Invergordon Mutiny
For two days the sailors on the ships of the Royal Navy at Invergordon caused a disturbance and refused to take military orders in a dispute over pay.
The mutiny caused a panic on the London Stock Exchange and a run on the pound, bringing Britain's economic troubles to a head and forcing it off the Gold Standard on 21 September 1931.
In September 1931, as part of its attempts to deal with the Great Depression, the new National Government launched cuts to public spending.
On the evening of 13 September, by which time sailors had already started agitating, Rear-Admiral Wilfred Tomkinson, in temporary command of the fleet while Admiral Sir Michael Hodges was in hospital, received a letter from the Admiralty dated 10 September giving the reasons for the reduction in pay and the principles on which it had been based.
The following morning, Tomkinson ordered the commanders of all ships present to read sections of the letter to their officers and crew.
Ten warships arrived in port on 11 September: Hood (the flagship), Adventure, Dorsetshire, Malaya, Norfolk, Repulse, Rodney, Valiant, Warspite, and York.
After considering reports about the incident from Wake and the Chief of Staff, Rear-Admiral Ragnar Colvin, Tomkinson decided not to take disciplinary action.
On 14 September, Warspite and Malaya left the harbour to perform planned exercises, and during the day four more ships arrived: Centurion, Shikari, Snapdragon and Tetrarch.
Shortly before dinner, Tomkinson was informed that patrols had been dispatched from Hood and Valiant to deal with further disturbances at the canteen and in the open air ashore.
He finally received a reply at 20:00, instructing him to inform sailors that the existing pay rates would remain in force until the end of the month and that the Admiralty expected the men to uphold the traditions of service and carry out their duties.
Tomkinson believed that this response showed he had failed to communicate the gravity of the situation and replied that it would be impossible to resume exercises in the circumstances.
There were also reports that some petty officers, who had continued to follow orders although they had not attempted to get junior ratings to return to work, were starting to join the strike.
Tomkinson directed the ships to proceed in their squadrons as soon as possible, and gave officers and crew with family at Invergordon leave to visit the shore and say their goodbyes.
The mutiny caused a panic on the London Stock Exchange and a run on the pound, bringing Britain's economic troubles to a head and forced it off the Gold Standard on 21 September 1931.
During World War II he survived the Siege of Leningrad but in 1946 he was sent to the Gulag after being accused of being a British spy; he was imprisoned for more than a decade.
[1] Another leader, Navy boxer Fred Copeman, commanded the British Battalion of the International Brigades in the Spanish Civil War.
