The Admiral-superintendent, Portsmouth was 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 ...

officer in command of the

Naval Dockyard A naval base, navy base, or military port is a military base, where warships and naval ships are docked when they have no mission at sea or need to restock. Ships may also undergo repairs. Some naval bases are temporary homes to aircraft that u ...

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 1832 to 1971; prior to this date a resident Commissioner of the

Navy Board The Navy Board (formerly known as the Council of the Marine or Council of the Marine Causes) was the commission responsible for the day-to-day civil administration of the Royal Navy between 1546 and 1832. The board was headquartered within the ...

had had oversight of the yard, since 1649. In May 1971 command responsibility for naval staff in the dockyard was merged into the wider local command structure, initially under the dual designation of

Flag Officer, Portsmouth The Flag Officer Portsmouth was created following changes in the naval shore command organisation in the United Kingdom in July 1969. This role merged some of the former duties of Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth and Admiral-superintendent, Portsmou ...

and Admiral Superintendent, Portsmouth but in July 1971 was again renamed

Flag Officer Spithead The Flag Officer Spithead was a senior Royal Navy appointment first established in July 1971. The office holder was responsible for the command of Spithead and wider Portsmouth area command, that formed a part of Naval Home Command. The appointm ...

and Port Admiral Portsmouth after a couple of months. These joint titles was used until 1975, and despite the name change the command still covered the same geographic area and operational responsibilities until 1996 when its ceased to exist as a separate command appointment and its responsibilities were assumed by the staff of

Flag Officer First Flotilla The First Flotilla was a naval formation of the British Royal Navy commanded by the Flag Officer, First Flotilla from 1971 to 1990. The Western Fleet and Far East Fleet were merged into the single Commander-in-Chief Fleet in 1971. Within this new ...

History

From 1546 until 1832 prime responsibility for administering H.M. Royal Navy Dockyards lay with the

, and resident commissioners who were naval officers though civilian employees of the Navy Board, not sea officers in charge of the day-to-day operational running of the dockyard and superintendence of its sea officer and ratings staff, following the abolition of that board its functions were merged within 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 ...

and a new post styled

Admiral-superintendent The admiral-superintendent was the Royal Navy officer in command of a larger Naval Dockyard. Portsmouth, Devonport and Chatham all had admiral-superintendents, as did some other dockyards in the United Kingdom and abroad at certain times. The admir ...

was established the admiral-superintendent usually held the rank of

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 ...

though sometimes

commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ''Kommodore'' * Air commodore ...

and vice-admiral. His immediate subordinate was an officer known as the captain of the dockyard (or captain of the port from 1969). This followed the appointment of a (civilian)

Chief Executive of the Royal Dockyards Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the boat ...

in September 1969 and the creation of a centralised

Royal Dockyards Management Board 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 cit ...

that were responsible for the civilian functions and staff at dockyards. Admiral-superintendents ceased to be appointed in the royal navy after 15 September 1971, and existing post-holders were renamed port admirals. In May 1971 the post holder was given wider responsibilities and the additional title of

and along with Admiral-superintendent, Portsmouth until July 1971 when Flag Officer, Portsmouth's title was renamed

Flag Officer, Spithead A flag is a piece of fabric (most often rectangular or quadrilateral) with a distinctive design and colours. It is used as a symbol, a signalling device, or for decoration. The term ''flag'' is also used to refer to the graphic design empl ...

and Admiral-superintendent, Portsmouth became Port Admiral Portsmouth until August 1975 when the name was changed again to Flag Officer, Portsmouth and Port Admiral Portsmouth until October 1996, when it ceased to exist as a separate formation that was then absorbed into the

's responsibilities, later renamed

Portsmouth Flotilla 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 dense ...

Office Holders

H.M Dockyard Portsmouth was originally administered by an Admiral superintendent from 1832 to 1971. * Rear-Admiral Frederick Lewis Maitland, June 1832–July 1837 * Rear-Admiral the Hon.

Duncan Playdell Bouverie Duncan may refer to: People * Duncan (given name), various people * Duncan (surname), various people * Clan Duncan * Justice Duncan (disambiguation) Places * Duncan Creek (disambiguation) * Duncan River (disambiguation) * Duncan Lake (d ...

, July 1837–August 1842 * Rear-Admiral Rear-Admiral Hyde Parker C.B., August 1842–October 1847 * Rear-Admiral

William Henry Shirreff William Henry Shirreff (baptised 4 April 1785 – 1 December 1847) was a British Royal Navy officer, captain of , , , and . He had six children four of whom were daughters. He had two notable daughters, Maria Georgina Grey and Emily Anne Eliza Shi ...

, October 1847–December 1847 * Rear-Admiral Henry Prescott, December 1847–October 1852 * Rear-Admiral Arthur Fanshawe, October 1852–November 1853 * Rear-Admiral William Fanshawe Martin, November 1853–February 1858 * Rear-Admiral the Hon.

George Grey Sir George Grey, KCB (14 April 1812 – 19 September 1898) was a British soldier, explorer, colonial administrator and writer. He served in a succession of governing positions: Governor of South Australia, twice Governor of New Zealand, Go ...

, February 1858–February 1863 * Rear-Admiral George Elliot, February 1863-June 1865 * Rear-Admiral George G. Wellesley, June 1865–June 1869 * Rear-Admiral Astley Cooper Key, July 1869–June 1870 * Vice-Admiral Sir William Loring, June 1870–November 1871 * Rear-Admiral William Houston Stewart, November 1871–April 1872 * Rear-Admiral Sir Francis Leopold McClintock, April 1872–April 1877 * Vice-Admiral the Hon. Fitzgerald A.C. Foley, April 1877–April 1882 * Rear-Admiral John D. McCrea, May 1882–March 1883 * Rear-Admiral Frederick A. Herbert, April 1883–November 1886 * Rear-Admiral John Ommanney Hopkins, November 1886–August 1888 * Rear-Admiral

William E. Gordon William Edwin Gordon (January 8, 1918 – February 16, 2010) was an electrical engineer, physicist and astronomer. He was referred to as the "''father of the Arecibo Observatory''". Biography William E. Gordon was an Electrical Engineer. He w ...

, August 1888–May 1891 * Rear-Admiral John Arbuthnot Fisher, May 1891–February 1892 * Rear-Admiral Charles George Fane, February 1892–February 1896 * Vice-Admiral Ernest Rice, February 1896–September 1899 * Rear-Admiral Pelham Aldrich, 1 September 1899 – 1 September 1902 * Vice-Admiral Reginald F.H. Henderson, 1 September 1902 – February 1905 * Rear-Admiral Sir Henry D. Barry, February 1905–November 1906 * Vice-Admiral Charles G. Robinson, November 1906–May 1909 * Vice-Admiral F. Alban A. G. Tate, May 1909–May 1912 * Rear-Admiral Herbert L. Heath, May 1912–August 1915 * Rear-Admiral

Arthur W. Waymouth Arthur is a common male given name of Brythonic origin. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. The etymology is disputed. It may derive from the Celtic ''Artos'' meaning “Bear”. Another theory, more ...

, August 1915–January 1917 * Rear-Admiral Charles L. Vaughan-Lee, January1917–April 1920 * Rear-Admiral Sir Edwyn S. Alexander-Sinclair, April 1920–September 1922 * Vice-Admiral Sir E. Percy F.G. Grant, September 1922–January1925 * Rear-Admiral Rear-Admiral Bertram S. Thesiger, January 1925–May 1927 * Vice-Admiral Leonard A. B. Donaldson, May 1927–May 1931 * Vice-Admiral Sir Henry K. Kitson, May 1931–September 1935 * Vice-Admiral Sir Robert R. Turner, September 1935–November 1940 * Vice-Admiral Sir Marshal L. Clarke, November 1940–November 1945 * Vice-Admiral Sir L. Vaughan Morgan, November 1945–July 1949 * Vice-Admiral William Y. La R. Beverley, July 1949 – October 1951 * Rear-Admiral A. Gordon V. Hubback, October 1951 – October 1954 * Vice-Admiral Jocelyn S.C. Salter, October 1954 – October 1957 * Rear-Admiral John H. Unwin, October 1957 – January 1961 * Rear-Admiral Sir John S.W. Walsham, Bt, January 1961 – January 1964 * Rear-Admiral Joseph L. Blackham, January 1964 – May 1966 * Rear-Admiral Richard C. Paige, May 1966 – July 1968 * Rear-Admiral Arthur M. Power, July 1968 – May 1971 * Rear-Admiral Peter G. La Niece, May 1971 – July 1971

Captain of Portsmouth dockyard, and deputy superintendent

Included:Mackie, Colin, (2017), Royal Navy Senior Appointments, Gulabin, pp. 103-104. * Captain R. Nelson Ommanney, January 1900-March 1903 * Captain George A. Callaghan, October 1903-April 1904 * Captain Francis R. Pelly, April 1904-December 1905 * Captain Alban G. Tate, December 1905-July 1907 * Captain Henry Loftus Tottenham, July 1907-March 1909, * Captain William B. Fawckner, March 1909-February 1912 * Captain Cyril E. Tower, February 1912-June 1916 * Captain Edward H. Moubray, June 1916-May 1918 * Captain Albert C. Scott, May 1918-December 1920 * Captain Charles Tibbits, December 1920-February 1923 * Captain Alfred H. Norman, February 1923-March 1925 * Captain James D. Campbell, March 1925-December 1926 * Captain Alexander R.W. Woods, December 1926-November 1928 * Captain Reginald St. P. Parry, November 1928-January 1931 * Captain Albert J. Robertson, January 1931-February 1933 * Captain Edward B. Cloete, February 1933-May 1935 * Captain William S.F. Macleod, May 1935-December 1936 * Captain Kenneth H.L. Mackenzie, December 1936-March 1939 * Captain Cuthbert Coppinger, March 1939-February 1941 * Captain Irving M. Palmer, February 1941-January 1943 * Captain Walter C. Tancred, January 1943-March 1945 * Captain Edward F.B. Law, March 1945-March 1947 * Captain Cecil R.L. Parry, March 1947-November 1948 * Captain George V.M. Dolphin, November 1948-December 1950 * Captain Peter Skelton, December 1950-October 1953 * Captain P. Unwin, October 1953-October 1954 * Captain John H. Unwin, October 1954-? 1955 * Captain Archibald G. Forman, November 1955-April 1957 * Captain Robin H. Maurice, April 1957-May 1959 * Captain Bertie Pengelly, May 1959-May 1961 * Captain Francis P.Baker, May 1961-May 1963 * Captain John A. Marrack, May 1963-December 1965 * Captain Terence L. Martin, December 1965-November 1967 * Captain Kenneth H. Martin, November 1967-September 1968 * Captain Philip R.G. Smith, September 1968-July 1969 ''Captain of the Port, Portsmouth'' * Captain Kenneth H. Martin, July 1969-May 1971 * Captain Henry E. Howard, May 1971-? 1973 * Captain Stanley W. Clayden, December 1973-March 1975 * Captain John L. Ommanney, April 1975-October 1977 * Captain John R. Grindle, October 1977-February 1979 * Captain Peter A. Pinkster, February 1979-May 1980 * Captain Clifford J. Caughey, May 1980-February 1982 * Captain Anthony R. Wavish, February 1982 – 1984 * Captain Christopher J.T. Chamberlen, July 1984 – 1987 * Captain Richard A. Smith, 1987-November 1989 ''Post existed until 1994 though this is an incomplete list''

References

Citations Sources * Donnithorne, Christopher (2017). Naval Biographical Database. Other Data
http://www.navylist.org/otherdata.htm
* Mackie. Colin (2017). British Armed Forces from 1860. Senior Royal Navy Appointments from 1865: Gulabin. http://www.gulabin.com/. * The National Archives. (1567-1920). Research guides. "Royal Naval dockyard staff". the National Archives. Retrieved 21 March 2017.

External links

Naval Dockyards Society, UK.
{{Admiralty Department, state=collapsed Po Royal Navy 1832 establishments in the United Kingdom 1971 disestablishments in the United Kingdom

History

Office Holders

Captain of Portsmouth dockyard, and deputy superintendent

See also

References

External links