Showing Our Admiral: Biography of Admiral of the Fleet Earl Beatty, 1871-1936 by Charles Beatty

Authors note. In 1933 our Admiral, David Richard Beatty who was my father's younger brother agreed that because of my knowledge of the family, I might one day write his biography, 'If Winston doesn't'. Circumstances prevented me from making a start and he died three years later, but I continued to take an interest in everything concerning him. Then as now my aim is not so much to establish his place in history as to project the frank faithful image of an extraordinary character from appoint of view which is surely unusual and may be unique. Such an image or portrait requires clear definition lest the bold outline become blurred by detail. Peripheral elements are therefore excluded unless they bear on his character, and this particularly applies to battlefields, whether at sea, on lard, or across the council table. All such aspects have been dealt with by distinguished authors, most of whose works I have been able to consult and for which I am truly grateful.