| Sir Alexander Ramsay | |
|---|---|
| Born | 29 May 1881 |
| Died | 8 October 1972 |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service/branch | Royal Navy |
| Years of service | 1894 - 1942 |
| Rank | Admiral |
| Commands held | HMS Furious East Indies Station |
| Battles/wars | World War I World War II |
| Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath Distinguished Service Order |
Admiral Sir Alexander Robert Maule Ramsay GCVO KCB DSO RN (29 May 1881 – 8 October 1972) was a British Royal Navy officer who was the husband of Princess Patricia of Connaught, the youngest child of the Duke of Connaught, third son of Queen Victoria. He served with distinction during the First World War. During the 1920s and 1930s, he held several important Naval Aviation commands.
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Born in London as the third son of John William Ramsay, 13th Earl of Dalhousie and his wife, Lady Ida Louisa Bennet, he entered the Royal Navy as a cadet in HMS Britannia in 1894[1] and later went to sea on HMS Majestic, the flagship of Admiral Sir Walter Kerr in the Channel Squadron.[1] In October 1911, he became a naval aide-de-camp to the Duke of Connaught, then Governor General of Canada.[1] He returned to active naval duty in 1913 as the gunnery officer of the battlecruiser Indefatigable in the Mediterranean.[1]
Ramsay took part in several important naval operations of the First World War. He took part in the first phase of the bombardment of the Dardanelles forts in November 1914[1] and later at Gallipoli. He received the Distinguished Service Order (D.S.O.) for his conduct there. Ramsay rose to the rank of Commander in late 1914 and became flag commander of the Second Squadron in 1916.[1] He gained promotion to Captain in 1919 and served as the naval attaché in Paris for the next three years.[1]
On 27 February 1919, the then-Captain Ramsay married Princess Patricia of Connaught at Westminster Abbey, in the presence of the entire British Royal Family. On the day of the wedding, Princess Patricia voluntarily relinquished the title of "Princess of Great Britain and Ireland" and the style "Royal Highness", and assumed by Royal Warrant the style "Lady Patricia Ramsay" with precedence before the Marchionesses of England. Despite his wife's relinquishment of her royal title, however, the couple remained members of the British Royal Family and attended major royal events for the next forty years. They had one son, Alexander Ramsay of Mar.
In 1928, Ramsay assumed command of the aircraft carrier HMS Furious in the Atlantic Fleet.[1] He gained promotion to rear admiral in 1933 and for the next five years commanded the aircraft carriers in the fleet.[1] King George V made him a Companion of the Order of the Bath (C.B.) in the 1934 New Year's Honours. He subsequently advanced to the rank of Knight Commander in that order.
Ramsay served as Commander in Chief, East Indies Station from 1936 to 1938[1] and then became Fifth Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Air Services.[1] Ramsay held this post until the outbreak of World War II. He was promoted to Admiral and retired at his own request in 1942.[1] King George VI knighted him on 18 February 1938, and invested him with the Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (G.C.V.O.) on 6 July that year.
Admiral Ramsay died at Ribsden Holt, Windlesham, Surrey in 1972. He is buried in the Royal Burial Ground, Frogmore.
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Sir Forrester Rose |
Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station 1936–1938 |
Succeeded by Sir James Somerville |
| Vacant
Title last held by
Sir Godfrey Paine |
Fifth Sea Lord 1938 – 1939 |
Succeeded by Sir Guy Royle |