Sir Cyril Fuller was born in 1874, the son of Thomas Fuller of the18th Hussars. He entered the Royal Navy in 1887 and was promoted to Lieutenant by 1894. He married Edith Margaret Connell in 1902. The following year saw him promoted to Commander.
Sir Cyril was promoted to Captain in 1910. He served as the senior naval officer in the Togoland and Cameroon Expeditionary Forces. He was Mentioned in Despatches as a result of his contributions. He also commanded several vessels from 1914 to 1916 to include H.M.S. Cumberland, H.M.S. Challenger and H.M.S. Astraea. He received his C.M.G. (1915) and D.S.O. (1916) during this timeframe.
From 1916 to 1917, he commanded the new battle cruiser H.M.S. Repulse. Following this, he served as the Director of Plans Division, Naval War Staff until 1920. One of his missions during this timeframe was to serve as the head of the British Naval Section Peace Conference in Paris from 1919 to 1920. He received his C.B. during this timeframe. The next two years saw him assigned to the Atlantic Fleet. He was promoted to Rear-Admiral during this timeframe (1921).
From 1922-1923 he served as the Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff. He served as the 3rd Sea Lord and Controller of the Navy from 1923 to 1925. Following this, he took command of the Battle Cruiser Squadron, Atlantic Fleet. He served in H.M.S. Hood at this time. He held this position until 1927. During this timeframe, he was promoted to Vice-Admiral (1926).
After leaving Hood, Sir Cyril served as the Commander in Chief America and West Indies Station. In 1928 he received the KCB. He held this position until 1930, when he was promoted to Admiral and became the 2nd Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel. This position was held until 1932. He retired from military service in 1935.
During the Second World War, Sir Cyril was appointed Zone commander North Riding of Yorkshire Home Guard from June to October 1940. Following this, he participated in the October 1940-February 1941 mission to South Africa (sponsored by Lord Willingdon).
In addition to his titles and military honours, Sir Cyril had also been awarded the Board of Trade Life Saving Medal, Commander Legion of Honour,Commander of the Order of the Crown (Italy), Order of the Rising Sun, Croix de Guerre and US Navy Distinguished Service Medal.
Sir Cyril Fuller died on 1 February 1942.
Sources and References
Who Was Who
Christopher Reinold-Sewell
Navy Lists (courtesy of J.N. Houterman)