John de Mestre Hutchison

Admiral John de Mestre Hutchison, C.M.G., C.V.O., Royal Navy, Retired (4 September, 1864 – 9 October, 1932) was an officer of the Royal Navy.

Life & Career

John de Mestre Hutchison was born in Adelaide, Australia, on 4 September, 1862, the son of Commander (later Captain) John Hutchison, R.N. He came thirtieth in order of merit out of forty-two candidates who passed the examination for naval cadetships and entered the training ship Britannia at Dartmouth as a Naval Cadet on 15 January, 1876. On passing out from the training ship in December, 1877, he gained three months' time for conduct out of a possible three and none for study out of a possible nine, and therefore had to wait nine months before being rated Midshipman. His first ship was the ironclad Agincourt at the Dardanelles, which he joined via the trooper Simoom.

Hutchison was rated Midshipman on 20 September, 1878, and remained in the Agincourt until appointed to the frigate Inconstant on 24 August, 1880. For serving in her during the Egyptian War he received the Egyptian Medal. He provisionally passed his examination in Seamanship in September, 1882, and attained a 2nd class certificate on 20 October, receiving 850 marks out of a possible 1,000. He was promoted Acting Sub-Lieutenant from that date. He reported to the Royal Naval College, Greenwich, for six months of study and in May,1883, received a 3rd class certificate. He then proceeded to H.M.S. Vernon at Portsmouth for the torpedo course, obtaining a 2nd class certificate in June, and on to Excellent for the gunnery course, where he again obtained a 2nd class in September. In December he was rejected in the Pilotage examination at the Admiralty and lost one month's seniority. In February, 1884, he finally attained a 2nd class.

On 29 February 1884 he returned to sea and was appointed to the troop ship Assistance until appointed to the corvette Canada on the North America and West Indies Station on 10 September. Hutchison was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant on 30 September, 1885.

As a Lieutenant, Hutchison spent four years in the corvette Caroline in the Pacific, and then spent the latter half of 1890 in the armoured cruiser Immortalité in the Channel Squadron. He was in the third class protected cruiser H.M.S. Blanche on the East Indies Station from December 1890 until she was paid off on 27 April, 1894. He was mentioned by Captain Campbell for his services on 5 March, 1893 in placing H.M. Sultan Hamid bin Thwain [sic - "Thuwaini"] on the throne in Zanzibar. In September, he was specially mentioned by Blanche's Captain Lindley for his "able command of skirmishes at Pumwani on [the] Witu Expedition."

Hutchison next spent three years in the armoured cruiser H.M.S. Northampton until he was promoted to the rank of Commander on 22 June, 1897.

Captain

On 1 January, 1903 he was promoted to the rank of Captain. He took gunnery and torpedo courses at Portsmouth from March to May, served on a committee on the re-organisation of the naval barracks from May to September, and attended the war course at the Royal Naval College, Greenwich, from September to February, 1904. In April he was appointed to Glory, flagship on the China Station, for special service at the legation in Tokyo whilst the Russo-Japanese War was raging. He left Liverpool on 5 May and landed at Rimouski in Canada on 17 May after being delayed by ice in the St. Lawrence for three days. After crossing the country he left Vancouver on 24 May and arrived in Yokohama on 7 June. At this time Captain William C. Pakenham was afloat with the Japanese fleet in the Asahi and Commander Thomas Jackson was in Tokyo. Soon after arriving Hutchison approached the Minister, Sir Claude MacDonald, and suggested that it was "useless" for two officers to remain ashore and asked that MacDonald get him permission to go afloat. The Minister had to, by his own account, ask the Vice Minister of Marine, Rear-Admiral Saitō, Minister of Marine Admiral Yamamoto, Vice-Chief of the General Staff Admiral Ijūin, and Chief of the Naval General Staff Admiral Itō. Permission was eventually granted and Hutchison departed for the Japanese fleet on 14 July.

Pakenham much resented Hutchison's presence, writing to MacDonald on 1 September:

Tho' I enjoyed H's company, I much regretted his presence in the same squadron as myself, as, however harmoniously we may work together, we must cut one anothers [sic] throats, and, from an unselfish point of view[,] worst of all, the very interesting battle fought by Kamimura has had to go unreported.

The battle referred to was the Battle off Ulsan on 14 August. It has been suggested that Pakenham's opinions on Hutchison elsewhere are "clearly driven by a certain sense of personal rivalry", The reason went beyond simple rivalry as Pakenham made abundantly clear to Captain Stuart Nicholson, amongst others, a few months later:

I felt the sending of an officer just senior to me as almost the last insult it was possible to put on a military officer on active service; but as it was war-time I submitted without expostulation, and as no further indication was given in the succeeding months that this had been done as a mark of disapprobriation, the matter has ceased to seem important: but of course at the time, I had many unpleasant queries to answer, as the Japanese thoroughly understand the signification of left-handed compliments of this kind. Having an independent junior present in the same fleet has its drawbacks, but it is so much to be preferred to having a senior, that I resign myself to the sniggles of the Japanese when they ask an appreciation of our organisation.

Pakenham was six months' junior to Hutchison as a Captain. He wasn't being quite honest about "submitting without expostulation". Hutchison was driven to submit a request for relief on 12 September, and Pakenham wrote extraordinary letters to both him and MacDonald claiming that his own position was being undermined in front of the Japanese. To MacDonald he wrote "Captain Hutchison's despatch to this fleet was a reflection on me of a kind well understood in military services", and to Hutchison he wrote, "as you know, I have have felt your coming here as an injury". At least he would admit to Nicholson "nothing but the fact that Hutchison and Jackson are such good fellows has made the position supportable".

He arrived home on 16 September, 1905, and went on 18 days' foreign service leave. On 12 October he assumed command of the H.M.S. Juno. He was appointed an Ordinary Member of the Third Class, or Companion, in the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George (C.M.G.) on 9 November.

He was appointed in command of H.M.S. Exmouth in March of 1909, and would remain there for thirteen months.

On the occasion of the visit of the King to Malta Hutchison was appointed a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (C.V.O.) on 24 April, 1909.

Hutchison was appointed a Naval Aide-de-Camp to King George V on 19 September, 1911, vice Heath.

Flag Rank

Hutchison was promoted to the rank of Rear-Admiral on 10 May, 1913, vice Bethell.

He was placed on the Retired List at his own request on 9 May, 1916.

Hutchison was advanced to the rank of Vice-Admiral on the Retired List on 30 January, 1918. On 1 April Hutchison was appointed temporary Colonel in the Royal Air Force and granted the honorary rank of Lieutenant-General. He was advanced to the rank of Admiral on the Retired List on 5 July, 1921.

Bibliography

• "Admiral Hutchison" (Obituaries). The Times. Monday, 10 October, 1932. Issue 46260, col C, p. 19.
• Dunley, Richard. "'The warrior has always shewed himself greater than his weapons': the Royal Navy's interpretation of the Russo-Japanese War 1904–5", War & Society, 34:4, 248-262, DOI: 10.1080/07292473.2015.1128655

Papers

• Papers in the possession of the National Museum of the Royal Navy, Portsmouth.

Service Records

• The National Archives. ADM 196/88.
• The National Archives. ADM 196/42.
• The National Archives. ADM 196/20.

Naval Appointments
Preceded by John G. Hewitt	Captain of H.M.S. Juno 10 Oct, 1905 – 8 May, 1907	Succeeded by Richard F. Phillimore
Preceded by Arthur T. Stuart	Captain of H.M.S. Devonshire 8 May, 1907 – 19 Mar, 1909	Succeeded by Cuthbert G. Chapman
Preceded by John S. Luard	Chief of Staff, Mediterranean Station Mar, 1909 – 30 Apr, 1910	Succeeded by Bernard Currey
Preceded by John S. Luard	Captain of H.M.S. Exmouth 16 Mar, 1909 – 30 Apr, 1910	Succeeded by Bernard Currey
Preceded by E. Hyde Parker	Flag Captain, Portsmouth Station 30 Apr, 1910 – 28 Mar, 1911	Succeeded by Edwyn S. Alexander-Sinclair
Preceded by Rosslyn E. Wemyss	Commodore-in-Command, Royal Naval Barracks, Devonport 25 Apr, 1911 – 6 Jun, 1913	Succeeded by Arthur D. Ricardo as Rear-Admiral in Command, Royal Naval Barracks, Devonport
Preceded by Thomas D. L. Sheppard as Commodore-in-Command, Royal Naval Barracks, Devonport	Rear-Admiral Commanding, Royal Naval Barracks, Devonport 21 Dec, 1914 – 21 Dec, 1916	Succeeded by Charles F. Corbett as Commodore-in-Command, Royal Naval Barracks, Devonport
Preceded by ?	In Command, Tregantle and Withnoe R.N.A.S. Depot 24 Sep, 1917 – 1 Apr, 1918	Succeeded by Base Closed