Sir Charles Inigo Thomas (21 November 1846 – 9 May 1929), known as Sir Inigo Thomas, was an English civil servant who spent his entire career in the

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong * Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral * Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings *Admiralty, Tr ...

, serving as

Permanent Secretary to the Admiralty The Permanent Secretary of the Admiralty was the permanent secretary at the Admiralty, the department of state in Great Britain responsible for the administration of the Royal Navy. He was head of the Admiralty Secretariat, later known as the '' D ...

from 1907–11.

Early life and education

Thomas was born in

Steyning Steyning ( ) is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Horsham District, Horsham district of West Sussex, England. It is located at the north end of the River Adur gap in the South Downs, four miles (6.4 km) north of the ...

, Sussex, the fourth son of Freeman Thomas and his wife, Amelia, daughter of Colonel Thomas Frederick. His elder brother Freeman Frederick Thomas, a noted cricketer, was the father of

Freeman Freeman-Thomas, 1st Marquess of Willingdon Freeman Freeman-Thomas, 1st Marquess of Willingdon (12 September 1866 – 12 August 1941), was a British Liberal politician and administrator who served as Governor General of Canada, the 13th since Canadian Confederation, and as Viceroy and Go ...

Viceroy of India The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 19 ...

, and his younger brother was the famed composer

Arthur Goring Thomas Arthur Goring Thomas (20 November 185020 March 1892) was an English composer. Life He was the youngest son of Freeman Thomas and Amelia, daughter of Colonel Thomas Frederick. His elder brothers included Freeman Frederick Thomas, a noted cricket ...

. He was a cousin of the gardener and artist Francis Inigo Thomas, also known as Inigo. Charles was educated at

Marlborough College Marlborough College is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English Independent school (United Kingdom), independent boarding school) for pupils aged 13 to 18 in Marlborough, Wiltshire, England. Founded in 1843 for the sons of Church ...

Career

Thomas entered the Admiralty in 1865, serving successively as private secretary to Rear-Admiral Arthur Hood,

Second Sea Lord The Second Sea Lord and Deputy Chief of Naval Staff (formerly Second Sea Lord) is deputy to the First Sea Lord and the second highest-ranking officer to currently serve in the Royal Navy and is responsible for personnel and naval shore establish ...

, and Rear-Admiral Sir

John Edmund Commerell Admiral of the Fleet Sir John Edmund Commerell, (13 January 1829 – 21 May 1901) was a Royal Navy officer. As a junior officer, he was present at the Battle of Vuelta de Obligado in November 1845 during the Uruguayan Civil War. He also took pa ...

Fourth Sea Lord The Fourth Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Supplies originally known as the Fourth Naval Lord was formerly one of the Naval Lords and members of the Board of Admiralty which controlled the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom the post is currently known ...

. He became a principal clerk in 1885 and was put in charge of the branch that deals with the administration of Naval Law. In 1896, he was transferred to be head of the Secret and Political branch. For his work during this period, in which "a number of important events" concerning the Navy occurred, he was appointed a Companion 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 ...

(CB) in the

1900 Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours 1900 were announced on 23 May 1900 in celebration of the birthday of Queen Victoria. The list included appointments to various orders and honours of the United Kingdom and British India. The list was published in ''T ...

. He was appointed Assistant Secretary of the Admiralty on 1 December 1902, and five years later accepted the senior post of Permanent Secretary to the Admiralty. He oversaw tremendous expansion of the Navy in response to the growing threat from Germany. Among the reforms he instituted was the development of the Admiralty Library. He remained in this post until September 1911, when he retired at the age of 65. He was appointed a Knight of the Order of the Bath (KCB) in the

1907 Birthday Honours The 1907 Birthday Honours for the British Empire were announced on 28 June, to celebrate the birthday of Edward VII. The recipients of honours are displayed here as they were styled before their new honour, and arranged by honour, with classes (K ...

and upgraded to Knight Grand Cross (GCB) in the

1911 Coronation Honours The Coronation Honours 1911 for the British Empire were announced on 19 June 1911, to celebrate the coronation of George V which was held on 22 June 1911. The honours were covered in the press at the time, including in ''The Times'' on 20 June 19 ...

, two months before his retirement. He was also awarded a

Cross of Naval Merit The Cross of Naval Merit ( es, Cruces del Mérito Naval) is a Spanish military award for gallantry or merit in war or peace. Awarded to members of the Spanish Naval Forces, Guardia Civil or civilians. History and Attribution Established on 3 ...

of Spain. In his retirement, he was chairman of James Lyne Hancock Ltd.,

India rubber Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, and ...

manufacturers. He was a

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

for the County of London, and an Associate of the

Institution of Naval Architects The Royal Institution of Naval Architects (also known as RINA) is an international organisation representing naval architects. It is an elite international professional institution based in London. Its members are involved worldwide at all levels ...

Personal life

In 1888, he married Emma Millicent Evans, daughter of James Nesbitt Evans, of

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconne ...

. She died in 1923. He died in London in 1929.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Charles Inigo 1846 births 1929 deaths People educated at Marlborough College Permanent Secretaries to the Admiralty Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Grand Crosses of Naval Merit English justices of the peace