The Surveyor-General of the Ordnance was a subordinate of the Master-General of the Ordnance and a member of the

Board of Ordnance The Board of Ordnance was a British government body. Established in the Tudor period, it had its headquarters in the Tower of London. Its primary responsibilities were 'to act as custodian of the lands, depots and forts required for the defence o ...

, a British government body, from its constitution in 1597. Appointments to the post were made by the crown under

Letters Patent Letters patent ( la, litterae patentes) ( always in the plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, president or other head of state, generally granting an office, right, monopoly, tit ...

. His duties were to examine the ordnance received to see that it was of good quality. He also came to be responsible for the mapping of fortifications and eventually of all

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It ...

, through the

Ordnance Survey Ordnance Survey (OS) is the national mapping agency for Great Britain. The agency's name indicates its original military purpose (see ordnance and surveying), which was to map Scotland in the wake of the Jacobite rising of 1745. There was a ...

, and it is this role that is generally associated with surveyor-generalship.

History

The post was for a time held with that of

Chief Engineer A chief engineer, commonly referred to as "ChEng" or "Chief", is the most senior engine officer of an engine department on a ship, typically a merchant ship, and holds overall leadership and the responsibility of that department..Chief engineer ...

, but after 1750 became a political office, with the holder changing with the government of the day. The office was vacant at the time the Board of Ordnance was abolished in 1855, the last holder,

Lauderdale Maule Lauderdale Maule, DL (27 March 1807 – 1 August 1854) was a Scottish soldier, the second son of the Lord Panmure. Life Born at Brechin Castle, he entered the 39th Regiment of Foot as an ensign on 24 August 1825. In 1835, he was promoted t ...

, having died of

cholera Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium '' Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting an ...

in the

Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a p ...

. The

War Office The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD). This article contains text from ...

Act of 1870 revived the office, making the Surveyor-General responsible for all aspects of Army

logistics Logistics is generally the detailed organization and implementation of a complex operation. In a general business sense, logistics manages the flow of goods between the point of origin and the point of consumption to meet the requirements of ...

. The office was filled until 1888, when it was abolished.

Surveyors-General of the Ordnance

*5 February 1538: Henry Johnson *23 January 1549: Anthony Anthony *25 June 1565: Henry Iden *2 December 1568: Thomas Pynner *10 April 1570: ''vacant'' *13 April 1570: William Jurden *21 June 1595: William Partridge *21 June 1598: ''vacant'' *3 February 1599: John Davies (knighted 12 July 1599) *17 July 1602:

John Linewray John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

(knighted 10 July 1604) *11 June 1606: Joseph Earth *5 September 1609: Sir John Kaye *1 May 1624: Richard Kaye *28 November 1624: ''vacant'' *27 September 1625: Sir Alexander Brett *29 October 1627: ''vacant'' *3 December 1627: Sir Thomas Bludder *8 April 1628: Sir Paul Harris (succeeded as 2nd Baronet January 1629) *''Interregnum; post occupied by: ** George Payler, March 1643 to December 1658 **

Elia Palmer Elia is a name which may be a variant of the names Elias, Elijah, Eli or Eliahu, and may refer to: People * Aelia (gens) or Elia, a ''gens'' of Ancient Rome Mononymic * Elia or Elijah, a biblical prophet * Elia, a pen-name of Charles Lamb F ...

, in 1660'' *22 June 1660: Francis Nicholls *28 July 1669 (or before): ''vacant'' *13 November 1669: Jonas Moore I (knighted 28 January 1673) *25 August 1679: Jonas Moore II (II) (knighted 9 August 1680) *13 July 1682: ''vacant'' *29 July 1682: Sir Bernard de Gomme *23 November 1685: ''vacant'' *2 December 1685: Sir Henry Sheer *19 July 1689: John Charlton *29 June 1702: William Bridges *30 October 1714: ''vacant'' *2 December 1714:

Michael Richards Michael Anthony Richards (born July 24, 1949) is an American actor, writer, television producer, and comedian best known for playing Cosmo Kramer on the television sitcom ''Seinfeld''. He began his career as a stand-up comedian, first enterin ...

*5 February 1722: ''vacant'' *10 February 1722: John Armstrong *25 April 1742: ''vacant'' *30 April 1742: Thomas Lascelles *10 April 1750: Charles Frederick *February 1770:

Thomas Desaguliers Lieutenant-General Thomas Desaguliers (5 January 1721 – 1 March 1780) was a British Army general and a Colonel Commandant of the Royal Artillery. Biography Desaguliers was born 5 January 1721, the youngest son of Dr. John Theophilus Desagul ...

*13 May 1782: The Hon. Thomas Pelham *20 May 1783: John Courtenay *22 May 1784: The Hon.

James Luttrell Hon. James Luttrell ( 1751 – 23 December 1788) was an officer in the Royal Navy who served during the American War of Independence and a politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1775 to 1788. Born into a prominent political fami ...

*23 December 1788: ''vacant'' *20 April 1789: The Hon. George Cranfield Berkeley *10 July 1795: Alexander Ross *22 November 1804: James Murray Hadden *20 July 1810:

Robert Moorsom Admiral Sir Robert Moorsom KCB (8 June 1760 – 14 April 1835) was an officer of the Royal Navy who served during the American War of Independence, the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. His very active service career was especial ...

(knighted 2 January 1815) *16 March 1820: Sir Ulysses Bagenal Burgh (succeeded as 2nd Baron Downes 3 March 1826) *18 May 1827: Sir Edward William Campbell Rich Owen *1 April 1828: Sir Herbert Taylor *16 April 1829: Sir Henry Fane *15 January 1831:

William Leader Maberly William Leader Maberly (1798–1885) spent most of his life as a British army officer and Whig politician. Life He was the eldest child of John Maberly (1777–1845), a currier, clothing manufacturer, banker and MP, who had made and lost a fo ...

*4 December 1832:

Charles Richard Fox General Charles Richard Fox (6 November 1796 – 13 April 1873) was a British army general, and later a politician. Background Fox was born at Brompton, the illegitimate son of Henry Richard Vassall-Fox, 3rd Baron Holland, through a liaison wi ...

*30 December 1834:

Lord Edward Somerset General Lord Robert Edward Henry Somerset (19 December 17761 September 1842) was a British soldier who fought during the Peninsular War and the War of the Seventh Coalition. Life Somerset was the third son of Henry Somerset, 5th Duke of Be ...

*25 April 1835: Sir Rufane Shaw Donkin *1 May 1841: ''vacant'' *11 May 1841:

*13 September 1841:

Jonathan Peel Jonathan Peel, PC (12 October 1799 – 13 February 1879) was a British soldier, Conservative politician and racehorse owner. Background and education Peel was the fifth son of Sir Robert Peel, 1st Baronet, and his first wife Ellen (née Yates ...

*14 July 1846:

*3 July 1852: Sir George Henry Frederick Berkeley *18 January 1853: The Hon.

*1 August 1854: ''vacant''; duties performed by the

Lieutenant-General of the Ordnance The Lieutenant-General of the Ordnance was a member of the British Board of Ordnance and the deputy of the Master-General of the Ordnance. The office was established in 1545, and the holder was appointed by the crown under letters patent. It ...

, Sir Hew Dalrymple Ross *6 June 1855: ''abolished'' *5 August 1870: Sir Henry Storks *26 February 1874: Lord Eustace Cecil *1 June 1880: Sir John Miller Adye *17 January 1882: Henry Robert Brand *27 June 1885: Guy Dawnay *6 February 1886: William Woodall *4 August 1886: Sir Henry Northcote The office was abolished in 1888.

References

*http://www.history.ac.uk/publications/office/ordnance-surveyor {{DEFAULTSORT:Surveyor-General Of The Ordnance Senior appointments of the British Army War Office History of the British Army