Rear Admiral

Rear Admiral

Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...

 David Animle Hansen (17 May 1923 - 28 January 2008) was the first Ghana

Ghana

Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...

ian to be appointed Chief of Naval Staff of the Ghana Navy

Ghana Navy

The Ghana Navy is the naval force of the West African nation of Ghana. The navy, along with the Ghana Army and Ghana Air Force, make up the Ghana Armed Forces.-History:...

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Education and training

David Hansen trained at the Eaton Hall Officer Cadet School in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

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Career

On the completion of his training, Hansen was commissioned into the Ghana army

Ghana Army

The Ghana Army is the army of the West African nation of Ghana. In 1959, two years after the Gold Coast obtained independence as Ghana, the Gold Coast Regiment was withdrawn from the Royal West African Frontier Force, and formed the basis for the new Ghanaian Army...

. When the Ghana Navy was established on July 29, 1959, its first head was D. A. Foreman

D. A. Foreman

D. A. Foreman was a British naval officer who became the first Chief of Naval Staff of the Ghana Navy.-Ghana Navy service:Foreman had retired from active service from the Royal Navy when he was seconded to the newly created Ghana Navy...

, a retired British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 naval officer

Officer (armed forces)

An officer is a member of an armed force or uniformed service who holds a position of authority. Commissioned officers derive authority directly from a sovereign power and, as such, hold a commission charging them with the duties and responsibilities of a specific office or position...

 who had been granted presidential commission as a Ghana naval officer with the rank of Commodore

Commodore (rank)

Commodore is a military rank used in many navies that is superior to a navy captain, but below a rear admiral. Non-English-speaking nations often use the rank of flotilla admiral or counter admiral as an equivalent .It is often regarded as a one-star rank with a NATO code of OF-6, but is not always...

. David Hansen was later transferred from the army to the navy and appointed as the first Ghanaian Chief of Naval Staff of the Ghana Navy. In addition, he served as an aide-de-camp

Aide-de-camp

An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state...

 to President Kwame Nkrumah

Kwame Nkrumah

Kwame Nkrumah was the leader of Ghana and its predecessor state, the Gold Coast, from 1952 to 1966. Overseeing the nation's independence from British colonial rule in 1957, Nkrumah was the first President of Ghana and the first Prime Minister of Ghana...

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