Assistant Chief of Naval Staff
The Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff was a Royal Navy officer directly responsible to the First Sea Lord for non-operational divisions of the Naval Staff, and held a position on the Board of Admiralty. The position was created in 1917 as one of two deputies with Board Status to whom the First Sea Lord delegated responsibility for the running of the Naval Staff. The position still exists today on the Admiralty Board which directs the Royal Navy.
History
Rear-Admiral Alexander L. Duff was appointed Assistant Chief of Naval Staff on 31 May, 1917.[1] The duties of the Assistant Chief of Naval Staff, shared with the First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff and the Deputy Chief of Naval Staff, were defined in the Board's distribution of business of 27 June as:
Operations of War: All large Questions of Naval Policy and Maritime Warfare.
Fighting and Sea-going Efficiency of the Fleet and its Organisation; Distribution and Movements of all Ships in Commission and in Reserve.
Superintendence of the Naval Staff and the Hydrographic Department.
Naval Communications.[2]
The above might be misleading, however, for on 24 June specific duties, hitherto unpublished, had been assigned to the Assistant Chief of Naval Staff by Admiral Sir John R. Jellicoe, First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff. These are given in the Duties section.
The Assistant Chief of Naval Staff ceased to be a member of the Board on 22 April, 1929.[3]
Duties
| 24 June, 1917.[4] |
|---|
| 1. Relieve the C.N.S. of all routine matters dealt with by sections under his immediate direction. |
| 2. General anti-submarine operations, except those in the North Sea area and in the Dover command, which come under the D.C.N.S., |
| 3. Protection of trade, except as under (5) and (6) of D.C.N.S. [See Deputy Chief of Naval Staff.] |
| 4. Anti-submarine protection of all troop and hospital ships and ships on Government Service. |
| 5. Control on anti-submarine craft, auxiliary patrols, and other forces necessary for the work under headings (2), (3) and (4). This includes aircraft used primarily for anti-submarine work, except those in the Dover command and on the East Coast of Great Britain. |
| 6. Minesweeping. |
| 7. Convoys: their organisation and working. |
| NOTE. Certain cruisers will be allocated to mercantile convoy duty by C.N.S. and they should not be taken for any other service without reference to him.[5] |
- Vice-Admiral Sir Alexander L. Duff, 14 May, 1917[6] – 23 July, 1919[7]
- Rear-Admiral James A. Fergusson, 24 July, 1919[8] – 15 March, 1920[9]
- Rear-Admiral Sir A. Ernle M. Chatfield, 15 March, 1920[10] – 1 December, 1922[11]
- Rear-Admiral Cyril T. M. Fuller, 1 December, 1922[12]
- Rear-Admiral Arthur K. Waistell, 15 May, 1923[13]
- Rear-Admiral Frederic C. Dreyer, 9 October, 1924[14] – 21 April, 1927[15]
- Rear-Admiral A. Dudley P. R. Pound, 21 April, 1927[16][17] – 21 April, 1929[18]
- Rear-Admiral Wilfred Tomkinson, 22 April, 1929[19][20]
- Rear-Admiral John K. im Thurn, 27 March, 1931[21][22] – 28 February, 1933[23]
- Rear-Admiral Sidney R. Bailey, 28 February, 1933[24] – 2 July, 1934[25]
- Rear-Admiral Charles E. Kennedy-Purvis, 2 July, 1934[26][27] – 2 October, 1936[28]
Geoffrey Blake was also reported to have held this position.[Fact Check]
- Frederick A. Buckley, 6 December, 1921[29] – 15 January, 1923[30]
Alfred H. Taylor may have held this post at some point.[Fact Check]
Footnotes
- ↑ Duff Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 80.
- ↑ The National Archives. ADM 116/3392.
- ↑ The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. p. 117.
- ↑ "War Staff Duties." Jellicoe Papers. British Library. Add. MS. 48992. ff. 94-95.
- ↑ "War Staff Duties." Jellicoe Papers. British Library. Add. MS. 48992. f. 95.
- ↑ Duff Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 80.
- ↑ Duff Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. p. 80.
- ↑ The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. p. 123.
- ↑ Fergusson Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/43 f. 199.
- ↑ The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. p. 123.
- ↑ Chatfield Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/43. f. 346.
- ↑ The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. p. 123. Exact date inferred from Chatfield Service Record.
- ↑ The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. p. 123.
- ↑ The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. p. 123.
- ↑ Dreyer Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/44. f. 156.
- ↑ The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. p. 123.
- ↑ Pound Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/44. f. 294.
- ↑ Pound Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/44. f. 294.
- ↑ The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. p. 123.
- ↑ Tomkinson Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/44. f. 375.
- ↑ "Naval, Military, and Air Force" (Official Appointments and Notices). The Times. Friday, 24 April, 1931. Issue 45805, col G, p. 6.
- ↑ Im Thurn Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/90. f. 188.
- ↑ Im Thurn Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/90. f. 188.
- ↑ "The Services" (Official Appointments and Notices). The Times. Monday, 30 January, 1933. Issue 46355, col E, p. 16.
- ↑ Bailey Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/47/15. f. 218.
- ↑ "The Services" (Official Appointments and Notices). The Times. Tuesday, 14 August, 1934. Issue 46832, col F, p. 7.
- ↑ Kennedy-Purvis Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/49. f. 31.
- ↑ Kennedy-Purvis Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/49. f. 31.
- ↑ Buckley Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51. f. 10/1098.
- ↑ Buckley Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/51. f. 10/1098.
Bibliography
- Naval Staff, Training and Staff Duties Division (1929). The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. Its Work and Development. B.R. 1845 (late C.B. 3013). Copy No. 8 at The National Archives. ADM 234/434.
