Richard Clayton (Royal Navy officer)
Admiral Sir Richard Pilkington Clayton GCB (9 July 1925 – 15 September 1984) was Commander-in-Chief Naval Home Command.
Sir Richard Clayton | |
|---|---|
| Born | 9 July 1925 |
| Died | 15 September 1984 (aged 59) |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service/ | Royal Navy |
| Years of service | 1942 – 1981 |
| Rank | Admiral |
| Commands held | HMS Puma Gibraltar Dockyard HMS Kent HMS Hampshire Commander-in-Chief Naval Home Command |
| Battles/wars | World War II Suez Crisis |
| Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath |
Clayton joined the Royal Navy in 1942 and served as a midshipman on HMS Cumberland until 1943 when he was on various destroyers of the Home Fleet.[1] He also served on HMS Striker during the Suez Crisis in 1956.[1]
He became Commanding Officer of HMS Puma in 1958 and Executive Officer on HMS Lion in 1962.[1] He became Captain of the Gibraltar Dockyard in 1967[2] and then commanded HMS Kent and then HMS Hampshire in the late 1960s.[1] He was appointed Flag Officer Second Flotilla in 1973 and Senior Naval Member on Directing Staff at the Royal College of Defence Studies in 1975.[1]
He was appointed Controller of the Navy in 1975 and became Commander-in-Chief Naval Home Command in 1979:[1] he retired in 1981.[1]
In retirement he became a Director at GEC[3] and was a Governor of Rendcomb College.[4] He died in a motor cycling accident in September 1984.[5]