William Landymore

Rear-Admiral William Moss Landymore, OBE, CD (31 July 1916 – 27 November 2008) was a Canadian naval officer.

Landymore commenced studies at the Royal Military College of Canada as cadet # 2399 on 28 August 1936. As a cadet, he served aboard the Royal Navy training cruiser HMS Frobisher before being sent to the light cruiser HMS Emerald. He was commissioned into the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) as a midshipman on 1 May 1937 and promoted to acting sub-lieutenant on 1 March 1939.

Landymore was posted to the C-class destroyer HMCS Fraser in 1940 and survived her sinking after she collided with the cruiser HMS Calcutta in the Gironde estuary.He was promoted to lieutenant on 1 November 1940 and served aboard the River-class destroyer HMCS Margaree and survived her sinking. Landymore served on convoy escort missions in the Atlantic, Arctic, and Pacific Oceans, in the Second World War. He was promoted to acting lieutenant commander on 5 June 1944.

Landymore was promoted to the substantive rank of lieutenant-commander on 1 May 1947 and served as gunnery officer aboard HMCS Uganda, where he earned a Mention in Despatches (MID). He was then stationed as staff gunnery officer at Naval Service Headquarters in Ottawa.

He was promoted to commander on 1 July 1949 and given command of the Tribal-class destroyer HMCS Iroquois, where he was awarded a second mention-in-despatches. He was promoted to acting captain on 14 June 1952. He commanded Iroquois for the duration of the Korean War from 21 October 1951 to 31 October 1953.

Landymore was promoted to the substantive rank of captain on 1 January 1953, and was posted to a variety of stations throughout the remainder of the 1950s, including the position of Commander Canadian Destroyers Far East when he was awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE).In 1958 Landymore was given command of the light aircraft carrier HMCS Bonaventure, the flagship of the east coast fleet.

He was promoted to commodore on 1 October 1959 and served as chief of staff to the Flag Officer Atlantic Coast, until 1962. He was promoted to rear-admiral on 1 November 1962 and served as Flag Officer Pacific Coast, from 1962 to 1964 and then as Flag Officer, Atlantic Coast, from 1964 to 1966.In 1966 Landymore was appointed the first Commander of Maritime Command, and thus commander of all naval forces, as the position of Chief of the Naval Staff had been abolished in 1964.

Landymore became embroiled in "a bitter public disagreement" with the Minister of National Defence over the unification of the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and Royal Canadian Air Force, to form the Canadian Armed Forces, and resigned from the RCN on 19 July 1966 (effective 5 April 1967).

Bruce Forsyth writes that Robert Caldwell wrote in his 2006 book “The Admirals: Canada’s Senior Naval Leadership in the Twentieth Century,” that Landymore was “popular, admired by all ranks, and is remembered as being a forthright, four-square, hands-on commander and staff officer.”

He was awarded an MID in the London Gazette of 1 January 1946 and Canada Gazette of 5 January, in recognition of his service to Uganda. He was awarded the Naval General Service Medal with Palestine bar for his service to Emerald for training during his Palestine campaign service in 1937. He was appointed an OBE and an MID for his Korean War service as commanding officer of Iroquois. In retirement, as Chairman of the Board of Grace Hospital Halifax, Nova Scotia he was awarded the Salvation Army Cross of the Order of Distinguished Auxiliary Service. He is a 2010 induction to the Wall of Honour at the Royal Military College of Canada.

Landymore's personal awards and decorations include the following: