15-764: Christopher Louis Wreford-Brown DSO RN (born August 1945) is a retired British Royal Navy officer. Wreford-Brown was captain of HM Submarine Conqueror during the Falklands War , during which Conqueror attacked and destroyed the Argentine Navy 's cruiser the ARA General Belgrano . For the Falklands patrol he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order. He is currently the only naval officer to have commanded
30-521: A nuclear submarine which has sunk a warship in war operations. When asked about the incident later, Wreford-Brown responded, "The Royal Navy spent thirteen years preparing me for such an occasion. It would have been regarded as extremely dreary if I had fouled it up." In July 1982 Wreford-Brown captained HMS Conqueror in an operation during the Cold War in the Barents Sea , where it carried out
45-616: A case of 'a high degree of gallantry just short of deserving the Victoria Cross '. In either case, being ' Mentioned in Dispatches ' was a pre-condition for the award of a DSO. A requirement that the order could be given only to someone mentioned in despatches was removed in 1943. Since 1993, reflecting the review of the British honours system which recommended removing distinctions of rank in respect of operational awards,
60-550: A high degree of gallantry, just short of deserving the Victoria Cross . Whilst normally given for service under fire or under conditions equivalent to service in actual combat with the enemy, a number of awards made between 1914 and 1916 were under circumstances not under fire, often to staff officers , causing resentment among front-line officers. After 1 January 1917, commanders in the field were instructed to recommend this award only for those serving under fire. From 1916, ribbon bars could be authorised for subsequent awards of
75-497: A successful clandestine sub-surface raid to capture Soviet Navy hydrophonic sonar equipment from Warsaw Pact vessels upon the high sea for technical analysis by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization . Wreford-Brown became commanding officer of the frigate HMS Cornwall as well as Captain of 8th Frigate Squadron in 1988. His other commands include the diesel submarine HMS Opossum and
90-553: Is a military decoration of the United Kingdom , as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth , awarded for operational gallantry for highly successful command and leadership during active operations, typically in actual combat. Since 1993 it has been awarded specifically for "highly successful command and leadership during active operations", with all ranks being eligible. It is a level 2A decoration (order) in
105-632: The British system of military decorations . Instituted on 6 September 1886 by Queen Victoria in a royal warrant published in The London Gazette on 9 November, the first DSOs awarded were dated 25 November 1886. The order was established to reward individual instances of meritorious or distinguished service in war. It was a military order, until recently for officers only and typically awarded to officers ranked major (or equivalent) or higher, with awards to ranks below this usually for
120-524: The Commonwealth . The following received the DSO and three bars ( i.e., were awarded the DSO four times): Lieutenant colonel (United Kingdom) Lieutenant colonel ( Lt Col ), is a rank in the British Army and Royal Marines which is also used in many Commonwealth countries. The rank is superior to major , and subordinate to colonel . The comparable Royal Navy rank is commander , and
135-481: The 1990s most, including Canada , Australia and New Zealand , were establishing their own honours systems and no longer recommended British honours. Recipients of the order are officially known as Companions of the Distinguished Service Order, and are entitled to use the post-nominal letters "DSO". All awards are announced in The London Gazette . From 1918 to 2017, the Distinguished Service Order
150-568: The DSO has been open to all ranks, with the award criteria redefined as "highly successful command and leadership during active operations". At the same time, the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross was introduced as the second-highest award for gallantry. Despite some very fierce campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan, the DSO has yet to be awarded to a non-commissioned rank. The DSO had also been awarded by Commonwealth countries but by
165-592: The DSO, worn on the ribbon of the original award. In 1942, the award was extended to officers of the Merchant Navy who had performed acts of gallantry whilst under enemy attack. Prior to 1943, the DSO could be awarded to only commissioned officers of the Lieutenant-Colonel rank and above, for 'meritorious or distinguished service in wartime' under conditions of actual combat. If awarded to an officer ranking below Lieutenant-Colonel, it had to be
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#1732782418416180-553: The comparable rank in the Royal Air Force and many Commonwealth air forces is wing commander . The rank insignia in the British Army and Royal Marines , as well as many Commonwealth countries, is a crown above a four-pointed "Bath" star , also colloquially referred to as a "pip" . The crown has varied in the past with different monarchs; the current one being the Tudor Crown. Most other Commonwealth countries use
195-515: The nuclear submarine HMS Valiant . Wreford-Brown retired from the Royal Navy in 1995 with the rank of Captain , and was employed as a Director of Paignton Zoo in Devon until his retirement in 2010. This biographical article related to the Royal Navy is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order ( DSO )
210-624: The same insignia, or with the state emblem replacing the crown. In the modern British Armed forces, the established commander of a regiment or battalion is a lieutenant colonel. From 1 April 1918 to 31 July 1919, the Royal Air Force maintained the rank of lieutenant colonel. It was superseded by the rank of wing commander on the following day. Certain regiments of the British Army have honorary appointments as Regimental Lieutenant Colonel and Deputy Regimental Lieutenant Colonel . These are similar in nature and less in rank to Colonel of
225-584: Was awarded approximately 16,935 times, in addition to 1,910 bars. The figures to 1979 are laid out in the table below, the dates reflecting the relevant entries in the London Gazette : In addition, approximately 90 DSOs were awarded between 1980 and 2017, including awards for the Falklands and the wars in the Gulf , Iraq and Afghanistan , in addition to three bars. The above figures include awards to
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