Somerville Wentworth Davis
Commander
RN, RAN, RCN
An Officer of the Royal Navy
At the dawn of the 20th century the famed saying “Britannia rules the waves” still held utterly true across the Dominions of the island nation. The large flotilla of the Royal Navy allowed the Empire to function and thrive, promising adventure and a fruitful career which encapsulated the minds of youth even in the farthest corners of the world. Such opportunity piqued the interest of a young Australian who dwelled in the west of the country in the town of York. The auspiciously named Somerville Wentworth Davis was born in this rural area to a Canadian mother and an English father who had settled here as the lead medical director for the region. His father’s position as a doctor gave Somerville a clear advantage if he were to pursue a career in the medical field, but he was instead lured to the navy to blaze his own path serving upon the vast oceans. The Australian teenager took the King’s shilling at the age of 13 in January of 1910. The youth was enrolled in private school and proceeded to study at the Royal Naval Colleges, all of which trained him for an eventual role as an officer. The First World War provided such an opportunity, the then 17 year old being commissioned as a midshipman in 1914. Though a formal appointment to a position of leadership would not come until a few years later when he was posted to a P-Boat.
By this time the bulk of the German fleet was destroyed and a severe blockade imposed, leaving the Germans with only one naval opportunity, unrestricted submarine warfare on Britain's merchant vessels (1). In response, the Royal Navy produced a number of specialty ships known as “P-boats” or “Submarine-chasers” which operated out of Plymouth on the coast (1). P16 was one of these newly produced boats to which Somerville was posted. The slim vessel was armed with torpedoes and a single 4-inch gun (1). Though far from a battleship, it gave the Lieutenant a chance to command his own crew in combat as they gave chase to German U-boats and protected shipping. Yet the enemy which lurked below was only one of a plethora of threats that a vessel could face as Sommerville would learn firsthand. In August of 1916, the young officer was in command as P16 was out to sea. During its voyage, the ship inadvertently collided with a French sailing vessel. Though no significant damage was sustained, his superior officers formally expressed their “displeasure” with the green officer. Such an incident did not, however, stop him from continuing on at his post. Later in 1916, he again became a victim of a sporadic event aboard P16, an explosion occurring on the vessel, which subsequentially injured him. In another bit of good fortune, he recovered quickly and was once again back to sea.
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Politics and Leadership
By February of 1917, the 20-year old officer was identified by his superiors as a suitable candidate for eventual executive command despite his previous mishap well in charge of P16. Sensing opportunity, Somerville petitioned for a posting with the small but growing Royal Australian Navies destroyer fleet. Though he was officially part of the RAN during the conflict, he would remain in service with the Royal Navy, continuing to attend courses in England meant to further his career. Yet the postwar years did not treat the studious officer well as he remained at the rank of Lieutenant into the 1920s. Service with destroyers in the home fleet reflected kindly upon him but several reviews by pessimistic superior officers described him as a “poor” leader and put to bed any hopes of achieving a higher rank. Flustered and not likely seeing a future, the salty Lieutenant accepted his discharge from the Royal Navy in 1922.
Despite the navy having been his entire life, Somerville found a new path to take and once again departed his home of Australia, immigrating to British Columbia, Canada. Here he happily took up farming in the beauty of Western Canada. Despite his new humble calling, he remained engaged in other ventures, being awarded his Master Mariner certificate in 1927. In the same year he also married the love of his life, Janet Lowis, who had been born in India to English parents. Once again, Somerville took on a career shift, joining Consolidated Mining and Smelting where he quietly worked as a technical shift boss, his naval career seemingly long in the past. |
Convoy Duty
Though Somerville had taken a discharge in 1922, he remained on the Royal Navies list and when war broke out in 1939, he was recalled to service by the Canadian government. At 42-years of age and having been out of the navy for the better part of 17 years, it seemed odd to call him back to duty, yet Canada lacked a broad pool of experienced naval officers to call upon. As such he returned to duty at Stadacona, a barracks in British Columbia where he specialized in navigational duties. The exciting promotion to Lieutenant-Commander, though temporary, helped integrate Somerville back into navy life and he quickly once again flourished. His wealth of experience in dealing with German U-boats in the previous conflict was unique and propelled him to a posting as the commanding officer of the HMCS Columbia in September of 1940.
The HMCS Columbia was a vestige of the previous conflict, an American ship built in 1918 that had been transferred over under the lend-lease agreement (2). She bore four 4-inch guns, two 21-inch guns, torpedoes, and was outfitted with First World War Lewis guns meant to act as anti-aircraft defenses (2). Despite being somewhat of an antique, the ship was looked upon by it's new Lieutenant-Commander with pride being that it was officially his destroyer. He eagerly took up command at the helm and helped consolidate his youthful Canadian crew into a formidable force as they initially conducted escort duties out of Halifax. The job was not dissimilar to that of his old posting aboard P16 in England, just now he had a larger ship and the more deadly U-boats to deal with. The threat of these modern German submarines was such that England was almost brought to its knees from the amount of cargo lost. In an attempt to stop this, Somerville was directed to lead his crew out into the Atlantic in January of 1941. From here the Columbia sailed with convoys to the UK seeking to protect them from the foe lurking simply below the surface. In the rain, rough seas, and in the cold, the crew came together to perform their task of defending these unarmed vessels.
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Escort duty was often thankless and tragic, with merchant ships being sunk despite the best efforts of Somerville and his crew. Though some ships were lost, many sailors lives were undoubtedly saved by the exhaustive efforts of the Columbia which continued convoy sailing to the UK, until being reassigned to the Newfoundland Escort Corps. The newly formed NEF focused on guiding convoys safely from Newfoundland to Iceland. This particular route was often treacherous with extremely cold temperatures and thick fog that made visibility low. Yet all throughout his time in command, Somerville managed to guide his crew without incident and with distinction, proving himself worthy of his posting.
An Executive Officer
In May 1942, he was finally appointed as an executive officer, fulfilling the prediction made by a Royal Navy superior years prior. He was given command of Avalon Barrack in St. Johns, Newfoundland which housed thousands of Canadian sailors. The proud officer took up his post with great enthusiasm and worked to ensure every portion of the base operated with peak efficiency. It was a great labor given the variety and scope of the barracks which housed everything from training facilities to repair stations for ships (3). At one point he held command over 5,000 officers and other ratings in the facility, a monumental amount compared to the relatively small crew of a destroyer. Despite this he remained a disciplined and conscientious commander and was well liked by all who served under him. No doubt it grieved him in 1944 when his former posting, the HMCS Columbia, struck a cliff in Newfoundland and was deemed irreparable, the humble ship had never failed him and was the source of his success and promotion.
During his time at this post he somehow managed to squeeze in some further education in finance, preparing him for an appointment to a board of review responsible for investigating the war gratuities for the armed forces (4). This position was prominent but strictly administrative and no doubt taxing on the officer. It was with this position that he finished out the war, having achieved the rank of Commander and finally retiring from the navy altogether in 1947. His incredible commitment to service and hard work were recognized by the awarding of the Order of the British Empire, a humble medal for roughly 20 years of service in two conflicts. |
Sources:
(1) Dreadnaughtz. “British P-Boats (1915).” Naval Encyclopedia, 24 Jan. 2018, https://naval-encyclopedia.com/ww1/uk/british-p-boats.php
(2) HMCS Columbia. Government of Canada, 2020, https://www.canada.ca/en/navy/services/history/ships-histories/columbia.html.
(3) “HMCS Avalon.” For Posterity's Sake, http://www.forposterityssake.ca/SE/SE0009.htm.
(4) “Board of Review On Payment of War Gratuities.” The Ottawa Citizen, 12 Mar. 1945.
(1) Dreadnaughtz. “British P-Boats (1915).” Naval Encyclopedia, 24 Jan. 2018, https://naval-encyclopedia.com/ww1/uk/british-p-boats.php
(2) HMCS Columbia. Government of Canada, 2020, https://www.canada.ca/en/navy/services/history/ships-histories/columbia.html.
(3) “HMCS Avalon.” For Posterity's Sake, http://www.forposterityssake.ca/SE/SE0009.htm.
(4) “Board of Review On Payment of War Gratuities.” The Ottawa Citizen, 12 Mar. 1945.