F. H. Pegram
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Frank Henderson Pegram, CB, DSO,(25 February 1890 - 8 March 1944) was a British Royal Navy officer who played a prominent role in the Norwegian Campaign during World War II.
Pegram was born in Lancashire, England and joined the navy in 1905. He served in World War I aboard the predreadnought HMS Hibernia and was present during the Gallipoli bombardment. In 1917 he served aboard the battlecruiser HMS Lion and in 1918 he was Gunnery Officer aboard HMS General Craufurd, a monitor bombarding German targets along the Belgian coast. For this service he received the Belgian Croix de Guerre.
Between the wars Peagram had a number of shore and seagoing appointments, including a period as executive officer of the battleship HMS Malaya.
On 10 July 1939 Peagram took up his appointment as commanding officer of the cruiser HMS Glasgow, and held this position until April of 1940. As such he saw active service in the battles surrounding the German invasion of Norway.
The Glasgow was in the waters off Scandinavia early in the war and participated in the search for the German passenger liner SS Bremen. In February of 1940, she captured the German trawler Herrlichkeit off Tromso.
Peagram's significance comes from three daring voyages into Norwegian ports with the threat of German air attack. The first was to land troops at Harstad in the far north of the country. Also, Peagram took the Glasgow into Namsos and landed a detachment of Royal Marines to block enemy troops until the main British forces arrived, during the Namsos Campaign. And finally, Peagram made a bold run under air attack into Molde in Southern Norway to evacuate King Haakon VII, much of the Norwegian Cabinet and senior government leaders as well as a good portion of the gold reserves of Norway.
From 1940 to 1943 Peagram commanded Royal Navy forces, first in the South Atlantic and then on the West Africa Station, flying his flag from HMS Cumberland.
Peagram was Fourth Sea Lord and Chief of Supplies from May of 1943 to March of 1944. He died in the Royal Naval Hospital in Bristol on 8 March 1944.
[edit] References
- www.unithistories.com select officers/British/Royal Navy
- Operation Fish, Draper, Alfred. General Publishing Co. Ltd., Don Mills, Ontario, Canada, 1979
