Permanent Secretary to the Board of Admiralty
The Permanent Secretary to the Board of Admiralty (widely referred to as the "Secretary of the Admiralty") was the senior civil servant at the Admiralty, the department of state responsible for the administration of the Royal Navy. He was the head of the department's permanent staff. Although not a Lord Commissioner of the Admiralty, he functioned as a member of the Board, and attended all its meetings.
History
The position was abolished on 1 November, 1877.[1] It was replaced by that of Naval Secretary to the Board of Admiralty,[2] which it had run parallel to since 1872, but was re-introduced by Order in Council in 1882.[3] The office of Naval Secretary was abolished on 8 May.[4] Mr. Robert G. C. Hamilton, Accountant-General of the Navy, was appointed Permanent Secretary on the same day, but was appointed Under-Secretary to the Chief Secretary for Ireland immediately following the Phoenix Park Murders on 6 May. Vice-Admiral Robert Hall, who had just relinquished the office of Naval Secretary, was temporarily appointed Permanent Secretary on 15 May.[5] Admiral Hall died on 11 June, and Captain George Tryon was appointed Permanent Secretary on 13 June, also in a temporary capacity. However, he held the post until succeeded by Evan MacGregor on 2 April, 1884.[6]
Secretaries
- Captain George Tryon, 13 June, 1882.[7]
- Sir Evan MacGregor, 2 April, 1884.[8]
- Sir C. Inigo Thomas, 1 April, 1907.[9]
- Sir W. Graham Greene, 2 October, 1911.[10]
- Sir Oswyn A. R. Murray, 7 August, 1917.[11]
Footnotes
- ↑ A List of the Lords High Admiral and Commissioners for executing that Office, which have been from time to time appointed, since the year 1660. Tudor 1. Tudor Papers. Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives. King's College London. p. 39.
- ↑ The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. p. 13.
- ↑ The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. p. 22.
- ↑ A List of the Lords High Admiral and Commissioners for executing that Office, which have been from time to time appointed, since the year 1660. Tudor 1. Tudor Papers. Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives. King's College London. p. 40.
- ↑ The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. p. 22.
- ↑ A List of the Lords High Admiral and Commissioners for executing that Office, which have been from time to time appointed, since the year 1660. Tudor 1. Tudor Papers. Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives. King's College London. p. 41.
- ↑ A List of the Lords High Admiral and Commissioners for executing that Office, which have been from time to time appointed, since the year 1660. Tudor 1. Tudor Papers. Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives. King's College London. p. 41.
- ↑ The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. p. 120.
- ↑ The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. p. 120.
- ↑ The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. p. 120.
- ↑ The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. p. 81.
Bibliography
- Black, Nicholas (2009). The British Naval Staff in the First World War. Woodbridge: The Boydell Press. ISBN 9781843834427.
- Hamilton, C. I. (2011). The Making of the Modern Admiralty: British Naval Policy-Making, 1805-1927. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521765183. (on Amazon.co.uk).
- Naval Staff, Training and Staff Duties Division (1929). The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. Its Work and Development. B.R. 1845 (late C.B. 3013). Copy No. 8 at The National Archives. ADM 234/434.
