Connell Thode

Last updated

Lieutenant Commander
Connell Percy Thode
OBE
Born(1911-03-11)11 March 1911
Auckland, New Zealand
Died 9 October 2014(2014-10-09) (aged 103)
AllegianceFlag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
Service/branchNaval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svg  Royal Navy
Rank Lieutenant Commander
Commands held HMS Scythian
Battles/wars World War II
Awards Mention in Despatches (2)
Officer of the Order of the British Empire

Connell Percy Thode OBE (11 March 1911 – 9 October 2014) was a New Zealand naval officer and yachtsman. He served in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve during World War II and commanded HMS Scythian, an S class submarine of the Royal Navy.

World War II 1939–1945 global war

World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. The vast majority of the world's countries—including all the great powers—eventually formed two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. A state of total war emerged, directly involving more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. The major participants threw their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind the war effort, blurring the distinction between civilian and military resources. World War II was the deadliest conflict in human history, marked by 50 to 85 million fatalities, most of whom were civilians in the Soviet Union and China. It included massacres, the genocide of the Holocaust, strategic bombing, premeditated death from starvation and disease, and the only use of nuclear weapons in war.

British S-class submarine (1931) World War II submarine class

The S-class submarines of the Royal Navy were originally designed and built during the modernisation of the submarine force in the early 1930s to meet the need for smaller boats to patrol the restricted waters of the North Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, replacing the British H-class submarines. As part of the major naval construction for the Royal Navy during the Second World War, the S class became the single largest group of submarines ever built for the Royal Navy. A total of 62 were constructed over a period of 15 years, with fifty of the "improved" S class being launched between 1940 and 1945.

Contents

Early life

Born in Auckland in 1911, [1] Thode was educated at Mount Albert Grammar School from 1925 to 1926. [2] An accomplished yachtsman, he joined the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron in 1933, and skippered the keel sloop Iorangi. His skill was such that he was in contention to be a crew member on Thomas Sopwith's America's Cup challenge, but this did not proceed following the outbreak of World War II. [3]

Auckland Metropolitan area in North Island, New Zealand

Auckland is a city in the North Island of New Zealand. Auckland is the largest urban area in the country, with an urban population of around 1,628,900. It is located in the Auckland Region—the area governed by Auckland Council—which includes outlying rural areas and the islands of the Hauraki Gulf, resulting in a total population of 1,695,900. A diverse and multicultural city, Auckland is home to the largest Polynesian population in the world. The Māori-language name for Auckland is Tāmaki or Tāmaki-makau-rau, meaning "Tāmaki with a hundred lovers", in reference to the desirability of its fertile land at the hub of waterways in all directions.

Mount Albert Grammar School (MAGS) is a semi co-educational state secondary school in Mount Albert in Auckland, New Zealand. It teaches from year 9 to year 13. As of February 2018, Mount Albert Grammar is the second largest school in New Zealand.

Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron yacht club

The Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron is a New Zealand yacht club, and the club behind New Zealand's America's Cup campaigns, under the guises of New Zealand Challenge and Team New Zealand. It held the America's Cup from 1995 until 2003, becoming in 2000 the first non-American holder to successfully defend the trophy. After Team New Zealand's victory in the 2017 event, the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron are the current holders of the America's Cup.

World War II service

After the war began, Thode worked his passage to the United Kingdom, where he joined the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve and served in submarines. He was appointed navigator of HMS Proteus, a Parthian-class submarine based in Egypt, in mid-1941. [3] In June 1942 he was mentioned in despatches for gallant and distinguished service in successful patrols while serving on that vessel. [4] He then was made first lieutenant aboard HMS Ultor, a U-class submarine, before gaining command of HMS Scythian in late 1944. [3] He received his second mention in despatches in November 1945. [5] Thode was one of only three New Zealanders to command a submarine during World War II, and the only one serving in the naval reserve to do so. [3] [6]

HMS <i>Proteus</i> (N29)

HMS Proteus was a Parthian-class submarine designed and built by Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering in Barrow-in-Furness for the Royal Navy, and was launched on 22 August 1929. Like other submarines in her class she served in China before the war.

<i>Parthian</i>-class submarine

The Parthian-class submarine or P class was a class of six submarines built for the Royal Navy in the late 1920s. They were designed as long-range patrol submarines for the Far East. These boats were almost identical to the Odin class, the only difference being a different bow shape.

British U-class submarine

The British U-class submarines were a class of 49 small submarines built just before and during the Second World War. The class is sometimes known as the Undine class, after the first submarine built.

Later life

Thode spent 25 years teaching young New Zealanders to sail on the training ships Spirit of Adventure and Spirit of New Zealand . [6] In the 1996 New Year Honours, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for services to yachting. [7]

Spirit of New Zealand

The tall ship Spirit of New Zealand is a steel-hulled, three-masted barquentine from Auckland, New Zealand. It was purpose-built by the Spirit of Adventure Trust in 1986 for youth development. It is 42.5 m in total length and carries a maximum of 40 trainees and 13 crew on overnight voyages. The ship's home port is Auckland, and it spends most of its time sailing around the Hauraki Gulf. During the summer season, it often sails to the Marlborough Sounds and Nelson, at the top of the South Island.

The New Year Honours 1996 were appointments by most of the sixteen Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries, and honorary ones to citizens of other countries. They were announced on 29–30 December 1995 to celebrate the year passed and mark the beginning of 1996 in the United Kingdom, New Zealand and the Cook Islands, The Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize, and Antigua and Barbuda.

Order of the British Empire order of chivalry of British constitutional monarchy

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established on 4 June 1917 by King George V and comprises five classes across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two of which make the recipient either a knight if male or dame if female. There is also the related British Empire Medal, whose recipients are affiliated with, but not members of, the order.

Thode is believed to have been the oldest person to complete the 2013 New Zealand census online, when aged 101 years. [3] [8] He died on 9 October 2014 and his funeral service was held in St Christopher's Chapel at the Devonport Naval Base in Auckland. [3] [9] His ashes were buried at North Shore Memorial Park in Albany. [10]

The 2013 New Zealand census was the thirty-third national census. "The National Census Day" used for the census was on Tuesday, 5 March 2013. The population of New Zealand was counted as 4,242,048, – an increase of 214,101 or 5.3% over the 2006 census.

Devonport Naval Base

Devonport Naval Base is the home of the Royal New Zealand Navy, located at Devonport, New Zealand on Auckland's North Shore. It is currently the only base of the navy that operates ships, and has been in use as a navy base since 1841. The base consists of HMNZS Philomel, the Fleet Support Organisation, and the Fleet Personnel and Training Organisation.

Albany, New Zealand settlement in Auckland, New Zealand

Albany is one of the northernmost suburbs of the contiguous Auckland metropolitan area in New Zealand. It is located to the north of the Waitematā Harbour,

Related Research Articles

Michael Boyce, Baron Boyce Royal Navy officer

Admiral of the Fleet Michael Cecil Boyce, Baron Boyce, is a retired Royal Navy officer who now sits as a crossbench member of the House of Lords.

Ian Edward Fraser British military diver. Recipient of the Victoria Cross

Ian Edward Fraser was an English diving pioneer and recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Fraser was born in Ealing in Middlesex and went to school in High Wycombe. After initially working on merchant ships and serving in the Royal Naval Reserve, he joined the Royal Navy at the start of the Second World War. After being awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for actions while serving on submarines, he was placed in command of a midget submarine during an attack in Singapore codenamed Operation Struggle. For his bravery in successfully navigating the mined waters, and successfully placing mines on a Japanese cruiser, Fraser was awarded the Victoria Cross.

William Edward Sanders Recipient of the Victoria Cross

William Edward Sanders, was a New Zealand recipient of the Victoria Cross (VC), the highest award for gallantry "in the face of the enemy" that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

Roger Keyes, 1st Baron Keyes Royal Navy officer

Admiral of the Fleet Roger John Brownlow Keyes, 1st Baron Keyes, was a Royal Navy officer. As a junior officer he served in a corvette operating from Zanzibar on slavery suppression missions. Early in the Boxer Rebellion, he led a mission to capture a flotilla of four Chinese destroyers moored to a wharf on the Peiho River. He was one of the first men to climb over the Peking walls, to break through to the besieged diplomatic legations and to free the legations.

Sir Gilbert Owen Stephenson KBE, CB, CMG, DL was a British Vice-Admiral in the Royal Navy, a pioneer of anti-submarine techniques in World War I, and most famous as an important Naval training commandant during World War II.

John Fieldhouse, Baron Fieldhouse British Royal Navy officer

Admiral of the Fleet John David Elliott Fieldhouse, Baron Fieldhouse, was a Royal Navy officer. He commanded five submarines and a frigate before achieving higher command from the 1970s. Following the invasion of the Falkland Islands by Argentine forces in April 1982, Fieldhouse was appointed Commander of the Task Force given responsibility for "Operation Corporate", the mission to recover the Falkland Islands. The campaign ended in the surrender of Argentine forces in June 1982. He became First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff in December that year and, in that role, persuaded the British Government to fund the replacement of ships lost in the Falklands War. He went on to be Chief of the Defence Staff from 1985 until his retirement in 1988.

Terence Lewin Royal Navy admiral of the fleet

Admiral of the Fleet Terence Thornton Lewin, Baron Lewin, was a Royal Navy officer. He served in the Second World War and then commanded a destroyer, the Royal yacht, two frigates and an aircraft carrier before achieving higher command. He was First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff in the late 1970s and in that role he worked hard to secure a decent wage for servicemen and helped win them a 32% pay rise. He went on to be Chief of the Defence Staff during the Falklands War, serving as chief war planner and as Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's chief advisor during the war. He was also the first Chief of Defence Staff to act as head of the Armed Forces rather than just Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee.

Michael Pollock British admiral

Admiral of the Fleet Sir Michael Patrick Pollock, was a senior officer in the Royal Navy who rose to become First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff in the early 1970s. In the Second World War, he was an officer on ships tasked with protecting convoys in the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, and was gunnery officer on the cruiser HMS Norfolk when she fought the German battleship Scharnhorst during the Battle of North Cape. He later commanded the aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal, and hosted Ian Smith on HMS Tiger. In retirement, he held the position of King of Arms of the Order of the Bath and Gloucester King of Arms, with responsibility for heraldry in Wales.

Vice Admiral Sir John Michael Holland Cox, was a senior officer in the Royal Navy.

David Luce Royal Navy admiral

Admiral Sir John David Luce was a Royal Navy officer. He fought in the Second World War as a submarine commander before taking part in the Dieppe Raid and becoming Chief Staff Officer to the Naval Forces for the Normandy landings. He also commanded a cruiser during the Korean War. He served as First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff in the mid-1960s and in that role resigned from the Royal Navy along with Navy Minister Christopher Mayhew in March 1966 in protest over the decision by the Labour Secretary of State for Defence, Denis Healey, to cancel the CVA-01 aircraft carrier programme.

Lionel Halsey Royal Navy admiral

Admiral Sir Lionel Halsey, was a Royal Navy officer and courtier.

Peter Phipps New Zealand navy officer

Vice Admiral Sir Peter Phipps, was a founding father of the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN). For heroism at Guadalcanal, the United States of America awarded him the Navy Cross, their second highest award for valour. Phipps was the first New Zealander to reach the rank of vice admiral in the RNZN. He was also served as Chief of Naval Staff and the first Chief of the New Zealand Defence Force.

John Green (Royal Navy officer) Royal Navy officer, born 1866

Admiral Sir John Frederick Ernest Green was a Royal Navy officer of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He saw service in the Boxer Rebellion, World War I, and the North Russia Intervention in the Russian Civil War. Late in his career, he became Commander-in-Chief, Coast of Scotland.

Thode may refer to:

George Hunt (Royal Navy officer) Royal Navy officer

Captain George Edward Hunt, was a highly decorated Royal Navy submarine commander during the Second World War. While commanding HMS Ultor, he became the British submarine commander with the greatest number of sinkings of enemy vessels to his name, though David Wanklyn achieved sinkings of greater tonnage. Of the 68 torpedoes Hunt fired, 47% hit their targets.

Captain Harry Charles Birnie, was a Scottish sea captain and naval officer. His peacetime seafaring career was spent with the Cunard Line. He also served in the Royal Navy in both World Wars, being killed in action while in command of a merchant convoy in the North Atlantic in 1943.

Benjamin Bryant Royal Navy submarine commander

Rear Admiral Benjamin Bryant was a Royal Navy officer noted for his submarine exploits during World War II. In terms of ships sunk, Bryant was the most successful British submarine ace to survive the war.. He was appointed Deputy Chief of Naval Personnel, (Training) from July 1954 to February 1957,

John Clink Rear Admiral in the Royal Navy

Rear Admiral John Robert Hamilton Clink, is a former Royal Navy officer who retired from the Royal Navy in 2018.

William James Lanyon Smith was a New Zealand naval officer. He served in the Royal New Zealand Naval Volunteer Reserve during World War II and was second-in-command of a midget submarine during an attack in Singapore codenamed Operation Struggle, for which he was appointed a Companion of the Distinguished Service Order.

Commander Norman Eyre Morley, was a British Naval Reserve officer who served in both World Wars, becoming the most decorated reserve officer in the Royal Navy, and the only person to have been awarded the Distinguished Service Cross four times.

References

  1. ↑ "Births". Auckland Star. 14 March 1911. p. 10. Retrieved 19 October 2014.
  2. ↑ "Oldest Albertian farewelled as youngest member of Hall of Distinction inducted". Mount Albert Grammar School. Retrieved 19 October 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Field, Michael (14 October 2014). "Centenarian Kiwi sailor dies". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 19 October 2014.
  4. ↑ "No. 35613". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 June 1942. pp. 2866–2867.
  5. ↑ "No. 37358". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 November 1945. p. 5658.
  6. 1 2 Gorter, Sandra (22 September 2001). "The depths of submariner bravery". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 19 October 2014.
  7. ↑ "No. 54256". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 December 1995. p. 34.
  8. ↑ "WWII vet completes census forms online". Rodney Times. 26 February 2013. Retrieved 19 October 2014.
  9. ↑ "Connell Percy Thode obituary". New Zealand Herald. 11 October 2014. Retrieved 19 October 2014.
  10. ↑ "North burial and cremation records search". Auckland Council. Retrieved 11 May 2017.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.