Peter Hammersley

Rear-Admiral Peter Gerald Hammersley CB OBE (nicknamed Spam; 18 May 1928 – 16 January 2020) was an English Royal Navy officer who served from 1946 to 1982. Hammersley won a scholarship to Britannia Royal Naval College to train as a deck officer but his eyesight was too poor. Instead, he chose to become an engineer and studied at the Royal Naval Engineering College from 1946 to 1950. He trained onboard HMS Frobisher and HMS Duke of York and served on HMS Ocean during the Korean War. Hammersley specialised in submarines from 1954 and in 1959 served on secondment to the US Navy on the nuclear submarine Nautilus. In 1960 he became the first marine engineering officer to serve aboard the Royal Navy's first nuclear-powered submarine, HMS Dreadnought. Hammersley helped design the Swiftsure-class of submarines and commanded a number of shore installations including the Royal Naval Engineering College. He served as aide-de-camp to Queen Elizabeth II and was Chief Staff Officer Engineering for the fleet in the 1982 Falklands War. After retirement in 1982 he served in roles in a number of commercial and charitable organisations.

Early life

Peter Gerald Hammersley was born in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, on 18 May 1928, the son of Robert Stevens Hammersley and his wife Norah Hammersley (née Kirkham). His father was severely wounded in action during the First World War and died when Hammersley was seventeen. Hammersley attended Newcastle High School and Denstone College. During the Second World War, rationing in Britain meant processed meats such as Spam were widely used, so, for Hammersley, a nickname that might otherwise have been "Ham" became "Spam". Hammersley won a scholarship to Britannia Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, to train as a naval command (or deck) officer, joining the service in 1946. He was unable to attend the college due to poor eyesight so switched to the Royal Naval Engineering College, Manadon. He studied there from 1946 to 1950 and was awarded a first class degree. As a cadet, Hammersley gained seagoing experience aboard the training cruiser Frobisher and received engineering training aboard the battleship Duke of York in 1948. He served aboard the light cruiser Liverpool from 1950 until he was posted to the advanced marine engineering course at Royal Naval College, Greenwich in 1951. Rickover's orders prohibited British officers from standing watches unsupervised and stipulated that they must arrive in the US unaccompanied by their families. Hammersley became an exception, travelling with his new wife, and, after five months on board, being allowed to stand watches alone by Behrens. He served as Base Engineer Officer at Her Majesty's Naval Base, Clyde from 1968 to 1970. Hammersley held a number of naval staff roles from 1970 to 1978, including assistant director of the submarine section of the Director General of Ships and the Ministry of Defences's Directorate of Naval Operational Requirements. He also headed facilities such as MOS Foxhill and HMS Defiance, the navy's nuclear repair and refuelling facility at Her Majesty's Naval Base, Devonport. From 1978 to 1980, he served as head of the Royal Naval Engineering College, in charge of the training of 500 junior engineer officers. He was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath in the 1982 New Year Honours and served as chief staff officer engineering to the commander-in-chief, Fleet (Sir John Fieldhouse) during that year's Falklands War.

Personal life and retirement Hammersley retired from the Royal Navy on 7 October 1982. He served as chief executive officer of the Internal Combustion Engine Manufacturers' Association from 1982 to 1985 and as director of the British Marine Equipment Council from 1985 to 1992. He was a founding member of the Worshipful Company of Engineers in 1983 and served as master in 1988. He was a governor at Denstone College from 1984 to 1998 (including a period as chairman) and a fellow of the Anglican Woodard Schools Corporation from 1992 to 1998.

Hammersley married Cynthia Bolton in 1959; they had two children. In his spare time he served as a parish councillor and was an active golfer and gardener. He was also a member of the Army and Navy Club. He held strong Christian beliefs and was a regular churchgoer. Hammersley died on 16 January 2020 at his home in Bramley, Surrey; his last words were "game over, game over".