MOTORING FATALITY

Southland Times, Issue 25342, 22 July 1935, Page 7

MOTORING FATALITY

VICE-ADMIRAL KILLED.

CAP. CRASHES INTO TREE. (United Press Assn.—Telegraph Copyright.) London, July 19. Vice-Admiral E. Astley-Rushton, who was Commander of H.M.A.S. Melbourne from 1916 to 1919, crashed into a tree when motoring alone and was killed instantly. Since April, 1934, Vice-Admiral Astley-Rushton had been in command of the Reserve Fleet which was specially mobilized for the Jubilee review, and on Tuesday he was one of the King’s guests at dinner on the Royal yacht. He commanded the cruiser Southampton, which was the first naval ship to sink a German submarine by gunfire. In 1931 he became commander of the Second Cruiser Squadron and paid the first post-war naval visit to German waters.

Vice-Admiral Edward Astley AstleyRushton was born at Liverpool in 1879 and after the customary training passed into the navy as a cadet. After several years ot service in a variety of vessels on many seas he reached commander's rank in .1911 and was appointed experimental commander ot H.M.S. Excellent, which is not a vessel, but the naval gunnery training school at Portsmouth. In 1913 he was transferred to the newly built cruiser Southampton as second in command and served in her during the first two vears of the war. He carried out his duties’ so efficiently during the Battle of Jutland that he was promoted captain immediately afterwards. The official report said that he “displayed great promptitude and powers of leadership during and after the night action of May 31 m which the Southampton suffered considerably in casualties and damage.” In December, 1916. he was appointed to the command of the Australian cruiser Melbourne which was attached to the Grand Fleet, and served m her until the end of the war when he was awarded the C.M.G. From 1919 to was at the Admiralty as Deputy Director of Training and Staff Duties and was then made Director of the Royal Kaval Staff College. He went to sea again, however, in 1925 in command of the battleship Malaya, remaining in her until 1927 when lie received the C. 8.. was appointed naral A.D.C. to the King and promoted rear-admiral. For two years from December 1928, he was Director of the Manning Department at the Admiralty and in 1931. was in command of the cruisers which paid a visit to Kiel. In July. 1932, he was promoted vice-admiral.