David Luce

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Sir

David Luce
Second World War
Grand Officer of the Order of Aviz (Portugal)[1]
Order of the Two Rivers, Third Class (Iraq)
RelationsRear Admiral John Luce (father)
Sir William Luce (brother)

Labour Secretary of State for Defence, Denis Healey, to cancel the CVA-01 aircraft carrier
programme.

Naval career

Born the son of Rear Admiral John Luce and Mary Dorothea Luce (née Tucker), Luce was educated at the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth.[2] He joined the Royal Navy as a cadet in 1919[3] and, having been promoted to midshipman on 15 January 1924, he went to sea in the battleship HMS Iron Duke.[4]

Promoted to

Royal Naval Staff College in Spring 1937 and then became Staff Officer (Operations) for the 4th Submarine Flotilla on the China Station in January 1938.[4] He was given command of the submarine HMS Regulus in December 1938 and the submarine HMS Rainbow in March 1939.[4]

The cruiser HMS Swiftsure in which Luce served as Executive Officer during the Second World War

Luce served in the

Admiralty in March 1941 and then became Naval Raid planner on the staff of the Naval Adviser at Combined Operations Headquarters.[4] He took part in the Dieppe Raid in August 1942 for which he was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire on 2 October 1942[9] and was appointed Chief Staff Officer to the Naval Forces for the Normandy landings in June 1944 as a result of which he won a Bar to his DSO on 14 November 1944.[10] He went on to be Executive Officer of the cruiser HMS Swiftsure in the British Pacific Fleet in August 1944 and was promoted to captain on 30 June 1945.[11]

After the war, Luce became Chief of Staff (Operations) to the Commander-in-Chief, British Pacific Fleet.

mentioned in despatches on 19 May 1953.[12]

Luce became Director of the Royal Naval Staff College in March 1953 and was appointed Naval

Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath in the 1963 Birthday Honours.[19]

Luce became

Labour Secretary of State for Defence, Denis Healey, to cancel the CVA-01 aircraft carrier programme.[21]

Later career

In retirement, Luce became President of the Royal Naval Association.

Venerable Order of Saint John on 3 January 1969.[22] He died, less than five years after his resignation from the Navy, at Lansdown Nursing Home in Bath, Somerset on 6 January 1971.[4]

Family

In 1935, Luce married Mary Adelaide Norah Whitham; they had two sons.

Aden (1956–1960). William's son, Richard Luce, Baron Luce, was a Conservative MP (1971–1992), Governor of Gibraltar (1997–2000) and Lord Chamberlain (2000–2006).[23]

References

  1. ^ "Portuguese Honorary Orders". President of Portugal. Retrieved 15 September 2012.
  2. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/65602. Retrieved 15 September 2012. (Subscription or UK public library membership
    required.)
  3. ^ "Admiral Sir David Luce". Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives. Retrieved 15 September 2012.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r "Sir David Luce". Unit Histories. Retrieved 15 September 2012.
  5. ^ "No. 33325". The London Gazette. 1 November 1927. p. 6896.
  6. ^ "No. 33436". The London Gazette. 6 November 1928. p. 7212.
  7. ^ "No. 34333". The London Gazette. 20 October 1936. p. 6688.
  8. ^ "No. 34991". The London Gazette (Supplement). 12 November 1940. p. 6549.
  9. ^ "No. 35729". The London Gazette (Supplement). 2 October 1942. p. 4324.
  10. ^ "No. 36794". The London Gazette (Supplement). 10 November 1944. p. 5214.
  11. ^ "No. 37183". The London Gazette. 17 July 1945. p. 3689.
  12. ^ "No. 39854". The London Gazette (Supplement). 15 May 1953. p. 2766.
  13. ^ "No. 40232". The London Gazette. 16 July 1954. p. 4171.
  14. ^ "No. 40414". The London Gazette. 22 February 1955. p. 1097.
  15. ^ "No. 40960". The London Gazette (Supplement). 28 December 1956. p. 2.
  16. ^ "No. 41382". The London Gazette (Supplement). 9 May 1958. p. 2904.
  17. ^ "No. 41909". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 December 1959. p. 3.
  18. ^ "No. 42159". The London Gazette. 4 October 1960. p. 6702.
  19. ^ "No. 43010". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 May 1963. p. 4794.
  20. ^ "No. 43974". The London Gazette. 6 May 1966. p. 5448.
  21. ^ "The promised two new aircraft carriers". Retrieved 15 September 2012.
  22. ^ "No. 44757". The London Gazette. 3 January 1969. p. 129.
  23. ^ "Sir William Luce". The Peerage. Retrieved 26 January 2016.
Military offices
Preceded by Naval Secretary
1954–1956 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Flag Officer, Scotland and Northern Ireland

1958–1959 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Commander-in-Chief, Far East Fleet

1960–1962 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
First Sea Lord

1963–1966 		Succeeded by
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