Royal Navy: Tributes paid to "extraordinary" Royal British Legion president and Vice Admiral who died aged 60

Sir Clive, who passed away on May 12, had been national president of the Royal British Legion (RBL) since May 2023 and addressed the RBL annual conference only a day before his death. He leaves behind his widow Alison and their two daughters, Phoebe and Emily.

The charity described him as “an extraordinary military leader and person of great integrity and intellect” in a tribute. “In his short time as RBL national president, Sir Clive made a huge impact, and his loss will be felt across the charity and the Armed Forces community”, the statement continued.

The Vice Admiral served in the Royal Navy for 35 years, directing key operations at different parts of his career. He championed the cause of military veterans following his retirement. First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Ben Key said Sir Clive was “an outstanding officer and inspirational individual who positively impacted the lives of so many”. “He will be sorely missed”, he added, “my thoughts and prayers are with his family.”

Sir Clive’s career spanned spanned the final years of the Cold War, through conflicts in the Adriatic and Middle East to global operations and most recently the resurgent challenge of Russia. He joined the Royal Navy in 1985 after reading Anthropology at the University of Durham.

After navigating Ton-class minehunters, he served in carrier HMS Invincible, principal warfare officer in HMS Boxer during the early stages of the Balkan conflict and again on the staff of the 1st Frigate Squadron. As First Lieutenant of the Royal Yacht, he took part in the final acts of Britannia’s outstanding career: the Prince of Wales’ historic visit to Northern Ireland, the handover of Hong Kong to China in 1997 and the final summer cruise of the Western Isles among other significant events.

His first command was frigate HMS Iron Duke, which was deployed to Kosovo in the late 1990s. Sir Clive was a fleet programmer in the early 2000s and involved in choreographing the navy’s response to a string of events at home. This included the national firefighters’ strike, invasion of Iraq in 2003, Caribbean hurricanes and the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami.

He then took up command of HMS Bulwark, which was involved in co-ordinating the evacuation of British and entitled civilians from Lebanon. Bulwark was Sir Clive’s last permanent seagoing appointment, although as Flag Officer Sea Training he oversaw – and visited – scores of RN and allied vessels readying for deployment.

He then spent two and a half years as Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff, and was later appointed as the Commander of NATO’s Allied Maritime Command - holding the post for three and a half years. Sir Clive was knighted in 2019 and left the force at the beginning of 2020.

He then worked in the shipbuilding industry, volunteered as vice patron of the Battle of the Atlantic Memorial in Liverpool and chaired the Naval Review, the long-standing journal championing naval thinking for the betterment of the Senior Service.