Admiralty
The
Admiralty was formerly the authority in the
United Kingdom responsible for the command of the
Royal Navy. Originally exercised by a single person, the office of
Lord High Admiral was from the
18th century invariably put "in commission", and was exercised by a
Board of Admiralty, officially known as
The Commissioners for Exercising the Office of Lord High Admiral of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, &c. (alternatively of
England,
Great Britain or the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland depending on the period).
In
1964 the functions of the Admiralty were transferred to a new
Admiralty Board, which is a committee of the tri-service
Defence Council of the United Kingdom and part of the
Ministry of Defence. The new Admiralty Board meets only twice a year, and the day-to-day running of the Royal Navy is controlled by a
Navy Board (not to be confused with the historical Navy Board described later in this article). It is now uncommon for the various authorities now in charge of the Royal Navy to be referred to simply as "The Admiralty."
The title of Lord High Admiral of the United Kingdom is now vested in the
Sovereign. However, there continues to be a
Vice-Admiral of the United Kingdom and a
Rear-Admiral of the United Kingdom, both of which are honorary offices.
For information on the administration of the Royal Admiralty, with specific information regarding each of the separate officers and branches see:
Admiralty administration.
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Flag of the Lord High Admiral or the Admiralty |
The office of
Admiral of England, or
Lord Admiral and later
Lord High Admiral was created in around
1400. In
1546 King
Henry VIII established the
Council of the Marine, later to became the
Navy Board, to oversee administrative affairs of the naval service. Operational control of the Navy remained the responsibility of the Lord High Admiral, who was one of the nine
Great Officers of State.
In
1628,
Charles I put the office of Lord High Admiral into commission and control of the Royal Navy passed to a committee in the form of the
Board of the Admiralty. The office of Lord High Admiral passed a number of times in and out of commission until
1709, after which the office was almost permanently in commission (the last Lord High Admiral being the future
King William IV in the early
19th century). .
The members of the Board of Admiralty were known as the
Lords Commissioners of Admiralty. The Lords Commissioners were always a mixture of
admirals, known as Naval Lords or Sea Lords, and civilian lords, normally politicians. The president of the Board was known as the
First Lord of the Admiralty, who was a member of the
Cabinet.
After
1806, the First Lord of the Admiralty was always a civilian, while the professional head of the navy came to be (and is still today) known as the
First Sea Lord.
In
1831 the Navy Board was abolished as a separate entity and its duties and responsibilities were given over to the Board of Admiralty.
In
1964 the Admiralty was subsumed into the Ministry of Defence along with the
War Office and the
Air Ministry. Within the expanded Ministry of Defence are the new
Admiralty Board,
Army Board and
Air Force Board, each headed by the
Secretary of State for Defence. As mentioned above, there is also a Navy Board in charge of the day-to-day running of the Royal Navy.
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The Old Admiralty or Ripley Building. |
The Admiralty complex lies between
Whitehall,
Horse Guards Parade and
The Mall and includes five buildings. As the Admiralty no longer exists as a department, these are now used as an "office bank" by the government:
; The Admiralty: The oldest building, this was long known simply as
The Admiralty, and is now referred to popularly as the
Old Admiralty and officially as the
Ripley Building. It was designed and built by
Thomas Ripley, a former carpenter and protegé of
Sir Robert Walpole, whose creation provoked the scorn of
Alexander Pope:::
See under Ripley rise a new White-hall,::
While Jones' and Boyle's united labours fall.::: —
The Dunciad (1743), book III, ii, 327-8
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The Admiralty complex in 1794. The different colours indicate different departments or residences for the several Lords of the Admiralty. The pale coloured extension behind the small courtyard on the left is Admiralty House. |
It is a three storey u-shaped brick building, and completed in 1726. As Pope implied the architecture is rather dull, lacking either the vigour of the
baroque style which was fading from fashion at the time, or the austere grandeur of the
Palladian style which was just coming into vogue. It is mainly notable for being perhaps the first purpose built office building in Great Britain. It contained a board room, other state rooms and offices and apartments for the Lords of the Admiralty.
Robert Adam designed the screen which was added to the entrance front in 1788. Nowadays the Ripley Building is allocated to the
Cabinet Office and contains government function rooms.
;
Admiralty House: This is a moderately proportioned mansion to the south of the Ripley Building, built in the late 18th century as the residence of the First Lord of the Admiralty, serving that purpose until 1964.
Winston Churchill was one of its occupants. It lacks its own entrance from Whitehall, and is entered through the Ripley Building. It is a three storey building in yellow brick with
neo-classical interiors. Its rear facade faces directly onto Horse Guards Parade. The architect was
Samuel Pepys Cockerell. There are now three ministerial flats in the building [
1].
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The Admiralty Extension (which is also one of the two buildings which are sometimes referred to as the "Old Admiralty") dates from the turn of the 20th century. |
; Old Admiralty Building (or Admiralty Extension): This is the largest of the Admiralty Buildings. It was begun in the late 19th century and redesigned while the construction was in progress to accommodate the extra offices needed due to the naval arms race with the
German Empire. It is red brick building with white stone detailing in the
Queen Anne style with French influences. It is now used by the
Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
;
Admiralty Arch: This is linked to the Old Admiralty Building by a bridge (now unused). In architectural terms, it is part of the ceremonial route from Trafalgar Square to
Buckingham Palace. It contains further offices and three flats for
ex officio use by senior government ministers. The office space is now used by the
Cabinet Office.
; The Admiralty Citadel: This is a squat windowless
World War II fortress north west of Horse Guards Parade, now covered in ivy. See
Military citadels under London for further details.
*London 6: Westminster (from the Buildings of England series) by
Nikolaus Pevsner and Simon Bradley (2003).
Yale University Press ISBN 0300095953.
*
List of Lord High Admirals and First Lords of the Admiralty*
List of Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty*
First Sea Lord*
Second Sea Lord*
Third Sea Lord*
Lord High Admiral of Scotland*
Admiralty administration*
List of British politicians by wealth at death
