Sir John Knox Laughton (23 April 1830 – 14 September 1915) was a British

naval historian Naval warfare is combat in and on the sea, the ocean, or any other battlespace involving a major body of water such as a large lake or wide river. Mankind has fought battles on the sea for more than 3,000 years. Even in the interior of large la ...

and arguably the first to delineate the importance of the subject of Naval history as an independent field of study. Beginning his working life as a mathematically trained civilian instructor for the

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 ...

, he later became Professor of Modern History at

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

and a co-founder of the

Navy Records Society The Navy Records Society was established in 1893 as a scholarly text publication society to publish historical documents relating to the history of the Royal Navy. Professor Sir John Knox Laughton and Admiral Sir Cyprian Bridge were the key lea ...

. A prolific writer of lives, he penned the biographies of more than 900 naval personalities for the ''

Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

''.

Family

Laughton was born in

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

on 23 April 1830, the second son and youngest child of a former

Master Mariner A master mariner is a licensed mariner who holds the highest grade of seafarer qualification; namely, an unlimited master's license. Such a license is labelled ''unlimited'' because it has no limits on the tonnage, power, or geographic location of ...

, James Laughton of Liverpool (1777–1859). In 1866, Laughton married his first wife, Isabella, daughter of John Carr of Dunfermline. They had two sons, Leonard and Arthur, and three daughters – Elsbeth, Mary and Dorothy. In 1886, Laughton married his second wife, María Josefa, daughter of Eugenio di Alberti, of

Cádiz Cádiz (, , ) is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the Province of Cádiz, one of eight that make up the autonomous community of Andalusia. Cádiz, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Western Europe, ...

, Spain; they had three sons and two daughters, one of whom was Dame

Vera Laughton Mathews Dame Elvira Sibyl Marie Mathews, ( Laughton; 25 September 1888 – 25 September 1959), known as Vera Laughton Mathews, was a British military officer and administrator. She was the second Director of the Women's Royal Naval Service (WRNS), serv ...

. Sir John Knox Laughton died at his home at

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...

on 14 September 1915, aged 85.

Academic career

Laughton was educated at the Royal Institution School, Liverpool, and then at

Caius College, Cambridge Gonville and Caius College, often referred to simply as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges and one of th ...

, graduating BA (34th wrangler) in 1852. He served with the Royal Navy as a civilian shipboard instructor teaching mathematics, science and navigation, and saw combat in the Baltic and Far East campaigns.Adamiak, Stanley J. 'The Foundations of Naval History: John Knox Laughton, the Royal Navy and the Historical Profession', Review of book by Professor

Andrew Lambert Andrew Lambert (born 31 December 1956) is a British naval historian, who since 2001 has been the Laughton Professor of Naval History in the Department of War Studies, King's College London. Academic career After completing his doctoral resear ...

, ''

Journal of Military History ''The Journal of Military History'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal covering the military history of all times and places. It is the official journal of the Society for Military History. The journal was established in 1937 and the ...

'' Vol. 64, No. 4 (October 2000) pp. 1169–1170 In 1866 he finished his sea days by going ashore to teach at the Royal Naval College in

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

. When the College moved to the new

Royal Naval College, Greenwich The Royal Naval College, Greenwich, was a Royal Navy training establishment between 1873 and 1998, providing courses for naval officers. It was the home of the Royal Navy's staff college, which provided advanced training for officers. The equiv ...

, in 1873, Laughton moved with it to become Head of the Department of

Meteorology Meteorology is a branch of the atmospheric sciences (which include atmospheric chemistry and physics) with a major focus on weather forecasting. The study of meteorology dates back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not ...

and Marine Surveying. In the 1870s Laughton turned more and more to teaching and lecturing on history, delivering a now famous lecture to the

Royal United Services Institute The Royal United Services Institute (RUSI, Rusi), registered as Royal United Service Institute for Defence and Security Studies and formerly the Royal United Services Institute for Defence Studies, is a British defence and security think tank. ...

(RUSI) in 1874 on the importance of actually analysing historical events, rather than merely reporting events chronologically. This was a new idea at the time and would not have been seen then as stating the obvious, as perhaps it would today.

John Hattendorf John Brewster Hattendorf, D.Phil., D.Litt., L.H.D., FRHistS, FSNR, (born December 22, 1941) is an American naval historian. He is the author, co-author, editor, or co-editor of more than fifty books, mainly on British and American maritime hi ...

, ''The Caird Lecture, 2000: The Anglo-French Naval Wars (1689–1815) in twentieth century naval thought'' Journal for Maritime Research. http://www.jmr.nmm.ac.uk/server/show/conJmrArticle.30/viewPage/2 – URL last accessed 3 April 2007 With this new approach, Laughton ‘acted as a catalyst for heentire intellectual development' of naval history as an independent discipline. During his time as a lecturer in naval history, Laughton was undoubtedly an influence on the more famous naval historian-strategists of his age –

Alfred Thayer Mahan Alfred Thayer Mahan (; September 27, 1840 – December 1, 1914) was a United States naval officer and historian, whom John Keegan called "the most important American strategist of the nineteenth century." His book '' The Influence of Sea Power ...

Julian Corbett Sir Julian Stafford Corbett (12 November 1854 at Walcot House, Kennington Road, Lambeth – 21 September 1922 at Manor Farm, Stopham, Pulborough, Sussex) was a prominent British naval historian and geostrategist of the late 19th and ear ...

and

Herbert Richmond Admiral Sir Herbert William Richmond, (15 September 1871 – 15 December 1946) was a prominent Royal Navy officer, described as "perhaps the most brilliant naval officer of his generation." He was also a top naval historian, known as the "Briti ...

. Mahan, who has been described as "one of Laughton's disciples", wrote of him that "He probably knows more naval history than any English speaking man living".

R.J.B. Knight ''For the English cricketer, administrator, and schoolmaster, see Roger Knight '' Roger John Beckett Knight (born 11 April 1944) is a British naval historian of the 18th century, a former Deputy Director of the National Maritime Museum at Greenwi ...

(2000) ''The Foundations of Naval History: John Knox Laughton, the Royal Navy and the Historical Profession'', Review of book by Professor

in the Institute for Historical Research's ''Reviews in History'' series. (London: Institute for Historical Research) http://www.history.ac.uk/reviews/paper/knight.html – URL last accessed 3 April 2007 In 1885 he left the Royal Navy to accept the position of Professor of Modern History at King's College, London. He succeeded in convincing 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, Traf ...

to allow limited public access to their archives. Together with

Admiral Cyprian Bridge Admiral Sir Cyprian Arthur George Bridge (13 March 1839 – 16 August 1924) was a British Royal Navy officer towards the end of the era of ''Pax Britannica.'' He was Commander-in-chief of both the Australian Squadron and the China Squadron. E ...

, Laughton co-founded the

in 1893. He was the Society's first Secretary, and was knighted for his work in 1907. Laughton died at the age of 85 on 14 September 1915 and was buried at sea in the

Thames Estuary The Thames Estuary is where the River Thames meets the waters of the North Sea, in the south-east of Great Britain. Limits An estuary can be defined according to different criteria (e.g. tidal, geographical, navigational or in terms of salini ...

from the decks of .

Legacy and influence

Laughton's contributions to naval history were largely forgotten until the pioneering work by Canadian naval historian Donald Mackenzie Schurman ''The Education of a Navy: The Development of British Naval Strategic Thought, 1867–1914'' (1965) resurrected his memory. Professor

has since added to this with a work, ''The Foundations of Naval History: John Knox Laughton, the Royal Navy and the Historical Profession''. Unlike Mahan and Corbett, Laughton never wrote a major work, and the body of work that he did leave behind went out of print and until online editions became available was very difficult to come by. The measure of his significance comes by looking at the people he influenced and the institutions which he left behind after his death. Through 'long-term influence and personal contact' with other thinkers in the field and British admirals, he managed to sow the seeds in influential people’s minds that naval history was a subject worth studying, something which had relevance and bearing on modern naval affairs. The

remains a key part of the discipline of naval history. In recognition of his importance, King's College Department of War Studies has named its naval history chair as the ''Laughton Professor'', and naval historians in the department belong to the

Laughton Unit The Laughton Unit aughton Naval History Unitis a research unit which conducts research and teaching on naval history, theory and maritime strategy. History The Laughton Naval History Unit was launched in 2001 by Professor Andrew Lambert. The La ...

''.

Honours

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are the ...

in 1907 *

Chesney Gold Medal The Chesney Gold Medal is an award given by the Royal United Services Institute awarded to "any especially eminent work calculated to advance the military sciences and knowledge". List of Medallists The following people have received the Chesney ...

in 1910 * Professorship, granted in 1885 by King's College London

Works

* ''Physical Geography in Its Relation to the Prevailing Winds and Currents'' (London: Potter, 1873
read online
* ''Recollections of James Anthony Gardner 770–1846 Commander R. N. (1775–1814)'', ed. by Laughton and Sir

Richard Vesey Hamilton Sir Richard Vesey Hamilton (28 May 1829 – 17 September 1912) was a Royal Navy officer. As a junior officer he twice volunteered to take part in missions to search for Sir John Franklin's ill-fated expedition to find the Northwest Passage ...

(London:

, 1886
read online
* ''Studies in Naval History: Biographies'' (London:

Longman Longman, also known as Pearson Longman, is a publishing company founded in London, England, in 1724 and is owned by Pearson PLC. Since 1968, Longman has been used primarily as an imprint by Pearson's Schools business. The Longman brand is also ...

s, Green and Company, 1887
read online
* ''State Papers Relating to the Defeat of the

Spanish Armada The Spanish Armada (a.k.a. the Enterprise of England, es, Grande y Felicísima Armada, links=no, lit=Great and Most Fortunate Navy) was a Spanish fleet that sailed from Lisbon in late May 1588, commanded by the Duke of Medina Sidonia, an aris ...

, Anno 1588'' (London:

, 1894
read online
* ''

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

'' (London:

Macmillan MacMillan, Macmillan, McMillen or McMillan may refer to: People * McMillan (surname) * Clan MacMillan, a Highland Scottish clan * Harold Macmillan, British statesman and politician * James MacMillan, Scottish composer * William Duncan MacMillan ...

, 1895
read online
* ''

and His Companions in Arms'' (London: G. Allen, 1896
read online
* ''Journal of Rear-Admiral Bartholomew James, 1752–1828'' (London:

, 1896
read online
* ''From

Howard Howard is an English-language given name originating from Old French Huard (or Houard) from a Germanic source similar to Old High German ''*Hugihard'' "heart-brave", or ''*Hoh-ward'', literally "high defender; chief guardian". It is also probabl ...

: Twelve Sailors '' (London: Lawrence and Bullen, 1899
read online
* ''The Naval Miscellany'' (5 vols.) (ed., with

William Gordon Perrin Lieutenant Colonel William Gordon Perrin, OBE (1874–1931) was an RAF and Navy officer, and the Admiralty librarian from 1908 to 1931. He is most well known for his works on flags; particularly ''British Flags: Their Early History, and Their Dev ...

and Lloyd Christopher) ( Navy Records Society, 1902br>read online
* ''Sea Fights and Adventures, Described'' (London: G. Allen, 1907
read online
* ''Letters and Papers of Charles, Lord Barham, Admiral of the Red Squadron, 1758–1813'' (3 vols.) (

, 1907–11
read online
* ''The Barker Collection: Mmanuscripts of and Relating to Admiral Lord

, briefly noted by Sir John Knox Laughton'' (London:

Chiswick Press The Chiswick Press was founded by Charles Whittingham I (1767–1840) in 1811. The management of the Press was taken over in 1840 by the founder's nephew Charles Whittingham II (1795–1876). The name was first used in 1811, and the Press continue ...

, 1913
read online

References

External links

KCL Laughton Naval History Research Unit

by

R. J. B. Knight ''For the English cricketer, administrator, and schoolmaster, see Roger Knight '' Roger John Beckett Knight (born 11 April 1944) is a British naval historian of the 18th century, a former Deputy Director of the National Maritime Museum at Greenwi ...

Navy Records Society

Royal United Services Institute
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Laughton, John Knox 1830 births 1915 deaths Academics of King's College London Academics of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich Alumni of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Burials at sea English naval historians Knights Bachelor People associated with The National Archives (United Kingdom) Presidents of the Royal Meteorological Society English male non-fiction writers