Imperial Navy League

The Imperial Navy League was a British organisation set to promote support for the Royal Navy in the very late 19th Century and onwards. As the largest naval interest group it wielded considerable power both in the public eye and on government policy, especially as naval armament rose to a crescendo in the early 20th Century.

History

Set up in 1894, the aims of the League were;

• to promote an awareness in the British public on the dependency of the country on the sea and that the only safeguard was to have a powerful navy.
• to convince the public of the justification for adequate expenditure and maintenance of the navy to enable them to fulfil their rôle.
• that naval issues required continuity and should not be interfered with through differing party politic.
• education of the public and young people about the need of a strong navy through publications and lectures.

It was governed by an "Executive Committee", with a President presiding, a Chairman and a Secretary and members elected to the committee. The Committee would meet once a year as the "Grand Council of the Navy League", meeting time to time as events dictated. The League represented the many constitutent braches of the League which were set up all over the country in support of the Royal Navy.