Admiral of the Fleet (Royal Navy)

Admiral of the Fleet (ADMF) is a five-star naval officer rank and the highest rank of the Royal Navy, formally established in 1688. The five-star NATO rank code is OF-10, equivalent to a field marshal in the British Army or a marshal of the Royal Air Force. Apart from honorary appointments, no new admirals of the fleet have been named since 1995, and no honorary appointments have been made since 2014.

History

thumb|[[George VI|King George VI and Admiral Sir Bruce Fraser aboard at Scapa Flow, August 1943. The King is wearing the uniform of an admiral of the fleet.]]

The origins of the rank can be traced back to John Beauchamp, 1st Baron Beauchamp of Warwick, who was appointed 'Admiral of the King's Southern, Northern and Western Fleets' on 18 July 1360. The appointment gave the command of the English navy to one person for the first time; this evolved into the post of admiral of the fleet. In the days of sailing ships the admiral distinctions then used by the Royal Navy included distinctions related to the fleet being divided into three divisions – red, white, or blue. Each division was assigned at least one admiral, who in turn commanded a number of vice-admirals and rear admirals. While the full admirals were nominally equals, tradition gave precedence to the admiral of the white who held the fleet rank in addition to his substantive role.

The ranks of admiral of the Fleet and admiral of the red were formally separated from 1805, with an announcement in the London Gazette that "His Majesty [has] been pleased to order the Rank of Admirals of the Red to be restored" in His Majesty's Navy..." as a separate role. The same Gazette promoted 22 men to that rank. From the nineteenth century onward there were also occasional variations to the previous requirement that only one admiral of the fleet could serve at a time. In 1821, George IV appointed Sir John Jervis as a second admiral of the fleet, to balance the Duke of Wellington's promotion as a second Field Marshal in the British Army. In 1830, King William IV increased the number of admirals of the fleet to three, though these additional lifetime postings subsequently lapsed. Between 1854 and 1857 there was no admiral of the fleet at all as the most senior naval officer of the time, Admiral of the Red Thomas Le Marchant Gosselin, was mentally ill and had not served at sea for forty-five years. In deference to Gosselin's seniority, the position was instead left vacant until his death in 1857, whereupon it was filled by Admiral Sir Charles Ogle.

During the two World Wars a number of serving officers held active commissions as admirals of the fleet, as well as First Sea Lordfor example, Sir John Tovey.

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, was created an admiral of the fleet in the Royal New Zealand Navy in 1954, following the coronation of his wife Elizabeth II as Queen. This promotion was to a New Zealand rank, separate from the Royal Navy rank.

Following the creation of the Chief of the Defence Staff in 1959, the five naval officers appointed to that position became admirals of the fleet. Recognizing the reduced post-Cold War size of the British Armed Forces, no further appointments were made to the rank after 1995 (when Sir Benjamin Bathurst was appointed admiral of the fleet upon his retirement as First Sea Lord). The rank was not abolished and in 2012 the Prince of Wales (now King Charles III) became an honorary admiral of the fleet (as well as an honorary field marshal of the Army and honorary marshal of the Royal Air Force), in recognition of his support to Queen Elizabeth II in her role of as Commander-in-Chief of the British Armed Forces. In 2014, Lord Boyce, a former First Sea Lord and Chief of the Defence Staff, was also appointed an honorary admiral of the fleet.

Admirals of the Fleet

{| class="wikitable sortable"

! Appointed !!class=unsortable| Image !! Name !! Born !! Died !!class=unsortable| Notes !!class=unsortable|Reference

| || 100px || (later The Lord Dartmouth) || 1647 || 1691 || ||

| || 100px || (later The Earl of Orford) || 1652 || 1727 || ||

| || 100px || || 1650 || 1709 || circa||

| || 100px || || 1650 || 1707 || ||

| || 100px || Leake JohnSir John Leake || 1656 || 1720 || ||

| || 100px || Fairborne StaffordSir Stafford Fairborne || 1666 || 1742 || circa ||

| || 100px || Aylmer MatthewSir Matthew Aylmer (later The Lord Aylmer) || 1650 || 1720 || ||

| || 100px || Byng GeorgeSir George Byng (later The Viscount Torrington)||1663||1733|| ||

| || 100px || Norris JohnSir John Norris || 1670 || 1749 || ||

| || 100px || Ogle ChallonerSir Chaloner Ogle || 1681 || 1750 || ||

| || 100px || Steuart JamesJames Steuart || 1690 || 1757 || ||

| || 100px || Clinton GeorgeGeorge Clinton || 1686 || 1761 || ||

| || 100px || AnsonThe Lord Anson || 1697 || 1762 || ||

| || 100px || Rowley WilliamSir William Rowley || 1690 || 1768 || circa ||

| || 100px || Hawke EdwardSir Edward Hawke (later The Lord Hawke) || 1705 || 1781 || ||

| || 100px || Luke O'KeefeJohn Forbes || 1714 || 1796 || ||

| || 100px || HoweThe Earl Howe || 1726 || 1799 || ||

| || 100px || Parker PeterSir Peter Parker, Bt. || 1721 || 1811 || ||

| || 100px || Clarence and Saint AndrewsKing William IV || 1765 || 1837 || Lord High Admiral of the United Kingdom 1827–1828 appointed at that time as The Duke of Clarence and St Andrews ||

| || 100px || Saint VincentThe Earl of St Vincent || 1735 || 1823 || acting from May 1814 ||

| || 100px || Williams-Freeman WilliamWilliam Williams-Freeman || 1742 || 1832 || ||

| || 100px || GambierThe Lord Gambier || 1756 || 1833 || ||

| || 100px || Pole CharlesSir Charles Pole, Bt. || 1757 || 1830 || ||

| || 100px || Hawkins-Whitshed JamesSir James Hawkins-Whitshed || 1762 || 1849 || ||

| || 100px || Martin GeorgeSir George Martin || 1764 || 1847 || ||

| || 100px || Martin ThomasSir Thomas Byam Martin || 1773 || 1854 || ||

| || 100px || Cockburn GeorgeSir George Cockburn (later the Cockburn Baronet) || 1772 || 1853 || ||

| || 100px || Ogle CharlesSir Charles Ogle, Bt. || 1775 || 1858 || ||

| || 100px || West JohnSir John West || 1774 || 1862 || ||

| || 100px || Gage WilliamSir William Gage || 1777 || 1864 || ||

| || 100px || Hamond GrahamSir Graham Hamond, Bt. || 1779 || 1862 || ||

| || 100px || Austen FrancisSir Francis Austen || 1774 || 1865 || ||

| || 100px || Parker WilliamSir William Parker, Bt. || 1781 || 1866 || ||

| || 100px || Curtis LuciusSir Lucius Curtis || 1786 || 1869 || ||

| || 100px || Cochrane ThomasSir Thomas Cochrane || 1789 || 1872 || ||

| || 100px || Seymour GeorgeSir George Seymour || 1787 || 1870 || ||

| || 100px || Gordon JamesSir James Gordon || 1782 || 1869 || On the Reserved List ||

| || 100px || Bowles WilliamSir William Bowles || 1780 || 1869 || ||

| || 100px || Sartorious GeorgeSir George Sartorius || 1790 || 1885 || ||

| || 100px || Moresby FairfaxSir Fairfax Moresby || 1786 || 1877 || ||

| || 100px || Stewart HoustonSir Houston Stewart || 1791 || 1875 || ||

| || 100px || Wallis ProvoSir Provo Wallis || 1791 || 1892 || ||

| || 100px || Codrington HenrySir Henry Codrington || 1808 || 1877 || ||

| || 100px || Keppel HenrySir Henry Keppel || 1809 || 1904 || ||

| || 100px || LauderdaleThe Earl of Lauderdale || 1803 || 1878 || ||

| || 100px || Mundy RodneySir Rodney Mundy || 1805 || 1884 || ||

| || 100px || Symonds ThomasSir Thomas Symonds || 1813 || 1894 || ||

| || 100px || Elliot CharlesSir Charles Elliot || 1818 || 1895 || ||

| || 100px || Ryder AlfredSir Alfred Ryder || 1820 || 1888 || ||

| || 100px || WalesKing Edward VII || 1841 || 1910 || Honorary appointment to non-Navy royalty and at that time The Prince of Wales ||

| || 100px || Hornby GeoffreySir Geoffrey Hornby || 1825 || 1895 || ||

| || 100px || Hay JohnLord John Hay || 1827 || 1916 || First Naval Lord 1886 ||

| || 100px || William IIEmperor William II || 1859 || 1941 || Honorary, to foreign royalty ||

| || 100px || Commerell JohnSir John Commerell || 1829 || 1901 || ||

| || 100px || EdinburghThe Duke of Edinburgh (later The Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha) || 1844 || 1900 || ||

| || 100px || ClanwilliamThe Earl of Clanwilliam || 1832 || 1907 || ||

| || 100px || Lyons AlgernonSir Algernon Lyons || 1833 || 1908 || ||

| || 100px || Richards FrederickSir Frederick Richards || 1833 || 1912 || First Naval Lord 1893–1899 ||

| || 100px || Salmon NowellSir Nowell Salmon || 1835 || 1912 || ||

| || 100px || Erskine JamesSir James Erskine || 1838 || 1911 || ||

| || 100px || Hotham CharlesSir Charles Hotham || 1843 || 1925 || ||

| || 100px || Kerr WalterLord Walter Kerr || 1839 || 1927 || First Sea Lord 1899–1904 ||

| || 100px || Seymour EdwardSir Edward Seymour || 1840 || 1929 || ||

| || 100px || Fisher JohnSir John Fisher (later The Lord Fisher) || 1841 || 1920 || First Sea Lord 1905–1910 and 1914–1915 ||

| || 100px || Wilson ArthurSir Arthur Wilson || 1842 || 1921 || First Sea Lord 1910–1911 ||

| || 100px || Nicholas IITsar Nicholas II of Russia || 1868 || 1918 || Honorary, to foreign royalty ||

| || 100px || Noel GerardSir Gerard Noel || 1845 || 1918 || ||

| || 100px || Heinrich of PrussiaPrince Henry of Prussia || 1862 || 1929 || Honorary, to foreign royalty||

| || 100px || Fanshawe ArthurSir Arthur Fanshawe || 1847 || 1936 || ||

| || 100px George V || King George V || 1865 || 1936 || ||

| || 100px || May WilliamSir William May || 1849 || 1930 || ||

| || 100px || Meux HedworthSir Hedworth Meux || 1856 || 1929 || ||

| || 100px || Callaghan GeorgeSir George Callaghan || 1852 || 1920 || ||

| || 100px || JellicoeThe Viscount Jellicoe (later The Earl Jellicoe) || 1859 || 1935 || First Sea Lord 1916–1918 ||

| || 100px || Beatty DavidSir David Beatty (later The Earl Beatty) || 1871 || 1936 || First Sea Lord 1919–1927 ||

| ||100px|| Jackson HenrySir Henry Jackson || 1855 || 1929 || First Sea Lord 1915–1916 ||

| || 100px || Wemyss RosslynSir Rosslyn Wemyss (later The Lord Wester Wemyss) || 1864 || 1933 || First Sea Lord 1918–1919 ||

| || 100px || Burney CecilSir Cecil Burney (later the Burney baronet) || 1858 || 1929 || ||

| || 100px || Sturdee DovetonSir Doveton Sturdee, Bt. || 1859 || 1925 || ||

| || 100px || Milford HavenThe Marquess of Milford Haven || 1854 || 1921 || First Sea Lord 1912–1914. On the Retired List||

| ||100px || Madden CharlesSir Charles Madden, Bt. || 1862 || 1935 || First Sea Lord 1927–1930 ||

| || 100px || Calthorpe SomersetSir Somerset Gough-Calthorpe || 1864 || 1937 || ||

| || 100px || de Robeck JohnSir John de Robeck, Bt. || 1862 || 1928 || ||

| || 100px || Oliver HenrySir Henry Oliver || 1865 || 1965 || ||

| || 100px || Brock OsmondSir Osmond Brock || 1869 || 1947 || ||

| || 100px || Keyes RogerSir Roger Keyes, Bt. (later The Lord Keyes) || 1872 || 1945 || ||

| || 100px || Field FrederickSir Frederick Field || 1871 || 1945 || First Sea Lord 1930–1933 ||

| || 100px || Tyrwhitt ReginaldSir Reginald Tyrwhitt, Bt. || 1870 || 1951 || ||

| || 100px || Chatfield ErnleSir Ernle Chatfield (later The Lord Chatfield) || 1873 || 1967 || First Sea Lord 1933–1938 ||

| || 100px || Edward VIIIKing Edward VIII || 1894 || 1972 || ||

| |||| Kelly JohnSir John Kelly || 1871 || 1936 || ||

| || 100px || George VIKing George VI || 1895 || 1952 || ||

| || 100px || CorkThe Earl of Cork and Orrery || 1873 || 1967 || ||

| || 100px || Backhouse RogerSir Roger Backhouse || 1878 || 1939 || First Sea Lord 1938–1939. On the Retired List ||Order in Council of 3 July 1939

| || 100px || Pound DudleySir Dudley Pound || 1877 || 1943 || First Sea Lord 1939–1943 ||

| || 100px || Forbes CharlesSir Charles Forbes || 1880 || 1960 || ||

| || 100px || Cunningham AndrewSir Andrew Cunningham (later The Viscount Cunningham of Hyndhope) || 1883 || 1963 || First Sea Lord 1943–1946 ||

| || 100px || Tovey JohnSir John Tovey (later The Lord Tovey) || 1885 || 1971 || ||

| || 100px || Somerville JohnSir James Somerville || 1882 || 1949 || ||

| ||100px|| Cunningham JohnSir John Cunningham|| 1885 || 1965 || First Sea Lord 1946–1948 ||

| || 100px || Fraser of North CapeThe Lord Fraser of North Cape || 1888 || 1981 || First Sea Lord 1948–1951 ||

| || 100px || Willis AlgernonSir Algernon Willis || 1889 || 1976 || ||

| || 100px || Power ArthurSir Arthur Power || 1889 || 1960 || ||

| || 100px || Vian PhilipSir Philip Vian || 1894 || 1968 || ||

| || 100px || EdinburghThe Duke of Edinburgh || 1921 || 2021 || Lord High Admiral of the United Kingdom 2011–2021 ||

| || 100px || McGrigor RhoderickSir Rhoderick McGrigor || 1893 || 1959 || First Sea Lord 1951–1955 ||

| || 100px || Creasy GeorgeSir George Creasy || 1895 || 1972 || ||

| || 100px || Mountbatten of BurmaThe Earl Mountbatten of Burma || 1900 || 1979 || First Sea Lord 1955–1959 Chief of the Defence Staff 1959–1965 ||

| ||  || Lambe CharlesSir Charles Lambe || 1900 || 1960 || First Sea Lord 1959–1960 ||

| || || John CasparSir Caspar John || 1903 || 1984 || First Sea Lord 1960–1963 ||

| || || Begg VarylSir Varyl Begg || 1908 || 1995 || First Sea Lord 1966–1968 ||

| ||  || Le Fanu MichaelSir Michael Le Fanu || 1913 || 1970 || First Sea Lord 1968–1970 ||

| || 100px || Hill-Norton PeterSir Peter Hill-Norton (later The Lord Hill-Norton) || 1915 || 2004 || First Sea Lord 1970–1971 Chief of the Defence Staff 1971–1973 ||

| || 100px || Pollock MichaelSir Michael Pollock || 1916 || 2006 || First Sea Lord 1971–1974 ||

| ||  || Ashmore EdwardSir Edward Ashmore || 1919 || 2016 || First Sea Lord 1974–1977 Chief of the Defence Staff 1977 ||

| || || Lewin TerenceSir Terence Lewin (later The Lord Lewin) || 1920 || 1999 || First Sea Lord 1977–1979 Chief of the Defence Staff 1979–1982 ||

| ||  || Leach HenrySir Henry Leach || 1923 || 2011 || First Sea Lord 1979–1982||

| || 100px || Fieldhouse JohnSir John Fieldhouse (later The Lord Fieldhouse) || 1928 || 1992 || First Sea Lord 1982–1985 Chief of the Defence Staff 1985–1988||

| || 100px || King Olav V of Norway || 1903 || 1991 || Honorary, to foreign royalty||

| || || Staveley WilliamSir William Staveley || 1928 || 1997 ||First Sea Lord 1985–1989 ||

| ||  || Oswald JulianSir Julian Oswald || 1933 || 2011 ||First Sea Lord 1989–1993 ||

| ||  || Bathhurst BenjaminSir Benjamin Bathurst || 1936 || 2025 || First Sea Lord 1993–1995 ||

| || 100px || WalesKing Charles III || 1948 || Living || Lord High Admiral of the United Kingdom since 2022 Honorary appointment and at that time The Prince of Wales Assumed the rank in full capacity on the day following accession to the throne. (Ex officio) ||

| ||100px || Boyce MichaelThe Lord Boyce || 1943 || 2022 || First Sea Lord 1998–2001 Chief of the Defence Staff 2001–2003. Honorary rank||

Admiral of the Fleet (Royal Navy)

History

Admirals of the Fleet

See also

References

Sources

External links