Allegiance United Kingdom Name Peter Whiteley | Battles/wars Second World War Years of service 1941–1979 | |
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Born 13 December 1920 (age 103) ( 1920-12-13 ) Commands held Allied Forces Northern EuropeCommandant General Royal Marines3 Commando Brigade42 Commando Awards Order of the Bath, Order of the British Empire | ||
General Sir Peter John Frederick Whiteley, (13 December 1920 – 1 February 2016) was a British Royal Marines officer. He served as Commandant General Royal Marines and then as Commander-in-Chief Allied Forces Northern Europe.
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Early life
Whiteley was born on 13 December 1920 in Stansted Mountfitchet, Essex. He was educated at Bishop's Stortford College, then an all-boys independent school in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire, and at Bembridge School, a now closed all-boys independent school on the Isle of Wight.
Whiteley was awarded a Newspaper Proprietors' Association scholarship to study at the University of London. However, with the outbreak of World War II, he decided to join the military rather than continue his studies.
Military career
At the outbreak of the Second World War, Whiteley volunteered for the Royal Air Force. However, they rejected him citing his poor eyesight. He then applied to the Royal Marines, who did accept him, and he began his officer training. He was commissioned as a probationary second lieutenant on 1 January 1940. On 20 March 1942, his commission was confirmed and he was given the rank of lieutenant with seniority from 14 June 1941. During the war, he served aboard HMS Resolution, a battleship, and aboard HMS Gambia, a light cruiser. During the latter part of the war, he served with the British Pacific Fleet which was fighting against the Japanese. He could claim to have fired some of the last shots of the war: on 15 August 1945, during an attack by a Japanese aircraft on his ship, he was attempting to shoot it down when the news of the ceasefire with Japan was received.
He was selected to become commanding officer of 42 Commando in 1965. He was then appointed Commander of 3 Commando Brigade in 1968. He became Commandant General Royal Marines in 1975 and Commander-in-Chief Allied Forces Northern Europe in 1977.
Later life
He served as Lieutenant Governor of Jersey from 1979 to 1984.
He died on 2 February 2016.
Honours
He became Deputy Lieutenant of Devon.