The vice-admiralties of the coast
were
posts established in each of the twenty maritime counties of
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, the North and South of
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
, and the four provinces of
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
. The officer holders, designated as "vice-admirals", were responsible for naval administration in their county, and were deputies of
Lord High Admiral.
A vice-admiral's responsibilities included, deciding the
lawfulness of prizes captured by
privateer
A privateer is a private person or ship that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or deleg ...
s, dealing with salvage claims for wrecks, acting as a
judge and
implementing the role of the Impress Service. The earliest record of an appointment was of
William Gonson
Vice-Admiral Sir William Gonson
(1482–1544), was a Naval Judge and Naval Administrator of the English Royal Navy who served under King Henry VIII.
Biography
Career
During the Tudor Period William Gonson's early career was as a private Mer ...
as Vice-Admiral of
Norfolk
Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...
and
Suffolk in 1536.
From around 1560, vice-admirals of the coasts acquired a more public profile than they had enjoyed previously. In the second half of the sixteenth century they increasingly received orders from the
privy council. In 1561, apparently for the first time,
the Crown
The Crown is the state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, overseas territories, provinces, or states). Legally ill-defined, the term has different ...
addressed instructions directly to the vice-admirals. In 1660 their function came under the remit of the
Board of Admiralty.
There are also a few examples of the title
Vice-Admiral of the West. It is not however clear whether this was a separate appointment or possibly some incorrect use of an older title being applied to the holders of the Cornwall or
Devon
Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...
post.
List of vice-admiralties
England
*
Vice-Admiral of Cheshire
The holder of the post Vice-Admiral of Cheshire was responsible for the defence County of Cheshire, England. As a Vice-Admiral, the post holder was the chief of naval administration for his district. His responsibilities included pressing men f ...
*
Vice-Admiral of Cornwall (including the
Isles of Scilly)
*
Vice-Admiral of Cumberland
*
Vice-Admiral of Devon
*
Vice-Admiral of Dorset
*
Vice-Admiral of Durham
*
Vice-Admiral of Essex
*
Vice-Admiral of Gloucester
*
Vice-Admiral of Hampshire
The Vice-Admiral of Hampshire was responsible for the defence of the county of Hampshire, England.
History
As a vice-admiral, the post holder was the chief of naval administration for his district. His responsibilities included pressing men fo ...
(including the
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight ( ) is a Counties of England, county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the List of islands of England#Largest islands, largest and List of islands of England#Mo ...
)
*
Vice-Admiral of Kent
*
Vice-Admiral of Lancashire
This is a list of people who have served as Vice-Admiral of Lancashire.
;Lancashire and Cheshire
*Edward Stanley, 3rd Earl of Derby bef. 1569–1572
*Henry Stanley, 4th Earl of Derby 1573–1593
*Ferdinando Stanley, 5th Earl of Derby 1593–15 ...
*
Vice-Admiral of Lincolnshire
*
Vice-Admiral of Norfolk
*
Vice-Admiral of Northumberland
*
Vice-Admiral of Somerset
*
Vice-Admiral of Suffolk
S, or s, is the nineteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ess'' (pronounced ), plural ''esses''.
Histor ...
*
Vice-Admiral of Sussex
*
Vice-Admiral of Westmorland
*
Vice-Admiral of Yorkshire
Wales
*
Vice-Admiral of North Wales
*
Vice-Admiral of South Wales
The Vice-Admiral of South Wales was responsible for the coastal defence of South Wales.
History
As a vice-admiral, the post holder was the chief of naval administration for his district. His responsibilities included pressing men for naval serv ...
*
Vice-Admiral of Carmarthen
*
Vice-Admiral of Pembroke
Scotland
*
Vice-Admiral of Scotland
The Lord High Admiral of Scotland was one of the Great Officers of State of the Kingdom of Scotland before the Union with England in 1707.
The office was one of considerable power, also known as ''Royal Scottish Admiralty'', including command ...
*
Vice-Admiral of Orkney and Shetland
*
Vice-Admiral of the Western Coast
Ireland
*
Vice-Admiral of Ireland
*
Vice-Admiral of Connaught
*
Vice-Admiral of Leinster
*
Vice-Admiral of Munster
*
Vice-Admiral of Ulster
This is a list of the vice-admirals of Ulster, a province in the north of Ireland.
Prior to 1585, the whole of Ireland was served by a single vice-admiral, namely: the 3rd Earl of Sussex (1558–1565); the 11th Earl of Kildare (1564–1573); an ...
References
External links
Lists of post holders for each county are to be found as follows:
1558-1660
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vice-Admirals of the Coast
*
*