East Indies Station
The Commander-in-Chief, East Indies was a British Royal Navy admiral, and effectively the formation subordinate to him, from 1865 to 1941. Even in official documents, the term East Indies Station was often used.
From 1831 to 1865 the East Indies and the China Station were a single command known as the East Indies and China Station. The East Indies Station, established in 1865, covered the Indian Ocean (excluding the waters around the Dutch East Indies, South Africa and Australia) and included the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea. These responsibilities did not imply territorial claims but the navy would actively protect Britain's trading interests.
The East Indies Station had bases at Colombo, Trincomalee, Bombay, Basra and Aden. In response to increased Japanese threats, the separate East Indies Station was merged with the China Station in December 1941 to form the Eastern Fleet.
On 7 December 1941 cruisers on the station included Cornwall, Dorsetshire, Exeter, Glasgow, Danae, Dauntless, HMS Durban, HMS Emerald, HMS Enterprise and HMS Hawkins, as well as six armed merchant cruisers, and 814 Naval Air Squadron at China Bay, Ceylon, with Fairey Swordfish.
Read more about East Indies Station: Facilities, Commanders-in-Chief
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