in April, 1915, Lieutenant Glennie was appointed to H.M.S. Broke, a flotilla leader of one of the Grand Fleet flotillas. A year later this ship was to win renown in the night action at the Battle of Jutland. At 11.30 the Tipperary, the / captain of destroyers ship at the head of the flotilla, was sunk and the-Broke took her place. Ten minutes later she wa-j in action with a German battleship and had 42 killed and 34 wounded. Swinging to fire her torpedoes a German salvo put the ship out of control, and her consort astern, the Sparrowhawk, collided with her. Only Two Guns Left At daybreak two German destroyers were sighted. With only two guns in action, and unable to steam faster than 10 knots, the Broke was almost at their mercy. ' Firing commenced and the enemy scored two hits, but little dtynage was done, and they withdrew. The Broke did not reach the Tyne until three days later. _ _ . , After service in the destroyer Ithuriel Lieutenant Glennie commanded Patrol Boat No. 36 in the English Channel escort flotilla, from October, 1917, and the destroyer Nepean in the Fourth Flotilla, working from Devonp.ort, in the western approaches to the channel, from March, i9lB. At the end of 1919 he was appointed to the Spenser, leader of the Second Flotilla, and commanded by Captain C. Maclean. In 1922-23 he was one of the cadet training staff ot the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth. Command of Destroyer Promoted to lieutenant-commander in 'April, 1923, in the following year he wws appointed to the flotilla leader Douglas, under his old captain in the Spenser, then Commodore Maclean, commanding the Atlantic Fleet destroyer flotillas. In May, 1925, he assumed command of the destroyer Westminster in the Atlantic Fleet, and two years later commanded the Wishart m China. This vessel was one of the flotilla transferred from the Mediterranean in 1926 when conditions in the .bar East necessitated an increase in Britain s naval forces. . T Promoted to commander in June, 1928 he graduated at the Staff College in the following year and then served for two years in the operations division of the naval staff at the Admiralty He resumed sea service m August, IJdJ. m command of the flotilla leader Blanche, in the Mediterranean Fleet. Captain Glennie was promoted to post-rank at the end of 1933, after 28 years' service. He has since taken tne Imperial defence course and recently attended the senior officers' technical course. The Achilles is his first command as a captain, but his previous command service will stand him in cood stead.