Vice Admiral Sir Henry Mackay BURRELL KBE CB MiD
Vice Admiral Burrell shares with Vice Admiral Creswell a
sense of strategic vision for Australia and its Navy.
Although he commanded two successive destroyers in WWII, it
was perhaps his first major shore appointment in America
that sparked his breadth of understanding and vision for the
role and future of the Royal Australian Navy. He understood
more than most, acknowledging it often, the debt the RAN
owes to its Royal Navy heritage. Yet when it was necessary
he steered the acquisition of new ships to American models,
with consequent benefits for his country. Resolute in
fighting for what he perceived as right, he fought hard –
and succeeded – in getting a 1959 decision to disband the
Fleet Air Arm reversed. He has been described as one of the
first "dinkum Aussie" Admirals, and remains one of the most
influential Flag Officers in the RAN’s history.
Vice Admiral Sir Henry Mackay Burrell, KBE, CB, was a senior
Commander in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). He
served as Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS) from 1959 to 1962.
Born in the Blue Mountains, Burrell entered the Royal
Australian Naval College in 1918 as a 13-year-old cadet.
His first posting at sea was aboard the cruiser HMAS
Sydney. During the 1920s and 1930s, Burrell
served for several years on exchange with the Royal Navy,
specialising as a Navigator. During World War II, he
filled a key liaison post with the US Navy, and later saw
action as Commander of the destroyer HMAS Norman,
earning a Mention in Despatches.
Promoted Captain in 1946, Burrell played a major role in the
formation of the RAN's Fleet Air Arm, before Commanding the
flagship HMAS Australia in 1948–49. He
Captained the Light Aircraft Carrier HMAS Vengeance
in 1953–54, and was twice Flag Officer of the Australian
Fleet, in 1955–56 and 1958. Burrell was appointed a
Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1955 and a
Companion of the Order of the Bath in 1959. As CNS, he
began a major program of acquisitions for the Navy,
including new helicopters, minesweepers, submarines and
guided-missile destroyers. He also acted to reverse a
plan by the government of the day to dismantle the Fleet Air
Arm. Knighted in 1960, Burrell retired to his farm
near Canberra in 1962 and published his memoirs, "Mermaids
Do Exist", in 1986.
Early life and career

Henry Mackay Burrell was born at Wentworth Falls, in the
Blue Mountains district of New South Wales. He was the third
child and only son of schoolteacher Thomas Burrell and his
wife, Eliza. Henry's father, who had emigrated from
England, joined the Australian Imperial Force at aged 55
during World War I, seeing active service in Egypt.
His grandfather and great-grandfather had served in the
Royal Navy. Henry attended Parramatta High School
before entering the Royal Australian Naval College, Jervis
Bay, on 1 January 1918, aged 13. A keen sportsman, he
competed in rugby union, tennis and hockey, winning colours
for hockey. Burrell graduated from the college in 1921
and became a Midshipman the next year. He went to sea
first aboard the light cruiser HMAS Sydney and then
the destroyer HMAS Stalwart. Posted to the United
Kingdom for further training in 1924, he served on the Light
Cruiser HMS Caledon and the Battleship HMS
Malaya. In April 1925, he was promoted to
Sub-Lieutenant, rising to Lieutenant by July 1926.
After
attending a Royal Navy course in 1930, Burrell became a
specialist Navigator, and saw service aboard the minesweeper
HMS Pangbourne, destroyers HMAS Tattoo and
Stuart, and cruiser HMAS Brisbane.
He married Margaret MacKay at Scots' Church, Melbourne, on
27 December 1933. Burrell was promoted to Lieutenant
Commander in July 1934, and graduated from an advanced
navigation course the next year.
Burrell served on exchange with the Royal Navy as Navigator
aboard the cruisers HMS Coventry and HMS
Devonshire, the latter during her tour of duty in the
Spanish Civil War. Described as being "egalitarian"
and "approachable", his familiarity with ratings earned him
the criticism of Devonshire's captain. Burrell,
however, believed that a close relationship between officers
and men was necessary for the smooth running of a ship.
After completing the Royal Navy's staff course in 1938, he
returned to Australia and was appointed Staff Officer
(Operations) at the Navy Office, Melbourne, in March 1939.
It was Burrell's first shore-based position, and he spent
the next four months bringing naval sections of the War Book
(preparations for war) up to date.
World War II
Burrell was still based at the Navy Office when World War II
broke out in September 1939. A reorganisation of the
headquarters in May 1940 saw him promoted to Commander and
given the new role of Director of Operations, overseeing
troop convoys and their air cover, local defence, and
staffing issues. Burrell's "full knowledge of
Australian naval plans and resources" led to Prime Minister
Robert Menzies personally nominating him to participate in
staff talks with representatives of the Royal Navy and US
Navy in October. Soon after, he was posted as the
first Australian Naval Attaché to Washington, D.C., in an
effort to improve communications with the US in light of the
threat from Japan. Burrell was credited with helping
to foster closer cooperation between the two navies in the
Pacific region. He also warned the Australian
government that Britain and the US would adopt a
"Germany-first" strategy in the event of war with Japan, and
that the US was prepared to weaken its Pacific fleet to help
secure the Atlantic.
Posted
to Britain, Burrell was appointed Commanding Officer of the
newly commissioned N-class destroyer HMAS Norman on
15 September 1941. The ship's first operation was
transporting a Trade Union Congress delegation led by Sir
Walter Citrine to Archangel, Russia. After returning
to Britain, she steamed to the Indian Ocean to join Admiral
Sir James Somerville's Eastern Fleet at Addu Atoll,
Maldives, on 26 February 1942. Following the Eastern
Fleet's withdrawal to Kilindini, Kenya, Norman took part in
the capture of Diego Suarez on Madagascar on 7 May.
Later that month, she was reassigned to the Mediterranean
and in June was involved in Operation Vigorous, an
unsuccessful attempt to resupply the besieged island of
Malta. Transferred back to the Indian Ocean, Burrell
led Norman in the second campaign of the Battle of
Madagascar in September, and was Mentioned in Despatches on
19 February 1943 for his "for Bravery and resource during
operations Madagascar". By this time Norman was escorting
convoys in the Pacific, before deploying to the South
Atlantic for anti-submarine duties in April–May.
On 23 June 1943, Burrell relinquished command of Norman
and returned to the Navy Office, Melbourne, as Director of
Plans. Having been divorced from his first wife
Margaret in November 1941, he married mineralogist Ada
Weller (also known as Ada Coggan) on 21 April 1944 after a
three week courtship. His new wife was a woman of
resource. At the age of 15 she had run away from home,
and some years later had ended up working on the mica fields
of WA and the NT. This was to prove a lifelong
connection and the
couple had a son and two daughters.

Burrell took charge of the RAN's latest Tribal-class destroyer, HMAS
Bataan, at her commissioning in Sydney on 25 May 1945.
Arriving on the scene too late to see action, the ship was
deployed to Japan via the Philippines in July, docking in
Tokyo on 31 August. There she participated in the
formal surrender ceremonies that took place on 2 September
aboard USS Missouri. Bataan remained
in Japan as Australian Squadron representative until
November, assisting with the repatriation of inmates from
Japanese prisoner-of-war camps. On a mission to one
such camp at Sendai, Burrell located crewmen from the light
cruiser HMAS Perth, which had been sunk in the
early hours of 1 March 1942 during the Battle of Sunda
Strait; 320 of her complement of 680 survived the sinking,
105 dying in captivity.

Post-war career
Burrell's first appointment following the cessation of
hostilities was as Commander of the 10th Destroyer Flotilla.
He was promoted Captain in June 1946, and became Deputy
Chief of the Naval Staff (DCNS) that October. As DCNS,
Burrell played a major role in establishing the Navy's Fleet
Air Arm and preparing for the introduction of carrier-based
aircraft. He was appointed an aide-de-camp to
Governor-General William McKell in July 1947. From
October 1948 to the end of 1949, Burrell served as
Commanding Officer of the heavy cruiser HMAS Australia,
Flagship of the RAN. Posted to Britain in 1950, he
attended the Imperial Defence College, London, and spent two
years as Assistant Australian Defence Representative.
He took command of the light aircraft carrier HMAS
Vengeance on 2 December 1952, less than three weeks
after she was commissioned into the RAN after transfer from
the Royal Navy. The ship began working up for
deployment to the Korean War in June 1953, but in the end
her place was taken by the carrier HMAS Sydney.
Vengeance was involved in a collision with HMAS
Bataan near the Cocos Islands on 5 April 1954, while
acting as part of the escort for the Royal Yacht of Queen
Elizabeth II and Prince Philip during their inaugural tour
of Australia, but continued on duty.
Completing his tour as Captain of Vengeance, Burrell briefly
resumed the role of Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff in
August 1954. The next month he was made an
aide-de-camp to the Queen. Burrell was appointed a
Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 1955 New
Year Honours. In February he became Flag Officer of
the Australian Fleet, with the acting rank of Rear Admiral;
this was made substantive in July. On 12 May 1956, he
hoisted his standard aboard the recently arrived aircraft
carrier HMAS Melbourne, marking her replacement of
sister ship HMAS Sydney as Flagship of the RAN.
Burrell was posted soon afterwards to the Navy Office,
Canberra, to redevelop the Service's officer structure,
leading to a new General List of officers' seniority.
He served as Second Naval Member (Personnel) from September
1956 until January 1958, when he again became Flag Officer
of the Australian Fleet. Appointed a Companion of the
Order of the Bath (CB) in the 1959 New Years Honours, Burrell was
raised to Vice Admiral on 24 February and became First Naval
Member, the Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS). He
succeeded Vice Admiral Sir Roy Dowling.
As CNS, Vice Admiral Burrell had to contend with a threat by
Defence Minister Athol Townley to disband the Navy's
fixed-wing Fleet Air Arm capability by 1963, but gained
approval for a major vessel re-equipment drive that was to
include new submarines, destroyers, minesweepers, and
auxiliaries.
This led among other things to the
procurement of British Oberon-class submarines, selected by
Burrell when his original preference for an Australian-built
craft proved too expensive, as well as Ton-class
minesweepers and the Navy's first purpose-designed
hydrographic survey ship, HMAS Moresby. The
re-equipment program also resulted in augmentation of the
RAN's rotary-wing assets with Westland Wessex anti-submarine
warfare helicopters. Most significant was the purchase
of three Charles F. Adams-class guided-missile destroyers, a
decision of "ingenuity and forethought" on the part of
Burrell and Navy Minister John Gorton, according to
historian Tom Frame. The CNS and his minister enjoyed
a close working relationship; Burrell declared that Gorton
"deserves our thanks for his efforts", and Gorton called
Burrell "one of the most honest, sincere and most dedicated
sailors".

Vice Admiral Burrell (right) is greeted by Admiral
Arleigh Burke, Chief of Naval Operations.
Also present (from left) are Rear Admiral Gatacre, Head of
the Australian Mission to Washington DC;
Mr Loveday, Counselor to the Australian Embassy; Rear
Admiral Mendenhall, Commandant, Potomac River Naval Command.
The purchase of the destroyers signalled a shift in reliance
for equipment from Britain to the United States that was
contrary to prevailing Australian defence policy at the
time, particularly in what historian Jeffrey Grey described
as "the most British of the Australian services, the RAN",
and provoked pressure from the Royal Navy and UK
shipbuilders, which had lobbied for purchase of their
County-class destroyer. Burrell later declared that
the superiority of the US weapons system was a key factor in
his preference for the Adams design over the County class.
On a mission overseas to discuss trends and acquisitions in
January 1960, he was rebuffed by Britain's Chief of the
Defence Staff, Admiral of the Fleet Lord Louis Mountbatten,
who mistakenly thought him responsible for the imminent
dissolution of the RAN's Fleet Air Arm, but warmly welcomed
by the US Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Arleigh Burke.
As it happened, Burrell would gain credit for maintaining
the integrity of the FAA, and its fixed-wing component
remained viable until the early 1980s.
He was
appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of the British
Empire (KBE) in the Queen's Birthday Honours, gazetted on 3 June
1960. In June 1961, he met with his opposite numbers
in the Army and Air Force at a Chiefs of Staff Committee
conference to discuss the necessity of Australia acquiring
nuclear weapons; the Chiefs agreed that the probability such
a capability would be required was remote but that it should
remain an option under certain circumstances, a position the
defence forces maintained during the ensuing decade.
Retirement
Burrell made his farewell to the Australian Fleet aboard
HMAS Melbourne at Jervis Bay on 8 February 1962.
He left the Navy on 23 February, and retired to
Illogan Park, his property near Braidwood in the Southern
Tablelands of New South Wales. His son Stuart followed him
into the Royal Australian Naval College in 1963. In
retirement Burrell enjoyed horse racing as a gambler and as
the owner of several successful mounts. During the
1960s, he was also a member of the ACT Regional Selection
Committee of the Winston Churchill Memorial Trusts.
Burrell suffered a serious heart attack in 1980, having been
diagnosed with cardiac problems shortly after his retirement
from the Navy. His wife Ada died in August 1981.
In 1986, Burrell published his memoirs as "Mermaids Do
Exist",
reflecting on what he described as a "lucky" career, and
offering his thoughts on maritime strategy. He died on
9 February 1988 in Woden Valley Hospital. Survived by
his three children, Burrell was buried in Gungahlin,
Australian Capital Territory, after a private funeral.
Canberra Times - Wed 10 Feb 1988
OBITUARY:
Sir Henry Burrell
RAN loses a distinguished commander
One of Australia's most distinguished naval officers,
Vice-Admiral Sir Henry Burrell, died in Canberra on Monday
aged 83.
Sir Henry retired as Chief of Naval Staff in 1962, ending a
career which began when he entered the Royal Australian
Naval College, Jervis Bay, as a cadet in 1918 at the age of
13. During his career he commanded several ships including
HMAS Norman, HMAS Bataan, HMAS Australia and HMAS
Vengeance.
His appointments included captain of the IOth Destroyer
Squadron, Deputy Chief of Naval Staff, assistant Australian
defence representative in London, naval attache in
Washington and later Flag Officer Commanding the Australian
Fleet.
In 1943 he was awarded a Mentioned in Dispatches for bravery
during operations in Madagascar. He was knighted in 1960.
The Chief of Naval Staff, Vice-Admiral Mike Hudson, said
yesterday that Sir Henry was a dedicated and hard-working
naval officer with a deep commitment to the navy and its
people.
"Those who knew him remember his naturally friendly manner
and his genuine interest in his fellow human beings," he
said. "He had a wonderful sense of humour and was very much
admired, respected and liked throughout the navy. "His success as Chief of Naval staff, indeed his entire
career, owed much to his wide range of interests and a keen
appreciation of history which he was able to relate to
current events."
Sir Henry wrote an autobiography, Mermaids Do Exist, which
was published last year and which blended personal
experiences with his observations on naval strategy.
His book indicated that he enjoyed his naval career
immensely, despite suffering some of the frustrations and
anxieties of any commanding officer.
As early as February, 1941, while posted as naval attache to
the Australian legation in Washington, he discovered that
the United States intended, if it was forced into the war,
to concentrate on securing the Atlantic Ocean and Europe
before dealing with a potentially hostile Japan.
He advised Canberra that the US regarded the Philippines as
essentially in defensible and Singapore as largely
irrelevant in terms of defending the region.
He recognised also that Britain, with its other commitments,
would not be able to fulfil its oft-repeated assurances to
Australia of sending a major fleet to oppose any hostile
Japanese moves.
Regardless of such warnings, Australia poured troops into
Singapore and Malaya to either die or endure appalling
conditions in captivity.
One of Sir Henry's main points in discussion of naval
strategy was the role of naval aviation in the form of
sea-going platforms, enabling a fleet to have an organic air
strike or defence capability.
He maintained that this had not been generally appreciated -
presumably outside naval circles - in Australia for the past
25 years, and he was critical of those who maintained that
Australia's maritime interests could be safely guarded by
land-based aircraft.
The Canberra Times' reviewer of "Mermaids Do Exist", Frank
Cranston, found the book "quite remarkable" and a "valuable
addition to the shelves of anyone with an interest in naval
events and in history".
He said Sir Henry had an obvious talent for writing and it
was a pity that he had left it so late in life to begin.
Sir Henry is survived by two daughters and a son. His wife
died several years ago. A spokesman for the Royal Australian
Navy said that, at the request of his family, a funeral with
full military honours would not be held.
Sources:
Wikipedia
Naval Officers Club of Australia
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