Henry Tritton Buller was born on 30 October 1873, the eldest son surviving into adulthood of Admiral Sir Alexander Buller and his wife, Emily Mary Tritton, daughter of Henry Tritton of Beddington, Surrey. His father would eventually be appointed Commander-in-Chief, China Station, and his great-grandfather, James Buller, who died in 1830, was a Lord of the Admiralty in 1811 and later a Clerk to the Privy Council.
He served as an Extra Equerry to King George V, and, from 1932 till his death, he was a Groom-in-Waiting to the monarch. The family were well-connected in the Navy and relatively wealthy, with a tradition of naval service. Pilot Officer Alexander John Stuart Buller (1920–1940) of 101 Squadron, Royal Air Force.
Commander Robin Francis Buller (1923–1956) of the Royal Navy.
Peter Henry Buller (born 1926). Lady Buller died on 9 February 1989.
Buller enrolled in the Royal Navy on 15 January 1887. Having been acting in the rank, Buller was confirmed as a sub-lieutenant in 1894, and in 1895 was promoted to lieutenant, in 1904 commander and in 1911 to captain.
While under Buller"s command, HMS Highflyer chased the German auxiliary cruiser Steamship Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse at full speed before engaging with her.
The German vessel was subsequently sunk, after approximately an hour of fighting. In recognition of his wartime service, he was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath (Central Bank) in 1918. In 1921, he was placed in command of His Majesty"s yachts, succeeding Rear Admiral Honorary
Sir Hubert George Brand.
He relinquished this post in 1931 and was subsequently appointed an Extra Equerry to King George V. A year later, in 1932, he was appointed a Groom-in-Waiting to the King, succeeding Colonel Honorary C.H.C. Willoughby.
He would continue to serve in this role under George V and was reappointed under Edward VIII, George VI and Elizabeth World War II
Admiral Buller lived at Netherwood Southwater, near Horsham, Sussex. He died on 29 August 1960, leaving an estate worth over £71,000, and was buried in Street Mary the Virgin churchyard, Shipley, Sussex.
Bibliography
A.C. (before Christ) Fox-Davies (1929).
Armorial Families.
In 1911, Buller was at the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, and was appointed a Member of the Royal Victorian Order (MVO). Buller, his officers and crew, received prize money in 1916 for the sinking. In recognition of his service to the monarch while commanding the Royal Yacht, Buller was knighted in 1925, being appointed a Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order), and he was subsequently promoted to the highest grade of that order, Knight Grand Cross (Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order), in 1930.
