The family also owned the Gnoll at Neath in Glamorgan and Pencerrig at Builth Wells, but nonetheless suffered a shortage of money to support their seven children in the style they might have wished.

A year later, the council of Neath, Glamorgan, purchased the Gnoll estate where Evan-Thomas was born to serve as a public park, where a war memorial would be erected.

[3] In February 1878, Thomas was posted to the barque-rigged battery ship HMS Swiftsure, which was part of the Mediterranean fleet commanded by Sir Geoffrey Phipps Hornby.

Lyons reported he "conducted himself with sobriety and entirely to my satisfaction", but his successor as captain of Monarch, George Tryon, described him as "a very promising young officer in every respect".

[5] In 1879, Evan-Thomas was chosen to join HMS Bacchante, as part of a crew hand-picked to be a good influences on the two princes who now continued their naval careers on the ship.

In August 1888, he was sent to the sail training ship HMS St Vincent, from which home leave was possible and he assisted in his father's election campaign to the local council.

In 1889, he served briefly on HMS Camperdown, before a permanent posting to her in December when she sailed to the Mediterranean as flagship to Vice Admiral Sir Anthony Hiley Hoskins.

[8] On 14 January 1892, a telegram arrived on Victoria advising of the death of Prince Edward, and as officer of the watch, Evan-Thomas was responsible for ordering flags to half mast.

In a relatively small ship he was required to stand sea watches, but also had direct responsibility for all details of ensuring royal life ran smoothly.

The signal book had grown to contain thousands of flag combinations to give detailed instructions, and controversy had arisen within the navy whether this system would be practical in battle.

Ironically, the ship collision had happened during manoeuvres using the traditional system, not when captains were supposed to be acting independently, and had they used initiative rather than following incorrect flag commands, the accident could have been avoided.

Nonetheless, a perception arose that the simplified system giving more independence to captains was somehow to blame, and the navy as a whole moved back to detailed flag instructions.

Afterwards Evan-Thomas wrote to Vice-Admiral sir Compton Domville, chairman of the signals committee, reporting the success of the experiment, and recommending a trial on board two warships.

On one day, she detected a group of four cruisers from the opposing red fleet, and was duly deemed to have sunk them, to the congratulations of all, including newspapers reporting the events.

Firing all guns simultaneously meant that the shells would fall at the same time, and the position of the splashes compared to an enemy vessel would give a good idea of how to correct the aim for the next shot.

[23] Evan-Thomas' next appointment in October 1915 was as commander of the 5th Battle Squadron, which consisted of the five newly completed Queen Elizabeth-class fast battleships, arguably the most powerful ships afloat at that time.

Although the Queen Elizabeths were slightly slower than the battlecruisers, Beatty continued for some time to campaign that they should be permanently attached to his command as the fast division of the fleet.

The turn resulted in the 5th Battle Squadron leading the ships in a generally northerly direction, the intention being that it would arrive properly placed to take up its assigned position at the meeting with the Grand Fleet.

[26] Beatty proceeded directly to engage the German ships, which were identified as the squadron of five battlecruisers commanded by Admiral Franz von Hipper.

The exchange continued, with the British ships now chasing Hipper's squadron which was running to the south, towards the assistance of the High Seas Fleet (HSF) which was heading north to meet it.

During this chase, at approximately 4.26 pm another of Beatty's battlecruisers, the Queen Mary, suffered the same fate as the Indefatigable, exploding and sinking with the loss of all but nine of her crew of 1,275 men.

However, the signal was not lowered (which was the point at which it was supposed to be carried out) until the battleships were dangerously close to the German fleet and under heavy fire, and then the order was to 'turn in succession'.

Jellicoe had considerable difficulty deploying his fleet to best meet the oncoming German ships, because he had inadequate information as to their position, but succeeded in forming a battle line across their path.

In particular Warspite suffered damage to her steering gear, which resulted in the helm jamming as the ships turned to take up station at the rear of the British battle line.

John Jellicoe was replaced as commander of the Grand Fleet by Beatty in November 1916, largely as a result of public perceptions that the British had not performed well at Jutland.

He received a number of decorations from five countries including the Croix de Guerre with palms, and an honorary doctorate from Prifysgol Cymru at Bangor in 1920.

At the moment Wemyss retired and was replaced as First Sea Lord by Beatty, the finished book had already reached the stage of proof copies awaiting approval on his desk.

The Harper report was passed to Sir Julian Corbett, who was writing an official history of the whole naval war on behalf of the Committee of Imperial Defence.

Corbett was shown the staff appreciation, and said I 'read it with increasing wonder till at last I felt it my duty to convey to the Admiralty that such a grotesque account of the battle certainly ought not to go out as their considered verdict'.

Beatty was coming to the end of his appointment as First Sea Lord and was due to be replaced by Jellicoe's brother-in-law, Sir Charles Madden, and found his last few months a time of considerable criticism.