Sir Roger Backhouse | |
|---|---|
 Admiral of the Fleet Sir Roger Backhouse | |
| Born | 24 November 1878 Middleton Tyas, Yorkshire, England |
| Died | 15 July 1939 (aged 60) London, England |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service/ | Royal Navy |
| Years of service | 1892–1939 |
| Rank | Admiral of the Fleet |
| Commands | First Sea Lord Home Fleet 1st Battle Squadron 3rd Battle Squadron HMS Malaya HMS Lion HMS Conquest |
| Battles/wars | First World War |
| Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George |
Admiral of the Fleet Sir Roger Roland Charles Backhouse, GCB, GCVO, CMG (24 November 1878 – 15 July 1939) was a Royal Navy officer. He served in the First World War as a cruiser commander and after the war became a battle squadron commander and later Commander-in-Chief, Home Fleet. Becoming First Sea Lord in November 1938, his major contribution in that role was to abandon the official British policy of sending a major fleet to Singapore to deter Japanese aggression (the Singapore strategy), realising the immediate threat was closer to home (from Germany and Italy) and that such a policy was no longer viable. He died from a brain tumour in July 1939 just before the outbreak of the Second World War.