By Walter Burroughs
Recently we were saddened to hear of the death of Lieutenant Commander Marsden Hordern, OAM, VRD, RANVR, Rtd who passed away peacefully in his sleep at home on 17 October 2025, aged 103. As all Marsden’s contemporaries have faded away the family sought a low-key farewell but we thought it fitting that his passing should be acknowledged by this short tribute.
Marsden Carr Hordern was born a century past at Rose Bay in Sydney on 26 March 1922. The family was related to the well-known retail giants Samuel Hordern & Sons. Marsden was one of six children (four boys and two girls) born to the Reverend Frederick Hugh and Iris Hordern. The children grew up in the then green and pleasant rolling pastures of Seven Hills where their father was an Anglican clergyman to this rural community.
In 1929, slightly before the Great Depression, the Reverend Hordern was moved to the northern Sydney parish of Wahroonga and Marsden was packed off to nearby Knox Grammar School. At that time Knox was in its infancy, having only been formed five years previously, but an added bonus was it offered half fees to the sons of clergy.
Marsden like other Knox pupils attended school cadets and also learned to sail as an uncle had a boat at Pittwater. He was destined for university, but when the Second World War intervened, he wanted to join the Air Force and become a ‘Spitfire’ pilot. However, being under 18 parental consent was withheld. So he joined the Sydney University Regiment eventually becoming a Corporal. Army life did not suit Marsden’s temperament and he was able to transfer to the Navy. Probationary Acting Sub Lieutenant Marsden Hordern RANVR started antisubmarine training at HMAS Rushcutter on 5 June 1942.
Fairmile Motor Launches mass produced using prefabricated building techniques were the most numerous type of small craft used by the Royal Navy during the Second World War. They were highly successful in providing coastal anti-submarine support. The Royal Australian Navy had 35 Fairmile Type-B Motor Launches (MLs) and 31 of their smaller cousins Harbour Defence Motor Launches (HDMLs). Young officers in particular gained experience in these robust and lively craft and they were often their first taste of command.
A treasured original painting of Marsden’s favourite ship ML 1347 hangs in his home at Warrawee, like many MLs operating in New Guinea waters she was painted green. This painting is by a valued colleague and crew member, the late Able Seaman Richard Jeffs.
And so it was that Marsden’s wartime service career was mainly confined to small ships of the famous Fairmile Motor Launches. His first ship was ML 814, and then promoted to First Lieutenant of ML 823 and later ML 817. When still only 22 years of age, he was promoted to command ML 1347. His wartime exploits involved patrolling and escorting forces to enemy held New Guinea and assisting beleaguered commandos in Timor. Finally exploring the little known Sepik River and rounding up Japanese prisoners. Serving in small ships in these areas it was hard to avoid disease and Marsden like many others suffered from the effects of malaria. With the war over Marsden, while still in uniform, was allowed to attend lectures at the University of Sydney and on 4 February 1947 Lieutenant Hordern was discharged from naval service. He read history and literature, and surprisingly given his recent experience, developed a keen interest in Japanese history.
In addition to gaining a Batchelor of Arts, the ever-active Marsden obtained a pilot’s licence and flew a Tiger Moth, and then as navigator was involved in four early Sydney to Hobart yacht races. In 1953 Marsden married Lesley Spooner, a journalist, and daughter of the well-known politician Eric Spooner, who served as a minister in the wartime Menzies government. The couple went on to have two children Nicholas and Rosemary. Lesley, a consummate home maker and keen gardener, in the mid-1960s broke out of the domestic mould and returned to study, qualifying as a librarian.
On 23 June 1954 Marsden re-joined the colours as a Lieutenant RANVR, promoted to Lieutenant Commander on 31 December 1954 and finally retiring on 8 September 1961. His service being recognised by the award of the coveted Volunteer Reserve Decoration (VRD).
A new chapter began when Marsden started business running an art gallery in North Sydney, which subsequently moved to Neutral Bay. He also found time for researching naval history and a literary career blossomed. Writing with great clarity and meticulous detail his beautifully descriptive works demonstrate a deep understanding of the maritime environment. His three classics are: Mariners are Warned (1989) covering the six-year voyage of HMS Beagle, King of the Australian Coast (1997) retracing the voyages made by the masterful maritime surveyor Phillip Parker King, and A Merciful Journey (2005) a vivid and compelling description of his own wartime experiences. So skilfully were these works presented that the University of Sydney conferred upon the author its prestigious Honorary Doctorate of Letters.
In 2009 Lieutenant Commander Marsden Carr Hordern VRD, RANVR, Rtd was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for services in the recording of Australian maritime history.
Over the years Marsden contributed articles to a number of publications including the ‘Naval Historical Review’ and continued as a valued member of the ‘Naval Historical Society’. Remarkably Marsden, who became a widower when Lesley died in 2011, continued to resides in his parent’s family home at Warrawee, right until his death.
A light hearted volume of Marsden Hordern’s early life, especially covering the four Sydney to Hobart races in which he competed, is to be found in Blue Water Warriors (2018), written and published by Craig Harris, the partner of Marsden’s daughter, Rosemary who lives in Adelaide. His son Nicholas, a retired journalist and author, lives at Mossy Point on the South Coast of NSW.
Marsden Hordern demonstrated a great generosity of spirit, with a mischievous smile and a sparkle in his eyes there was always an encouraging word for whomever he met. We cherish the memory of this fine old warrior, perhaps the last of the Second World War Motor Launch commanders, and this now completes his Merciful Journey.
