| Roy Russell Dowling | |
|---|---|
Captain Roy Dowling, 1945 |
|
| Born | 28 May 1901 Condon, New South Wales |
| Died | 15 April 1969 (aged 67) Canberra |
| Allegiance | Australia |
| Service/branch | Royal Australian Navy |
| Years of service | 1915–1961 |
| Rank | Vice Admiral |
| Unit | HMAS Adelaide (1923–24) HMS Naiad (1940–42) |
| Commands held | HMAS Swan (1937–38) HMAS Hobart (1944–46) HMAS Sydney (1948–50) HM Australian Fleet (1953–55) Chief of Naval Staff (1955–59) Chairman COSC (1959–1961) |
| Battles/wars |
World War II |
| Awards | Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire Companion of the Order of the Bath Distinguished Service Order |
Vice Admiral Sir Roy Russell Dowling KCVO, KBE, CB, DSO (28 May 1901 – 15 April 1969) was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). He served as Chief of Naval Staff, the RAN's highest-ranking position, from 1955 until 1959, and as Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee, forerunner of the role of Australia's Chief of the Defence Force, from 1959 until 1961.
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Roy Russell Dowling was born on 28 May 1901 in Condong, a township on the Tweed River in northern New South Wales. His parents were sugar cane inspector Russell Dowling and his wife Lily. The youth entered the Royal Australian Naval College at Jervis Bay in what was then the Federal Capital Territory, in 1915. An underachiever academically, he excelled at sports, and achieved the position of chief cadet captain before graduating in 1918 with the King's Medal.[1] The following year he was posted to Britain as a midshipman, undergoing training with the Royal Navy and seeing service on HMS Ramillies and HMS Venturous.[2] By January 1923 he was back in Australia, aboard the cruiser HMAS Adelaide. He was promoted to lieutenant in March.[3] In April 1924, Adelaide joined the Royal Navy's Special Service Squadron on its worldwide cruise, taking in New Zealand, Canada, the United States, Panama, and the West Indies, before docking in September at Portsmouth, England. There Dowling left the ship for his next posting, studying to be a gunnery officer and serving in that capacity at HMS Excellent.[2][4]
After his return to Australia in December 1926, Dowling spent eighteen months on HMAS Platypus and HMAS Anzac, where he continued to specialise in gunnery. In July 1928 he took on an instructional role at the gunnery school in HMAS Cerberus on Western Port Bay, Victoria. He married Jessie Blanch in Melbourne on 8 May 1930; the couple had five children.[1] Jessie accompanied him on his next posting to Britain commencing in January 1931. He was promoted to lieutenant commander on 15 March, and was appointed gunnery officer on the light cruiser HMS Colombo in May. Returning to Australia, Dowling became squadron gunnery officer aboard the heavy cruiser HMAS Canberra in April 1933.[1][3] The ship operated mainly within Australian waters over the next two years.[5] In July 1935, Dowling took charge of the gunnery school at Cerberus. He was promoted to commander on 31 December 1936.[1][3] The following month, he assumed command of the newly commissioned Grimsby class sloop HMAS Swan, carrying out duties in the South West Pacific.[6]
Following the outbreak of World War II, Dowling was again posted to Britain and served as executive officer on the cruiser HMS Naiad, which was torpedoed by a German U-boat off Egypt in 1942 during the Battle of the Mediterranean.[1] Having survived that ordeal, he was appointed Director of Plans at the Navy Office in Melbourne.[1] The following year he was made Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff. In 1944 he was given command of the cruiser HMAS Hobart, in which he supported the invasion of Borneo as well as the Aitape–Wewak campaign, earning the Distinguished Service Order (DSO).[1]
When another captain senior to Dowling was pronounced unfit for seagoing duty, the latter was given the opportunity to take command of RAN's first aircraft carrier, HMAS Sydney, commissioned in England on 16 December 1948. In April the following year, two months after the ship's belated acceptance into service due to teething troubles, Dowling embarked Sydney for Australia with two squadrons of fighters aboard.[1][7] In June 1950, he was given the post of Chief of Naval Personnel.[1] He went on to be Flag Officer Commanding HM Australian Fleet in July 1953. On 24 February 1955, he became First Naval Member & Chief of Staff, and was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) in 1957.[1] On 23 March 1959, he succeeded Lieutenant General Sir Henry Wells as Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC), a role predating that of the modern-day Chief of the Defence Force.[8][9]
Succeeded as Chairman of COSC by Air Marshal Sir Frederick Scherger, Dowling retired from the military on 27 May 1961.[8][10] Though keen to secure a diplomatic appointment, nothing was offered to him and he instead busied himself with church affairs in Canberra. The government did, however, give him responsibility for organising the Queen's royal tour in 1962. He was rewarded with appointment as a Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order in March 1963, and became the Queen's permanent Australian secretary in Novemnber the same year. Dowling was also the Australian Red Cross Society's Canberra chairman from 1962 to 1967. He died of a heart attack on 15 April 1969 in Canberra Hospital. Survived by his wife and children, he was cremated.[1]
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Lieutenant General Sir Henry Wells |
Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee 1959–1961 |
Succeeded by Air Chief Marshal Sir Frederick Scherger |
| Preceded by Vice Admiral Sir John Collins |
First Naval Member & Chief of Staff 1955–1959 |
Succeeded by Vice Admiral Sir Henry Burrell |
| Preceded by Rear Admiral John Eaton |
Flag Officer Commanding HM Australian Fleet 1953–1955 |
Succeeded by Rear Admiral Henry Burrell |
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