Robert Prendergast
Encyclopedia
Admiral Sir Robert John Prendergast KCB
(9 July 1864–14 May 1946) was a British
Royal Navy
officer.
in 1877. He served in the Anglo-Egyptian War
of 1882 as a Midshipman
aboard the broadside ironclad HMS Achilles
. In 1885 he transferred to the gunboat
HMS Grappler at Gibraltar
. He was promoted Lieutenant
in June 1887 and joined the corvette
HMS Volage in the Training Squadron in 1888. In 1889 he went to HMS Excellent
to train as a gunnery
officer and was then posted to the battleship
HMS Collingwood
and then to the frigate
HMS Raleigh, flagship
of the Training Squadron.
In 1899 he was promoted Commander
and posted to HMS Northampton
, a seagoing training ships for boys. In 1901 he was posted to HMS Excellent, where he was promoted Captain
. In 1904 he went to the Naval Ordnance Department at the Admiralty
, and then commanded in succession the cruiser
s HMS Essex
and HMS Carnarvon and the battleship HMS Implacable
. In 1911 he was appointed Captain-Superintendent
of Sheerness
Dockyard.
In November 1914 he was promoted Rear-Admiral, but remained at Sheerness. In May 1916 he was appointed Rear-Admiral Commanding Scapa Flow
, hoisting his flag in the depot ship HMS Imperieuse
and then the dockyard repair ship HMS Victorious
. In March 1919 he was appointed Rear-Admiral Commanding Orkneys and Shetlands. He was promoted Vice-Admiral later that year and appointed Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB) in the 1920 New Year Honours, having been appointed Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) the previous year. He retired in February 1920 when Scapa Flow was reduced to a peace footing, and was promoted Admiral
on the retired list in 1924.
, where he lived at Meads House. By 1946 he was senile and developed a bladder
infection, for which he was treated by society doctor and suspected serial killer
Dr John Bodkin Adams
. Adams would visit twice a day and prescribed morphine
. On the morning of 14 May 1946, Prendergast slipped into a coma and died at 7.30 p.m. that evening. Adams certified the death as a) uraemia and b) chronic nephritis
. His nurse, Anne Masters, later told police, "I am quite convinced that the injections of morphia hastened Sir Prendergast's [sic] death". Adams was tried for the murder of Edith Alice Morrell
in 1957 but acquitted, though police suspected him of a total of 163 murders.
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(9 July 1864–14 May 1946) was a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Royal Navy
Royal 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...
officer.
Career
Prendergast entered the Royal Navy as a CadetOfficer Cadet
Officer cadet is a rank held by military and merchant navy cadets during their training to become commissioned officers and merchant navy officers, respectively. The term officer trainee is used interchangeably in some countries...
in 1877. He served in the Anglo-Egyptian War
Anglo-Egyptian War
The Anglo-Egyptian War occurred in 1882 between Egyptian and Sudanese forces under Ahmed Orabi, and the United Kingdom.-Background:In 1881, an Egyptian army officer, Colonel Ahmed Orabi, initiated a coup against Tewfik Pasha, the Khedive of Egypt and Sudan, because of grievances over disparities in...
of 1882 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...
aboard the broadside ironclad HMS Achilles
HMS Achilles (1863)
The broadside ironclad HMS Achilles was the third member of the 1861 programme, was described as an armoured frigate, and was originally projected as a modified version of the earlier ....
. In 1885 he transferred to the gunboat
Gunboat
A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies.-History:...
HMS Grappler at Gibraltar
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
. He was promoted 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 June 1887 and joined the corvette
Corvette
A corvette is a small, maneuverable, lightly armed warship, originally smaller than a frigate and larger than a coastal patrol craft or fast attack craft , although many recent designs resemble frigates in size and role...
HMS Volage in the Training Squadron in 1888. In 1889 he went to HMS Excellent
HMS Queen Charlotte (1810)
HMS Queen Charlotte was a 104-gun first-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 17 July 1810 at Deptford. She was built to the lines of Sir Edward Hunt's as a replacement for the first HMS Queen Charlotte which had been lost by accident on 17 March 1800.She was Lord Exmouth's flagship...
to train as a gunnery
Gun
A gun is a muzzle or breech-loaded projectile-firing weapon. There are various definitions depending on the nation and branch of service. A "gun" may be distinguished from other firearms in being a crew-served weapon such as a howitzer or mortar, as opposed to a small arm like a rifle or pistol,...
officer and was then posted to the battleship
Battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
HMS Collingwood
HMS Collingwood (1882)
HMS Collingwood was an ironclad battleship of the Royal Navy. She was the first example of the Admiral-class and was named after Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood, Horatio Nelson's second-in-command in the British victory at the Battle of Trafalgar....
and then to the frigate
Frigate
A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
HMS Raleigh, flagship
Flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
of the Training Squadron.
In 1899 he was promoted 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...
and posted to HMS Northampton
HMS Northampton (1876)
HMS Northampton was a armoured cruiser of the Royal Navy, built by Robert Napier & Sons, Govan, Scotland and launched in 1876. The Nelson class were "essentially second-class ironclads". She was launched in 1876 but not commissioned until 1881....
, a seagoing training ships for boys. In 1901 he was posted to HMS Excellent, where he was promoted 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 1904 he went to the Naval Ordnance Department at 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 then commanded in succession the cruiser
Cruiser
A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...
s HMS Essex
HMS Essex (1901)
HMS Essex was a Monmouth-class armoured cruiser of the British Royal Navy. She was built at Pembroke Dock and launched on 29 August 1901. She served in the First World War with most of her sisters, and survived to be sold for scrap on 8 November 1921. Essex was eventually broken up in Germany....
and HMS Carnarvon and the battleship HMS Implacable
HMS Implacable (1899)
HMS Implacable was a Formidable-class battleship of the British Royal Navy, the second ship of the name.-Technical Description:HMS Implacable was laid down at Devonport Dockyard on 13 July 1898 and launched on 11 March 1899 in a very incomplete state to clear the building way for construction of...
. In 1911 he was appointed Captain-Superintendent
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...
of Sheerness
Sheerness
Sheerness is a town located beside the mouth of the River Medway on the northwest corner of the Isle of Sheppey in north Kent, England. With a population of 12,000 it is the largest town on the island....
Dockyard.
In November 1914 he was promoted Rear-Admiral, but remained at Sheerness. In May 1916 he was appointed Rear-Admiral Commanding Scapa Flow
Scapa Flow
right|thumb|Scapa Flow viewed from its eastern endScapa Flow is a body of water in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, United Kingdom, sheltered by the islands of Mainland, Graemsay, Burray, South Ronaldsay and Hoy. It is about...
, hoisting his flag in the depot ship HMS Imperieuse
HMS Audacious (1869)
HMS Audacious was the lead ship of the s built for the Royal Navy in the late 1860s. They were designed as second-class ironclads suitable for use on foreign stations and the ship spent the bulk of her career on the China Station. She was decommissioned in 1894 and hulked in 1902 for use as a...
and then the dockyard repair ship HMS Victorious
HMS Victorious (1895)
HMS Victorious was one of nine Majestic-class predreadnought battleships of the British Royal Navy.-Technical characteristics:HMS Victorious was laid down at Chatham Dockyard on 28 May 1894 and launched on 19 October 1895...
. In March 1919 he was appointed Rear-Admiral Commanding Orkneys and Shetlands. He was promoted Vice-Admiral later that year and appointed Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB) in the 1920 New Year Honours, having been appointed Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) the previous year. He retired in February 1920 when Scapa Flow was reduced to a peace footing, and was promoted Admiral
Admiral
Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. It is usually considered a full admiral and above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet . It is usually abbreviated to "Adm" or "ADM"...
on the retired list in 1924.
Death
Prendergast moved to EastbourneEastbourne
Eastbourne is a large town and borough in East Sussex, on the south coast of England between Brighton and Hastings. The town is situated at the eastern end of the chalk South Downs alongside the high cliff at Beachy Head...
, where he lived at Meads House. By 1946 he was senile and developed a bladder
Bladder
Bladder usually refers to an anatomical hollow organBladder may also refer to:-Biology:* Urinary bladder in humans** Urinary bladder ** Bladder control; see Urinary incontinence** Artificial urinary bladder, in humans...
infection, for which he was treated by society doctor and suspected serial killer
Serial killer
A serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...
Dr John Bodkin Adams
John Bodkin Adams
John Bodkin Adams was an Irish-born British general practitioner, convicted fraudster and suspected serial killer. Between the years 1946 and 1956, more than 160 of his patients died in suspicious circumstances. Of these, 132 left him money or items in their will. He was tried and acquitted for...
. Adams would visit twice a day and prescribed morphine
Morphine
Morphine is a potent opiate analgesic medication and is considered to be the prototypical opioid. It was first isolated in 1804 by Friedrich Sertürner, first distributed by same in 1817, and first commercially sold by Merck in 1827, which at the time was a single small chemists' shop. It was more...
. On the morning of 14 May 1946, Prendergast slipped into a coma and died at 7.30 p.m. that evening. Adams certified the death as a) uraemia and b) chronic nephritis
Nephritis
Nephritis is inflammation of the nephrons in the kidneys. The word "nephritis" was imported from Latin, which took it from Greek: νεφρίτιδα. The word comes from the Greek νεφρός - nephro- meaning "of the kidney" and -itis meaning "inflammation"....
. His nurse, Anne Masters, later told police, "I am quite convinced that the injections of morphia hastened Sir Prendergast's [sic] death". Adams was tried for the murder of Edith Alice Morrell
Edith Alice Morrell
Edith Alice Morrell , was a resident of Eastbourne and patient of the suspected serial killer John Bodkin Adams. He was tried for her murder in 1957 but acquitted...
in 1957 but acquitted, though police suspected him of a total of 163 murders.
Sources
- Cullen, Pamela V., A Stranger in Blood: The Case Files on Dr John Bodkin Adams, London, Elliott & Thompson, 2006, ISBN 1-904027-19-9