Lieutenant-Commander Hugh Deane Wyldbore-Smith

https://www.thepeerage.com/p57932.htm#i579319
http://www.hmshood.com/crew/memorial/w/WyldboreSmithHD.htm
http://www.hmshood.org.uk/crew/database/databaseindividual.php?myre...

Service: Royal Navy
Rank: Lieutenant-Commander
Date Joined Hood: 1941
Hugh Wyldbore-Smith entered the Royal Navy on 15 September 1920. He served aboard H.M.S. Barham from May 1924 to May 1926 and was promoted to Acting Sub-Lieutenant during a promotion course at H.M.S. President, Greenwich in May 1927.

Hugh attended another promotion course (this time in Portsmouth) during the first half of 1928. From August 1928 to August 1929, he served in the destroyer H.M.S. Viscount. He was promoted to Lieutenant during this assignment (December 1928). Between December 1930 and February 1931, he attended the Signals Course, HM Signal School, H.M.S. Victory, Portsmouth.

From December 1931 to September 1932, he served as the Signals Officer for the submarine depot ship H.M.S. Medway. He returned to Signals School to participate in experimental endeavours from April 1934 to February 1936. March 1936 saw him assigned to the cruiser H.M.S. Norfolk. He also served as the Fleet Signals and W/T Officer, East Indies. He was promoted to Lieutenant-Commander in December 1936.

On 05 May 1937 he married Caroline Orlebar. Together they would have two sons,
Piers and Nicholas.

Hugh left the Norfolk in June 1938. Between December 1938 and August 1939, he served as the Commanding Officer of the fishery protection trawler H.M.S. Doon. In August 1938 he was reassigned as the Flag-Lieutenant Commander and Squadron Signals & WT Officer to the RADM/VADM Commanding Aircraft Carriers aboard H.M.S. Ark Royal. He remained in this position until the summer of 1940 when he carried out the same duties aboard H.M.S. Illustrious.

He was reassigned to H.M.S. Hood in Spring 1941 serving as Hood's Signal Officer. He was 34 years old at the time of his loss.

Also commemorated at Shamley Green War Memorial, Waverley, Surrey, England.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Hood

In May 1941, Hood and the battleship Prince of Wales were ordered to intercept the German battleship Bismarck and the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen, which were en route to the Atlantic, where they were to attack convoys. On 24 May 1941, early in the Battle of the Denmark Strait, Hood was struck by several German shells, exploded, and sank within 3 minutes, with the loss of all but three of her crew of 1,418. Due to her publicly perceived invincibility, the loss affected British morale.

Children of Lt.-Cdr. Hugh Deane Wyldbore-Smith and Rachel Caroline Lucy Orlebar
Nicolas Hugh Wyldbore-Smith b. 23 May 1938
Piers Wyldbore-Smith b. 22 Jul 1939, d. 28 Dec 1987