Russell Henry Manners (31 January 1800 – 9 May 1870) was an

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, ...

in the British Royal Navy and later President of the Royal Astronomical Society.

Early life and career

He was born in London, the only child of the member of parliament Russell Manners. In 1813 he was sent to the

Royal Naval College Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a ci ...

, and in 1816 he began a career in the British Royal Navy. He first served on , and in 1818 he became a

midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Afr ...

on . He served on , , and before gaining his

lieutenancy A lord-lieutenant ( ) is the British monarch's personal representative in each lieutenancy area of the United Kingdom. Historically, each lieutenant was responsible for organising the county's militia. In 1871, the lieutenant's responsibility ...

on . He continued to serve until 1827 when he gained command of .

Scientific life

On 4 March 1829 he gained his post rank. From this time forward he devoted much of his attention to scientific interests. He was also wed in 1834 when he married Louisa Jane, the daughter of the Count de Noé of France, and sister of the artist

Amédée de Noé Amédée is a French masculine forename. Notable people with the forename include: Persons * Amédée, stage name of Philippe de Chérisey (1923-1985), French writer, radio humorist, surrealist and actor *Amédée Artus (1815-1892), French condu ...

. Although the couple had seven children, they were only survived by two sons and a daughter. He was elected to the Royal Astronomical Society in 1836, and became engaged in administrative duties within the society. He served as honorary secretary from 1848 until 1858, when he became foreign secretary. He also served intermittently as society president, and was elected to that position in 1868. He also continued his career in the Royal Navy. In 1849 he retired from active service, becoming

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 ...

in 1855, vice admiral in 1862, and

in 1865. The crater Manners on the Moon is named in his honour.

External links

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Obituary notice
{{DEFAULTSORT:Manners, Russell Henry 1800 births 1870 deaths Military personnel from London 19th-century British astronomers Royal Navy admirals Presidents of the Royal Astronomical Society Scientists from London