Rod Colyer
 

There was much change in the Commissioners of the Navy during the reigns of Charles II and James II.

James II, at the close of his reign, entrusted the supreme command of the fleet to George Legg, Lord Dartmouth, who may be regarded as the first of the Admirals of the Fleet. Arthur Herbert, Earl of Torrington, took his place after the Revolution. But as yet there was no regular succession; and the position was an office rather than a rank.

George Rooke, was made Admiral of the Fleet in 1696. Rooke was followed in 1705 by Sir Clowdisley Shovell, who perished in 1707. Sir John Leake, Kt., was appointed to the post in 1708 and Matthew Aylmer, afterwards Lord Aylmer, in 1709. Then it was Leake again. Then Aylmer. Both of them died in 1720 and it was not until after that time that flag officers were permanently promoted to the rank of Admiral of the Fleet. Nor, until 1718, was it ordered that Captains, if duly qualified for flag-rank, should be promoted by seniority. Yet already the Navy List had begun to assume much of the character which now distinguishes it. From the year of the Restoration there was an official recognition of the seniority of captains, according to the dates of their first commissions as such. This naturally tended to the encouragement of a spirit of professional pride and to the maintenance of Naval tradition.

From about the year 1667 the separate and subordinate rank of Master and Commander began to be conferred. Robert Best, appointed "Captain and Master" of the Orange Tree on September 18th, 1667 is usually supposed to have been the first to receive this commission.  From the Revolution there exist lists of Captains, Masters and Commanders, and Lieutenants, according to their seniority and from the commencement of the eighteenth century or thereabouts such lists appeared from time to time in printed form.

One dated April 18th, 1700, and issued from the Admiralty in the following July, is entitled, "A List of the Names of such Lieutenants who served in His Majesty's Fleet during the late War, One hundred whereof will from time to time be entitled to Half-Pay, during their being out of Employment a-shoar, according to their Seniorities, and His Majesty's Establishment in that behalf."

Among the Lieutenants who figure in this list, and of whom the junior is Thomas Matthews, later the gallant but unfortunate commander-in chief in the Mediterranean, there are many who are noted as 'In the Merchant Service,' or as 'Had Leave given him lately to go another Voyage in the Merchant Service', etc. Several are returned as serving as 'Midshipman Extra'.  From these statements we get a glimpse of the existence of an evil which has always afflicted the Naval service after the conclusion of any great war - the difficulty of obtaining employment.

Another list is made up of Captains' and Commanders' Lists, dated August 18th, 1704, and a third list is 'A List of the Names of such Captains who Served in His Majesty's Fleet, during the late War, Fifty whereof, will from time to time be Entitled to Half-Pay, during their being out of Employment on Shoar, according to their Seniority, and His Majesty's Establishment in that behalf' also dated 18th August, 1700. It is noteworthy that several Captains in this list are returned as serving at the time as Lieutenants in various ships of his Majesty. Thus, John Balchen, afterwards the Admiral Sir John Balchan who went down in the Victory in 1744, though a Captain of July 25th 1697, is said to be doing duty as First Lieutenant of the Burford.

Until 1814 there was, using terms in their modern sense, no official Navy List. For many years previously there had been published at intervals on behalf of the Admiralty, lists of Flag officers, Captains, Commanders and Lieutenants. These, which were very well printed on the best quality of thick paper, swelled - towards the close of the long wars - to bulky volumes which are commonly met with in red morocco bindings and with gilt edges and which must have been very costly. They showed merely the seniority and dates of commissions of officers of the ranks in question and gave no other information whatsoever. To supplement them, Mr D Steel, a publisher, of Union Row, Minories, caused to be compiled and issued periodically a pamphlet which, at its first appearance in 1780 was entitled 'Complete List of the Royal Navy.' This originally included nothing beyond a list of ships with the number of their guns, the names of their Commanders and letters indicating whether the vessels were in commission, out of commission, or only in process of building. It consisted of no more than a dozen very small pages, and cost sixpence.

But it quickly grew and as early as the end of 1781, it also gave the stations of ships in commission, and a list of men-of-war taken by or
from the enemy. It next began to chronicle the names of officers of Commodore's rank and upwards who from time to time perished in the service of their country. In 1782 it added the date of launch or acquirement to the other information concerning each ship, and gave lists of the Lords of the Admiralty, Commissioners of the Navy, etc., and Navy Agents. So it progressed, coming out monthly in time of war and quarterly during peace, and, at length, increasing its price to a shilling for the edition on common, and to eighteen pence for the edition on fine paper.

Towards the close of the war it contained an immense mass of useful intelligence, and extended to sixty pages or upwards of closely-printed matter. It then comprised not only the information given in the earlier issue, but also lists of Flag-officers, Captains, Commanders, Lieutenants, Masters, Surgeons, and officers of the Royal Marines.

But Steel's Navy Lists, though very accurate and trustworthy, were not official and it was not until the beginning of 1814 that any list giving the kind of information to be found in Steel was published by authority. The Navy List which was then begun and which has continued to the present time, seems to have been originally compiled, under Admiralty direction, by a Mr Finlaison and was issued by Mr John Murray who remained its publisher for more than seventy years.

The 1999 Navy List has 9 sections and an index. Section one covers the Royal Family, the Defence Council and the Admiralty Board. Section two lists alphabetically all officers of the RN, Royal Marines, QARNNS, and RFA officers. Section three gives the seniority lists of officers on the Active List for RN, RM and QARNNS. Section four gives key RN personnel, Attaches, and Advisers, including Interpreters. Section five lists ships and units of the Fleet and establishments, plus RFA ships. Section six an alphabetical list of key addresses. Section seven Honorary officers in the Reserve's in alphabetical listing, again covering RN, RM, but including the Sea Cadet Corps and Combined Cadet Force. Section eight gives obituaries and section nine identifies all abbreviations in use in the Navy List. Last but not least there is an index to quickly find whatever you are looking for.

Source: The History of the Royal Navy Vol.2 by William Laird Clowes.

RN Index

Last updated 21.04.02ef