The new deputy lieutenant for Maldon who served more than 30 years in the Royal Navy said he was “honoured” to be given the role.

Rear Admiral Roy Clare CBE has officially taken up the position.

It will see him assist Lord-Lieutenant Jennifer Tolhurst, attend public events and help with the Reserved Forces and Cadets Association.

Admiral Clare has spent most of his life working with charities and museums after 33 years service in the Royal Navy.

Although he joked that he was one of 60 deputy lieutenants across the country, he was full of pride after receiving the honour.

He said: “It is a wonderful recognition of things I take very seriously in my charitable, professional and personal life.

“Reaching out to different cultures and helping people see each other in different ways is key in my opinion, so it is lovely I may be able to do that in this role.

“It is a great honour.

“The role goes back to the Tudor period so there is a lot history and tradition. It is a gift from the Lord Lieutenant.

“I am a great admirer of her and my objective is to stand behind Jennifer and support her.”

Admiral Clare, a Londoner who grew up in Cape Town, South Africa, “ran away” to the Royal Navy in 1966 at just 15-years-old.

During that time, he studied at a host of colleges, served in a Nato appointment and was the military assistant to the Minister for Armed Forces, Tom King MP from 1989 to 1991, and in 1999 he was appointed Rear Admiral.

He said: “I ran away to sea at 15 and never really looked back after that.

“In that time, I learned what leadership looked like and then I made my way up through the ranks and I thought that leadership from the lower level some times does not look so pretty. I made sure I never forgot that.”

After his service, Admiral Clare was appointed as the director of the National Maritime Museum in London in 2000.

He moved to Essex in the same year with his wife, the Reverend Sarah Clare and three children.

His passion for museums has seen Admiral Clare continue to chair and direct them across the globe, including the Auckland War Museum in New Zealand.

He was appointed a CBE for his services to museums in 2007.