orig. Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas, prince of Battenberg
born June 25, 1900, Frogmore House, Windsor, Eng.
died Aug. 27, 1979, Donegal Bay, off Mullaghmore, County Sligo, Ire.
British statesman and naval commander.
Son of Prince Louis of Battenberg and great-grandson of Queen Victoria , he entered the Royal Navy in 1913 and became an aide to the prince of Wales in 1921. In World War II he was allied commander for Southeast Asia (194346) and directed the recapture of Burma. Appointed viceroy of India (1947), he administered the transfer of power from Britain to the independent nations of India and Pakistan and served as the first governor-general of India (194748). He became first sea lord (195559) and chief of the United Kingdom Defense Staff (195965). In 1979, while on a sailing visit to Ireland, he was assassinated by Irish terrorists who planted a bomb on his boat.