Terence Lewin, Baron Lewin

Admiral of the Fleet The Lord Lewin
The then Admiral Sir Terence Lewin (Crown Copyright)
Born	19 November 1920(1920-11-19) Dover, Kent, United Kingdom
Died	23 January 1999(1999-01-23) (aged 78)
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	Royal Navy
Years of service	1939 - 1982
Rank	Admiral of the Fleet
Commands held	HMS Corunna HMY Britannia HMS Urchin HMS Tenby HMS Hermes Fleet Naval Home Command
Battles/wars	World War II Falklands War
Awards	Knight of the Order of the Garter Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order Distinguished Service Cross Mention in Despatches (3)

Admiral of the Fleet Terence Thornton Lewin, Baron Lewin, KG, GCB, LVO, DSC (19 November 1920 – 23 January 1999) was a former First Sea Lord of the Royal Navy, and Chief of the Defence Staff.

1 Biography
- 1.1 Naval career
- 1.2 Later life
2 In popular culture
3 References
4 Further reading

Biography

Naval career

Educated at The Judd School in Tonbridge where he was head prefect in 1938 (one of the four houses at Judd is now named after him, following the reinstation of a house system to the school in 2008), he entered the Navy in 1939.^[1] He spent much of World War II on HMS Ashanti: he served with distinction being mentioned in dispatches three times and being awarded the Distinguished Service Cross.^[2]

He was given command of HMS Corunna in 1955, HM Yacht Britannia in 1957, HMS Urchin in 1962, HMS Tenby in 1963 and HMS Hermes in 1966.^[3]

He was appointed Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff in 1968 and Flag Officer Second in Command Far East Fleet in 1969.^[3] In 1971 he became Vice Chief of the Naval Staff and in 1973 he went on to be Commander-in-Chief Fleet.^[4] In 1975 he was made Commander-in-Chief Naval Home Command.^[4]

He was appointed First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff in 1977.^[4] He was Chief of the Defence Staff and member of the War Cabinet during the Falklands War^[4] and it was for this role and also his longer term contribution to the restructuring of the Armed Forces in the 1980s that he was created a life peer, as Baron Lewin, of Greenwich in Greater London, and appointed a Knight of the Order of the Garter.^[5]

Lord Lewin had a building named after him at the maritime warfare school, H.M.S Collingwood.

At The Judd School in Tonbridge, a house is named after him (Lewin). The house colour is light blue.

Later life

He retired from service in late 1982 and went on to Chair the Trustees of the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, London. In retirement Lord Lewin served as Honorary Vice-President of the Naval Historical Collectors & Research Association^[6] and the NHCRA awards the Lord Lewin Memorial Prize in his memory.^[7] He died at home in January 1999.

In popular culture

Lewin was portrayed by John Woodvine in the 2002 BBC production of Ian Curteis's controversial The Falklands Play.

References

^ Heathcote, Anthony pg 155
^ Heathcote, Anthony pg 156
^ ^a ^b Heathcote, Anthony pg 157
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Heathcote, Anthony pg 158
^ Heathcote, Anthony pg 159
^ Winter 1998 Volume 11.3
^ Cdr John D E Lewis RD RNR (1930-33)

Lewin of Greenwich, Rear-Admiral Richard Hill, Weidenfeld Military, 2000, ISBN 978 030435 329 3
The British Admirals of the Fleet 1734 - 1995, Heathcote T. A., Pen & Sword Ltd, 2002, ISBN 0 85052 835 6
‘Lewin, Terence Thornton, Baron Lewin (1920–1999)’, Richard Hill, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, September 2004; online edition, May 2007. (Subscription required for online access).

Military offices
Preceded by Sir Edward Ashmore	Vice Chief of the Naval Staff 1971–1973	Succeeded by Sir John Treacher
Preceded by Sir Edward Ashmore	Commander-in-Chief Fleet 1973–1975	Succeeded by Sir John Treacher
Preceded by Sir Derek Empson	Commander-in-Chief Naval Home Command 1975–1976	Succeeded by Sir David Williams
Preceded by Sir Edward Ashmore	First Sea Lord 1977–1979	Succeeded by Sir Henry Leach
Preceded by Sir Neil Cameron	Chief of the Defence Staff 1979–1982	Succeeded by Sir Edwin Bramall

Chiefs of the Defence Staff of the United Kingdom

Sir William Dickson • Earl Mountbatten • Sir Richard Hull • Sir Charles Elworthy • Sir Peter Hill-Norton • Sir Michael Carver • Sir Andrew Humphrey • Sir Edward Ashmore • Sir Neil Cameron • Sir Terence Lewin • Sir Edwin Bramall • Sir John Fieldhouse • Sir David Craig • Sir Richard Vincent • Sir Peter Harding • Sir Peter Inge • Sir Charles Guthrie • Sir Michael Boyce • Sir Michael Walker • Sir Jock Stirrup • Sir David Richards

Commanders-in-Chief and First Sea Lords of the Royal Navy

Admirals of the Fleet (1690–1828)	Edward Russell · Sir George Rooke · Sir Cloudesley Shovell · Sir Stafford Fairborne · Sir George Byng · Sir John Norris · Sir Chaloner Ogle · James Steuart · George Clinton · The Lord Anson · Sir William Rowley · Sir Edward Hawke · John Forbes · The Earl Howe · Sir Peter Parker · Prince William, Duke of Clarence

First Naval Lords (1828–1904)	Sir George Cockburn · Sir Thomas Hardy · The Hon. George Dundas · Charles Adam · Sir George Cockburn · Sir Charles Adam · Sir George Cockburn · Sir William Parker · Sir Charles Adam · Sir James Dundas · The Hon. Maurice Berkeley · Hyde Parker · The Hon. Maurice Berkeley · The Hon. Sir Richard Dundas · William Martin · The Hon. Sir Richard Dundas · The Hon. Sir Frederick Grey · Sir Alexander Milne · Sir Sydney Dacres · Sir Alexander Milne · Sir Hastings Yelverton · Sir George Wellesley · Sir Astley Key · Sir Arthur Hood · Lord John Hay · Sir Arthur Hood · Sir Richard Hamilton · Sir Anthony Hoskins · Sir Frederick Richards · Lord Walter Kerr

First Sea Lords (1904–present)	Sir John Fisher · Sir Arthur Wilson · Sir Francis Bridgeman · Prince Louis of Battenberg · The Lord Fisher · Sir Henry Jackson · Sir John Jellicoe · Sir Rosslyn Wemyss · The Earl Beatty · Sir Charles Madden, Bt · Sir Frederick Field · The Lord Chatfield · Sir Roger Backhouse · Sir Dudley Pound · The Lord Cunningham of Hyndhope · Sir John Cunningham · The Lord Fraser of North Cape · Sir Rhoderick McGrigor · The Earl Mountbatten of Burma · Sir Charles Lambe · Sir Caspar John · Sir David Luce · Sir Varyl Begg · Sir Michael Le Fanu · Sir Peter Hill-Norton · Sir Michael Pollock · Sir Edward Ashmore · Sir Terence Lewin · Sir Henry Leach · Sir John Fieldhouse · Sir William Staveley · Sir Julian Oswald · Sir Benjamin Bathurst · Sir Jock Slater · Sir Michael Boyce · Sir Nigel Essenhigh · Sir Alan West · Sir Jonathon Band · Sir Mark Stanhope

Persondata
Name	Lewin, Terence
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	19 November 1920
Place of birth	Dover, Kent, United Kingdom
Date of death	23 January 1999
Place of death