Vice Admiral Sir Trevylyan Dacres Willes Napier, (19 April 1867 – 30 July 1920) was a

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 who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, America and West Indies Station.

Naval career

Napier was the son of Ella Louisa (Wilson) and Vice-Admiral Gerard John Napier. He joined the

. He was promoted to the rank of

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

on 14 December 1887, and to

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

on 1 January 1889. In April 1902 he was posted to the HMY ''Victoria and Albert'', the King's personal yacht, where he was second in command. 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 June 1903, he was appointed in command of the HMY ''Victoria and Albert'' later that year and the

battleship A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of large caliber guns. It dominated naval warfare in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The term ''battleship'' came into use in the late 1880s to describe a type of ...

''HMS Bellerophon'' in 1911.

Imperial War Museum Imperial War Museums (IWM) is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. Founded as the Imperial War Museum in 1917, the museum was intended to record the civil and military ...

Collection Searc
Private papers of Sir Trevylyan Napier
Accessed 30 June 2012 Promoted to rear admiral in November 1913, he was based at the

Royal Naval War College The Royal Naval War College was a training establishment for senior officers of the Royal Navy that existed from 1900 to 1914. It was based originally at Greenwich, then Plymouth, then Portsmouth, and then Greenwich again. Branch colleges were ...

, then 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 ...

, from 1913 and tested the mobilisation of the

Home Fleet The Home Fleet was a fleet of the Royal Navy that operated from the United Kingdom's territorial waters from 1902 with intervals until 1967. In 1967, it was merged with the Mediterranean Fleet creating the new Western Fleet. Before the First ...

in June and July 1914. Napier saw active service in 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 ...

, from December 1914 commanding the 2nd Light Cruiser Squadron and then from February 1915, the 3rd Light Cruiser Squadron, seeing action at 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 ...

in May 1916, before taking command of the 1st Light Cruiser Squadron in July 1917 and taking part in the

Second Battle of Heligoland Bight The Second Battle of Heligoland Bight, also the Action in the Helgoland Bight and the , was an inconclusive naval engagement fought between British and German squadrons on 17 November 1917 during the First World War. Background British minela ...

in November 1917. He commanded the whole Light Cruiser Force from January 1918 to April 1919. He was appointed Commander-in-Chief, America and West Indies Station in December 1919 but died in office during the following July. He is buried at the Royal Naval Cemetery in

Bermuda ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = " Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , e ...

Family

In 1899, Napier married Mary Elizabeth Culme-Seymour, daughter of

Sir Michael Culme-Seymour, 3rd Baronet Admiral Sir Michael Culme-Seymour, 3rd Baronet (13 March 1836 – 11 October 1920) was a senior Royal Navy officer. On 17 September 1880 he became 3rd Baronet, on the death of his father. The Culme-Seymours were relatives of the Seymour famil ...

; they had a son and two daughters. In 1911, both Mary and her father were witnesses in the

criminal libel Criminal libel is a legal term, of English origin, which may be used with one of two distinct meanings, in those common law jurisdictions where it is still used. It is an alternative name for the common law offence which is also known (in order ...

trial of Edward Mylius, who had written about a rumoured 1890 marriage of the future

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936. Born duri ...

to one of the Baronet's daughters, which would have made the king a bigamist (Mylius was convicted).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Napier, Trevylyan 1867 births 1920 deaths Royal Navy admirals of World War I Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Members of the Royal Victorian Order