Royce de Mel

Rear Admiral Gerard Royce Maxwell De Mel OBE was 4th Commander of the Royal Ceylon Navy and the 2nd and last Commander of the Ceylon Naval Volunteer Force. He was the first Ceylonese as well the first Sinhalese commander of the navy and was appointed on 15 August 1955. De Mel was promoted to Rear Admiral in 1959, becoming the first serving officer to hold the rank. He retired on 15 August 1961 and was succeeded by Rajan Kadiragamar.

His brother was Colonel Maurice de Mel, the Commandant of the Volunteer Force (second-in-command of the Army). He was involved in the 1962 Ceylonese coup d'état attempt.