Murray Sueter
Encyclopedia
Sir Murray Fraser Sueter, CB, MP (6 September 1872, Alverstoke
– 3 February 1960, Watlington, Oxfordshire
) was a Royal Naval officer who was noted as a pioneer of naval aviation
and later became a Member of Parliament
(MP).
as a cadet on Britannia
in 1886 before serving as a midshipman
with HMS Swiftsure
. After becoming a Lieutenant
in 1894 he became a specialist in torpedo
warfare and served HMS Vernon
and HMS Jupiter
in this capacity. With this experience Sueter moved over to Reginald Bacon
's submarine tender
HMS Hazard
in 1902 where he distinguished himself in aiding stricken crew members. Sueter's book, The Evolution of the Submarine Boat, Mine and Torpedo (1907), was a consequence of his close work with submarines in this capacity.
He married Andrew Clarke
's daughter, Elinor Mary "Nell" de Winton, in 1903, a year before his promotion to commander
(he was made a captain
in 1909). Elinor Sueter died on 15 December 1948.
Murray Sueter's technical skills saw him brought in to the naval ordnance department of the Admiralty
and in 1909 he supervised the construction of airship
Mayfly, a new avenue of naval development. As inspecting captain of airships he oversaw the failure of the experiment but was nonetheless given command of the Navy's Air Department
in 1912. In this role he oversaw the creation of the Royal Naval Air Service
.
Sueter continued his aerial innovations during the early stages of World War I
including the launching of torpedoes from aircraft and in 1915 he was promoted commodore first class and appointed superintendent of aircraft construction.
He promoted the use of armoured cars for the defence of airfields in France, after the stalemate of the trenches developed the cars would be sent to Russia and Egypt His interest in the armoured car led to involvement in tank development.
In 1917 he clashed with the Admiralty and was posted to command the RNAS in Italy. While in Italy, Sueter sent a letter to King George which incurred the displeasure of the Sea Lords and he was relieved of command. He was given no work from 1918 to 1920 when he was retired as a rear admiral
.
After his naval service he became worked with airmail
provision and published a number of books, notably Airmen or Noahs (1928) an autobiography and critique of current naval practices and The Evolution of the Tank (1937). He was knighted in 1934.
and was co-sponsored by them and the Independent Parliamentary Group
for the Hertford by-election, 1921
which he won. He went on to join the Conservative Party
and contested the 1923 general election
for them, winning election in Hertford
. He went on to hold the seat until his retirement in 1945. During the 1930s he was one of a number of Members of Parliament to become active in the Anglo-German Fellowship
.
Alverstoke
Alverstoke is a parish in the borough of Gosport, Hampshire, England, that encompasses land stretching from Haslar to Stokes Bay. Alverstoke lies within half a mile of the shore of Stokes Bay and near the head of a creek which extends a mile westward from Portsmouth Harbour...
– 3 February 1960, Watlington, Oxfordshire
Watlington, Oxfordshire
Watlington is a market town and civil parish about south of Thame in Oxfordshire. The parish includes the hamlets of Christmas Common and Greenfield, both of which are in the Chiltern Hills. The M40 motorway is from Watlington.-History:...
) was a Royal Naval officer who was noted as a pioneer of naval aviation
Naval aviation
Naval aviation is the application of manned military air power by navies, including ships that embark fixed-wing aircraft or helicopters. In contrast, maritime aviation is the operation of aircraft in a maritime role under the command of non-naval forces such as the former RAF Coastal Command or a...
and later became a Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP).
Naval career
Coming from a naval background he entered the Royal NavyRoyal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
as a cadet on Britannia
HMS Prince of Wales (1860)
HMS Prince of Wales was one of six 121-gun screw-propelled first-rate three-decker line-of-battle ships of the Royal Navy. She was launched on 25 January 1860...
in 1886 before serving as a midshipman
Midshipman
A midshipman is an officer cadet, or a commissioned officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Kenya...
with HMS Swiftsure
HMS Swiftsure (1870)
HMS Swiftsure was the lead ship of the Swiftsure class battleships built in the late Victorian era. Her sister-ship was .-Service history:...
. After becoming a Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
in 1894 he became a specialist in torpedo
Torpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
warfare and served HMS Vernon
HMS Vernon (shore establishment)
HMS Vernon was a shore establishment or 'stone frigate' of the Royal Navy. Vernon was established on 26 April 1876 as the Royal Navy's Torpedo Branch and operated until 1 April 1996, when the various elements comprising the establishment were split up and moved to different commands.-Foundation...
and HMS Jupiter
HMS Jupiter (1895)
HMS Jupiter was a Majestic-class pre-dreadnought battleship of the Royal Navy.-Technical characteristics:HMS Jupiter was laid down by J & G Thomson, Clydebank at Clydebank on 26 April 1894 and launched on 18 November 1895...
in this capacity. With this experience Sueter moved over to Reginald Bacon
Reginald Bacon
Admiral Sir Reginald Hugh Spencer Bacon, KCB, KCVO, DSO was an officer in the Royal Navy noted for his technical abilities who was described by the First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir Jacky Fisher, as the man "acknowledged to be the cleverest officer in the Navy".-Family:Reginald was born at Wiggonholt in...
's submarine tender
Submarine tender
A submarine tender is a type of ship that supplies and supports submarines.Submarines are small compared to most oceangoing vessels, and generally do not have the ability to carry large amounts of food, fuel, torpedoes, and other supplies, nor to carry a full array of maintenance equipment and...
HMS Hazard
HMS Hazard
Seven ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Hazard:*HMS Hazard was a 14-gun sloop launched in 1711. She was wrecked in 1714 off Boston, New England....
in 1902 where he distinguished himself in aiding stricken crew members. Sueter's book, The Evolution of the Submarine Boat, Mine and Torpedo (1907), was a consequence of his close work with submarines in this capacity.
He married Andrew Clarke
Andrew Clarke (administrator)
Lieutenant-General Sir Andrew Clarke, GCMG, CB, CIE was a British soldier and governor as well as a politician in Australia.-Background and education:...
's daughter, Elinor Mary "Nell" de Winton, in 1903, a year before his promotion to commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
(he was made a captain
Captain (Royal Navy)
Captain is a senior officer rank of the Royal Navy. It ranks above Commander and below Commodore and has a NATO ranking code of OF-5. The rank is equivalent to a Colonel in the British Army or Royal Marines and to a Group Captain in the Royal Air Force. The rank of Group Captain is based on the...
in 1909). Elinor Sueter died on 15 December 1948.
Murray Sueter's technical skills saw him brought in to the naval ordnance department of the Admiralty
Admiralty
The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...
and in 1909 he supervised the construction of airship
Airship
An airship or dirigible is a type of aerostat or "lighter-than-air aircraft" that can be steered and propelled through the air using rudders and propellers or other thrust mechanisms...
Mayfly, a new avenue of naval development. As inspecting captain of airships he oversaw the failure of the experiment but was nonetheless given command of the Navy's Air Department
Air Department
The Air Department of the British Admiralty was established prior to World War I by Winston Churchill. Its function was to foster naval aviation developments and later to oversee the Royal Naval Air Service . Its first director was Captain Murray Sueter...
in 1912. In this role he oversaw the creation of the Royal Naval Air Service
Royal Naval Air Service
The Royal Naval Air Service or RNAS was the air arm of the Royal Navy until near the end of the First World War, when it merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps to form a new service , the Royal Air Force...
.
Sueter continued his aerial innovations during the early stages of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
including the launching of torpedoes from aircraft and in 1915 he was promoted commodore first class and appointed superintendent of aircraft construction.
He promoted the use of armoured cars for the defence of airfields in France, after the stalemate of the trenches developed the cars would be sent to Russia and Egypt His interest in the armoured car led to involvement in tank development.
In 1917 he clashed with the Admiralty and was posted to command the RNAS in Italy. While in Italy, Sueter sent a letter to King George which incurred the displeasure of the Sea Lords and he was relieved of command. He was given no work from 1918 to 1920 when he was retired as a rear admiral
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...
.
After his naval service he became worked with airmail
Airmail
Airmail is mail that is transported by aircraft. It typically arrives more quickly than surface mail, and usually costs more to send...
provision and published a number of books, notably Airmen or Noahs (1928) an autobiography and critique of current naval practices and The Evolution of the Tank (1937). He was knighted in 1934.
Politics
After his naval service Sueter entered politics as a member of the Anti-Waste LeagueAnti-Waste League
The Anti-Waste League was a political party in the United Kingdom, founded in 1921 by Lord Rothermere.The formation of the League was announced in a January 1921 edition of the Sunday Pictorial with Rothermere attacking what he saw as government waste during a time of recession. As such the party...
and was co-sponsored by them and the Independent Parliamentary Group
Independent Parliamentary Group
The Independent Parliamentary Group was a right-wing political organisation in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1920 by Horatio Bottomley, elected in the 1918 UK general election as an independent Member of Parliament....
for the Hertford by-election, 1921
Hertford by-election, 1921
The East Hertfordshire division by-election of 1921 was held on 16 June 1921. It had been necessitated by the resignation of the incumbent MP, Noel Pemberton Billing due to ill-health....
which he won. He went on to join the Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
and contested the 1923 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1923
-Seats summary:-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987*-External links:***...
for them, winning election in Hertford
Hertford (UK Parliament constituency)
Hertford was the name of a parliamentary constituency in Hertfordshire, which elected Members of Parliament from 1298 until 1974. It was represented in the House of Commons of England from 1298 to 1707, then of the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800, and finally in the House of...
. He went on to hold the seat until his retirement in 1945. During the 1930s he was one of a number of Members of Parliament to become active in the Anglo-German Fellowship
Anglo-German Fellowship
The Anglo-German Fellowship was a group which existed from 1935 to 1939 and aimed to build up friendship between the United Kingdom and Germany; it was widely perceived as being allied to Nazism...
.