Stanley Cecil James Colville

Admiral The Honourable Sir Stanley Colville, 1917.
Photograph: © National Portrait Gallery, London.

Admiral THE HONOURABLE SIR Stanley Cecil James Colville, G.C.B., G.C.M.G., G.C.V.O. (21 February, 1861 – 9 April, 1939) was an officer of the Royal Navy.

Early Life & Career

Colville was appointed as a Naval Cadet to the training ship Britannia at Dartmouth on 15 July, 1874.

For services rendered during the operations in Egypt, Colville was specially promoted to the rank of Lieutenant with seniority of 18 November, 1882.

On 18 July, 1889, Colville was appointed in command of the first-class torpedo boat T.B. 55 for manoeuvres.^[Inference] He then went to Buzzard until 20 August, 1890.

Colville was appointed to the Royal Yacht Victoria and Albert on 26 August, 1890, and was promoted to the rank of Commander on 25 August, 1892, aged thirty-one years, six months, and four days.

A brief appointment in the armoured cruiser Achilles occupied part of 1893, and in May, 1893, he began a three year turn in Trafalgar in the Mediterranean.

For his services in the Sudan, Colville was appointed a Companion in the Military Division of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath (C.B.) on 17 November, 1896, and was specially promoted to the rank of Captain on 31 October, aged thirty-five years, eight months, and ten days.

Colville was appointed as captain of the second class battleship Barfleur on 9 September, 1898, remaining in her through October, 1899.

He was appointed in command of Crescent as Flag Captain on 1 March, 1900.

Flag Rank

Colville was promoted to the rank of Rear-Admiral on 11 November, 1906, vice Marrack.

He was promoted to the rank of Vice-Admiral on 12 April, 1911, vice Bridgeman.

On the occasion of the King's birthday he was appointed an Ordinary Member of the Second Class, or Knight Commander, in the Military Division of the Order of the Bath (K.C.B.) on 14 June, 1912.

Great War

On 7 September, 1914, Colville was appointed Vice-Admiral Commanding, Orkneys and Shetlands. He was promoted to the rank of Admiral dated 11 September, but asked not to be given the rank so as to remain junior to Jellicoe. At the end of December he took command of the First Battle Squadron for a few days whilst Sir Cecil Burney was ill. He took command on 24 December and went ashore on 28 December. Colville wrote to Hamilton:

By Jove I simply lived again during my 4 days with the 1^st Battle Squadron. The Germans might have had the decency to come out & give me a show on Xmas Day - from my point of view Burney came back in too much of a hurry & how I long for another chance at sea & a permanent one, not kind on other Admirals!! but still if the chance did occur I always doubt W.C. [Winston Churchill] & Co. appointing me if they could avoid it.

On 9 July, 1915, Colville was promoted to Knight Grand Cross in the Royal Victoria Order (G.C.V.O.). As he noted to Hamilton, "He [King George V] much to my surprise gave me the GCVO on leaving [Scapa], I was greatly touched & honoured but feel that an Admiral who can only be employed by the Admiralty 'on the Mud' in war time is not worthy of it."

In describing Colville's qualifications for Second-in-Command of the Grand Fleet, Jellicoe wrote on 9 August, 1915:

Colville has dash, but is nervy & very apt to worry about those under him about trifles. His experience is not so recent as Burney's, & of Fleet experience during the war he has practically NIL. He does not handle a fleet I should think so well as Burney. On the other hand his health is excellent as is his vigour.

Jellicoe went on to write that if "it is decided to appoint Colville in my place should the necessity arise, I think he should come now to a Battle Squadron to get the experience. It would be hard on Burney to keep him on if Colville comes in over his head & if that were done I think Burney should be given the offer of Colville's present appointment."

Colville struck his flag as Vice-Admiral Commanding, Orkneys and Shetlands on 19 January, 1916. He was appointed Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth on 17 February, and held that command until the end of the war.

Post-War

He struck his flag at Portsmouth on 31 March, 1919. On the occasion of the King's birthday he was appointed an Additional Member of the First Class, or Knight Grand Cross, of the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George (G.C.M.G.) on 3 June,, and First and Principal Naval Aide-de-Camp to the King on 31 July. He was placed on the Retired List on 4 April, 1922. On 1 January, 1927, he was appointed to the ceremonial office of Rear-Admiral of the United Kingdom, and on 22 March, 1929, became Vice-Admiral of the United Kingdom. He died at Crawley Down, Sussex, 9 April 1939.

He married in 1902 Lady Adelaide Jane, youngest daughter of Admiral of the Fleet Richard James Meade, fourth Earl of Clanwilliam , and had four sons.

An oil portrait of Colville, painted by Sir William Llewellyn (1927), is in private possession. A tinted charcoal drawing of him by Francis Dodd is in the Imperial War Museum.

Assessment

Admiral The Hon. Sir Herbert Meade-Fetherstonhaugh wrote to Sir Vincent W. Baddeley in 1945 that:

To my mind the the outstanding feature of his career was his great popularity with his contemporaries & up to the time of his death his unfailing energy & activity.

See Also

• Wikipedia

Bibliography

• "Admiral Sir Stanley Colville" (Obituaries). The Times. Tuesday, 11 April, 1939. Issue 48276, col E, p. 13.
• Gordon, Andrew (2005). The Rules of the Game: Jutland and British Naval Command. London: John Murray (Publishers). ISBN 0719561310. (on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk).

Service Records

• The National Archives. ADM 196/87.
• The National Archives. ADM 196/42.
• The National Archives. ADM 196/20.

Naval Appointments
Preceded by Frank Finnis	Rear-Admiral, Nore Division, Home Fleet 1908 – 1909	Succeeded by Charles J. Briggs

Naval Appointments
Preceded by Frank Peyton	Captain of H.M. T.B. 55 18 Jul, 1889 – 31 Aug, 1889	Succeeded by Arthur T. Dawson
Preceded by George A. Callaghan	Naval Adviser to the Inspector-General of Fortifications 19 Jul, 1897	Succeeded by The Hon. Walter G. Stopford
Preceded by Reginald N. Custance	Captain of H.M.S. Barfleur 9 Sep, 1898 – Oct, 1899	Succeeded by Sir George J. S. Warrender, Bart.
Preceded by Sir Charles J. Graves-Sawle, Bart.	Captain of H.M.S. Crescent 1 Mar, 1900	Succeeded by Trevylyan D. W. Napier
Preceded by George F. King-Hall	Chief of Staff, Mediterranean Station 1 May, 1902 – 1 May, 1905	Succeeded by Osmond de B. Brock
Preceded by F. Alban A. G. Tate	Captain of H.M.S. Hindustan 20 Dec, 1905 – 21 Dec, 1906	Succeeded by The Hon. Alexander E. Bethell
Preceded by Sir Percy M. Scott	Rear-Admiral Commanding, First Cruiser Squadron 24 Feb, 1909 – 6 Mar, 1911	Succeeded by Lewis Bayly
Preceded by ?	Vice-Admiral Commanding, First Battle Squadron 22 Jun, 1912 – 22 Jun, 1914	Succeeded by Sir Lewis Bayly
Preceded by New Command	Admiral Commanding, Orkneys and Shetlands 7 Sep, 1914 – 19 Jan, 1916	Succeeded by Sir Frederic E. E. Brock
Preceded by The Hon. Sir Hedworth Meux	Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth Station 17 Feb, 1916 – 31 Mar, 1919	Succeeded by Sir Cecil Burney, Bart.
Court Appointments
Preceded by Sir Henry B. Jackson	First and Principal Naval Aide-de-Camp 31 Jul, 1919	Succeeded by Sir Charles E. Madden, Bart.
Preceded by Edmund R. Fremantle	Rear-Admiral of the United Kingdom 1 Jan, 1927 – 22 Mar, 1929	Succeeded by Montague E. Browning
Preceded by Francis Charles Bridgeman Bridgeman	Vice-Admiral of the United Kingdom 22 Mar, 1929 – 6 Feb, 1939	Succeeded by Montague E. Browning