Rear-Admiral George Edward Richards (1852–1927) was a British naval officer and hydrographer. He commanded the survey ship HMQS ''Paluma'' which in the late 19th century surveyed the

Great Barrier Reef The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over over an area of approximately . The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. Richards served aboard the schooner in 1878, and HMQS ''Paluma'' in 1887. He was commanding officer of surveying the

Strait of Belle Isle The Strait of Belle Isle (; french: Détroit de Belle Isle ) is a waterway in eastern Canada that separates the Labrador Peninsula from the island of Newfoundland, in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Location The strait is the northern o ...

in 1897.

Early life

He was the eldest son of Sir George Richards,

Hydrographer of the Royal Navy The Hydrographer of the Navy is the principal hydrographical Royal Naval appointment. From 1795 until 2001, the post was responsible for the production of charts for the Royal Navy, and around this post grew the United Kingdom Hydrographic Office ...

. On 5 January 1879 he married Emily Rose, the youngest daughter of John de Courcey Bremer, of Rose Bay, Sydney.

Naval career

Admiralty Chart No 90 Reefs in the south west Pacific Ocean Elizabeth Reef

He was a sub-lieutenant aboard HMS ''Wolverine'' (2,431 tons) when it reached Brisbane in August 1877. While in command of ''Renard'' (1878–84) he surveyed the

Russell Islands :''See also Russell Island (disambiguation).'' The Russell Islands are two small islands (Pavuvu and Mbanika), as well as several islets, of volcanic origin, in the Central Province of Solomon Islands. They are located approximately northwest of ...

Rendova Island Rendova is an island in the Western Province of the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific, east of Papua New Guinea. Geography Rendova Island is a roughly rectangularly-shaped island, located in the South Pacific in the New Georgia Islands. The ...

, part of

New Georgia New Georgia, with an area of , is the largest of the islands in Western Province, Solomon Islands, and the 200th-largest island in the world. Geography New Georgia island is located in the New Georgia Group, an archipelago including most of ...

and

Pocklington Reef Pocklington Reef is a coral reef and a mostly submerged atoll in the far southeast of Papua New Guinea. It is 162.4 km from the closest island, Loa Boloba, which is a tiny coral islet within the fringing reef near Cape Deliverance, the sout ...

. He also surveyed the

Duke of York Islands The Duke of York Islands (formerly german: link=no, Neulauenburg) are a group of islands located in East New Britain Province, Papua New Guinea. They are found in StGeorge's Channel between New Britain and New Ireland islands and form part o ...

. The

Indispensable Reefs The Indispensable Reefs are a chain of three large coral atolls in the Coral Sea. They are located about south of Rennell Island, separated from it by Rennel Trough. The chain stretches over a length of and its average width is . Administrat ...

and Bampton Reefs were also visited. He later commanded HMS ''Alacrity'' (1881–82) on hydrographic voyages along the coast of Queensland north of

Hinchinbrook Island Hinchinbrook Island (or Pouandai to the Biyaygiri people) is an island in the Cassowary Coast Region, Queensland, Australia. It lies east of Cardwell and north of Lucinda, separated from the north-eastern coast of Queensland by the narrow Hi ...

. The 1887 voyage named the following places: * Cid Harbour 1887 *

Orpheus Island Orpheus Island National Park is a national park on Orpheus Island, in North Queensland, Australia. The Aboriginal (possibly Nyawaygi) name for this island is Goolboddi Island. It is one of the Palm Islands group, northwest of Brisbane, as is ...

1887 * Pioneer Bay * Acacia Island * Mausoleum Island * Combe Island *Paluma Rock in the

Palm Islands The Palm Islands are three artificial islands, Palm Jumeirah, Deira Island and Palm Jebel Ali, on the coast of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The Palm Islands were conceived around the same time as The World, another artificial island project in ...

Captain Richards was placed on the retired list, at his own request, in December 1902. He was 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 regarded ...

on the Retired list on 1 July 1907. He died in December 1927.

Legacy

He compiled the first volume of, ''Pacific Islands ... sailing directions'' (1885). He was a birdwatcher and collector and a number of tropical birds are named after him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Richards, G Australian hydrographers Royal Navy officers English ornithologists English hydrographers