First Lord of the Admiralty


The First Lord of the Admiralty, or formally the Office of the First Lord of the Admiralty, was the political head of the Royal Navy who was the government's senior adviser on all naval affairs and responsible for the direction and control of Admiralty as well as general administration of the Naval Service of the United Kingdom, that encompassed the Royal Navy, the Royal Marines and other services. It was one of the earliest known permanent government posts. Apart from being the political head of the Royal Navy the post holder simultaneously held the title of the President of the Board of Commissioners for Exercising the Office of Lord High Admiral. The office of First Lord of the Admiralty existed from 1628 until it was abolished when the Admiralty, Air Ministry, Ministry of Defence and War Office were all merged to form the new Ministry of Defence in 1964.

History

In 1628, during the reign of, the Duke of Buckingham, Lord High Admiral of England, was assassinated and the office was placed in commission, under the control of a Board of Commissioners.
The first such First Lord of the Admiralty was Richard Weston, 1st Earl of Portland, who was appointed in 1628. The First Lord was not always a permanent member of the board until the Admiralty Department was established as an official government department in 1709 with the First Lord as its head; it replaced the earlier Office of the Admiralty and Marine Affairs. During most of the 17th century and the early 18th century, it was not invariable for the Admiralty to be in commission, so there are gaps in the list of First Lords, and a small number of First Lords were for a time Lord High Admiral.
After the Revolution, in 1690, a declaratory Act was passed, during the reign of William and Mary. Parliament passed the Admiralty Act, vesting in the Commissioners the powers formerly held by the Lord High Admiral of England. and at this point became a permanent Cabinet position.
The Admiralty Commission was dissolved in 1701, but was reconstituted in 1709 on the death of Prince George of Denmark, who had been appointed Lord High Admiral. The office has been held in commission from that time onwards, however, except for a short period when the Duke of Clarence was Lord High Admiral. The Board of the Admiralty comprised a number of “Lords Commissioners” headed by a First Lord.
From the early 1800s the post was always held by a civilian. In 1832 First Lord Sir James Graham instituted reforms and amalgamated the Board of Admiralty and the Navy Board. By the provisions of the Admiralty Act of 1832, two Lords in committee could legalize any action of the Board.
In 1868 Prime Minister, William Gladstone appointed Hugh Childers First Lord, who would introduce a new system at the Admiralty. However these changes restricted communication between the board members who were affected by these new regulations, and the sittings of the Board were discontinued altogether. This situation described was further exacerbated by the disaster of in 1870, a poorly-designed new vessel for the navy.
The responsibility and powers of the First Lord of the Admiralty were laid down by an Order in Council dated 14 January 1869, and a later Order made the First Lord responsible to the Sovereign and to Parliament for all the business of the Admiralty. However, by describing the Lords of the Admiralty as the "assistants" of the First Lord, and by specifically defining their duties, this had, in fact, partially disabled the collective power of the Board.
In 1931, for the first time since 1709, the First Lord was not a member of the cabinet.
In 1946, the three posts of Secretary of State for War, First Lord of the Admiralty, and Secretary of State for Air became formally subordinated to that of Minister of Defence, which had itself been created in 1940 for the co-ordination of defence and security issues.
In 1964, the office of First Lord of the Admiralty was abolished, the last holder being the second Earl Jellicoe, the son of Admiral of the Fleet Earl Jellicoe, and the functions of the Sea Lords were then transferred to the Admiralty Board, which forms part of the tri-service Defence Council of the United Kingdom.

Responsibilities and duties

Between 1800 and 1912 included:
NoResponsibility
1Appointments to Commands..
2Appointment of Chaplains and Naval Instructors.
3Appointments of Flag Officers, Captains, Officers Commanding Ships, Commanders to Coast Guard, Inspectors and Deputy Inspectors of Hospitals and holding Civil Appointments.
4Appointment of Flag Officers and Officers in Command, including Engineer Rear-Admirals, Surgeons-General, and Staff Appointments of Royal Marines.
5Appointments and Promotions—Private Office.
6Board Questions..
7Civil Appointments.
8Civil Appointments and Promotions, except as provided under Controller and Civil Lord.
9Civil Appointments and Promotions.
10Foreign Navies and Intelligence.
11General Direction and Supervision.
12General Direction and Supervision of all business relating to the Navy. Political and Board Questions..
13Harbours of Refuge.
14Honours and Distinctions.
15Mersey Conservancy.
16Naval Cadetships and Nominations to Assistant Clerkships, R.N..
17Navy Estimates and Financial Questions.
18New Works.
19Political Questions.
20Promotions.
21Promotions and Removals from the Service of Naval and Marine Officers. Honours and Rewards.
23Railways.
24Royal Yachts, including Appointment of all Officers.
25Royal yachts, and Admiralty Yacht, including Appointment of all Officers.
26Slave Trade.

List of First Lords of the Admiralty

First Lords of the Admiralty of England (1628–1701)

First Lords of the Admiralty of Great Britain (1709–1801)

First Lords of the Admiralty of the United Kingdom (1801–1964)

From 1 April 1964 Elizabeth II assumed the title of Lord High Admiral. Ministerial responsibility for the Royal Navy was transferred to the newly created Secretary of State for Defence.
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Boards, departments and offices under the First Lord

The "Radical" First Lord, and a major character, in Gilbert and Sullivan's comic opera H.M.S. Pinafore, is Sir Joseph Henry Porter, KCB. W. S. Gilbert wrote to Arthur Sullivan he did not intend to portray the real-life then First Lord, the bookseller and newsagent W. H. Smith, a Conservative, although some of the public, including Prime Minister Disraeli, identified Porter with him. The counterparts shared a known lack of naval background. It has been suggested the character was drawn on Smith's actual "Radical" predecessor of 1868–71, Hugh Childers.

Attribution

This article contains some text from: Vesey, Richard Sir, Admiral,, Naval Administration: The Constitution, Character, and Functions of the Board of Admiralty, and of the Civil Departments it Directs, George Bell and Sons, London. Now in the public domain.