Jacket blurbs

Front flap
Until early in the twentieth century warship navigation relied more upon a master's lifetime of experience than upon specialised instruction. All that changed when, in 1903, the first RN Navigation School, HMS DRYAD, was established.

Essentially this is the story of RN training of navigators from 1900-1977, in particular the story of navigation in two world wars and the lessons that were learned from those wars.
The introduction of radar and the development of Action Information during World War II ultimately led to the amalgamation of the Navigation and Fighter Direction branches in the Royal Navy and thus to the foundation of the School of Maritime Operations in which all specialised naval training is now centred.

Vice Admiral Schofield qualified as a Navigating Officer in 1920 and during the war he accompanied the First Sea Lord, Admiral of the Fleet Sir Dudley Pound to the historic meeting between Churchill and President Roosevelt at Argentia Bay, when the Atlantic Charter was signed, and also to Casablanca and Washington. He later commanded the battleship HMS KING GEORGE V in the Pacific.

Back flap
Vice Admiral B B Schofield CB CBE has had a most distinguished career in the Royal Navy. After training at the Royal Naval Colleges of Osbourne and Dartmouth, he joined HMS INDOMITABLE as a midshipman. He later served in destroyers in World War 1.

In 1920 he qualified in navigation at HMS DRYAD. He was promoted Commander in 1931. He was Naval Attache at the Hague and Brussels at the outbreak of the Second World War until they were over-run when he was appointed to command the cruiser HMS GALATEA. In 1941 he joined the Admiralty as Director of Trade (Convoys and Routeing). Whilst in this post he accompanied Churchill and Roosevelt at the conferences in Newfoundland, Casablanca and Washington. His next appointment was as Captain of HMS DUKE OF YORK followed by
HMS DRYAD whose establishment was used as the headquarters for the invasion of Normandy.
More distinction was to come his way. In 1945 he took over command of the battleship HMS GEORGE V and took part in the final operations leading up to the surrender of Japan.

In 1947 he was promoted Rear Admiral. His next appointment was as Chief of Staff to the Admiral, British Joint Services Mission, Washington, where he remained until November 1950 when he retired on promotion to Vice Admiral. An interpreter in French and Italian he has written extensively on naval subjects.

Contents

Illustrations

• The Queen visits HMS Dryad in 1973
• HMS Dryad, 1866
• HMS Mercury, 1878
• The old Royal Naval Academy
• The staff of the Navigation School in 1906
• The old Navigation School, Portsmouth
• The Mess in the old Navigation School
• The fourth HMS Dryad
• Vice-Admiral Sir Henry Oliver
• Navigation School crest and motto
• Open bridge in a Southampton class cruiser Southwick House in 1944
• Old stables at Southwick House
• Aerial view of Southwick House
• Admiral Sir Bertram Ramsay
• Harbour defence launches and minesweepers
• General Eisenhower at Southwick House
• `The Squadron Navigation Officer'
• The control tower at Yeovilton
• Part of the Walls ice cream fleet
• Perspex air plot
• The navigating officer HMS Victorious
• Commander David Pollock
• The 2nd navigating officer HMS Albion
• The old cinema 1961
• Southwick House in 1968
• Oliver Block
• Entrance to the Harrier Building
• View of Dryad Club
• Princess Marina at Pinsley House
• Operations room in 'Whitby' class frigate
• WRNS manning the Redpole trainer
• On the bridge of HMS Tiger
• Ratings under instruction in HMS Dryad
• The bridge in a missile armed destroyer
• HMS Ulster
• Captain Tibbitts and Rear-Admiral Johnson
• The Queen on a tour of inspection of HMS Dryad
• Admiral of the Fleet Sir Henry Oliver, Admiral of the Fleet Sir John H D Cunningham
  Admiral Sir Wilbraham T R Ford, Admiral Lord Mountevans of Chelsea Admiral Sir Henry R Moore, Admiral Sir Tom S V Phillips
• Admiral John H Godfrey, Admiral Sir Geoffrey Miles Admiral Sir John Frewen, Admiral Sir Ian Easton

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