William Slayter

Admiral Sir William Rudolph Slayter KCB, DSO, DSC (13 February 1896 – 30 April 1971) was a British-American senior Royal Navy officer.[3]

Sir William Slayter
Birth nameWilliam Rudolph Slayter
Born13 February 1896
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.[1][2]
Died30 April 1971(1971-04-30) (aged 75)
Gosport, Hampshire, England
Allegiance United Kingdom
Service/branch Royal Navy
Years of service1916–1954
RankAdmiral
Commands heldEast Indies Station
Battles/warsWorld War I
World War II
AwardsKnight Commander of the Order of the Bath
Distinguished Service Order
Distinguished Service Cross

Early life and education

Slayter was born in Chicago, Illinois, the son of American parents both born in Chicago. His father, John Howard Slayter, was a physician born to an American mother and Canadian father, and was raised in Canada.[4][5] His mother, Harriet Alice Schloesser, was the daughter of Prussian immigrants.[6][7] His parents moved to Surrey, England, in the early 1900s, where his father served with the British Red Cross and was an instructor in the Royal Army Medical Corps.[8]

He entered the Royal Naval College, Osborne as a naval cadet in 1909.[3]

Slayter joined the Royal Navy as a sub-lieutenant on 15 March 1916 during the First World War.[9] He saw action in the Second World War as Deputy Director of Naval Ordnance from March 1940, Director of Naval Ordnance from January 1941 and as Chief of Staff, Home Fleet from November 1943.[10]

After the war became Captain of the Gunnery School at Portsmouth in September 1945, commander of the 2nd Cruiser Squadron in May 1949 and Admiral Commanding Reserves in October 1950.[10] His last appointment was as Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station in August 1952 before retiring in August 1954.[10]

He was made KCB in the 1952 Birthday Honours.[11]

Personal life

In 1925, he married Helen Justine Hale, daughter of Major Russell Hale, in Ontario, Canada. They had one son. Lady Slayter died in 1969.[3]

References
  1. 1911 England Census
  2. Ontario, Canada, Marriages, 1826–1937
  3. "Obituary: Adml Sir W. Slayter". The Times. The Times Digital Archive. 3 May 1971. p. 14.
  4. 1871 Census of Canada
  5. 1881 Census of Canada
  6. 1870 United States Federal Census
  7. 1920 United States Federal Census
  8. Canada, WWI CEF Attestation Papers, 1914–1918
  9. "No. 29512". The London Gazette. 17 March 1916. p. 2935.
  10. "Senior Royal Navy Appointments" (PDF). Retrieved 15 June 2018.
  11. "No. 39555". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 June 1952. p. 3009.
Military offices
Preceded by
Sir Geoffrey Oliver		 Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station
1952–1954		 Succeeded by
Sir Charles Norris
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