Henry Bradwardine 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

The eldest son of Henry Jackson, a farmer in nearby Cudworth, and his wife, Jane, the daughter of Charles Tee of Barnsley, Jackson was born on 21 January, 1855, and was educated at Chester and at Stubbington House, Fareham, entered the navy in December 1868, and was promoted Sub-Lieutenant in 1874 and Lieutenant in 1877. He first specialized in navigation and served as junior lieutenant in the iron screw corvette Active on the Cape and west Africa station where he took part in the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879. He joined the Vernon, the torpedo school at Portsmouth, in September, 1881 and qualified as a torpedo lieutenant. He served in the Vernon for three and a half years, part of the time in command of the school's tender, the torpedo vessel Vesuvius. His interest in the scientific aspects of his profession were evident and in 1883 he was elected an associate of the Society of Telegraph Engineers, later the Institution of Electrical Engineers. He was promoted Commander in January 1890 and that year married Alice Mary Florence, the eldest daughter of Samuel Hawksley Burbury, F.R.S., a barrister and mathematician; they had no children.

Telegraphy

Jackson became interested in the work of Heinrich Hertz who had demonstrated the existence of electromagnetic waves. Jackson believed these "Hertzian waves" might have a naval application, notably as a solution to the problem of identifying torpedo boats and distinguishing friend from foe, particularly at night. He made suggestions along these lines in 1891. In January, 1895 he was appointed to command the Defiance, the hulk used as a torpedo school at Devonport. There in December he began the experiments that eventually led to the transmission and reception of wireless signals in Morse code in August 1896. The first transmission in the after cabin of the Defiance was apparently over only a few yards but the range was soon increased to 25 and then 50 yards. In late summer 1896 the War Office was interested in the wireless experiments and device offered by Guglielmo Marconi. Jackson, who had been promoted Captain on 30 June, served as the Admiralty's representative at a conference held at the War Office to discuss the subject and also attended the demonstrations of Marconi's device on Salisbury Plain in 1896 and 1897. Jackson and Marconi became friends although they had developed rival systems and the friendship was complicated in the next few years by British official reluctance, eventually overcome, to pay Marconi an annual royalty of £100 for each of his devices installed in a warship. Jackson made no secret of his belief that Marconi's device was superior to his own but continued his experiments and in May, 1897 in a demonstration before the Commander-in-Chief, Devonport, succeeded in transmitting a signal from the Defiance's tender Scourge to the Defiance at ranges of up to 2 miles. Within a few months he had reached ranges of 6,000 yards and established a wireless link between the Defiance and Admiralty House at Plymouth.

Naval career from 1897

Jackson's work with wireless was interrupted when he was appointed naval attaché in Paris in November, 1897. It was an interesting appointment for in 1898 France came close to war with Great Britain over Fashoda. He was particularly charged with reporting on French submarine construction. The Admiralty planned extensive experimentation with wireless at sea in the summer manœuvres of 1899 and he was given command of the cruiser Juno, equipped with wireless, in order to report on the trials. The success of the latter led to Jackson's recommendation and the Admiralty's decision to provide warships with wireless sets. In October, 1899 Jackson was appointed to the Vernon in order to give the officers of the torpedo school the benefits of his experience with wireless, work out details for fitting wireless to ships, and establish a course to instruct operators. He emphasized the necessity of standardizing equipment to facilitate training of operators and minimize the number of spare parts to be provided. Jackson did not remain in the Vernon long, however, for in December, 1899, he was appointed to command the torpedo boat carrier and depot ship Vulcan in the Mediterranean. The Vulcan received one of the first three sets introduced into the Mediterranean Fleet, then commanded by Admiral Sir John Fisher, for training. Fisher developed a high regard for Jackson, praising him in a private letter to the First Lord in February, 1902. In 1904 Fisher numbered Jackson among the "seven brains", the select group (including Jellicoe and Bacon) that he intended to gather around him when he became First Sea Lord. Jackson's work also earned him recognition by scientists; in May 1901 he was elected fellow of the Royal Society and in 1902 published a paper in its Proceedings, "On some phenomena affecting the transmission of electric waves over the surface of sea and earth."

In February, 1902 Jackson was appointed Assistant Director of Torpedoes at the Admiralty and in February, 1905 he became Third Sea Lord and Controller of the Navy. He was chairman of the electrical committee on equipment of warships from 1902 to 1903. As one of Fisher's ‘seven brains’ he was a member of the Committee on Design responsible for the introduction of the Dreadnought- and the Invincible Class battle cruisers. He was also an Aide-de-Camp to Edward VII from September, 1905 to October, 1906 and was promoted Rear-Admiral in November, 1906 and created K.C.V.O. He left the Admiralty to command the 3rd (subsequently the 6th) Cruiser Squadron in the Mediterranean from October, 1908 to October, 1910 and was created a K.C.B. in June, 1910. He was also the Admiralty representative at the international conference on aerial navigation in Paris, October–December, 1910. From February, 1911 to February, 1913 he commanded the Royal Naval College at Portsmouth; during this period he was promoted Vice-Admiral (15 March, 1911) and temporarily commanded the old reserve ships in the Seventh Battle Squadron during the naval manœuvres of July, 1912.

Onset of war

This was his last sea-going command for in February, 1913 he was appointed chief of the Admiralty War Staff. As chief of staff Jackson was critical of First Lord Churchill's proposal in the event of war with Germany to revert to a more offensive strategy involving a close blockade of the German coast with the whole British flotilla fleet. Jackson argued that the British would be attacking the Germans in their home waters where they could easily concentrate while the British could employ only a limited number of large modern destroyers, which could stay out for only three days at a time. He was promoted Admiral on 10 February, 1914 and in August was nominated commander-in-chief in the Mediterranean. 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, after the First Sea Lord Prince Louis of Battenberg had been forced to resign following the agitation over his German birth, the King suggested Jackson as a possible replacement. Churchill did not accept; Jackson no doubt appeared too bland and mild. Churchill chose to recall Fisher.

The Dardanelles Expedition

At the beginning of 1915 Jackson was involved with planning for the Dardanelles expedition where he believed a methodical, although possibly protracted, naval bombardment would permit ships alone to force the straits. By mid-February he had revised his opinion and argued that ships alone would not suffice and a strong military force was necessary to assist in the operations. When the purely naval attack failed on 18 March he was one of those opposing a second naval attack without military support. The stalemate at the Dardanelles after the April landing and the clash between Churchill and Fisher over sending additional naval reinforcements to the Dardanelles led to Fisher's resignation and Churchill's dismissal. In May Balfour became the new First Lord and Jackson First Sea Lord. Jackson appeared to be everyone's second choice and received the job only after Admiral A. K. Wilson declined. He was in some ways an odd selection for he had never commanded a fleet nor seen action at sea; and had been primarily involved in the scientific, technical, and administrative side of the navy. The Balfour–Jackson administration was in sharp contrast to the dynamic though volatile Churchill–Fisher combination. Jackson wrote to his predecessor Fisher, commenting that there was ‘no senior officer who desired the appointment less than I’ (Marder, Fear God, 3.253), and acknowledging he had a very difficult job before him for which he was not fully qualified. On the other hand Jackson was generally acknowledged as highly intelligent, sound, and level-headed. Unfortunately he was also regarded as being in somewhat questionable health and had acquired a reputation for irritability. Barely a month after his appointment Jellicoe wrote to Beatty: ‘I fear Jackson will only get irritated at all this bombardment of letters. I know him so well and told Balfour of this trait in his character’ (Patterson, 1.170). Jackson complained that the mass of paperwork was ‘overwhelming’ and gave him no time for thought. To a certain extent he had himself to blame, for contemporaries alleged that he habitually concerned himself with trivial matters.

The Dardanelles expedition was a particularly pressing problem after Bulgaria entered the war and Serbia was overrun by an overwhelming German, Austrian, and Bulgarian force. An Anglo-French expedition to Salonika proved too little and too late. The loss of Serbia meant that direct rail communications between Germany and Constantinople would soon be supplying ammunition to the Turks. The allied expedition would also face the problem of supply of the army over open beaches at a time of winter gales. It became a problem of ‘Get on or get out’. Jackson was at first inclined to favour another naval attempt and wrote to the naval commander, Admiral de Robeck, on 9 October, 1915, ‘Personally, I say go for Constantinople tooth and nail, without further procrastination or delay’ (Halpern, 5.476). But de Robeck was opposed and Jackson's doubts grew. Subsequently Jackson would consent to a renewed naval attack only if it was made in conjunction with an offensive by the army. This possibility was doomed when Kitchener returned from a tour of inspection at the Dardanelles and recommended evacuation.

Reputation for Indecision

Unfortunately Jackson appeared indecisive, particularly to those who favoured a renewed naval attack. Jackson, for his part, resented the naval commitments necessitated by the new Salonika expedition and found fault with his French and Italian allies in the Mediterranean. By 1916 the shortage of destroyers was evident; there were demands for them everywhere in the face of the submarine danger. Jackson, while admitting the shortage, claimed they were building all they could as rapidly as possible, and grew testy with Jellicoe when the latter complained of the Grand Fleet's shortages. The Balfour–Jackson administration in 1916 gave the impression of apathy and lassitude. It was a combination Admiral Bacon later termed "the philosopher wedded to the scientist" (R. H. Bacon, The Life of Lord Fisher of Kilverstone, 1, 1929, xiii). The vigour associated with Churchill and Fisher was gone. There were no real disasters attributable to Jackson but the indecisive Battle of Jutland meant the Admiralty could not bask in the glory of a great victory. There were more missed opportunities when the High Sea Fleet sortied on 19 August, and in the autumn the Admiralty had the appearance of failing to counter two raids by German destroyers into the channel. Critics of the Admiralty claimed that the Balfour–Jackson regime seemed more to be reacting to events and absorbing blows than initiating them. There was a widespread feeling that an offensive spirit was lacking at the Admiralty and some critics pointed out that the board in general lacked experience of command in battle. Jackson was vulnerable to these charges and despite his merits was not an inspiring wartime leader. The feeling of drift gave way to one of impending crisis as losses to submarines mounted and Jackson was openly pessimistic about defeating them. Asquith grew anxious to replace Jackson, although he was inclined to retain Balfour. By December 1916 Jackson himself was ready to go and indicated to Beatty that it was time a more energetic and experienced Admiral replaced him as he had been away from the sea too long for someone who was responsible for naval operations. He was therefore ready to depart when Jellicoe replaced him as First Sea Lord on 4 December. A few days later the cabinet crisis resulted in a new coalition government with Lloyd George as prime minister, and on 11 December Sir Edward Carson replaced Balfour as First Lord.

Later Years and Reputation

A willing and obviously relieved Jackson left the Admiralty to become admiral-President of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich where he remained until July, 1919. From April, 1917 to July, 1919 he was first and principal naval Aide-de-Camp to George V and 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 appointed chairman of the Radio Research Board. Jackson retired from the navy in 1924 but 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 on 14 December, 1929 at his home, Salterns, on Hayling Island, Hampshire, his wife surviving him. He was buried on 17 December in Hayling Island parish churchyard.

Bibliography

• "Admiral of the Fleet Sir H. B. Jackson" (Obituaries). The Times. Monday, 16 December, 1929. Issue 45387, col A, pg. 19.
• 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

• Naval Library M3, Ministry of Defence Whitehall Library, London.

Service Records

• ADM 196/19
• ADM 196/38

Naval Office
Preceded by Ernest Troubridge	Chief of the Admiralty War Staff 1913 – 1914	Succeeded by Sir Doveton Sturdee
Preceded by The Lord Fisher	First Sea Lord 1915 – 1916	Succeeded by Sir John Jellicoe