Difference between revisions of "Montague Edward Browning"

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[[Admiral (Royal Navy)|Admiral]] {{SIR}} '''Montague Edward Browning''', G.C.B., G.C.M.G, G.C.V.O., Royal Navy (18 January, 1863 – 4 November, 1947) was an officer of the [[Royal Navy]] during the [[First World War]].
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[[File:Browning, NPG x65721.jpg|thumb|right|350px|Admiral Sir Montague E. Browning, 1919.<br><small>© National Portrait Gallery, London.</small>]]
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[[Admiral (Royal Navy)|Admiral]] {{SIR}} '''Montague Edward Browning''', G.C.B., G.C.M.G, G.C.V.O., R.N. (18 January, 1863 &ndash; 4 November, 1947) was an officer of the [[Royal Navy]] during the [[First World War]].
  
 
==Early Life & Career==
 
==Early Life & Career==
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Browning was born on 18 January 1863 at Fornham St Martin, Suffolk, the eldest child of Captain Montague Charles Browning, who subsequently became a justice of the peace for Suffolk when living at Manningtree, and his wife, Fanny Allen, daughter of the Reverend Edward Hogg, rector of Fornham St. Martin.
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Browning was born in Bury St. Edmuns, Suffolk.  
  
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Browning entered the training ship [[H.M.S. Britannia (Training Ship)|''Britannia'']] as a [[Naval Cadet (Royal Navy)|naval cadet]] in July, 1876 and after two years was appointed [[Midshipman (Royal Navy)|Midshipman]] in the ''Invincible'', Mediterranean station.  In September, 1880 he was transferred to the screw corvette ''Carysfort'' on special service and served in her as Acting-{{LieutRN}} during the Egyptian campaign of 1882, being awarded the war medal and the Khedive's bronze star. Promoted {{SubRN}} in July, 1882 he returned home to the [[HMS Excellent (Gunnery School)|''Excellent'']] gunnery school at Portsmouth for examinations and obtained first-class certificates in all subjects.  He remained in the ''Excellent'' until November, 1884.  While doing a year's sea service, he was promoted Lieutenant in June, 1885, and, except for three years as Gunnery Lieutenant in the battleship ''Dreadnought'', he was employed almost continuously in the ''Excellent'' until promoted {{CommRN}} in January, 1897, and then was specially employed on the preparation of a handbook for quick-firing guns.  He served as commander in the [[HMS Prince George (1895)|''Prince George'']], [[Channel Squadron (Royal Navy)|Channel Squadron]], from January, 1898, and then in September, 1900 he was chosen to be secretary of the committee which had been appointed by G. J. Goschen to report on the controversy regarding the respective merits of the cylindrical and water-tube types of boiler and on those of the Belleville and other types of water-tube boilers.  In 1890 he married Ruth, daughter of Lieutenant-General George Neeld Boldero.  They had one daughter.
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Browning was promoted to the rank of {{LieutRN}} on 30 June, 1885.{{Gaz|25485|3002|30 June, 1885}}
  
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==Captaincy==
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He was lent to the {{UK-1Inflexible|f=tp}} as Gunnery Officer for the [[Annual Manoeuvres of 1889|annual manœuvres]] on 18 July, 1889.  He would lose his left hand in an accident on 15 August on board ''Inflexible''.  He was surveyed and, probably unsurprisingly under the circumstances, found medically unfit on 7 November.  It was recommended that he not be re-surveyed for two months or more.  On 20 November it was decided that he be kept on the books of ''Excellent'' until he recovered.  Surveyed on 21 January, 1890, he was reported to be fit, "having been fitted with an efficient mechanical substitute for the hand."
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After promotion to {{CaptRN}} in January, 1902, Browning remained for six months with the committee until the presentation of its first report, and then joined Sir [[Archibald Lucius Douglas|Archibald L. Douglas]], [[Commander-in-Chief on the North America and West Indies Station]], as Flag Captain in the ''Ariadne''.  In 1905 he became flag captain to Sir [[Lewis Beaumont]] at Devonport.  In May, 1907 he commissioned the battleship Commonwealth in the Channel Fleet and a year later was transferred to the King Edward VII as chief of staff to Charles Beresford.  After Beresford hauled down his flag Browning went on half-pay on [[24 March]], [[1909]]. Having asked to be considered for command of a first-class battleship, he was appointed to the first ship available, [[H.M.S. Britannia (1904)|H.M.S. ''Britannia'']], on 27 July.  At the end of the next year he was given the appointment of [[Inspector of Target Practice (Royal Navy)|Inspector of Target Practice]], in recognition of his reputation as a gunnery expert.  He continued in this duty after promotion to {{RearRN}} (September, 1911) until August, 1913.  While in this role he was criticized for opposing the more accurate system of centralized "director firing" of guns. Browning and others wanted to continue the practice of independent gunlaying, a decision the developer of director firing attributed to "simply professional jealousy" (cited Marder, 1.415).  In a letter to [[Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill|Winston Churchill]], the [[First Lord of the Admiralty]], [[John Arbuthnot Fisher, First Baron Fisher|Lord Fisher]] described Browning as a "Psalm-singing fool."<ref>''Fear God and Dread Nought''.  p. 439.</ref>
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Browning was promoted to the rank of {{CommRN}} on 1 January, 1897.{{Gaz|26809|4|1 January, 1897}}
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 +
==Captain==
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Browning was promoted to the rank of {{CaptRN}} on 1 January, 1902.{{Gaz|27393|3|3 January, 1902}} On 5 June, he assumed command of the {{UK-Ariadne|f=t}}.<ref>Browning Service Record.  {{TNA|ADM 196/42/104.}}</ref>
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Browning was captain of {{UK-Commonwealth}} from 1907 until February 1908.{{MackieRNW}} On 1 February, 1908, he was appointed to {{UK-KingEdwardVII}}, additional, as Chief of the Staff to Admiral [[Charles William de la Poer Beresford, First Baron Beresford|Lord Charles Beresford]], Commander-in-Chief of the [[Channel Fleet (Royal Navy)|Channel Fleet]]. He went on half pay on 27 March, 1909, following which he requested to be considered for command of a first class battleship.<ref>McKenna to Asquith. Letter of 29 October, 1909. Asquith Papers.</ref> He commanded the {{UK-Britannia|f=t}} from July 1909 until the end of 1910.{{MackieRNW}} On 5 January, 1911, he was appointed [[Inspector of Target Practice (Royal Navy)|Inspector of Target Practice]].<ref>Browning Service Record.  {{TNA|ADM 196/42/104.}}</ref>
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 +
==Flag Rank==
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On 5 January, 1911 Browning was appointed as the Navy's fourth and final [[Inspector of Target Practice (Royal Navy)|Inspector of Target Practice]], in succession to [[Richard Henry Peirse|Richard H. Peirse]].{{NLMar13|p. 360}}
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Browning was promoted to the rank of {{RearRN}} on 22 September, 1911, vice [[Thomas Philip Walker|Walker]].{{Gaz|28534|7010|26 September, 1911}}
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In a 1912 letter to [[Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill|Winston Churchill]], the [[First Lord of the Admiralty]], [[John Arbuthnot Fisher, First Baron Fisher|Lord Fisher]] described Browning as a "Psalm-singing fool."<ref>Fisher to Churchill, 5 March, 1912.  ''Fear God and Dread Nought''.  '''ii'''.  p. 439.</ref>
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After the abolition of the post of Inspector of Target Practice, Browning was appointed Rear-Admiral of the {{UK-BS|3}} of the [[Home Fleets (Royal Navy)|First Fleet]] on 29 August, 1913, hoisting his flag aboard the {{UK-Hibernia}} the same day.{{NLDec13|p. 267}}
  
 
==Great War==
 
==Great War==
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Browning then hoisted his flag in the [[H.M.S. Hibernia (1905)|''Hibernia'']] as Rear-Admiral in the [[Third Battle Squadron (Royal Navy)|Third Battle Squadron]] of the [[Grand Fleet]].  In July, 1915 he was appointed to the command of the Third Cruiser Squadron, with his flag in the Antrim, which with the Third Battle Squadron had been stationed at Rosyth since the war began. In April, 1916 both squadrons were detached from the Grand Fleet and moved to the Swin (Thames estuary), then returned north after the battle of Jutland.  In the King's Birthday Honours of 3 June, 1916, he was appointed a Companion of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath (C.B.).<ref>''London Gazette'': [http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/29608/supplements/5553 (Supplement) no. 29608.  p. 5553.]  2 June, 1916.</ref>
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Browning was still Rear-Admiral, Third Battle Squadron, and still in the {{UK-Hibernia}}, at the outbreak of the war.
  
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In August, 1916 Browning was appointed Commander-in-Chief on the [[North America and West Indies Station]] with the acting rank of {{ViceRN}}, and he assumed command with his flag in the ''Leviathan'' on 13 September.<ref>''Supplement to the Monthly Navy List'' (September, 1917).  p. 7.</ref>  In that capacity he represented his country in discussions with the United States naval authorities on joint action in the conduct of the war at sea. He was confirmed in the rank of Vice-Admiral on 26 April, 1917,<ref>''London Gazette'': [http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/30037/pages/3955 no. 30037.  p. 3955.]  27 April, 1917.</ref> and in February, 1918 returned to the Grand Fleet to take command of the [[Fourth Battle Squadron (Royal Navy)|Fourth Battle Squadron]] with his flag in the [[H.M.S. Hercules (1910)|''Hercules'']].  After the armistice of November, 1918 he was appointed president of the allied naval armistice commission, and paid visits in the ''Hercules'' to the German naval ports to see that the settled terms were duly carried out. The economist J. M. Keynes alleged that Browning had "no idea in his head but the extirpation and further humiliation of a despised and defeated enemy."<ref>Keynes.  ''Two Memoirs''.  p. 13</ref>  Browning joined the Board of Admiralty as [[Second Sea Lord]] in March, 1919 and was promoted to the rank of {{AdmRN}} on 1 November.  He had no previous experience of administrative work in Whitehall and was more happily placed at Devonport where he became [[Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth|Commander-in-Chief]] for three years in September, 1920.  He was appointed [[First and Principal Naval Aide-de-Camp to the King]] in May, 1925 and placed on the Retired List on 4 October, 1926.  He returned to court duty in March, 1929 as [[Rear-Admiral of the United Kingdom]], became [[Vice-Admiral of the United Kingdom]] in February, 1939, and finally retired in June, 1945.
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On 27 July, 1915 he was appointed to the command of the {{UK-CS|3}}, with his flag in the {{UK-Antrim}},{{SMNLNov15|p. 6}} which with the Third Battle Squadron had been stationed at Rosyth since the war began. In April, 1916 both squadrons were detached from the Grand Fleet and moved to the Swin (Thames estuary), then returned north after the battle of Jutland.  In the King's Birthday Honours of 3 June, 1916, he was appointed an Additional Member of the Third Class, or Companion, in the Military Division of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath (C.B.).{{GazSup|29608|5553|2 June, 1916}}
  
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==Awards and Legacy==
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In August, 1916 Browning was appointed Commander-in-Chief on the [[North America and West Indies Station]] with the acting rank of {{ViceRN}}, and he assumed command with his flag in the {{UK-Leviathan}} on 13 September.{{SMNLSep17|p. 7}}  In that capacity he represented his country in discussions with the United States naval authorities on joint action in the conduct of the war at sea. He was confirmed in the rank of Vice-Admiral on 26 April, 1917.{{Gaz|30037|3955|27 April, 1917}} 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 4 June.{{GazSup|30111|5454|4 June, 1917}}
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Browning was appointed M.V.O. (1908), C.B. (1916), K.C.B. (1917), G.C.M.G. (1919), G.C.B. (1924), and G.C.V.O. (1933). He held a number of foreign decorations. In 1889 he had the misfortune to lose his left hand through an accident while visiting the ''Inflexible''.  Thereafter he wore an iron hook. After retirement he lived near Winchester and became a J.P. and Deputy Lieutenant for Hampshire.  He died at his home, Sleepers Hill House, Winchester, Hampshire, on 4 November, 1947 and was buried at Magdalen Hill cemetery, Winchester, on 7 November.
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Regarded as a fine type of sea officer, Browning had great natural ability, good brains, and a thorough knowledge of the navy.  A stern disciplinarian with a determined character, he was never unfair, and was liked and trusted by his subordinates, in spite of his somewhat grim manner.
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In February, 1918, he returned to the Grand Fleet to take command of the {{UK-BS|4}} with his flag in the {{UK-Hercules}}.
  
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==Footnotes==
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==Post-War==
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{{reflist}}
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After the armistice of November, 1918 he was appointed president of the allied naval armistice commission, and paid visits in the ''Hercules'' to the German naval ports to see that the settled terms were duly carried out.  The economist J. M. Keynes alleged that Browning had "no idea in his head but the extirpation and further humiliation of a despised and defeated enemy."<ref>Keynes.  ''Two Memoirs''.  p. 13</ref>  Browning joined the Board of Admiralty as [[Second Sea Lord]] in March, 1919 and was promoted to the rank of {{AdmRN}} on 1 November.{{Gaz|31632|13545|7 November, 1919}}  He became [[Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth|Commander-in-Chief]] for three years in September, 1920. 
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 +
Browning was appointed an Ordinary Member of the First Class, or Knight Grand Cross, in the Military Division of the Order of the Bath (G.C.B.) on the occasion of the King's birthday on 3 June, 1924.{{GazSup|32941|4408|3 June, 1924}}  He was appointed [[First and Principal Naval Aide-de-Camp]] in May, 1925 and placed on the Retired List on 4 October, 1926.{{Gaz|33209|6440|8 October, 1926}}  He returned to court duty in March, 1929 as [[Rear-Admiral of the United Kingdom]], became [[Vice-Admiral of the United Kingdom]] in February, 1939, and finally retired in June, 1945.
  
 
==Bibliography==
 
==Bibliography==
 
{{refbegin}}
 
{{refbegin}}
−
*"Admiral Sir Montague Browning" (Obituaries).  ''The Times''.  Thursday, 6 November, 1947.  Issue '''50911''', col E, pg. 7.
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*"Admiral Sir Montague Browning" (Obituaries).  ''The Times''.  Thursday, 6 November, 1947.  Issue '''50911''', col E, p. 7.
 
*Baddeley, V. W. (1959).  ''Dictionary of National Biography: 1941-1950 Supplement''.  London: Oxford University Press.
 
*Baddeley, V. W. (1959).  ''Dictionary of National Biography: 1941-1950 Supplement''.  London: Oxford University Press.
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{{refend}}
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 +
==Papers==
 +
{{refbegin}}
 +
*Papers in the possession of the Imperial War Museum.
 
{{refend}}
 
{{refend}}
  
 
==Service Records==
 
==Service Records==
 
{{refbegin}}
 
{{refbegin}}
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*The National Archives.  [http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documentsonline/details-result.asp?Edoc_Id=7917541&queryType=1&resultcount=2 ADM 196/42.]
+
*{{TNA|ADM 196/87.|D8115361}}
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*The National Archives.  [http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documentsonline/details-result.asp?Edoc_Id=7906134&queryType=1&resultcount=2 ADM 196/20.]
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*{{TNA|ADM 196/42.|D8112170}}
 +
*{{TNA|ADM 196/20.|D7590657}}
 
{{refend}}
 
{{refend}}
  
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[[Category:1863 births|Browning]]
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<div name=fredbot:appts>{{TabApptsBegin}}
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[[Category:1947 deaths|Browning]]
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{{TabNaval}}
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[[Category:Personalities|Browning]]
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{{TabApptsRow|Preceded by<br>'''[[Joseph Honner|Joseph Honner]]'''|'''[[H.M.S. Kite (1871)|Captain of H.M.S. ''Kite'']]'''<br>5 Jan, 1894{{NLApr94|p. 231}}|Succeeded by<br>'''[[Arthur William Waymouth|Arthur W. Waymouth]]'''}}
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[[Category:H.M.S. Britannia (Training Ship) Entrants of July, 1876|Browning]]
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{{TabApptsRow|Preceded by<br>'''[[William Stokes Rees|William S. Rees]]'''|'''[[H.M.S. Ariadne (1898)|Captain of H.M.S. ''Ariadne'']]'''<br>5 Jun, 1902<ref>Browning Service Record.  {{TNA|ADM 196/42.}}  f. 124.</ref> &ndash; 19 Oct, 1904<ref>Browning Service Record.  {{TNA|ADM 196/20.}}  f. 429.</ref>|Succeeded by<br>'''[[Archibald Gordon Henry Wilson Moore|A. Gordon H. W. Moore]]'''}}
−
[[Category:Royal Navy Gunnery Officers|Browning]]
+
{{TabApptsRow|Preceded by<br>'''[[Cecil Fiennes Thursby|Cecil F. Thursby]]'''|'''[[Plymouth Station|Flag Captain, Plymouth Station]]'''<br>20 Mar, 1905<ref>Browning Service Record.  {{TNA|ADM 196/42.}}  f. 124.</ref>|Succeeded by<br>'''[[Edward Stafford Fitzherbert, Thirteenth Baron Stafford|Edward S. Fitzherbert]]'''}}
−
[[Category:Flag Captains to the Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth|Browning]]
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{{TabApptsRow|Preceded by<br>'''[[Richard Henry Peirse|Richard H. Peirse]]'''|'''[[H.M.S. Commonwealth (1903)|Captain of H.M.S. ''Commonwealth'']]'''<br>28 May, 1907<ref>Browning Service Record.  {{TNA|ADM 196/42.}}  f. 124.</ref>|Succeeded by<br>'''[[Godfrey Harry Brydges Mundy|Godfrey H. B. Mundy]]'''}}
−
[[Category:Vice-Admirals Commanding, Fourth Battle Squadron (Royal Navy)|Browning]]
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{{TabApptsRow|Preceded by<br>'''[[Frederick Robert William Morgan|Frederick R. W. Morgan]]'''|'''[[H.M.S. Britannia (1904)|Captain of H.M.S. ''Britannia'']]'''<br>27 Jul, 1909<ref>Browning Service Record.  {{TNA|ADM 196/42.}}  f. 124.</ref>{{NLJan10|p. 287}} &ndash; 1910|Succeeded by<br>'''[[George Alexander Ballard|George A. Ballard]]'''}}
−
[[Category:Second Sea Lords|Browning]]
+
{{TabApptsRow|Preceded by<br>'''[[Richard Henry Peirse|Richard H. Peirse]]'''|'''[[Inspector of Target Practice (Royal Navy)|Inspector of Target Practice]]'''<br>5 Jan, 1911<ref>Browning Service Record.  {{TNA|ADM 196/42.}}  f. 124.</ref>|Succeeded by<br>'''Position Abolished'''}}
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[[Category:Commanders-in-Chief, Plymouth]]
+
{{TabApptsRow|Preceded by<br>'''[[Cecil Fiennes Thursby|Cecil F. Thursby]]'''|'''[[Third Battle Squadron (Royal Navy)|Rear-Admiral, Second-in-Command, Third Battle Squadron]]'''<br>29 Aug, 1913{{UKCeased|p. 4}}|Succeeded by<br>'''[[Sydney Robert Fremantle|Sydney R. Fremantle]]'''}}
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[[Category:First and Principal Naval Aides-de-Camp to King George V|Browning]]
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{{TabApptsRow|Preceded by<br>'''[[William Lowther Grant|William L. Grant]]'''<br><small>as '''Vice-Admiral Commanding, Third Cruiser Squadron'''</small>|'''[[Third Cruiser Squadron (Royal Navy)|Rear-Admiral Commanding, Third Cruiser Squadron]]'''<br>27 Jul, 1915{{UKCeased|f. 14}} &ndash; 15 Aug, 1916|Succeeded by<br>'''Formation Dissolved'''}}
−
[[Category:Royal Navy Admirals|Browning]]
+
{{TabApptsRow|Preceded by<br>'''[[George Edwin Patey|Sir George E. Patey]]'''|'''[[North America and West Indies Station|Commander-in-Chief, North America and West Indies Station]]'''<br>16 Aug, 1916{{UKCeased|f. 34}}|Succeeded by<br>'''[[William Lowther Grant|Sir William L. Grant]]'''}}
−
[[Category:Royal Navy Flag Officers|Browning]]
+
{{TabApptsRow|Preceded by<br>'''[[Frederick Charles Doveton Sturdee, First Baronet|Sir F. C. Doveton Sturdee, Bart.]]'''<br><small>as '''Admiral Commanding, Fourth Battle Squadron'''</small>|'''[[Fourth Battle Squadron (Royal Navy)|Vice-Admiral Commanding, Fourth Battle Squadron]]'''<br>12 Feb, 1918<ref>Browning Service Record.  {{TNA|ADM 196/42}}.  f. 309.</ref> &ndash; ''c''. 3 Dec, 1918<ref>Nicholson is noted as assuming temporary command.  Nicholson Service Record.  {{TNA|ADM 196/42}}.  f. 290.</ref>|Succeeded by<br>'''[[Douglas Romilly Lothian Nicholson|Douglas R. L. Nicholson]]'''}}
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{{TabApptsRow|Preceded by<br>'''[[Douglas Romilly Lothian Nicholson|Douglas R. L. Nicholson]]'''|'''[[Fourth Battle Squadron (Royal Navy)|Vice-Admiral Commanding, Fourth Battle Squadron]]'''<br>1 Feb, 1919<ref>His temporary replacement vacated the post.  Nicholson Service Record.  {{TNA|ADM 196/42}}.  f. 290.</ref> &ndash; 30 Mar, 1919|Succeeded by<br>'''Command Abolished'''}}
 +
{{TabApptsRow|Preceded by<br>'''[[Herbert Leopold Heath|Sir Herbert L. Heath]]'''|'''[[Second Sea Lord|Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel]]'''<br>31 Mar, 1919{{UKNavalStaff|p. 119}}|Succeeded by<br>'''[[Henry Francis Oliver|Sir Henry F. Oliver]]'''}}
 +
{{TabApptsRow|Preceded by<br>'''[[Cecil Fiennes Thursby|Sir Cecil F. Thursby]]'''|'''[[Plymouth Station|Commander in Chief, Plymouth Station]]'''<br>30 Sep, 1920<ref>Browning Service Record.  {{TNA|ADM 196/20.}}  p. 429.</ref>|Succeeded by<br>'''[[Richard Fortescue Phillimore|Sir Richard F. Phillimore]]'''}}
 +
{{TabCourt}}
 +
{{TabApptsRow|Preceded by<br>'''[[Somerset Arthur Gough-Calthorpe|The Hon. Sir Somerset A. Gough-Calthorpe]]'''|'''[[First and Principal Naval Aide-de-Camp|First and Principal Naval Aide-de-Camp]]'''<br>8 May, 1925{{Gaz|33049|3445|22 May, 1925}}|Succeeded by<br>'''[[Arthur Cavenagh Leveson|Sir Arthur C. Leveson]]'''}}
 +
{{TabApptsRow|Preceded by<br>'''[[Stanley Cecil James Colville|Stanley C. J. Colville]]'''|'''[[Rear-Admiral of the United Kingdom|Rear-Admiral of the United Kingdom]]'''<br>22 Mar, 1929<ref>Browning Service Record.  {{TNA|ADM 196/42.}}  f. 309.</ref> &ndash; 6 Feb, 1939<ref>Browning Service Record.  {{TNA|ADM 196/42.}}  f. 309.</ref>|Succeeded by<br>'''[[Hubert George Brand|Hubert G. Brand]]'''}}
 +
{{TabApptsRow|Preceded by<br>'''[[Stanley Cecil James Colville|Stanley C. J. Colville]]'''|'''[[Vice-Admiral of the United Kingdom|Vice-Admiral of the United Kingdom]]'''<br>6 Feb, 1939<ref>Browning Service Record.  {{TNA|ADM 196/42.}}  f. 309.</ref> &ndash; 19 Jun, 1945<ref>Browning Service Record.  {{TNA|ADM 196/42.}}  f. 309.</ref>|Succeeded by<br>'''[[Martin Eric Dunbar-Nasmith|Sir Martin E. Dunbar-Nasmith]]'''}}
 +
{{TabEnd}}
 +
</div name=fredbot:appts>
 +
 
 +
==Footnotes==
 +
{{reflist}}
 +
 
 +
{{DEFAULTSORT:Browning, Montague}}
 +
 
 +
{{CatPerson|UK|1863|1947}}
 +
{{CatBritannia|July, 1876}}
 +
{{CatGunneryOfficer|UK}}
 +
{{CatAdm|UK}}
 +
[[Category:Knights Grand Cross of the Military Division of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath]]
 +
[[Category:Knights Grand Cross of the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George]]
 +
[[Category:Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order]]
 +
{{CatRN}}

Latest revision as of 18:18, 6 April 2022

Admiral Sir Montague E. Browning, 1919.
© National Portrait Gallery, London.

Admiral SIR Montague Edward Browning, G.C.B., G.C.M.G, G.C.V.O., R.N. (18 January, 1863 – 4 November, 1947) was an officer of the Royal Navy during the First World War.

Early Life & Career

Browning was born in Bury St. Edmuns, Suffolk.

Browning was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant on 30 June, 1885.[1]

He was lent to the masted turret ship H.M.S. Inflexible as Gunnery Officer for the annual manœuvres on 18 July, 1889. He would lose his left hand in an accident on 15 August on board Inflexible. He was surveyed and, probably unsurprisingly under the circumstances, found medically unfit on 7 November. It was recommended that he not be re-surveyed for two months or more. On 20 November it was decided that he be kept on the books of Excellent until he recovered. Surveyed on 21 January, 1890, he was reported to be fit, "having been fitted with an efficient mechanical substitute for the hand."

Browning was promoted to the rank of Commander on 1 January, 1897.[2]

Captain

Browning was promoted to the rank of Captain on 1 January, 1902.[3] On 5 June, he assumed command of the first class protected cruiser Ariadne.[4]

Browning was captain of Commonwealth from 1907 until February 1908.[5] On 1 February, 1908, he was appointed to King Edward VII, additional, as Chief of the Staff to Admiral Lord Charles Beresford, Commander-in-Chief of the Channel Fleet. He went on half pay on 27 March, 1909, following which he requested to be considered for command of a first class battleship.[6] He commanded the battleship Britannia from July 1909 until the end of 1910.[7] On 5 January, 1911, he was appointed Inspector of Target Practice.[8]

Flag Rank

On 5 January, 1911 Browning was appointed as the Navy's fourth and final Inspector of Target Practice, in succession to Richard H. Peirse.[9]

Browning was promoted to the rank of Rear-Admiral on 22 September, 1911, vice Walker.[10]

In a 1912 letter to Winston Churchill, the First Lord of the Admiralty, Lord Fisher described Browning as a "Psalm-singing fool."[11]

After the abolition of the post of Inspector of Target Practice, Browning was appointed Rear-Admiral of the Third Battle Squadron of the First Fleet on 29 August, 1913, hoisting his flag aboard the Hibernia the same day.[12]

Great War

Browning was still Rear-Admiral, Third Battle Squadron, and still in the Hibernia, at the outbreak of the war.

On 27 July, 1915 he was appointed to the command of the Third Cruiser Squadron, with his flag in the Antrim,[13] which with the Third Battle Squadron had been stationed at Rosyth since the war began. In April, 1916 both squadrons were detached from the Grand Fleet and moved to the Swin (Thames estuary), then returned north after the battle of Jutland. In the King's Birthday Honours of 3 June, 1916, he was appointed an Additional Member of the Third Class, or Companion, in the Military Division of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath (C.B.).[14]

In August, 1916 Browning was appointed Commander-in-Chief on the North America and West Indies Station with the acting rank of Vice-Admiral, and he assumed command with his flag in the Leviathan on 13 September.[15] In that capacity he represented his country in discussions with the United States naval authorities on joint action in the conduct of the war at sea. He was confirmed in the rank of Vice-Admiral on 26 April, 1917.[16] 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 4 June.[17]

In February, 1918, he returned to the Grand Fleet to take command of the Fourth Battle Squadron with his flag in the Hercules.

Post-War

After the armistice of November, 1918 he was appointed president of the allied naval armistice commission, and paid visits in the Hercules to the German naval ports to see that the settled terms were duly carried out. The economist J. M. Keynes alleged that Browning had "no idea in his head but the extirpation and further humiliation of a despised and defeated enemy."[18] Browning joined the Board of Admiralty as Second Sea Lord in March, 1919 and was promoted to the rank of Admiral on 1 November.[19] He became Commander-in-Chief for three years in September, 1920.

Browning was appointed an Ordinary Member of the First Class, or Knight Grand Cross, in the Military Division of the Order of the Bath (G.C.B.) on the occasion of the King's birthday on 3 June, 1924.[20] He was appointed First and Principal Naval Aide-de-Camp in May, 1925 and placed on the Retired List on 4 October, 1926.[21] He returned to court duty in March, 1929 as Rear-Admiral of the United Kingdom, became Vice-Admiral of the United Kingdom in February, 1939, and finally retired in June, 1945.

Bibliography

  • "Admiral Sir Montague Browning" (Obituaries). The Times. Thursday, 6 November, 1947. Issue 50911, col E, p. 7.
  • Baddeley, V. W. (1959). Dictionary of National Biography: 1941-1950 Supplement. London: Oxford University Press.

Papers

  • Papers in the possession of the Imperial War Museum.

Service Records

Naval Appointments
Preceded by
Joseph Honner 		Captain of H.M.S. Kite
5 Jan, 1894[22] 		Succeeded by
Arthur W. Waymouth
Preceded by
William S. Rees 		Captain of H.M.S. Ariadne
5 Jun, 1902[23] – 19 Oct, 1904[24] 		Succeeded by
A. Gordon H. W. Moore
Preceded by
Cecil F. Thursby 		Flag Captain, Plymouth Station
20 Mar, 1905[25] 		Succeeded by
Edward S. Fitzherbert
Preceded by
Richard H. Peirse 		Captain of H.M.S. Commonwealth
28 May, 1907[26] 		Succeeded by
Godfrey H. B. Mundy
Preceded by
Frederick R. W. Morgan 		Captain of H.M.S. Britannia
27 Jul, 1909[27][28] – 1910 		Succeeded by
George A. Ballard
Preceded by
Richard H. Peirse 		Inspector of Target Practice
5 Jan, 1911[29] 		Succeeded by
Position Abolished
Preceded by
Cecil F. Thursby 		Rear-Admiral, Second-in-Command, Third Battle Squadron
29 Aug, 1913[30] 		Succeeded by
Sydney R. Fremantle
Preceded by
William L. Grant
as Vice-Admiral Commanding, Third Cruiser Squadron 		Rear-Admiral Commanding, Third Cruiser Squadron
27 Jul, 1915[31] – 15 Aug, 1916 		Succeeded by
Formation Dissolved
Preceded by
Sir George E. Patey 		Commander-in-Chief, North America and West Indies Station
16 Aug, 1916[32] 		Succeeded by
Sir William L. Grant
Preceded by
Sir F. C. Doveton Sturdee, Bart.
as Admiral Commanding, Fourth Battle Squadron 		Vice-Admiral Commanding, Fourth Battle Squadron
12 Feb, 1918[33] – c. 3 Dec, 1918[34] 		Succeeded by
Douglas R. L. Nicholson
Preceded by
Douglas R. L. Nicholson 		Vice-Admiral Commanding, Fourth Battle Squadron
1 Feb, 1919[35] – 30 Mar, 1919 		Succeeded by
Command Abolished
Preceded by
Sir Herbert L. Heath 		Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel
31 Mar, 1919[36] 		Succeeded by
Sir Henry F. Oliver
Preceded by
Sir Cecil F. Thursby 		Commander in Chief, Plymouth Station
30 Sep, 1920[37] 		Succeeded by
Sir Richard F. Phillimore
Court Appointments
Preceded by
The Hon. Sir Somerset A. Gough-Calthorpe 		First and Principal Naval Aide-de-Camp
8 May, 1925[38] 		Succeeded by
Sir Arthur C. Leveson
Preceded by
Stanley C. J. Colville 		Rear-Admiral of the United Kingdom
22 Mar, 1929[39] – 6 Feb, 1939[40] 		Succeeded by
Hubert G. Brand
Preceded by
Stanley C. J. Colville 		Vice-Admiral of the United Kingdom
6 Feb, 1939[41] – 19 Jun, 1945[42] 		Succeeded by
Sir Martin E. Dunbar-Nasmith

Footnotes

  1. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 25485. p. 3002. 30 June, 1885.
  2. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 26809. p. 4. 1 January, 1897.
  3. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 27393. p. 3. 3 January, 1902.
  4. ↑ Browning Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42/104.
  5. ↑ Mackie, Colin. ROYAL NAVY WARSHIPS.
  6. ↑ McKenna to Asquith. Letter of 29 October, 1909. Asquith Papers.
  7. ↑ Mackie, Colin. ROYAL NAVY WARSHIPS.
  8. ↑ Browning Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42/104.
  9. ↑ The Navy List. (March, 1913). p. 360.
  10. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 28534. p. 7010. 26 September, 1911.
  11. ↑ Fisher to Churchill, 5 March, 1912. Fear God and Dread Nought. ii. p. 439.
  12. ↑ The Navy List. (December, 1913). p. 267.
  13. ↑ Supplement to the Monthly Navy List. (November, 1915). p. 6.
  14. ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 29608. p. 5553. 2 June, 1916.
  15. ↑ Supplement to the Monthly Navy List. (September, 1917). p. 7.
  16. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 30037. p. 3955. 27 April, 1917.
  17. ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 30111. p. 5454. 4 June, 1917.
  18. ↑ Keynes. Two Memoirs. p. 13
  19. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 31632. p. 13545. 7 November, 1919.
  20. ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 32941. p. 4408. 3 June, 1924.
  21. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 33209. p. 6440. 8 October, 1926.
  22. ↑ The Navy List. (April, 1894). p. 231.
  23. ↑ Browning Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 124.
  24. ↑ Browning Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/20. f. 429.
  25. ↑ Browning Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 124.
  26. ↑ Browning Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 124.
  27. ↑ Browning Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 124.
  28. ↑ The Navy List. (January, 1910). p. 287.
  29. ↑ Browning Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 124.
  30. ↑ Squadrons and Senior Naval Officers in Existence on 11th November, 1918. p. 4.
  31. ↑ Squadrons and Senior Naval Officers in Existence on 11th November, 1918. f. 14.
  32. ↑ Squadrons and Senior Naval Officers in Existence on 11th November, 1918. f. 34.
  33. ↑ Browning Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 309.
  34. ↑ Nicholson is noted as assuming temporary command. Nicholson Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 290.
  35. ↑ His temporary replacement vacated the post. Nicholson Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 290.
  36. ↑ The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. p. 119.
  37. ↑ Browning Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/20. p. 429.
  38. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 33049. p. 3445. 22 May, 1925.
  39. ↑ Browning Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 309.
  40. ↑ Browning Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 309.
  41. ↑ Browning Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 309.
  42. ↑ Browning Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 309.

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