Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

Sir Edwyn Sinclair Alexander-Sinclair, (born Alexander; 12 December 1865 – 13 November 1945) was a Scottish

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

officer, notable for firing the first shots of the

Battle of Jutland The Battle of Jutland (german: Skagerrakschlacht, the Battle of the Skagerrak) was a naval battle fought between Britain's Royal Navy Grand Fleet, under Admiral John Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe, Sir John Jellicoe, and the Imperial German Navy ...

, and for leading a squadron of

light cruiser A light cruiser is a type of small or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck. Prior to thi ...

s in the

Baltic Baltic may refer to: Peoples and languages * Baltic languages, a subfamily of Indo-European languages, including Lithuanian, Latvian and extinct Old Prussian *Balts (or Baltic peoples), ethnic groups speaking the Baltic languages and/or originati ...

to support independence of

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

and

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

in 1918 to 1919.Queen, Estonians honour Britain's 'forgotten fleet'
/ref>

Early life and education

Sinclair Alexander-Sinclair was born in

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

, the second son of Captain John Hobhouse Inglis Alexander of the

, who served as '' aide-de-camp'' to

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

, and Isabella Barbara Hume, daughter of Thomas Cochrane Hume. He succeeded his elder brother in the Southbar property in 1892 and two years later adopted the additional name of Sinclair on succeeding to the estate of Freswick in Caithness. His paternal grandparents were Boyd Alexander, Lord of Southbar and Ballochmyle, and Sophia Elizabeth Hobhouse, daughter of

Sir Benjamin Hobhouse, 1st Baronet Sir Benjamin Hobhouse, 1st Baronet (1757–1831) was an English politician. Life The son of John Hobhouse, a slave trader and merchant at Bristol (and nephew to Isaac Hobhouse), he received his education at Bristol grammar school and Braseno ...

and sister of

John Hobhouse, 1st Baron Broughton John Cam Hobhouse, 1st Baron Broughton, (27 June 1786 – 3 June 1869), known as Sir John Hobhouse, Bt, from 1831 to 1851, was an English politician and diarist. Early life Born at Redland near Bristol, Broughton was the eldest son of Sir ...

. His father's elder brother was politician

Sir Claud Alexander, 1st Baronet Sir Claud Alexander, 1st Baronet (15 January 1831 – 23 May 1899) was a Scottish Conservative Party politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1874 to 1885. Life Alexander was the eldest son of Boyd Alexander and his wife Sophia Elizabeth H ...

. He succeeded his elder brother in the Southbar property in 1892 and two years later adopted the additional name of Sinclair on succeeding to the estate of Freswick in Caithness.

Naval career

Alexander-Sinclair entered the

as cadet in 1879 at the age of 14, becoming a midshipman 2½ years later. Edwyn Sinclair Alexander-Sinclair was first educated at

Twyford School Twyford School is a co-educational, independent, preparatory boarding and day school, located in the village of Twyford, Hampshire, England. History Twyford states itself to be the oldest preparatory school in the United Kingdom. It moved to i ...

He was made lieutenant in 1890,Alastair Wilson & Joseph F. Callo ''Who's Who in Naval History: From 1550 to the Present'' (Routledge, 2004) and served as flag-lieutenant to both Admiral Tracey and Admiral Sir Michael Culme-Seymour, gaining promotion to commander in January 1901. He then had two sea commands, the destroyer from February 1902 serving at the

Mediterranean Station The British Mediterranean Fleet, also known as the Mediterranean Station, was a formation of the Royal Navy. The Fleet was one of the most prestigious commands in the navy for the majority of its history, defending the vital sea link between ...

from May that year; and after paying her off in January 1904, the despatch vessel until 1905. Alexander-Sinclair was promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

in 1905, and was appointed commander of the

Royal Naval College, Osborne The Royal Naval College, Osborne, was a training college for Royal Navy officer cadets on the Osborne House estate, Isle of Wight, established in 1903 and closed in 1921. Boys were admitted at about the age of thirteen to follow a course lasting ...

, serving there until 1908, when he was appointed a

Member of the Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, or ...

. Between May 1911 and August 1913 he was captain of HMS ''Victory'', the flagship of the

Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth The Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth, was a senior commander of the Royal Navy for hundreds of years. The commanders-in-chief were based at premises in High Street, Portsmouth from the 1790s until the end of Sir Thomas Williams's tenure, his succe ...

. In 1914, at the start of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Alexander-Sinclair was captain of the

dreadnought The dreadnought (alternatively spelled dreadnaught) was the predominant type of battleship in the early 20th century. The first of the kind, the Royal Navy's , had such an impact when launched in 1906 that similar battleships built after her ...

, before flying his flag in from 1915 as commodore of the 1st Light Cruiser Squadron.Bourne, J.M., ''Who's Who in World War One'' (Routledge, 2001) He was appointed a

Companion of the Order of the Bath Companion may refer to: Relationships Currently * Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance * A domestic partner, akin to a spouse * Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach * Companion (caregiving), a caregive ...

for his part in the destruction of Zeppelin ''L 7'' on 4 May 1916. On 31 May 1916 it was the 1st Light Cruiser Squadron under Alexander-Sinclair that first engaged scouting vessels of the German

High Seas Fleet The High Seas Fleet (''Hochseeflotte'') was the battle fleet of the German Imperial Navy and saw action during the First World War. The formation was created in February 1907, when the Home Fleet (''Heimatflotte'') was renamed as the High Seas ...

and signalled "enemy in sight", leading to the

, after which he received a

mention in dispatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

from Vice Admiral Sir David Beatty, commander of the Battlecruiser Fleet, and the Russian Order of St. Vladimir, Third Class with Swords. Promoted to

rear admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

on 26 April 1917, he then commanded the 6th Light Cruiser Squadron, flying his flag in . In November 1918 Alexander-Sinclair was given the honour of leading the surrendered German Fleet into internment at

Scapa Flow Scapa Flow viewed from its eastern end in June 2009 Scapa Flow (; ) is a body of water in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, sheltered by the islands of Mainland, Graemsay, Burray,S. C. George, ''Jutland to Junkyard'', 1973. South Ronaldsay and ...

, and appointed a

Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...

. Soon afterwards, in December 1918, Alexander-Sinclair's 6th Squadron was sent to the Baltic, at the request of Estonian Government, to take part in the

Estonian War of Independence The Estonian War of Independence ( et, Vabadussõda, literally "Freedom War"), also known as the Estonian Liberation War, was a defensive campaign of the Estonian Army and its allies, most notably the United Kingdom, against the Bolshevik westwa ...

. They delivered 6,500 rifles, 200 machine guns and two field guns. The British squadron also captured two Russian destroyers, ''Spartak'' and ''Avtroil'', and turned them over to Estonia, which renamed them ''Vambola'' and ''Lennuk''. Alexander-Sinclair then blockaded the Russian Navy base at

Kronstadt Kronstadt (russian: Кроншта́дт, Kronshtadt ), also spelled Kronshtadt, Cronstadt or Kronštádt (from german: link=no, Krone for "crown" and ''Stadt'' for "city") is a Russian port city in Kronshtadtsky District of the federal city of ...

until relieved by the 1st Light Cruiser Squadron under Rear-Admiral

Walter Cowan Admiral Sir Walter Henry Cowan, 1st Baronet, (11 June 1871 – 14 February 1956), known as Tich Cowan, was a Royal Navy officer who saw service in both the First and Second World Wars; in the latter he was one of the oldest British servicemen o ...

. He was Admiral-Superintendent of

Portsmouth Dockyard His Majesty's Naval Base, Portsmouth (HMNB Portsmouth) is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy (the others being HMNB Clyde and HMNB Devonport). Portsmouth Naval Base is part of the city of Portsmouth; it is l ...

from 1920 to 1922, and after promotion to vice admiral on 4 April 1922, commanded the

1st Battle Squadron The 1st Battle Squadron was a naval squadron of the British Royal Navy consisting of battleships. The 1st Battle Squadron was initially part of the Royal Navy's Grand Fleet. After World War I the Grand Fleet was reverted to its original name, t ...

, Atlantic Fleet from 1922 to 1924. He then served as Commander-in-Chief, China Station from 1925 to 1926, and after promotion to

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

on 4 October 1926, was

Commander-in-Chief, The Nore The Commander-in-Chief, The Nore, was an operational commander of the Royal Navy. His subordinate units, establishments, and staff were sometimes informally known as the Nore Station or Nore Command. The Nore is a sandbank at the mouth of the Th ...

from 1927 to 1930. He retired in 1930.Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
/ref>

References

External links

The Dreadnought Project – Edwyn Sinclair Alexander-Sinclair
, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Alexander-Sinclair, Edwyn 1865 births 1945 deaths Captains and Commandants of the Royal Naval College, Osborne People of the Estonian War of Independence Royal Navy admirals of World War I Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Members of the Royal Victorian Order Recipients of the Order of St. Vladimir, 3rd class People from Caithness Royal Navy personnel of the Russian Civil War

Early life and education

Naval career

See also

References

External links