Difference between revisions of "Selborne Scheme"

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<blockquote>[A] tendency on the part of the parents of some of the cadets at Osborne to hope at least that their sons might never become Lieutenants (E), with no chance of commanding ships or fleets, and I have a suspicion that, that for this reason, they have in some cases even discouraged their sons in their engineering studies.<ref>Quoted in Marder.  p. 47.</ref></blockquote>
 
<blockquote>[A] tendency on the part of the parents of some of the cadets at Osborne to hope at least that their sons might never become Lieutenants (E), with no chance of commanding ships or fleets, and I have a suspicion that, that for this reason, they have in some cases even discouraged their sons in their engineering studies.<ref>Quoted in Marder.  p. 47.</ref></blockquote>
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==Reactions==
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Speaking before the [[Douglas Committee]] in 1906, Admiral [[Lewis Anthony Beaumont|Sir Lewis A. Beaumont]], [[Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth]], opined:
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<blockquote>The  fundamental change which has been brought about by the common entry has already disturbed the Service in a great measure, and, speaking for myself, I do not think that it has the good will of the Service generally.  I do not mean the common entry alone, but what follows from common entry.<ref>ADM 116/832.  p. 127.</ref></blockquote>
  
 
==Assessment==
 
==Assessment==

Revision as of 16:45, 29 September 2012

Captain Rosslyn Wemyss of Osborne noted in a 1905 letter to Fisher:

[A] tendency on the part of the parents of some of the cadets at Osborne to hope at least that their sons might never become Lieutenants (E), with no chance of commanding ships or fleets, and I have a suspicion that, that for this reason, they have in some cases even discouraged their sons in their engineering studies.[1]

Reactions

Speaking before the Douglas Committee in 1906, Admiral Sir Lewis A. Beaumont, Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth, opined:

The fundamental change which has been brought about by the common entry has already disturbed the Service in a great measure, and, speaking for myself, I do not think that it has the good will of the Service generally. I do not mean the common entry alone, but what follows from common entry.[2]

Assessment

There can be no doubt that there was strong opposition to the Selborne scheme. However, what Marder termed "objections of a snobbish nature" aside, it is also clear that much opposition was based on incorrect information regarding the scheme. It is all very well for Marder to damn "people who had not informed themselves as to the real nature of the Admiralty scheme",[3] but it suggests a real failure on the part of the Admiralty to present the case for and the details of the Selborne Scheme not only to the public but to the Navy itself.

Footnotes

  1. Quoted in Marder. p. 47.
  2. ADM 116/832. p. 127.
  3. Marder. p. 47.

Bibliography

  • Marder, Arthur J. (1961). From the Dreadnought to Scapa Flow, The Royal Navy in the Fisher Era, 1904-1919: The Road to War, 1904-1914. Volume I. London: Oxford University Press.