The Seven Seas Club (1922) Limited
Admiral Sir Brian Brown, naval officer who rose to become Second Sea Lord – obituaryHe served in Korea, Malaya and during the Suez Crisis, and later oversaw the introduction of women into seagoing positionsBy Telegraph Obituaries (published online 9 Jun 2020 ? 12:57pm and expected to be in the print edition 10 Jun 2020)Admiral Sir Brian Brown, who has died aged 85, excelled at whatever he turned his mind to professionally, and became Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel; from 1986 onwards he was at the centre of the debate about whether Wrens should serve at sea.His primary reservations about “women-at-sea” was that it would be his responsibility to make an unpopular policy work. He also doubted the morality of employing women in combat roles while men might be in safe jobs ashore; and, remembering media coverage of the Falklands War, he recoiled from the thought of female burns victims appearing on television. Nor was he persuaded that Wrens’ career prospects were inadequate: rather there was a queue of high-class volunteers for the WRNS.Brown was abroad in January 1990 shortly before the Board of Admiralty were to discuss the subject and to make recommendations to Archie Hamilton, Minister for the Armed Forces. Warned via a long-distance call that Hamilton and the Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher were strongly in favour of woman at sea, Brown crafted a paper to ensure that its conclusions were acceptable politically.That was the easiest task, but Brown also understood the many benefits of having women in seagoing appointments and in harnessing their talents. In his remaining months in office he meticulously drew together all the strands and complexities for the full integration of women at sea.He was knighted KCB in 1989.Brian Thomas Brown was born in Portsmouth on August 31 1934 and educated at Peter Symonds’ School in Winchester. He was destined to read Classics at Oxford and then become a barrister, but one murky morning in December 1951, as his Greek master droned on, he realised that he could not listen to any more about Themistocles, and decided upon a former, childhood ambition to go to sea.Already within a few weeks of the naval college entry examinations, with too little time to learn the mathematics and physics which were a prerequisite for becoming a seaman officer, Brown chose the only specialisation open to him, which was Supply and Secretariat.He first went to sea in the training cruiser Devonshire, in the Caribbean and Mediterranean, and the maintenance carrier Unicorn during the Korean War. Brown’s intellect and flair were recognised during his professional training (1954-55), a course in logistics training at HMS Ceres, Wetherby, and the Junior Officers’ War Course and naval legal training at Greenwich.His first logistics appointment was as cash officer in the cruiser Kenya, flagship of the Commander-in-Chief, America and West Indies: there his leadership was recognised by being made sub-lieutenant of the gunroom, a responsible but difficult job for a young officer in charge of the discipline of other junior officers.During the Suez Crisis Kenya spent several weeks patrolling the Red Sea, when, as a cryptographic watchkeeper, Brown’s reading of top-secret signals gave him his first insight in the higher management of war.At risk of becoming bored again, Brown volunteered for flying. Awarded his wings in 1958, he joined the Naval Air Fighter School, Lossiemouth, to fly Sea Hawk ground-attack jets, and embarked in the carrier Eagle in 1959. Next he volunteered for a conversion course to fly helicopters, and in 1960 he joined 848 Naval Air Squadron, a commando helicopter squadron in Bulwark, the Royal Navy’s first commando carrier, and flew in both the Kuwait Crisis in 1961 (when an Iraqi invasion was deterred), and during the Communist insurgency in Malaya.In 1961 Brown reverted to supply duties, joining the depot ship Narvik, based in Malta for 5th Submarine Squadron and 108th Minesweeping Squadron. When his talent as a first-class staff officer was recognised, he joined the staff of the Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean, to help plan the rundown of the naval base.Next, he was Assistant Secretary to the First Sea Lord, the head of the Royal Navy, Admiral Sir David Luce. Lessons learnt from the failure of the naval staff leading to the cancellation in 1966 of the aircraft carrier, CVA01, and the decision of Luce to resign, were seared into his mind.From 1966 until 1978 he served successfully at sea and shore, in HM Royal Yacht Britannia; at the Royal Naval Air Station Yeovilton; as secretary to Flag Officer Carriers and Amphibious Ships; as a desk officer in Whitehall, in the helicopter cruiser Tiger on deployment to the Far East; as secretary to the Vice Chief of Naval Staff; and as Chief Staff Officer (Personnel & Administration) to Flag Officer Naval Air Command.Brown returned to Whitehall (1979-82) as secretary to the new First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir Henry Leach, years which were important for the future of carrier-borne naval aviation. When Leach contemplated resignation over the misguided Nott defence review, Brown argued strongly against, using his experience of Luce’s resignation to help convince his chief to stay and fight his corner.When the Argentinians invaded the Falklands, Brown drew on his immense experience to put Leach’s office on a war footing and, afterwards, astutely ensured that no opportunity was missed in making the naval case and clawing back the losses from the Nott Review.Brown was a passionate cricketer, and throughout his time in office the television was always switched on to cricket, the 1981 Botham Ashes vying with Nott’s defence review for his attention.He was awarded the CBE in 1983, studied at the Royal College of Defence Studies, commanded the new-entry training establishment HMS Raleigh, Cornwall (1984-86), and was promoted to flag-rank in 1986.After leaving the Navy he was chairman of Cray Electronics (1991-96) and of P-E International, the UK’s oldest management consultancy company (1995-98). He was also much in demand to chair charities including King George’s Fund for Sailors (1993-2003) and the Michael May Young Cricketers Foundation (1992-2004).A countryman at heart, when he could no longer play cricket, Brown took up fly-fishing and beagling, was a liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Gardeners, and chaired the Hampshire branch of CPRE 2008-13.As master of the Clinkard Meon Valley Beagles from 2003 to 2009 he whipped hunt supporters into canvassing for Penny Mordaunt, helping to win Portsmouth North for the Conservatives.Brown was a master of detail with an amazing memory, and a hard taskmaster, but always fair in his dealings with all. An unassuming man, he had no airs or graces and was as comfortable with the most junior sailor, the office cleaner or royalty. Motivated by his faith, Brown was churchwarden of St Peter’s, Froxfield, for several years.In 1959 he married Veronica “Ronnie” Bird, who survives him with their two sons.Admiral Sir Brian Brown, born August 31 1934, died April 27 2020? ?p.s. The photograph, attached separately, was not used for the obituary but Sir Brian told me that he had given it the caption Never Again (six serving pusser admirals in 1990). ................
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