Royal E. Ingersoll

Royal Eason Ingersoll(20 June 1883 – 20 May 1976) was aUnited States Navyfour-star admiralwho served as Commander in Chief,U.S. Atlantic Fleet(CINCLANT) from January 1, 1942 to late 1944; Commander, Western Sea Frontier from late 1944 to 1946; and Deputy Commander in Chief, U.S. Fleet/DeputyChief of Naval Operations(DCOMINCH/DCNO) from late 1944 to late 1945.

Royal E. Ingersoll
Admiral Royal E. Ingersoll
Born	(1883-06-20)20 June 1883 Washington, D.C.,US
Died	20 May 1976(1976-05-20)(aged 92) Bethesda, Maryland,US
Place of burial	Pine Lake Cemetery,La Porte, Indiana,US
Allegiance	United States
Service/branch	United States Navy
Years of service	1905–1946
Rank	Admiral
Commands held	Western Sea Frontier Atlantic Fleet
Battles/wars	World War I World War II
Awards	Navy Cross
Relations	Royal R. Ingersoll(father) Royal R. Ingersoll II(son)

Ingersoll was born inWashington, D.C.,on 20 June 1883. He was second in a succession of three generations of U.S. Naval officers: his father,Rear AdmiralRoyal R. Ingersoll-United States Naval Academyclass of 1868, and his son,LieutenantRoyal Rodney Ingersoll II- USNA class of 1934, was killed in afriendly fireaccident on board theaircraft carrierHornet(CV-8)on 4 June 1942, during the navalBattle of Midway.

1905–1937

Ingersoll graduated from the Naval Academy in 1905, along withChester W. Nimitz,and reported as apassed midshipmanto thebattleshipMissouri(BB-11).In August of that year, he was one of the young officers assigned special temporary duty to attend theRussian-JapanesePeace Conference, held at thePortsmouth Naval Shipyard,inKittery, Maine.When detached from theMissouriin May 1906, he was assigned briefly to theMarietta(PG-15),and later theHancock(AP-3),then assisted in fitting out theConnecticut(BB-18)at theNew York Navy Yard.He served on board that battleship from her commissioning on 29 September 1906, until October 1907.

Ingersoll served as an instructor of Seamanship and International Law, and later of English, at the Naval Academy between 1911 and 1913, preceding his assignment to theAsiatic Squadron.There he joined thearmored cruiserSaratoga(ACR-2),theflagshipof theU.S. Asiatic Fleet.He served briefly as her First Lieutenant, and then he became the Aide and Flag Lieutenant to the Chief-of-Staff of the Asiatic Fleet's Commander.

He returned to the United States, and on 1 June 1916, reported as Assistant for Communications, and Communication Officer, in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Navy Department. Concerning that assignment, he subsequently wrote: "The work in this office began to pick up as the tension in the diplomatic relations with Germany increased, and overwhelmed us on 2 February 1917, when diplomatic relations with that country were broken...." For organizing the greatly expanded Naval Communications Office duringWorld War I,he was awarded theNavy Crossand cited "for distinguished service in the line of his profession in organizing, developing, and administering the Communication Office of the Navy Department."

After the Armistice in November 1918, he was ordered to join AdmiralWilliam S. Benson,USN, then Chief of Naval Operations, concerning the establishment of a communication office for that commission. In February 1919, he returned home in theGeorge Washingtonwith the Presidential party, handling messages for PresidentWoodrow Wilsonon the voyage across the Atlantic.

In March 1919 he again joined theConnecticut,serving this time as her executive officer until September 1920, then transferring to theArizona(BB-39).In June 1921, he reported to the Navy Department for a tour of duty in theOffice of Naval Intelligence,and on 26 March 1924, assumed command of theNokomis(SP-609).Under his command, thatgunboatwas fitted out as asurvey shipand cruised in theCuban–Haitianarea, making new charts of the north coast of Cuba.

Completing the Senior Course at theNaval War CollegeinNewport, Rhode Islandin June 1927, he served the following year as a member of that staff. In June 1928, he reported for duty as Assistant Chief of Staff to CommanderBattle Fleet,in theCalifornia(BB-44)and continued similar duty on the Staff when AdmiralWilliam V. Prattbecame Commander in Chief,United States Fleet,with his flag in theTexas(BB-35).In August 1930, he was assigned to the Division of Fleet Training, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Navy Department, where he served until May 1933. He then reported as Commanding Officer of theheavy cruiserAugusta(CA-31),and in November 1933, was transferred to theMare Island Naval Shipyardto fit out theSan Francisco(CA-38).He commanded this cruiser from her commissioning on 10 February 1934 until June 1935.

The following three years of duty in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, as Director of the War Plans Division, included his assignment in June 1936 as Technical Assistant to the American Delegation at theLondon Naval Conferencein 1935 – 36. He again went to London in December 1937, concerned with requirements growing out of theLondon Naval Treatylimiting naval armament.

1938-1946

On 16 July 1938, Ingersoll took command of Cruiser Division Six of theScouting Force,his flag in the cruiserMinneapolis(CA-36).Two years later, he returned to the Office of theChief of Naval Operationsas assistant to the Chief, and on 1 January 1942, with the rank ofVice Admiral,he was designated Commander in Chief,U.S. Atlantic Fleet,with theAugustaas hisflagship.

Ingersoll was promoted to the rank of admiral on the following 1 July and broke his flag on the converted yachtUSSVixen(PG-53)on 17 July. Having organized the movements of the thousands of ships across the Atlantic to have men and supplies on hand at the precise hour for theNorth African landingsin November 1942, he also had the responsibility of planning the composition of the naval escort forces which insured the troop convoys' safe arrival.

Following the African invasion, the Atlantic Fleet was employed in running troopconvoysand transporting stores, munitions, and fuel to theUnited Kingdomand theMediterranean.As a subsidiary responsibility, it ran the convoys on the coast ofBraziland continuously waged theanti-submarine warwhich had been a matter of primary concern since the outbreak of hostilities. Ingersoll is generally credited with solving theU-boatand Atlantic logistics problems. In addition, he had the responsibility of defense of the Western Hemisphere by U.S. naval forces and made changes in the disposition of air and surface forces stationed at various points in North and South America. For his services in this command, he was awarded theDistinguished Service Medaland cited as a "forceful and resolute leader under the critical conditions existing throughout a period of approximately three years... against a determined and ruthless enemy intent on world domination..."

In November 1944, he was detached from command of the Atlantic Fleet and became CommanderWestern Sea Frontier,with headquarters atSan Francisco.In addition to commanding the naval forces engaged in protecting shipping in coastal waters, he managed the flow of supplies to the Pacific Fleet through West Coast ports. In carrying out this assignment, he had the status of a Deputy Commander in Chief,U.S. Fleet,and Deputy Chief of Naval Operations. After the reorganization of the navy in October 1945, he continued to serve as Commander Western Sea Frontier until 10 April 1946, when he was relieved of all active duty pending his retirement that became official on 1 August 1946.

Family

Ingersoll was married in 1910 to Louise Van Harlingen of Atlanta, Georgia and had two children. Ingersoll died on 20 May 1976. In 1979, Mrs. Louise Ingersoll was the sponsor forUSSIngersoll(DD-990);their daughter, Alice Jean Ingersoll Nagle, acting as proxy sponsor. Their son, Royal Rodney II, had been (with Admiral Ingersoll's father) the namesake of theUSSIngersoll(DD-652).

Awards

In addition to the Navy Cross and the Distinguished Service Medal, Ingersoll was awarded theWorld War I Victory Medal;theAmerican Defense Service Medal;European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal;and theWorld War II Victory Medal.He was also awarded the Chevalier of theLegion of Honorby the French Government and theOrder of Naval Merit (Grand Cross)by the Government of Brazil.

References

This article incorporatespublic domain materialfromAdmiral Royal Ingersoll.United States Government.