ANTHONY ALLEN PEARSE (37-41)

Commander Tony Pearse RN (37-40) passed away peacefully on December 27^th 2021. At the time of his death aged 98 he was believed to be the oldest Old Pangbournian. A Service of Thanksgiving will be held at St. John’s church, Boldre, Lymington on January 31^st at noon. His son Andrew writes:

“My father spent the majority of his life involved with the sea and with maritime affairs. Being a naval cadet at The Nautical College, Pangbourne during the Second World War, at the age of seventeen and a half he was commissioned as a Midshipman in the Royal Naval Reserve. He spent his first three years in the Navy away from home in the battleship Warspite, fighting the Japanese in the Pacific and Indian oceans, before moving back to the European theatre in the Mediterranean.

His time in the battleship came to a rude end at the Salerno landings in Italy when, on September 17^th 1943, Warspite was hit and disabled by three of Germany’s latest radio-controlled glider bombs. The remainder of Tony’s war was spent combating German U-boats in the Atlantic. During this period, he was selected to transfer to a permanent commission in the Royal Navy and his career was established.

From 1945 until he retired in 1973 aged 53, Tony served in a succession of sea and shore appointments around the world including time in West Africa, Greece, Scandinavia and Malta. These included commands at sea and on shore – clearance of German mines laid in Greek waters during the war; service at two NATO Headquarters; and a period on loan to President Kenyatta of Kenya to help to establish a Kenyan Navy. When serving in the destroyer Onslaught he was torpedoed in peacetime by the British submarine Trespasser.

Following 37 years in the navy, Tony spent nine years with Camper and Nicholson Marine Equipment in Southampton. Here he led a department advising and supplying defence forces worldwide, once again becoming an endless traveller and visit 48 countries. In due course he became Sales Director. His many successes earned him a Certificate of Merit as one of the three finalists of the National Salesman of The Year award in 1981.

Retiring for the second time at the age of 60, Tony became a consultant to several UK and European companies dealing in the supply of marine and defence equipment. His active commercial life came to an end around the age of 70.

Settling in Hampshire, he played an active part in the activities of St. John’s Church in Boldre. As the main link between the Church and the HMS Hood Association, he assisted in the planning and organisation of the annual Hood service for many years. For some time, he was Membership Secretary of the Lymington Conservative Association. He also drove an ambulance; played golf to a low handicap and was a keen bridge player.

Late in life, Tony wrote a short memoir “From Stormy Seas to Calmer Waters”, published in 2008 by Brewin Books. It might have been a bigger tome had he heeded advice of his children to add more feelings, emotions, and reflections. But, like many of his generation, he said that was “not his style”.

Tony married first in 1945 and from which there were three children. That marriage was dissolved in 1958. In 1959 he married Elizabeth, a journalist working for a Canadian newspaper in London. From that union a son was born. Elizabeth died in 2003. At the age of 84, Tony met Marion who became his third wife. For the next 10 years they enjoyed an active life including holidays in far-flung parts of the world. Marion died in 2017. Tony is survived by three children, and many grandchildren and great-grandchildren and also by his elder sister, Pamela, with whom he had a very close relationship.”