Roy Dowling (1901–1969) was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). He graduated from the Royal Australian Naval College in 1919 and was given command of the sloop HMAS Swan in 1937. During World War II, he saw action in the Mediterranean aboard HMS Naiad (surviving her sinking in 1942), served as Deputy Chief of Naval Staff, and commanded HMAS Hobart in the South West Pacific, earning the Distinguished Service Order. Dowling took command of the RAN's first aircraft carrier, HMAS Sydney, in 1948. He rose to become Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), the RAN's highest-ranking position, from 1955 until 1959. As CNS he had to deal with shortages of money, manpower and equipment, and with the increasing role of the United States in Australia's defence planning at the expense of traditional ties with Britain. Knighted in 1957, he served as Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee from 1959 until 1961, when he retired. In 1963 he was appointed a Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order and became Australian Secretary to HM Queen Elizabeth II, serving until his death in 1969.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roy_Dowling

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1588:

Anglo-Spanish War: The Spanish Armada (a galleass pictured), with 130 ships and over 30,000 men, set sail from Lisbon for the English Channel in an attempt to invade England. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_Armada

1754:

French and Indian War: Led by 22-year-old George Washington, a company of colonial militia from Virginia ambushed a force of 35 Canadiens in the Battle of Jumonville Glen. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Jumonville_Glen

1937:

The rise of Neville Chamberlain culminated when he was summoned to Buckingham Palace to "kiss hands" and accept the office of Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rise_of_Neville_Chamberlain

1987:

West German aviator Mathias Rust flew his Cessna 172 through the supposedly impregnable Soviet air defense system and landed in Red Square, Moscow. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mathias_Rust

2004:

Ayad Allawi was unanimously elected by the Iraqi Governing Council to be the interim Prime Minister of Iraq. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayad_Allawi

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

crown molding: (finish carpentry, interior decorating) A molding at the edge of a room between ceiling and wall. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/crown_molding

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

I enjoy decoration. By accumulating this mass of detail you throw light on things in a longer sense: in the long run it all adds up. It creates a texture — how shall I put it — a background, a period, which makes everything you write that much more convincing. Of course, all artists are terrible egoists. Unconsciously you are largely writing about yourself. I could never write anything factual; I only have confidence in myself when I am another character. All the characters in my books are myself, but they are a kind of disguise.   --Patrick White https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Patrick_White