HMS Norfolk was a new County-class cruiser, commissioned in 1930, whose crew participated in the Invergordon Mutiny the following year. After the original captain struggled to repair a crew he had built himself, Somerville was appointed on 28 December 1931 for a short corrective command. He defined both the standards he expected and how the sailors could expect to be treated, winning much of the crew over while transferring personnel who remained disruptive. In less than five months he handed Norfolk to her next captain and Rear Admiral Drax in a condition they judged among the finest in the fleet. His communications skill now operated as direct personnel leadership. His first private ship was a deliberately brief assignment to repair an important modern cruiser.
Chapter · 1:03:31-1:08:49
Rebuilding HMS Norfolk after the Invergordon Mutiny
Somerville used clear expectations, reciprocal treatment, and selective personnel changes to restore the new cruiser HMS Norfolk after the Invergordon Mutiny.