William Willett (Royal Navy officer)

Commander William Basil Willett, OBE, MVO, DSC (24 February 1919 – 1976) was Private Secretary to His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh, consort of Queen Elizabeth II 1970-1976.

Willett was educated at Winchester College and the Britannia Royal Naval College, Dartmouth. He joined the Royal Navy in 1937. He was sailing master on the royal yacht Bloodhound 1967-1968.

Willett received the DSC in 1942. He was made an OBE in 1964 and an MVO in 1969.

Honours and awards

3 December 1940 - Mention in Dispatches - Sub-Lieutenant William Basil Willett, Royal Navy. For courage and resource in recent successful actions against Italian Submarines.^[1]

1 January 1965 - Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) - Lieutenant Commander (Acting Commander) William Basil Willett, D.S.C., Royal Navy.^[2]

References

^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 35007. p. 6914. 3 December 1940. Retrieved 2008-12-05.
^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 43529. p. 5. 1 January 1965. Retrieved 2008-12-05.