1. Vice-Admiral Lancelot Ernest Holland, was a Royal Navy officer who commanded the British force in the Battle of the Denmark Strait in May 1941 against the German battleship Bismarck.
12 Facts About Lancelot Holland
1. 2.
Lancelot Holland was one of six sons and a daughter of a doctor who was a brewer for the firm Hunt Edmunds.
3.
Lancelot Holland was born in Middleton Cheney and was raised in the Banbury area.
4.
Lancelot Holland entered the Royal Navy on 15 May 1902, at age 14.
5.
Lancelot Holland served in the Far East until August 1905.
6.
From May 1931 to September 1932, Lancelot Holland headed the British Naval Mission to Greece.
7.
Lancelot Holland then became Admiralty representative at the Air Ministry.
8.
Lancelot Holland was promoted to vice-admiral, backdated to August 1940, after commanding Cruiser Force H during the Battle of Cape Spartivento on 27 November.
9.
From November 1940, Lancelot Holland commanded the 18th Cruiser Squadron, serving in the Mediterranean.
10.
Lancelot Holland flew his flag aboard Hood, which was accompanied by the new battleship HMS Prince of Wales.
11.
One of the survivors, Ted Briggs, later stated he last saw Lancelot Holland sitting in his admiral's chair, in utter dejection, making no attempt to escape from the sinking wreck.
12.
Lancelot Holland was married to Phyllis and had one son, John, who died of polio at the age of 18 in 1936.