Vince McGlone
Vincent Edmund McGlone (23 March 1916 – 13 March 2014) was a New Zealand seaman and television personality. He was one of the last survivors of the Battle of the River Plate and New Zealand's oldest naval veteran.
Biography[edit]
McGlone was born in 1916 in the Auckland suburb of Kingsland, the son of a local policeman.[1] He enlisted in the New Zealand Division of the Royal Navy in 1932 and was promoted to ordinary seaman in 1934. He served as a gunner on HMS Diomede before promotion to able seaman and transfer to HMS (later HMNZS) Achilles.[2]
On the morning of 13 December 1939, McGlone was serving as a gunner on Achilles when she, alongside Ajax and Exeter, engaged the German pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee in the Battle of the River Plate.[3] He later served on HMNZS Gambia[4] and saw occupation service in Japan. He retired from the navy with the rank of quartermaster in 1946.[1] His awards included the Atlantic Star, the Pacific Star, the War Medal 1939–1945, the New Zealand War Service Medal and the New Zealand Service Medal 1946–1949.[2]
For 20 years, McGlone ran a joinery factory in the Northland town of Kaikohe.[1]
In 2012, McGlone was the face of a naval recruiting advertisement on television for the New Zealand Defence Force, in which he recited the New Zealand national anthem.[5]
McGlone died in 2014. He was one of the last surviving veterans of the Battle of the River Plate from either side[3] and was believed to be New Zealand's oldest surviving naval veteran at the time of his death.[6] The galley at the Devonport Naval Base is named the Vince McGlone Galley in his honour.[2]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c Barrington, Mike (14 December 2013). "Cyclone recalls epic sea battle". Northern Advocate.
- ^ a b c Penman, Maryke (11 April 2013). "Cyclone McGlone still roaring at 97". North Shore Times. Retrieved 16 March 2014.
- ^ a b Field, Michael (13 March 2014). "Star navy veteran dies". stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 16 March 2014.
- ^ "Vincent Edmund McGlone: death notice". New Zealand Herald. 14 March 2014. Retrieved 16 March 2014.
- ^ Young, Victoria (28 September 2012). "Defence trims budget, keeps Saatchi". National Business Review. p. 28.
- ^ "Naval keepsake returned to NZ". Marlborough Express. 22 May 2012. p. 6.