Charles Jenkinson (1727-1808) became private secretary to the 3rd Earl of Bute, favourite of George III, in 1760. In 1763, having been elected to Parliament, Jenkinson was appointed Joint Secretary of the Treasury. Chosen as Vice-Treasurer for Ireland in 1773, he became a member of the Privy Council. Later he was Master of the Royal Mint (1775-1778) and, during the American Revolution, Secretary at War (1778-1782). During the first ministry (from 1783) of the William Pitt the younger, Jenkinson proved an invaluable adviser. In 1786 he was appointed chancellor of the duchy of Lancaster and president of the Board of Trade. A member of the Cabinet from 1791, he became an invalid around 1801, ceased to attend Cabinet meetings, and by the middle of 1804 had resigned all his offices. He was created Baron Hawkesbury in 1786 and 1st Earl of Liverpool in 1796.
Thomas Clarkson was born in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, in 1760. He was educated locally and in London before entering St John's College Cambridge. Whilst researching for an essay competition in 1785, he was appalled to discover the cruelty involved in the Atlantic slave trade and became an abolitionist. Along with his younger brother John, he researched and campaigned vigorously on behalf of the anti-slavery movement. After the Abolition Act was passed in 1807, he continued to campaign for its enforcement and for emancipation of those already enslaved (achieved in 1833). Brought up in the Church of England, Clarkson became close to many Quaker friends that he met through the anti-slavery movement but did not join the Society of Friends himself.
Richard Thomas Gallienne (later Le Gallienne) was born in West Derby, Lancashire in 1866. He was educated at Liverpool College. Interested in literature from an early age, he began collecting books as a young man. His first book of poetry was published in 1887. In 1888, after failing the exams necessary to qualify as an accountant, he moved to London and earned a living as a book reviewer and continued to write poetry and prose. Le Gallienne emigrated to the United States in the early 1900s and from 1930 onwards lived in France and Monte Carlo with his third wife, where he continued to work as a journalist.
Joseph Locke was born near Sheffield in 1805. He was educated in Yorkshire and County Durham. He became an engineer and later an assistant to George Stephenson, taking part in the construction of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway. Locke's first major project was the survey and construction of the Grand Junction Railway, which established his reputation as a railway engineer. He subsequently oversaw the construction of many other lines, both in Britain and continental Europe; Napoleon III created him a Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur for his work in France. He also served as Liberal MP for Honiton, Devon, from 1847 until his death. Locke's obituary in The Times described him, Robert Stephenson and Isambard Kingdom Brunel as the 'triumvirate of the engineering world'.
Robert Bald was born in Perthshire in 1776. He learnt colliery management and engineering under his father and Thomas Telford. He subsequently spent many years managing the collieries on the Earl of Mar's estate at Alloa, Clackmannanshire, and became Scotland's most highly regarded mining engineer. Bald was deeply concerned with improving both productivity and working conditions, particularly for women employed as coal 'bearers'.
Sir James Robert George Graham was born in Cumberland in 1792. He was educated at Westminster School and at Christ Church, Oxford. He succeeded to his father's baronetcy in 1824. He originally entered parliament in 1818 as MP for Hull, later serving as MP for St Ives, Carlisle, Cumberland, East Cumberland, Pembroke, Dorchester and Ripon, before becoming MP for Carlisle for a second time. Originally a Whig, he became First Lord of the Admiralty under Earl Grey; in 1837 he joined the Conservatives and subsequently served as a cabinet minister under Sir Robert Peel, Lord Aberdeen and Lord Palmerston; as a Peelite he often voted with the Liberals/Whigs in the House of Commons.
Richard Cobden was born in 1804. He spent his early adulthood as a clerk, commercial traveller and merchant in the cloth industry. He was successful in business in Manchester, read and travelled widely, and became involved in local politics. During 1838-1846 he was active and influential in the Anti-Corn Law League. He served successively as MP for Stockport (1841-1847), West Riding of Yorkshire (1847-1857) and Rochdale (1859-1865).
No information was available at the time of compilation.
Stanley Spencer was born in Cookham, Berkshire, and remained strongly attached to the village throughout his life. He was educated locally before studying at the Slade School of Fine Art, London (1908-1912). After serving in the First World War, mainly in the medical corps, he started to become well known as an artist. Besides Cookham, Stanley's Christian faith and his two marriages, to the artists Hilda Carline and Patricia Preece, were among the greatest influences on his work. His best known paintings include The Resurrection, Cookham (1924-1927) and Double Nude Portrait: the Artist and his Second Wife (1937). During the Second World War, Stanley served as an official war artist in Glasgow. He was knighted in Jul 1959, five months before his death.
Owen Williams was the son of prominent Welsh industrialist Thomas Williams (1737-1802). He served as MP for Great Marlow, Buckinghamshire, from 1796 until his death in 1832.
Thomas Phillipps was born in Manchester in 1792. He was brought up in Worcestershire by his father. He was educated at Rugby School and at University College, Oxford, graduating in 1815. Phillipps's father died in 1818 and thereafter he lived on a private income, although his passion for collecting books and manuscripts (which he indulged freely) meant that he was continually in debt and often on bad terms with suppliers and members of his family. He became a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1820 and a baronet in 1921. At the time of Phillipps's death in 1872 his collection comprised many thousands of volumes and it was took more than a century for all of it it to be broken up and gradually sold; the final lot was eventually sold in 1977.
No information was available at the time of compilation.
No information was available at the time of compilation.
Henry Hucks Gibbs was born in London and educated at Rugby School and at Exeter College, Oxford. After graduating in 1841 he joined the family firm; when his father died the following year, as the eldest son he inherited the family estates, which he insisted on sharing with other family members. Instead of becoming just a landed gentleman, Gibbs embarked on a successful career as a merchant banker in the City of London, though his advocacy of a bimetallic currency standard was not shared by many of his contemporaries. He became a director of the Bank of England in 1853 and served as its governor during 1875-1877. Gibbs served as Conservative MP for the City of London between 1891 and 1892, and in 1896 was granted a peerage as Baron Aldenham. He also had strong literary and sporting interests, and served on the council of the English Church Union.
Sir Henry Bradwardine Jackson entered the Royal Navy through HMS BRITANNIA in 1868, and as a Lieutenant specialised first in navigation and later in torpedoes. Promoted to Commander in January 1890, he began experimenting with radio waves and eventually succeeded in transmitting signal between ships over a distance of several hundred yards. Soon after promotion to Captain in June 1896, Jackson met Marconi and discovered that they had both been working along similar lines. Following Jackson's success in this area of communication, the Royal Navy placed contracts with Marconi in 1900 to supply radios in its ships, and in 1901 Jackson was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in recognition of his work. After serving as Captain of the torpedo school ship HMS VERNON in 1904, Jackson was promoted to Third Sead Lord and Controller in the new Board of Admiralty. He then commanded a cruiser squadron, represented the Admiralty at the 1911 International Conference on Aerial Navigation, and gained a position the newly created War College at Portsmouth, bfore he returned to the Admiralty in February 1913 as Chief of War Staff. On the Resignation of Lord Fisher in May 1915, Jackson took his place as First Sea Lord, but was himself superseded by Admiral Sir John Jellicoe in Decmber 1916, and appointed President of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich. In July 1919, he was promoted to Admiral of the Fleet and the following year, became Chairman of the Radio Research Board of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research.
Jenkinson entered the Navy in 1806. In 1808 he was appointed to the DECADE and was in the VENERABLE in 1809 during the Walcheren expedition. In 1810 he was promoted to lieutenant. He next served in the CLYDE in the Channel and then in the INCONSTANT, 1811 to 1812, at Vera Cruz and in the Channel. He was promoted to commander in 1812 and from this time until 1814 commanded the JASPER in home waters. He was promoted to captain in 1814. Between 1816 and 1817 he was in Russia, apparently on a private visit. He was promoted to rear-admiral in 1850.
Jervis, son of Swynfen Jervis, Counsel to the Admiralty between 1747 and 1757, entered the Navy against his father's wishes in 1749. He was promoted to lieutenant in 1755, served with distinction in the Seven Years War and reached captain's rank in 1760. He served in the Channel during the American War of Independence. After the war he became a Member of Parliament, representing Launceston, Yarmouth and Wycombe successively. In 1787 Jervis became a rear-admiral and in 1793 a vice-admiral. He was Commander-in-chief of the West Indies Expedition, 1793 to 1794, capturing Martinique and Guadeloupe. He returned home in 1795 and in the same year was promoted to admiral and appointed Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean. In February 1797 he defeated the Spanish fleet off Cape St. Vincent, for which victory he was created an earl. He gave up his command in 1799. After a brief period in command of the Channel Fleet he served as First Lord of the Admiralty, 1801 to 1804. His term of office aroused considerable controversy and he refused further service afloat until after the death of Pitt, but took the Channel command in 1806. He resigned after a further change of ministry in 1807. In 1821 he was made Admiral of the Fleet. Among a number of biographies is Jedediah Tucker, Memoirs of Admiral the Rt. Hon.The Earl of St. Vincent G.C.B.. (London, 1844), while some correspondence has been published by David Bonner-Smith, ed., 'Letters of Admiral of the Fleet the Earl of St. Vincent whilst First Lord of the Admiralty 1801 to 1804' (Navy Records Society, 1922, 1927, 2 vols).
Lewis was made a lieutenant in 1761 and, unusually, went to Germany on a diplomatic mission as a private secretary between 1776 and 1778. He was then recommended to Lord Carlisle (1748-1825) as a secretary and in April 1778 sailed in the TRIDENT, Captain John Elliot, with the unsuccessful Peace Commission to America. In 1781 Lewis was First Lieutenant of the SAMPSON and then Commander of the PLUTO in 1782. He was promoted to captain in the same year when he commanded the Romney but had no naval service after 1783. In 1779 his brother died and he succeeded to the family property of Gellidywyll, Cenarth, Carmarthen.
Liddon entered the Navy in 1804 and after service in the West Indies, South America and the Mediterranean, was promoted to lieutenant in 1811. In January 1819 he commanded the GRIPER, which accompanied an expedition to the Arctic under Lieutenant (later Rear-Admiral Sir William Edward) Parry (1790-1855), the object of which was to discover the North-West Passage. He paid off the GRIPER in December 1820 and saw no further active service, although he was promoted to captain on the retired list.
Limpus entered the Navy in 1876. He served in the ALEXANDRA, in the Mediterranean, 1878 to 1879, in the BACCHANTE, Detached Squadron, 1880 to 1882, and the ALBACORE, again in the Mediterranean, 1884 to 1885. He was made a lieutenant in 1885 and a commander in 1898. He took a prominent part in the relief of LADYSMITH when he was second-in-command of the Naval Brigade during the Boer War. He was specially promoted to captain in 1900 for his efforts. In 1910 he was made rear-admiral, hoisting his flag in the JUPITER, Home Fleet. Between 1912 and 1914 he was Naval Adviser to Turkey and was made vice-admiral in the Turkish Navy. Between 1914 and 1916 he was Admiral Superintendent at Malta and was much concerned with the organization of supplies to the Dardanelles. He was President of the Shell Committee at the Admiralty in 1917 and retired in 1919.
Pulteney Malcolm, elder brother of Charles Malcolm, entered the Navy in 1778, became a lieutenant in 1783, a commander in 1794 and a captain later in the same year. From 1795 to 1803 he was in the East Indies. In 1804 he went out to the Mediterranean in the ROYAL SOVEREIGN and, after brief commands in the KENT and RENOWN, was appointed to the DONEGAL in 1805. In this ship he sailed with NELSON during the pursuit of the French Fleet to the West Indies and then joined the blockade of Cadiz. The DONEGAL was at Gibraltar when the battle of Trafalgar was fought and Malcolm hastened to the scene, arriving in time to capture the Spanish ship RAYO and assist with the prizes. He then went to the West Indies with Sir John Duckworth and took part in the battle of San Domingo, 1806. The DONEGAL was subsequently attached to the Channel Fleet and in 1808 convoyed troops to Portugal. In 1811 Malcolm was appointed to the ROYAL OAK, off Cherbourg. From 1812 to 1814 he was Captain of the Fleet Lord Keith, his uncle by marriage, being promoted to rear-admiral in 1813. In 1814 he took a squadron to America and served under Sir Alexander Cochrane (1758-1832) during the operations in the Chesapeake and New Orleans. During the 'Hundred Days' in 1815 he commanded a squadron in the North Sea and was then Commander-in-Chief at St. Helena from 1816 to 1817. He became a vice-admiral in 1821 and later held commands in the Mediterranean and the North Sea. He was promoted to admiral in 1838.
Massie entered the Navy in 1818 and was in the ASIA, flagship of Sir Edward Codrington, at Navarino in 1827, the year he was promoted to lieutenant. Between 1831 and 1832 he was First Lieutenant of the CARYSFORT in the Mediterranean and was then in the SATELLITE, 1833 to 1836, on the South American Station. In 1838 he was made commander and the next year was sent to assist in organizing the Turkish Navy. He was appointed to the THUNDERER in 1840, took part in the capture of ACRE and was promoted to captain in 1841. In 1849 he was given the command of the CLEOPATRA, East Indies and China Station, and took part in the Second Burma War (1852-1853). He commissioned in 1854 the POWERFUL, which was on the North American and West Indies Station in the latter part of 1855 and during 1856. Massie saw no further service, was promoted to rear-admiral in 1860 and was placed on the retired list in 1866 as a vice-admiral, becoming an admiral in 1872.
May joined the Navy in 1863 and in the following year went to the VICTORIA, flagship in the Mediterranean, until 1867. From that year until 1870 he served in the LIFFEY in the Pacific, being promoted to sub-lieutenant in 1869. He then joined the HERCULES in the Channel between 1873 and 1874, after which he took the course at the gunnery school in HMS EXCELLENT. He next served during the British Arctic Expedition, 1875 to 1876, under Sir George Nares in the ALERT. Becoming a captain in 1888, he held a series of important posts, including Flag-Captain in the IMPERIEUSE on the China Station; Naval Attachee, in Europe; Assistant Director, Torpedoes; Chief of Staff, Mediterranean and then at Portsmouth; Captain of EXCELLENT and finally Director of Naval Ordnance and Torpedoes. Having reached flag-rank, he spent four years as Third Sea Lord from 1901 to 1905. This was followed by a period as Commander-in-Chief, Atlantic Fleet, 1905 to 1907, Second Sea Lord, 1907 to 1909, Commander-in-Chief, Home Fleet, 1909 to 1911 and finally at Devonport, 1911 to 1913. In retirement, he was appointed to the Dardanelles Commission, 1916 to 1917. He wrote his autobiography, Life of a sailor (London, 1934).
McClure entered the Navy in 1824. He was made a lieutenant in 1837 and had already taken part in two Arctic expeditions when, in 1850, he was appointed to command the INVESTIGATOR in the search expedition for Sir John Franklin via the Bering Strait, led by Captain Richard Collinson. McClure and the men of the INVESTIGATOR were the first to make the traverse of the North-West Passage, though they were forced to abandon their ship which was beset in the ice off Banks Island, arriving back home in 1854. They were awarded £10,000 by Parliament in 1855 and McClure was knighted. In 1856 he was appointed to command the ESK on the Pacific Station and the following year was ordered to China. In December 1857 he commanded a battalion of the Naval Brigade at the capture of Canton. He was then appointed Senior Officer in the Straits of Malacca. He returned home in 1861 and had no further service, being promoted to rear-admiral in 1867 and vice-admiral in 1873 on the retired list.
Madden entered the Navy in 1919 and after training at Osborne and at Dartmouth served in the THUNDERER training ship in 1923, then in the WARWICK, Fifth Destroyer Flotilla, in the Atlantic, and in the REPULSE in the Atlantic Fleet. He served in the VICTORIA AND ALBERT in 1927, after which he trained as a pilot in the Fleet Air Arm. In 1934 he qualified at the Navigation School, HMS DRYAD, serving subsequently as navigator for a short period in the MALAYA, Atlantic Fleet, in the SANDWICH, on the China Station, 1934 to 1936, and the ORION in North America, 1939. During the Second World War he served in Naval Intelligence and with the Fleet Air Arm. He retired in 1950.
In 1834 Meynell entered Henry Burney's Academy at Gosport and in 1836 joined the PARTRIDGE, home waters. From 1837 to 1839 he was in Australian waters in the ALLIGATOR and then took part in the China War, 1840 to 1843, in the CALLIOPE. Between 1844 and 1845 he was a mate in the PENELOPE during the anti-slavery operations off the west coast of Africa. In 1846 he was presented with a commission and re-appointed as additional lieutenant to the PENELOPE. He was unemployed from 1847 until 1853, when he joined the ROYAL GEORGE in the Baltic during the Crimean War. After 1855 he saw no further service.
Rhoderick Robert McGrigor spent his early childhood in South Africa, before studying at Osborne and Dartmouth Royal Naval Colleges, passing out as top of his form. During the First World War, McGrigor served in destroyers during the Dardenelles campaign and saw action at the Battle of Jutland in HMS MALAYA. He then served as part of the Nyon non-intervention patrol during the Spanish Civil War on HMS KEMPENFELT, taking part in the rescue of crew from the sinking Spanish government cruiser BALEARES. At the outbreak of the Second World War, McGrigor was Chief-of-Staff to the C-in-C, China Station, after which he returned home in late 1940 to become the commanding officer of HMS RENOWN, taking part in the BISMARCK action and the bombardment of the coast of Genoa. He then joined the Board of Admiralty as Assistant Chief of Naval Staff (Weapons), following an early promotion to Rear-Admiral. Shortly after, McGrigor returned to an active post as a Naval Force Commander during the capture of Pantellaria and the invasion of Sicily. In March 1944, he returned home to take command of the First Cruiser Squadron and aircraft carriers of the Home Fleet. For the last year of the war, McGrigor carried out several attacks on the coast of enemy-occupied Norway and took several convoys to and from north Russia. Promoted to Admiral in 1948, McGrigor held several positions post-war, including C-in-C, Home Fleet from 1948 to 1950 and C-in-C, Plymouth from 1950-1951, before being made First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff, eventually retiring in 1955.
Mackay was in charge of the astronomical observatory at Aberdeen from 1781 to 1795. In 1793 he published The theory and practice of finding the longitude at sea or land (London, 2 vols). When the chair of Natural Philosophy at Aberdeen fell vacant in 1800, MacKay was proposed but the election was contested. In 1802, Nevil Maskelyne (1730-1811), the Astronomer Royal, suggested that he should go to Australia to join the expedition led by Matthew Flinders, as their astronomer had returned home early in the voyage. Mackay, however, still hoped that he might win the Aberdeen election and, in addition, felt the pay offered by the Board of Longitude was too small. In 1804, his hopes having failed, he came to London. He was appointed mathematical examiner to Trinity House in 1805 and to similar posts with the East India Company and Christ's Hospital during the year following. As well as teaching and examining, he published further works on astronomy, navigation and mathematics.
Mellersh entered the Navy in 1825, was promoted to lieutenant in 1837 and to commander in 1849. He was appointed to the RATTLER in 1851 and served in her during the Burmese War, 1852. He pursued and destroyed a large force of pirate junks off Ping-hoey on the Fukien Coast, for which he received his promotion to captain. His last service was on the South American Station from 1862 to 1864. Mellersh eventually became an admiral on the retired list.
Milne, son of Admiral Sir David Milne, was entered on the books of the Leander in 1817 but probably did not go to sea until 1820, when he joined the Conway on the South American Station. Again on this station between 1824 and 1830, he served in the ALBION, 1824 to 1825, the GANGES, 1825 to 1827, and the CADMUS, 1827 to 1830. He became a lieutenant in 1827. In 1837 he was promoted to commander into the SNAKE, North America and West Indies Station, where he operated against slavers, and in 1839 was appointed Captain of the CROCODILE on the same station. He transferred to the CLEOPATRA for a brief period in 1841 and then returned home. Milne was Flag-Captain to his father from 1842 to 1845 in the CALEDONIA, Devonport, and from 1845 to 1847 was in the St. Vincent at Portsmouth. He was on the Board of Admiralty until 1859, having become a rear-admiral in 1858. During the American Civil War Milne was Commander-in-Chief, North America and West Indies. On his return, he again joined the Board of Admiralty until 1869 when he commanded the Mediterranean Station for a year. In 1872 he was appointed Senior Naval Lord and after his retirement in 1876 he continued to be called upon for important tasks, including membership of the Carnarvon Commission on Colonial Defence, 1879 to 1882.
The Marine Society was founded in 1756 by Jonas Hanway (1712-1786) and others to provide men for the Navy. While men going to sea were fitted out with clothing, boys were invited to attend the Society's office where they could obtain some basic education and wait until they were applied for by captains or masters. In its first year of activity the Society supplied the Navy with 1,961 men and 1,580 boys. In 1763 the Society almost ceased operation, though boys were still assisted in finding work ashore, such as ropemaking and boatbuilding. However from 1769 the income from a bequest was used by the Society to continue its work and in 1772 the Society was strengthened by an act of Parliament for incorporation. From 1786 boys were prepared for sea aboard a training ship; in 1862 the Warspite, a third rate built in 1807, was obtained from the Admiralty and, though other vessels succeeded it, the name of this ship was preserved. The Society continues to function and has recently absorbed a number of other marine charities that are concerned with serving seafarers. See J Hanway, 'The origin, progress and present state of the Marine Society' (London, 1770). There are also other books and pamphlets by Hanway on the Marine Society and related subjects.
Entering the Navy in 1799, Napier became a lieutenant in 1805, commander in 1807 and captain in 1809. Between 1811 and 1812 he served on the West coast of Italy and later in American waters. In 1833 he took service in the Portuguese navy and was victorious over the forces of Dom Miguel, who had seized the throne of Portugal from his niece, Maria, in 1828. As he had not sought permission to enter foreign service, Napier's name was removed from the Navy List hut was restored in 1836. In 1837 he was appointed second-in-command of the Mediterranean Fleet, taking a leading part in the Syrian campaign, 1839 to 1841, particularly at the bombardment of Acre and in the subsequent negotiations with Mehemet Ali. In 1846 he was promoted to rear-admiral and he took command of the Channel Squadron until 1849. He was promoted to vice-admiral in 1853 and commanded the Baltic Fleet in the 1854 campaign. In 1858 he was advanced to admiral. Napier was Member of Parliament for Marylebone, 1841 to 1847, and for Southwark, 1855 to 1860. There are two biographies: Major-General E. Napier, 'Memoirs and correspondence of Admiral Sir Charles Napier, K. C. B.' (London, 1862) and H. Noel Williams, 'The life and letters of Admiral Sir Charles Napier, K.C.B. (1736-1860)' (London, 1917).
Norris entered the Navy in 1889. In 1893 as a midshipman in the Nile, Mediterranean, he was an eye-witness of the collision between the VICTORIA and CAMPERDOWN. He was promoted to lieutenant in 1896, commander in 1907 and captain in 1914. During the First World War he commanded the ARLANZA , 1915, and then served at the Admiralty. In 1918 he was appointed Commodore of the Persian Gulf Squadron. He subsequently commanded British naval forces in the Caspian Sea and, in May 1919, with six armed merchant vessels, some coastal motor boats and an air unit, attacked thirty Bolshevik ships, fourteen of which were destroyed. He headed a naval mission to Persia, 1920 to 1921. During the next eight years Norris held several appointments afloat and ashore. He was promoted to rear-admiral in 1924 and retired on his promotion to vice-admiral in 1929. He was promoted to admiral on the retired list in 1933.
Olive North (later Olive Hanson), was one of the 764 people who survived the sinking of the RMS LUSITANIA, 7 May 1915. The Lusitania, travelling from New York to LIverpool, was torpedoed and sunk by the German submarine U-20, off the Old Head of Kinsale, Ireland. Olive arrived in Montreal on RMS Megantic, 16 June 1914, accompanied by her brother Frank, in order to visit her elder sister and family. Frank, a former soldier, was recalled at the out-break of war in 1914. Olive was returning to England aboard the Lusitania in 1915, ostensibly to marry her fiance, Percy Hanson, when the Lusitania was sunk. The wedding was postponed until August 1918. Olive, a non-swimmer was given a life-jacket by a steward. After several hours in the water, Olive was rescued from an upturned life boat by Captain John Sandham, the captain of the BROCK.
Oliver entered the Navy in 1878 and passed for lieutenant in 1884. In 1903 he was promoted to captain and founded the navigation school in the Mercury. This school was later given the name HMS Dryad. Oliver became Naval Assistant to the First Sea Lord in 1908, and after a seagoing appointment became Director of Naval Intelligence in 1913. He was promoted to rear-admiral in the same year. In 1914 Oliver became Naval Secretary to the First Sea Lord. At the end of the war he commanded the First Battle Cruiser Squadron in the Grand Fleet, hoisting his flag in the REPULSE. In 1919 he was promoted to vice-admiral and in 1921 he was appointed Second Sea Lord. In 1923 he was made admiral. His last active employment was as Commander-in-Chief, Atlantic Fleet, in which post he remained until 1927. He was made Admiral of the Fleet in 1928 and retired in the same year. See Sir William James, A great seaman. The life of Admiral of the Fleet Sir Henry F. Oliver (London, 1956).
Phillimore entered the Navy in 1835 and studied at the Royal Naval College, Portsmouth, until 1837. From 1837 to 1840 he served as a first-class volunteer and midshipman in the NORTH STAR and TWEED on the coast of Spain during the Carlist War. He was in the ENDYMION from 1840 to 1843 on the East Indies Station and during the First Chinese War, returning home in 1844 in the CORNWALLIS, flagship of Sir William Parker. He had been promoted to mate in 1842. In 1845 he was appointed to the HIBERNIA, Parker's flagship in the Mediterranean, and promoted to lieutenant in the same year. In 1847 he became Parker's Flag-Lieutenant. In 1849 he transferred with him to the QUEEN, on the same station. Phillimore later wrote a biography of Parker, The life of Sir William Parker (3 vols. London, 1876-1880). In 1852, he was promoted to commander and attended a course at the Royal Naval College, before sailing as Admiralty agent in the first mail steamer to Australia. From 1853 to 1855 he commanded the MEDEA in the West Indies and was promoted to captain in 1855. He was appointed to command the CURACOA on the south-east coast of South America in 1859 and was Senior Officer on the Station. He commanded the DEFENCE in the Channel from 1862 to 1866. Phillimore was Senior Officer at Jamaica from 1868 to 1869 and at Gibraltar from 1869 to 1873, becoming a rear-admiral in 1874. In 1876 he was second-in-command, Channel Squadron, and from 1876 to 1879 Admiral Superintendent of the Royal Naval Reserve. He was promoted to vice-admiral in 1879 and to admiral in 1884 and was Commander-in-Chief, Devonport, from 1884 to 1887, when he retired.
Pell entered the Navy in 1799 and was promoted to lieutenant in 1806. He then served in the MERCURY on the Newfoundland and Mediterranean Stations until 1809. He was promoted to commander in 1810 into the THUNDER at Cadiz. He was promoted to captain in 1813 and given command of the MENAI on the North American Station until 1816. After a period on half-pay, Pell was appointed Commodore in command of the Jamaica Division of the North America and West Indies Station, 1833 to 1837. He commanded the HOWE in the Mediterranean, 1840 to 1841, and was Superintendent of Pembroke Dockyard, 1842 to 1845. From 1846 to 1863 he was a Commissioner of Greenwich Hospital. Pell was knighted in 1837 and promoted to rear-admiral in 1848, vice-admiral in 1855 and admiral in 1861.
Palmer received his first commision on 20th May 1848 as acting assistant surgeon on HMS VICTORY. Later that year he served on HM Sloop DWARF from 19th September 1848 until late March 1850. His next commission was on 12th April 1850 as assistant surgeon on HMS ASIA in the Pacific under Captain Robert Fanshawe Stopford. He transferred on 17th February 1851 to the flagship in the Pacific, HMS PORTLAND, under Rear Admiral Fairfax Moresby. He later served on HMS JACKAL, under Lieutenant Commander William T. F. Jackson, from 3rd July 1854 until a brief term on HMS IMPREGNABLE under Vice Admiral Sir Barrington Reynolds in Devonport from 17th December 1858 until he transferred back to the JACKAL on 12th April 1859 under Lieutenant and Commander James Simpson at Sheerness. On 14th April 1860, he served on the flagship in the East Indies and China, HMS CHESAPEAKE, under Rear Admiral Sir James Hope. He produced many sketches on various subjects in China. On 16th May 1861, he spent two days on the new flagship, HMS IMPERIEUSE, before transferring to HMS PRINCESS CHARLOTTE, a receiving ship at Hong Kong under Captain Matthew S. Nolloth, where he was listed as surgeon (additional for service in Melville Hospital Ship). On 24th January 1866, he was commissioned as surgeon on HMS TOPAZE under Commodore 2nd Class Richard A. Powell. The TOPAZE voyaged to Easter Island among other destinations and it is here that he painted many watercolours and produced sketches of the topography of the island, the stone statues and some of the chiefs resident on the island at the time. His final commission was on HMS RESISTANCE from 11th September 1870 as staff surgeon under Captain William H. Haswell. This ship was on coast guard duty from Rockferry and Birkenhead from 1872 onwards. He is listed as retired in 1874.
The Prince Steam Shipping Company Ltd was formed in 1883 with a nominal capitol of £250,000. Further steamships were ordered and the first of these commenced trading in 1884. By 1886 the company's fleet comprised twenty sailing ships and seventeen ocean-going steamships. A year later the sailing vessels were sold and Knott applied himself to the development of a fleet of steamships engaged in world-wide trade. Among the earliest services advertised were those between the UK and Tripoli, Malta, Tunis, Egypt, Cyprus, Palestine and Syria. By 1888 the company was firmly established on routes from Europe and New York to Brazil and the River Plate and in the years leading up to the First World War, it had a large share in the coffee trade between Brazil and the USA.
With the opening of the Manchester Ship Canal in 1894, a service was instituted between Manchester and Alexandria for the importation of Egyptian cotton. Manufactured goods and machinery were exported through Manchester.
In 1895 a new company was formed, the Prince Line (1895) Ltd. Three years later the date was dropped from the title and the Prince Line Ltd absorbed the entire range of Knott's shipping interests, principally the Prince Steam Shipping Company Ltd and the Prince Steam shipping Insurance Association, founded in 1887. As older ships were replaced by new and larger tonnage a regular line was built on the carriage of Italian emigrants to New York. However , in 1917 the Italian Government restricted this trade to national flag carriers and the Prince Line's part in it came to an end.
In the early years of the twentieth century a service from New York to South Africa, India and the Far East was inaugurated. Later, in 1917, twelve steamers and the interests of James Gardiner and Company, Glasgow, were acquired to become the subsidiary company Rio Cape Line. The combination of these undertakings led to the development of a round the world service.
During the First World War nineteen ships were lost to enemy action. Following the death of two of his sons at Ypres and the Somme and the capture of a third at Gallipoli, James Knott, the founder of the company, sold his interests to Furness, Withy and Company Ltd in August 1916. He was created a baronet the following year. In 1919 the Furness family relinquished their interests in Furness, Withy and Company Ltd. and as result the offices of the company were moved from Newcastle to London.
The fleet and services were rebuilt between the wars despite the economic depression of the decades. The company's first motor ship, built in 1924 as the TRAMORE, was taken over from the associated Johnston Line in 1925 and renamed BRAZILIAN PRINCE. In 1929 four fast passenger-cargo motor ships of 10, 920 tons gross, carrying 101 passengers, were completed and named NORTHERN PRINCE, SOUTHERN PRINCE, EASTERN PRINCE and WESTERN PRINCE. These were employed on the well established New York- South American routes.
At the outbreak of war in 1939 the Prince Line and Rio Cape Line fleets together comprised twenty vessels, maintaining the four regular services- the Mediterranean, USA- South Africa, New York - South America and the Far East round the world service. Losses during the war totalled fourteen.
While the fleet was again rebuilt in the years after 1945 and the citrus trade with Israel continued to flourish, the entire operations of the company gradually contracted as a result of foreign competition and later, containerisation. Only a reduced Mediterranean service survived, and this was combined with Furness, Withy's other Mediterranean interest, the Manchester Liners service, as a joint operation.
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Peter Rainier, son of Admiral Peter Rainier, entered the Navy in 1798. He served under his father in the East Indies and in 1803 to 1804 was a lieutenant in his father's ship, the TRIDENT. He was promoted to captain in 1806 and commanded the CAROLINE in the East Indies, capturing the SAN RAPHAEL in 1807. Between 1813 and 1815 he was in command of the NIGER, engaged on convoy duties in the Atlantic. From 1831 to 1835 he was Flag-Captain to Sir Pulteney Malcolm in the BRITANNIA, off the Dutch coast and in the Mediterranean.
Harvey entered the Navy in 1787. He was present at the battle of the First of June 1794 and became a lieutenant four months later. In 1796 he was promoted to commander and to post rank in the next year. He was appointed to the Standard in 1805 under Vice-Admiral Collingwood, in the Mediterranean and in 1807 took part in the action of Sir John Duckworth in the Dardanelles. Returning to England in 1808, he was appointed to the Majestic in the Baltic until 1810 and then served until 1815 in the North Sea. Between 1815 and 1839 he had no employment. He was made rear-admiral in 1821, vice-admiral in 1837 and in 1839 was appointed Commander-in-Chief, North America and West Indies Station; he died during this command.
Rice entered the School of Naval Architecture in 1813. He held appointments in various dockyards between 1819 and 1822, when he became draughtsman to Sir Robert Seppings (1767-1840). In 1824 he sailed to South America to assist in repairing the SPARTIATE. From 1825 to 1844 he was Foreman of Portsmouth Dockyard. In 1837 he went to Lough Swilly to refloat the TERROR, Captain George Back (1796-1878), which had returned from the Arctic badly damaged by the ice. He was promoted to Assistant Master Shipwright in 1844 and in 1852 was appointed Master Shipwright at Pembroke Dockyard but held office for less than a year.
Richmond entered the Navy in 1885 in the BRITANNIA. From 1887 to 1890 he served on the Australian Station in the NELSON, CALLIOPE and ORLANDO. He was a midshipman in the RUBY, Training Squadron, 1890 to 1891, spending some time in the Channel MINOTAUR. In 1892 he was promoted to lieutenant and served in the surveying ship STORK, Mediterranean, until 1893. After a short period in the ACTIVE, Training Squadron, in 1894, he went to the VERNON to specialise in torpedoes and remained on the staff until 1897. He then served as torpedo officer in the EMPRESS OF INDIA, RAMILLIES and CANOPUS, Mediterranean, 1897 to 1900, and in the MAJESTIC, Channel Fleet, 1900 to 1903. He was promoted to commander in 1903. After a brief period at the Admiralty he served in the CRESCENT, flagship at the Cape of Good Hope, from 1904 to 1906. He then returned to the Admiralty for two years, when the Fisher reforms were in progress, and was promoted to captain in 1908. Richmond was captain of the DREADNOUGHTH, flagship of the Atlantic Fleet, from 1908 to 1911. This was followed by two years in command of the FURIOUS and VINDICTIVE, attached to VERNON, during which time he delivered a series of lectures to the Naval War College. In 1913 he became Assistant Director of Operations at the Admiralty. After a short spell in 1915 as liaison officer with the Italian fleet he commanded the COMMONWEALTH, Third Battle Squadron, from 1915 to 1917, and the CONQUEROR, Grand Fleet, 1917 to 1918. In 1918 he was appointed Director of Training and Staff Duties at the Admiralty but in 1919 returned to sea in the ERIN. He was promoted to Rear-Admiral in 1920 and appointed first to revive the War Course and later to be President of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich. From 1923 to 1925 he was Commander-in-Chief, East Indies, and was promoted to Vice-Admiral in 1925. He set up and headed the Imperial Defence College between 1926 and 1931, being promoted to admiral in 1929. He retired in 1931 and in 1934 was appointed to the Vere Harmsworth Chair of Imperial and Naval History. He subsequently became Master of Downing College, Cambridge. Richmond's active interest in naval history, in which he came to specialize, began while he was still a serving officer. He also had strong views on contemporary naval policy which were not always acceptable to the Admiralty. He was the author of numerous books, lectures and articles on the Navy in history and in the present day. His most famous work is 'The Navy in the War of 1739 to 1748' (3 vols, Cambridge, 1920). See A.J. Marder, 'Portrait of an Admiral; the life and papers of Sir Herbert Richmond' (London, 1952) and D.M. Schurman, 'Education of a Navy' (London, 1965).
The Royal Indian Navy's foundation dates from a squadron of ships that was sent out by the East Indies Company to the Swally, Surat on 5 September 1612, under the command of Captain Thomas Bast, to protect British trading interests from the Portuguese. Until 1686, this force was known as the Honourable East Indies Company's Marine, with headquarters initially in Surat, and then Bombay, to where the Company formally transferring its interests in 1685. From 1686 the force became known as the Bombay Marine.
On 1 May 1830, the Bombay Marine became the Indian Navy by Government Order. The Indian Navy was abolished in 1863 and the naval protection of Indian Waters was taken over by the Admiralty. From 1863-1877 the Service was again known as the Bombay Marine, and acted in a non-combatant role, trooping and laying submarine telegraph cables from Bombay to Suez, and Karachi to Basra.
In 1877 the Service was reorganised by Admiral Bythesea, NC, and became Her Majesty's Indian Marine, divided into Eastern and Western Divisions, with dockyards at Calcutta and Bombay. Its duties included: the transportation of troops and stores; maintenance of Station ships and gunboats; building, repair and maintenance of all Indian Government vessels; and marine survey. The HMIM took part in the Abyssinian War of 1871, the Egyptian campaigns 1882 and 1885, the 3rd Burmese War 1885, and the Chin-hushai Expedition in Burma 1889.
These years as a trooping/ surveying organisation earned the Service Royal recognition and in 1892 Queen Victoria authorised the name to be changed to the Royal Indian Marine. The RIM participated in the Suakin Expedition 1896, an Expedition to Mkwelo in East Africa 1897, the Boer War, the Boxer Rebellion in 1900, and a Somaliland Expedition 1902-4. From 1909-14, the RIM was engaged in the suppression of gun-running in the Persian Gulf. After extensive service in World War I, the RIM returned to trooping/ surveying duties and the Service reached its lowest ebb in 1925 as a result of the Inchcape Report. A committee, formed under the Chair of Lord Rawlinson, C-in-C, India (Rawlinson Committee), put foward proposals for reconstituting the Service on a combatant footing, and in 1928 the White Ensign was hoisted onboard all RIM ships.
On 8 September 1934, the Indian Navy (Discipline) Bill received Governor-General's assent and HM King George V conferred the title of Royal Indian Navy on the Service. In February 1939, the Chatfield Committee made recommendations for the RIN taking over increased responsibility for the naval defence of India. Shortly before the outbreak of World War II, the RIN began to establish reserves - the Royal Indian Naval Reserve, recruited from serving officers in the Mercantile Marine; and the Royal Indian Naval Volunteer Reserve, recruited from the general public and given intensive training, mainly in Bombay. In addition to the ordinary Continuous Service Ratings, the RIN recruited Special Service Ratings who served for 5 years and then transferred to the Fleet Reserve for 10 years.
On 15 August 1947, the subdivision of India and Pakistan brought about division of the Navy into the Royal Pakistan and Royal Indian Navies. When India abrogated her Dominion status to become a Republic within the Commonwealth on 26 January 1950, the Navy became the Indian Navy.
By an order of 1845 the Board of Trade authorised a system of voluntary examination of competency for men intending to become masters and mates of foreign-going British merchant ships. The system was made compulsory for those seeking promotion by the Act of 1850 and extended to the examination of masters and mates of home trade vessels by the consolidating Act of 1854. Examinations were conducted in the major ports of the United Kingdom and successful candidates were granted Certificates of Competency. Masters and mates already serving were granted Certificates of Service. In 1862 Certificates of Competency were issued to engineers and those already serving were granted Certificates of Service. In 1881 Certificates of Competency were issued to officers with experience in steamships. In the same year Certificates of Competency were issued to skippers and mates of fishing boats and two years later Certificates of Service were also issued.
A group of philanthropists opened the Destitute Sailors' Asylum in 1827 in a warehouse in Dock Street, in Whitechapel to provide shelter and food for shipwrecked and destitute sailors. It was soon realized that sailors who were not destitute also needed somewhere to stay when they were ashore as an alternative to the notorious boarding houses of the time, and a fund was started to build a sailors' home upon the site of the old Brunswick Theatre in Well Street (now renamed Ensign Street). The Committee for the Home had already begun finding berths for sailors in direct competition with the crimps, before the Home was opened in 1835. Agents were then employed to meet ships on arrival and persuade the men to stay at the Home. Other facilities provided by the committee included a sailors' bank, a slop shop, a chapel and an evening school. Later a school of navigation was opened. The Asylum was transferred to a new building in Well Street in 1836, renamed the Destitute Sailors' Rest and placed under the management of the Home.
Over the years various extensions were added to the Home to provide further accommodation until the buildings covered the whole of the site between Well Street and Dock Street. In 1882 a branch of the Home and a Rest were opened at Gravesend and the Well Street Rest was closed. The Gravesend Home and Rest were handed over to the Government during the First World War and afterwards were sold to the Shipping Federation for their new sea school. It soon became evident that provision was still needed for the destitute and the Beresford Rest was built in Wellclose Square near the Well Street Home in 1923. In 1851 a Mercantile Marine Office was opened in the Home and in 1854 the Secretary of the Home was appointed as the Shipping Superintendent. The Mercantile Marine Office moved to Tower Hill in 1873, but in 1895 part of the Home was demolished and a new Mercantile Marine Office and examination rooms were built in Dock Street for leasing to the Board of Trade. In 1893 the London School of Nautical Cookery was opened by the Home in conjunction with the London County Council. When the Merchant Shipping Act of 1906 made it compulsory for all British foreign-going ships to carry a certificated cook, the School was enlarged to help meet the extra demand. The Shipwrecked Fishermen and Mariners' Society rented a room at the Home from 1895 until 1958. The object of the Destitute Sailors' Fund had been to provide practical help through the Rest. When bomb damage prevented this in 1941, the men were accommodated at the Home. In 1947 it was decided to use the Rest Fund for the purpose of assisting the inmates of the Home in temporary need of help. At the Home a rebuilding programme was carried out between 1951 and 1961. However, by 1974 the Home was in financial difficulties and had to close at the end of that year.
Sir Admiral Nowell Salmon joined the Navy as a Volunteer First Class in 1847 and served on THESIS at the South American Station during the period 1851-53. He was promoted to First Mate in 1854 and would go on to serve on JAMES WHATT in the Baltic, gaining the Baltic medal. In January 1856. He was promoted to Lieutenant and made commander in March 1856. During the Indian Mutiny of 1857 he went into action in the town of Lucknow, under Peel. Peel then called for volunteers to climb a tree next to the fortified temple in order to spot grenade throwers Sir Admiral Nowell Salmon volunteered and received the Victoria Cross. He then joined SHERMAN in May 1853. During the period 1859-61 He was in control of ICARUS, in the Mediterranean and the West Indies stations and in 1863 was promoted to Captain, commanding DEFENCE in the West Indies. In 1878 Salmon commanded SWIFTSHORE and by 1885 was promoted to Vice Admiral. He served as the Commander in Chief of the China Station 1888-1891 and became an Admiral on 10th September 1891. He then served as the Commander in Chief of Portsmouth 1894-7. In 1899 he was made Admiral of the Fleet. He retired in 1905, and lived in retirement at Curdridge Grange, Botley, Hampshire. Sir Admiral Nowell Salmon died on 14th February 1912. In 1866 Sir Admiral Nowell Salmon married Emily Augusta.
Edward Montagu, first earl of Sandwich, KG (1625-1672), army and naval officer and diplomat, was born at Barnwell, Northamptonshire, on 27 July 1625, the second but eldest surviving son of Sir Sydney Montagu (circa 1571-1644) of Hinchingbrooke, Huntingdonshire. Montagu was MP for Huntingdonshire and groom of the bedchamber to James I. In October 1655 he was appointed to the admiralty committee and later general at sea (2 January 1656). This was a position he shared with Robert Blake whose illness led to Cromwell's need for another trusted authority in the fleet, thus securing Montagu's elevation. The fleet under Montagu and Blake sailed on 15 March 1656 and took command in the first-rate NASEBY. Successfully reconnoitring Tangier, Tetuan and Gibraltar the NASEBY returned home and on 17 July Montagu commanded the fleet to support the attacks on Dunkirk and Mardyke. In 1659 Montagu took command of a fleet set for the Baltic, finding forces of Charles X of Sweden at Copenhagen and redirecting his efforts to persuade the Dutch to remain peaceful and not intervene. However Montagu withdrew upon hearing the fall of Richard Cromwell. He was appointed to the council of state on 23 February and made general at sea jointly with Monck on 2 March 1660; appointed to the admiralty commission on 3 March. Montagu's critical involvement in the landing of the royal party at Dover on 25 May 1660 led to his being made an earl, choosing Sandwich for his title on 12 July 1660, later a knight of the Garter. In the Second Anglo-Dutch War 1665-1667 he fought at the Battle of Lowestoft and later defeated at the Battle of Vagen. He was re-appointed in 1672 at the start of the Third Anglo-Dutch War he was appointed Vice- Admiral of the Blue serving in the ROYAL JAMES. He was killed at the Battle of Solebay, his ship destroyed by a group of fire ships. He was laid to rest at Westminster Abbey on 3 July 1672 after a state funeral beginning along the River Thames as part of decorated barges sailing from Deptford. Interestingly, Montagu was the first cousin of the father of Samuel Pepys.
John Montagu took his seat in the House of Lords in 1739 and in 1744 was appointed one of the Lords of the Admiralty. He represented the United Kingdom at the negotiations leading to the conclusion of peace in 1748. He then became First Lord of the Admiralty 1748 to 1761, for a brief period in 1763 and again from 1771 to 1782, after which he held no further public office. A selection of his papers were published by Sir George Barnes and Commander J.H. Owen, 'The private papers of John, Earl of Sandwich 1771-1782' (Navy Records Society, 1932-1938, 4 volumes). There is a biography by George Martelli, 'Jemmy Twitcher, a life of the Fourth Earl of Sandwich' (London, 1962).
In 1868 Scott began a venture, financed initially by his father, that resulted in the shipbuilding partnership of Messrs Scott and Linton of Dumbarton. The company failed the following year, Linton blaming the creditors for preventing the completion of ships under construction, which included the CUTTY SARK.