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John Kerans

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Commander
John Kerans
DSO
Kerans in 1969 by Godfrey Argent
Member of Parliament
for The Hartlepools
In office
8 October 1959 – 25 September 1964
Preceded byD. T. Jones
Succeeded byTed Leadbitter
Personal details
Born
John Simon Kerans

(1915-06-30)30 June 1915
Parsonstown (Birr), County Offaly, Ireland
Died11 September 1985(1985-09-11) (aged 70)
Oxted, Surrey, England
Resting placeSt Peter Churchyard, Tandridge, Surrey
Political partyConservative
Spouse
Stephanie Campbell Shires
​
​
(m. 1946)​
Children2
Alma materRoyal Naval College, Dartmouth
Military service
Allegiance United Kingdom
Branch/service Royal Navy
Rank Commander
UnitNaval Intelligence, Far East
HMS Icarus (D03)
Naval Intelligence, Hong Kong
Royal Malaysia Police
CommandsAssistant naval attaché, Nanking
HMS Amethyst
Naval Intelligence, London
Naval attaché, Bangkok
Battles/warsWorld War II
Amethyst Incident
AwardsDistinguished Service Order

Commander John Simon Kerans DSO (30 June 1915 – 12 September 1985) was an officer in the Royal Navy and later a Conservative Party politician. He is also the author of the 1964 book The World's Greatest Sea Adventures, Publisher: Odhams Books Ltd.[1]

The Yangtze Incident

As Assistant British Naval Attaché in then Nanking, China in 1949, Lieutenant-Commander Kerans took command of HMS Amethyst when the ship came under fire on the Yangtze River during the final stages of the Chinese Civil War after the captain and 16 others were killed in the shelling.[2] The ship was detained for ten weeks during negotiations for its release, until Kerans led a night-time escape.[3] Kerans was awarded the Distinguished Service Order.[4] The Amethyst incident was later the subject of a film entitled Yangtse Incident: The Story of HMS Amethyst (1957), in which Kerans was portrayed by the British actor Richard Todd.

Politics

At the 1959 general election he was elected as Conservative Member of Parliament for The Hartlepools. He served only one term in the House of Commons, and did not contest the 1964 general election. He advocated the representation of Communist China in the United Nations.[5]

Kerans was the last Conservative to serve as MP for the constituency (now called Hartlepool) until Jill Mortimer was elected following the 2021 Hartlepool by-election.

Grave

His remains are interred in the churchyard of St Peters, Tandridge and the grave can be found in the eastern side near the boundary wall.

References

  1. ^ The World's Greatest Sea Adventures www.amazon.co.uk
  2. ^ John Kerans, 70, a Royal Navy commander who ran his... www.orlandosentinel.com
  3. ^ Give me more rum, sodomy and the lash. www.telegraph.co.uk
  4. ^ "Page 3813 | Issue 38683, 5 August 1949 | London Gazette | the Gazette".
  5. ^ "CHINESE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC (UNITED NATIONS REPRESENTATION) (Hansard, 29 November 1961)". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 29 November 1961.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Member of Parliament for The Hartlepools
1959–1964 		Succeeded by
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