commanded by Sir Geoffrey Phipps Hornby. Thomas' father, Charles Evan Thomas, changed the family name from Thomas to Evan-Thomas. Thomas' report from the ship's captain, Nowell Salmon, reported that Midshipman Evan-Thomas had "conducted himself with sobriety zeal & attention & to my satisfaction". Swiftsure was stationed in the Gulf of Saros off Gallipoli in July 1878 when Evan-Thomas and another officer were ashore and were arrested by Russian soldiers. The matter was shortly resolved and the men released, but was a reflection of continuing tension in the area just after signing of the treaty of Berlin. In August 1878, Evan-Thomas transferred to the barque-rigged turret ship, , captained by Algernon Lyons, who was his first cousin once removed. Lyons reported he "conducted himself with sobriety and entirely to my satisfaction", but his successor as captain of Monarch, George Tryon, described him as "a very promising young officer in every respect". Royal duties In 1879, Evan-Thomas was chosen to join , as part of a crew hand-picked to be a good influences on the two princes who now continued their naval careers on the ship. Bacchante made three cruises: the first to the Mediterranean and West Indies, the second to Spain and Ireland, and the third a round-world trip. The third cruise departed South Railway Jetty in September 1880 in the company of three other corvettes and the frigate . The planned itinerary was interrupted by the first Boer War, causing consternation for Queen Victoria that her grandsons were now in a war zone. However, the ship was not involved in action and royal activities were limited to visits to Zulu chief Cetshwayo and other social functions. A more serious danger to the ship occurred in a storm off Western Australia, where the rudder was damaged and the ship could only be brought safely under control by sending men aloft so that their bodies acted as makeshift sails to turn the ship. Evan-Thomas was one of the few people allowed to socialise with the princes. In June 1881, he became senior midshipman and their regular companion on trips ashore. These included trips for riding, shooting, visits to gold mines and other sightseeing locations, and a visit from the Emperor in Japan. In spring 1882, Baccante returned to the Mediterranean via the Suez Canal and stopped to visit the princes' uncle, King George I of Greece. On 6 June 1882, Evan-Thomas departed