Office of the First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff
Office of the First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff
Naval%20Ensign%20of%20United%20Kingdom.png
Department Department of Admiralty
Member of Board of Admiralty
Reports to First Lord of the Admiralty
Nominator Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
Appointee Monarch of the United Kingdom
Term Length Not fixed
Inaugural holder Vice Admiral, Augustus Hervey
Final holder Admiral of the Fleet, Lord Walter Kerr
Formation 1904-current

The First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff (1SL/CNS) is the professional head of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy and the whole of HM Naval Service. Originally the title was the Senior Naval Lord to the Board of Admiralty when the post was created in 1689. The office holder was then re-named First Naval Lord from 1771. The concept of a professional "First Naval Lord" was introduced in 1805 and the title of the First Naval Lord was changed to First Sea Lord on the appointment of Sir Jackie Fisher in 1904. In 1917 following the establishment of the Admiralty Naval Staff his title was changed to First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff. From 1923 onward, the First Sea Lord was a member of the Chiefs of Staff Committee; he now sits on the Defence Council (MOD) and the Admiralty Board and the Navy Board.

The current office holder is Admiral Sir Philip Jones (appointed in April 2016). The flagship of the First Sea Lord is HMS Victory.

1) History

In 1904 the title of the First Naval Lord was changed to First Sea Lord on the appointment of Sir Jackie Fisher in 1904. In 1917, the First Sea Lord was re-styled First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff. From 1923 onward, the First Sea Lord was a member of the Chiefs of Staff Committee and from 1923 to 1959, in rotation with the representatives of the other services (the Chief of the Imperial General Staff and Chief of the Air Staff), he would serve as the chairman of that committee and head of all British armed forces. The title was retained when the Board of Admiralty was abolished in 1964 and the Board's functions were integrated into the Ministry of Defence. Under the current organisation, the First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff sits on the Defence Council the Admiralty Board and the Navy Board.

2) First Sea Lord

  1. Admiral of the Fleet Lord Fisher: October 1904-January 1910
  2. Admiral of the Fleet Sir Arthur K. Wilson: January 1910-December 1911
  3. Admiral Sir Francis C.B. Bridgeman: December 1911-December 1912
  4. Admiral Prince Louis of Battenberg: December 1912-October 1914
  5. Admiral of the Fleet Lord Fisher: October 1914-May 1915
  6. Admiral Sir Henry B. Jackson: May 1915-December 1916
  7. Admiral of the Fleet Sir John R. Jellicoe: December 1916-December 1917

3) First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff

  1. Admiral of the Fleet Sir John R. Jellicoe: December 1916-December 1917
  2. Admiral of the Fleet Sir Rosslyn E. Wemyss: December 1917-November 1919
  3. Admiral of the Fleet Earl Beatty: November 1919-July 1927
  4. Admiral of the Fleet Sir Charles E. Madden, Bt.: July 1927-July 1930
  5. Admiral of the Fleet Sir Frederick L. Field: July 1930-January 1933
  6. Admiral of the Fleet Lord Chatfield: January 1933-September 1938
  7. Admiral Sir Roger R.C. Backhouse: September 1938-June 1939
  8. Admiral of the Fleet Sir Sir A. Dudley P.R. Pound: June 1939-September 1943
  9. Admiral of the Fleet Viscount Cunningham of Hyndhope: October 1943-May 1946
  10. Admiral of the Fleet Sir John H.D. Cunningham: May 1946-September 1948
  11. Admiral of the Fleet Lord Fraser of North Cape: September 1948-December 1951
  12. Admiral of the Fleet Sir Rhoderick R. McGrigor: December 1951-April 1955
  13. Admiral of the Fleet Earl Mountbatten of Burma: April 1955-May 1959
  14. Admiral of the Fleet Sir Charles E. Lambe: May 1959-May 1960
  15. Admiral of the Fleet Sir Caspar John: May 1960-August 1963
  16. Admiral Sir J. David Luce: August 1963-1966
  17. Admiral of the Fleet Sir Varyl C. Begg: March 1966-August 1968
  18. Admiral of the Fleet Sir Michael Le Fanu: August 1968-July 1970
  19. Admiral of the Fleet Sir Peter J. Hill-Norton: July 1970-March 1971
  20. Admiral of the Fleet Sir Michael P. Pollock: March 1971-March 1974
  21. Admiral of the Fleet Sir Edward B. Ashmore: March 1974-March 1977
  22. Admiral of the Fleet Sir Terence T. Lewin: March 1977-July 1979
  23. Admiral of the Fleet Sir Henry C. Leach: July 1979-December 1982
  24. Admiral of the Fleet Sir John D.E. Fieldhouse: December 1982-August 1985
  25. Admiral of the Fleet Sir William D.M. Staveley: August 1985-May 1989
  26. Admiral of the Fleet Sir J.Julian R. Oswald: May 1989-March 1992
  27. Admiral of the Fleet Sir D. Benjamin Bathurst: March 1992-July 1995
  28. Admiral Sir Jock C.K. Slater: July 1995-October 1998
  29. Admiral Sir Michael C. Boyce: October 1998-January 2001
  30. Admiral Sir Nigel R. Essenhigh: January 2001-September 2002
  31. Admiral Sir Alan W.J. West: September 2002-February 2006
  32. Admiral Sir Jonathon Band: February 2006-July 2009
  33. Admiral Sir Mark Stanhope: July 2009-April 2013
  34. Admiral Sir George M. Zambellas: April 2013-April 2016
  35. Admiral Sir Philip A. Jones: April 2016- 2019
  36. Admiral Anthony D. Radakin: 2019-

4) Sources

  1. Mackie, Colin (2018). Royal Navy Senior Appointments from 1865. p. 5. http://www.gulabin.com/armynavy/pdf/Senior%20Royal%20Navy%20Appointments%201865-.pdf
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