Henry Bradwardine Jackson

Admiral of the Fleet Sir Henry B. Jackson.

Admiral of the Fleet SIR Henry Bradwardine Jackson, G.C.B., K.C.V.O., F.R.S., Royal Navy (21 January, 1855 – 14 December, 1929) was an officer of the Royal Navy and a pioneer in Wireless Telegraphy.

Early Life & Career

Jackson joined H.M.S. Britannia on 23 January, 1869. He was rated Midshipman on 21 April, 1870 and on 21 July joined the corvette Cadmus. On 27 November, 1874 he was appointed to the Excellent for study, and on 30 October, 1875 he joined the brig Liberty.

Jackson was promoted to the rank of Commander on 1 January, 1890. On 1 July he was appointed to Vernon for Torpedo Duties, and for temporary service at Fiume, Austria-Hungary, the location of the Whitehead torpedo factory. On 6 September, 1890, he was appointed to the battleship Edinburgh in the Mediterranean, where he remained until she paid off on 23 January, 1894. Captain John W. Brackenbury wrote of him, "V.G.I. [Very Good Indeed] Brilliant officer of great zeal & ability, most worthy of promotion." On 5 February he was reappointed to the Vernon for temporary service on the Committee on Torpedo Designs.

Captain

On 29 January, 1895, Jackson was appointed to H.M.S. Defiance in command. On 30 June, 1896, he was promoted to the rank of Captain, and reappointed to Defiance so as to complete three years' service. In July, 1897 he was given temporary command of the Plymouth flotilla of torpedo boat destroyers for a three day programme of exercises. He was superseded on 1 November, 1897 and appointed Naval Attaché to "the Embassies & Legations in [the] Maritime Powers [of Europe] and America," in succession to Captain Lewis E. Wintz. His service as Naval Attaché ended on 10 July.

He was appointed to the Juno for manœuvres on 11 July, 1899, and on 23 August went on Half Pay, before being appointed to the Vernon on 20 October to carry out courses and trials of the "Marconi Telegraphic System." The Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth was told that:

This appointment has been made with a view to Captain Jackson imparting to the Officers of the 'Vernon' the results of the experience gained by him during several years of experiments with this system of telegraphy, and also, for the purposes of working out the many small details required for ship fittings of the Marconi apparatus, and establishing a course of instruction for the operators who will be required for working the system.

On 9 December, 1899 Jackson was appointed to H.M.S. Vulcan, for command of the Mediterranean Station torpedo boats. After a September, 1900 inspection, the Commander-in-Chief, Vice-Admiral Sir John A. Fisher wrote, "I cannot speak too highly of this officer's ability & his usefulness in the exercises of the fleet & the excellent use he makes of the resources of the Vulcan." In January, 1901, he was called back temporarily to Britain "to consult with Vernon as to Wireless Telegraph apparatus." He was honoured with election as a Fellow of the Royal Society on 5 August. In January, 1902, Admiral Fisher wrote of Jackson:

I cannot speak too highly of this officer. He is a thorough Master of every branch of his profession & equally excels as a practical as well as a scientific officer. It is to be regretted that seniority alone can place him on the Flag List.

On 21 January, 1902, he was appointed to President to serve as Chairman of the Committee on Electrical Equipment, until 9 February. He was appointed to the President on 10 February, 1902, as Assistant Director of Torpedoes at the Admiralty. On 6 April, 1903 he took command of the battleship Cæsar, which he paid off on 6 October. He then took command of the new battleship Duncan, which command he retained until 1904. So appointed on 15 February 1904, on 16 September he assumed command of Vernon, where he remained only for a few months, having been selected for the position of Third Sea Lord and Controller of the Navy. He was appointed to the Admiralty on 24 December for duty with the Controller, and on 5 January, 1905 was appointed a member of the Committee on Designs. He was appointed Controller on 7 February.

Flag Rank

Jackson was promoted to the rank of Rear-Admiral on 18 October, 1906, vice Durnford. On 9 November he was gazetted a Knight Commander in the Royal Victorian Order (K.C.V.O.), and knighted by the King in an investiture at Buckingham Palace on 18 December. On 16 October, 1908, he was appointed Rear-Admiral Commanding the Third Cruiser Squadron in the Mediterranean. In 1909 the squadron was renamed the Sixth Cruiser Squadron, and he gave up command on 10 October, 1910, arriving back in Britain on the 15th. In November he succeeded Sir Douglas A. Gamble as Admiralty Representative at the International Conference on Aerial Navigation held in Paris.

On 24 February he was appointed to H.M.S. Terpsichore for command of the Royal Naval War College, Portsmouth. On 15 March he was promoted to the rank of Vice-Admiral, vice Foote. On 2 July, 1912, he went afloat with the staff of the War College, flying his flag in the Illustrious as Vice-Admiral Commanding the Seventh Battle Squadron during the annual manœuvres. He was superseded at the War College on 28 January, 1913, having been appointed Chief of the Admiralty War Staff on 6 January.

Onset of war

Apparently Jackson was opposed to the continuing escalation of the size of capital ships, telling Admiral Sir George F. King-Hall at the beginning of 1914 that, "He agreed with me that Battleships were getting too big and he had set his face against the 15" guns most determinedly." He was promoted to the rank of Admiral on 10 February, 1914, vice King-Hall. In July, 1914 it was announced that Jackson would succeed Admiral Sir Berkeley Milne as Commander-in-Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet on 10 December. However, when war broke out he was retained for special service at the Admiralty. He was president of the subcommittee of the Committee of Imperial Defence dealing with overseas attack and largely concerned with planning attacks on the German colonies. In October, 1914, the First Sea Lord Prince Louis of Battenberg had been forced to resign following the agitation over his German birth. At an audience on 27 October, King George V mentioned to Churchill Jackson's name as a replacement, but the First Lord replied that "while admitting", in the words of Lord Stamfordham, "his scientific and intellectual capacity [Churchill] did not think he would do." Halpern's explanation that "Jackson no doubt appeared too bland and mild" is inadequate. Goldrick's opinion that Jackson "was colorless and lacked the necessary energy to get the job done" is equally insipid. It is clear that at the time neither Churchill or Asquith would accept anyone other than Fisher as Battenberg's replacement.

First Sea Lord

Churchill had written to Asquith on 21 May, "I have tried my hand but without success to persuade Sir Arthur Wilson to hold himself at Mr. Balfour's disposition. In these circumstances I wd advise Sir Henry Jackson." Jackson officially became First Sea Lord on 27 May. There was been much adverse comment on the appointment of Jackson. One of the more sympathetic historians, Mackay, having described Jackson as "scientific, dismal, desk-bound", then implies that there was no "imposing alternative", and claims that "talent was scarce at the top." The biographer of Captain (later Admiral of the Fleet Sir) Dudley Pound, writes that Jackson was "clever but colourless."

Balfour's Private Secretary, Maurice Bonham Carter, wrote of Jackson on 20 May, "he has been in the machine since the beginning of the war … his paper work is admirable and he would have the confidence of the Admiralty and I think of the Fleet."

Later Years & Reputation

Jackson left the Admiralty to become President of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich where he remained until July, 1919. On 2 April, 1917 he succeeded Sir George Callaghan as First and Principal Naval Aide-de-Camp to the King. In 1919 he was created a G.C.B. On 31 July, 1919, he was promoted Admiral of the Fleet in place of Sir William May, placed on the Retired List.

In 1920 the Lord President of the Council appointed Jackson as chairman of the Radio Research Board of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research. On 31 July, 1924, he was placed on the Retired List. He remained active with scientific societies such as the Institution of Electrical Engineers. He was also a vice-president of the Institution of Naval Architects and vice-president of the Seamen's Hospital Society. He was awarded honorary degrees: D.S.C.s from Oxford and Leeds and an L.L.D. from Cambridge. He was also awarded Spanish, Russian, Japanese, and French decorations.

Jackson died of anaemia and chronic nephritis aged seventy-five on 14 December, 1929 at his home, Salterns, on Hayling Island, Hampshire. Lady Jackson received the following message from the King:

I learn with sincere regret of the death of Sir Henry Jackson and assure you of my sympathy in your sad loss. Sir Henry will be remembered not only for his distinguished service in the Navy, but also for his devotion to the cause of science and research as a member of the Royal Society.

His funeral took place at Hayling Island Parish Church on 17 December.

Bibliography

• "Admiral of the Fleet Sir H. B. Jackson" (Obituaries). The Times. Monday, 16 December, 1929. Issue 45387, col A, pg. 19.
• Template:BibGoldrickKing'sShips
• Lambert, Andrew (2010). "The Naval War Course, Some Principles of Naval Warfare and the Origins of 'The British Way in Warfare'". in Neilson, Keith; Kennedy, Greg. The British Way in Warfare: Power and the International System, 1856-1956. Farnham: Ashgate Publishing Limited. ISBN 9780754665939.
• Murfett, Malcolm H. (1995). Murfett, Malcolm H.. ed. The First Sea Lords: From Fisher to Mountbatten. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers. ISBN 0-275-94231-7.

Papers

• Papers in the possession of the National Maritime Museum. For a comprehensive list, see Jackson Papers at the National Maritime Museum.
• Papers in the possession of the Royal Naval Museum, Portsmouth. MSS/255.

Service Records

• The National Archives. ADM 196/38.
• The National Archives. ADM 196/19.

Naval Offices
Preceded by George Le C. Egerton	Assistant Director of Torpedoes 1902 – 1903	Succeeded by The Hon. Alexander E. Bethell
Preceded by Sir William H. May	Third Sea Lord and Controller 1905 – 1908	Succeeded by Sir John R. Jellicoe
Preceded by Lewis Bayly	President of the Royal Naval War College 1911 – 1913	Succeeded by The Hon. Sir Alexander E. Bethell
Preceded by Ernest C. T. Troubridge	Chief of the Admiralty War Staff 1913 – 1914	Succeeded by Sir F. C. Doveton Sturdee
Preceded by The Lord Fisher	First Sea Lord 1915 – 1916	Succeeded by Sir John R. Jellicoe
Preceded by Position Vacant	President of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich 1916 – 1919	Succeeded by Sir William C. Pakenham
Preceded by Sir George A. Callaghan	First and Principal Naval Aide-de-Camp 1917 – 1919	Succeeded by The Hon. Sir Stanley C. J. Colville