During the interwar years, Somerville moved through executive and captain-level appointments in several battleships. In 1929 he joined the Imperial Defence Conference, adding strategic planning to his shipboard experience. Command of the cruiser HMS Norfolk kept him on the Home Station. His later flag appointments included Rear Admiral Destroyers in the Mediterranean and Vice Admiral in the East Indies, the latter described as his first substantial overseas deployment in years. These posts carried him from capital-ship command into defence planning, flotilla oversight, and overseas responsibility.
Chapter · 18:40-19:02
From battleship command to imperial defence planning
Battleship appointments, the Imperial Defence Conference, HMS Norfolk, and flag service with the Mediterranean destroyers and in the East Indies broadened Somerville's experience beyond the Home Fleet.