Charles Frederick Thorp

Admiral Charles Frederick Thorp, C.B.E., Royal Navy, Retired (3 June, 1869 – 31 October, 1954) was an officer of the Royal Navy.

Early Life & Career

Charles Frederick Thorp was born on 3 June, 1869, the son of the Reverend Frederick Thorp, of Burton Overy, Leicestershire.

Thorp's promotion to the rank of Lieutenant was dated 3 June, 1889. On 6 May, 1890, he was appointed to the gun boat Thrush on the North America and West Indies Station, under the command of Prince George of Wales.

Thorp was promoted to the rank of Commander on 30 June, 1901.

Captain

He was promoted to the rank of Captain on 30 June, 1906.

He was appointed command of the first class protected cruiser Grafton on 10 January, 1907.

On 24 March, 1909, he was appointed in command of Terpsichore. He was superseded on 1 December, 1911. On the same day he was appointed in command of the battleship Britannia, Second Division, Home Fleet. She transferred to the Third Battle Squadron, First Fleet, Home Fleets, on 14 May, 1912.

In the 1913 Battle Practice Britannia received the third lowest score of any pre-dreadnought battleship, placing 17th out of 19. The First Lord of the Admiralty, Winston Churchill, was moved to write to his Naval Secretary on 18 September:

The very bad firing of the "Britannia" makes it necessary for me to ask you to examine the records of Captain Thorp, and report to me specially on him. Please ascertain whether this is not one of the ships which fired very badly in the Mediterranean on the occasion of the Board's visit.

Thorp was informed by the Admiralty that for placing an officer of the Royal Marine Artillery in charge of the gunnery control of the ship, instead of the Lieutenant (G), he was guilty of committing "an error judgement which had a detrimental effect on the ship's fighting efficiency" and that the reasons he gave did not justify his actions.He was superseded in Britannia on 6 December. Rear-Admiral Lewis Bayly, commanding the Third Battle Squadron, noted of Thorp: "Means well but is very slow, & is in my opinion not smart enough nor knowledgeable enough to command a very modern ship. Handles his ship well."

Great War

On 31 July, 1914, Thorp took command of the protected cruiser Edgar in Cruiser Force B on the Northern Patrol. Edgar paid off on 5 December, and on the 6th Thorp was appointed temporarily to Vivid for Devonport Gunnery School, where he remained until he was appointed to Impregnable as Flag Captain to the Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth, Vice-Admiral Sir George J. S. Warrender, Bart., on 5 June, 1915. He was superseded on 4 July, 1917. In June, 1916, Warrender wrote of Thorp: "A thoroughly reliable offr of the greatest assistance to me as Flag Capt. Every confidence in his judge^t."

On 15 August, 1917, Thorp was appointed in command of the Eastern Coastguard District. He was promoted to the rank of Rear-Admiral on 27 September, vice Nicholson, and placed on the Retired List on 28 September. His future in the Navy had been decided at a meeting of the Board of Admiralty on 15 June, when four of the five Sea Lords (Jellicoe dissenting) voted that he be retired on promotion to Flag Rank under Section III of the Order in Council of 9 March, 1914.

He continued to act as District Captain, and on 22 July, 1918, the outgoing Admiral Commanding Coastguard and Reserves, Vice-Admiral Sir Cecil F. Thursby, noted: "A v.g. District Captain."

Post-War

On 28 February, 1919, Thorp was appointed Senior Naval Officer, Harwich. On 11 August he was appointed a Commander of the Military Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (C.B.E.) for his "valuable services in command of the Eastern Coast Guard District." He was superseded as Senior Naval Officer, Harwich and District Captain on the 15th. On 13 December he reverted to the Retired List. He was invested with the insignia of the C.B.E. on 20 July, 1920, by King George V.

He was promoted to the rank of Vice-Admiral on 16 November, 1922, and was advanced to the rank of Admiral on the Retired List on 1 August, 1927.

Thorp died on 31 October, 1954, at the age of eighty-five, from congestive cardiac failure, myocardial degeneration, and senility.

Bibliography

• "Admiral C. E. Thorp" (Obituaries). The Times. Tuesday, 2 November, 1954. Issue 53078, col E, p. 6.

Service Records

• The National Archives. ADM 196/88.
• The National Archives. ADM 196/43/20.

Naval Appointments
Preceded by Edward M. Phillpotts	Captain of H.M.S. Grafton 10 Jan, 1907 – 11 Jan, 1909	Succeeded by Ronald A. Hopwood
Preceded by George P. W. Hope	Captain of H.M.S. Terpsichore 11 Jan, 1909 – 1 Dec, 1911	Succeeded by Richard Webb
Preceded by George P. W. Hope	Flag Captain of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich 24 Mar, 1909 – 1 Dec, 1911	Succeeded by Richard Webb
Preceded by George A. Ballard	Captain of H.M.S. Britannia 1 Dec, 1911 – 6 Dec, 1913	Succeeded by Henry G. G. Sandeman
Preceded by Charles W. Bruton	Captain of H.M.S. Edgar 31 Jul, 1914 – 5 Dec, 1914	Succeeded by Reginald St. P. Parry
Preceded by Henry M. Doughty	Captain of Devonport Gunnery School 8 Dec, 1914 – 5 Jun, 1915	Succeeded by Kenneth G. B. Dewar
Preceded by Eric P. C. Back	Flag Captain, Plymouth Station 5 Jun, 1915 – 4 Jul, 1917	Succeeded by Cecil H. Fox
Preceded by Charles W. Keighly-Peach as Captain-in-Charge of the Eastern Coast Guard District	Rear-Admiral-in-Charge of the Eastern Coast Guard District 15 Aug, 1917 – 15 Aug, 1919	Succeeded by ?
Preceded by Cecil S. Hickley	Senior Naval Officer, Harwich 1 Mar, 1919 – 29 Jul, 1919	Succeeded by Herbert Algernon Adam