Reserve Fleet (United Kingdom)

Reserve Fleet
	Ships of the Royal Navy reserve fleet in Portsmouth (1954)
Active	c. 1700–1960
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	Royal Navy
Type	Fleet
Garrison/HQ	Portsmouth

The Reserve Fleet was a Royal Navy formation of decommissioned vessels which could be brought to a state of readiness at time of war.

In the early years of the 18th century ships were "laid up in ordinary" at various British naval bases so establishing the Reserve Fleet as a repository for serviceable but decommissioned ships.[1]

The Reserve Fleet was brought to readiness for the First World War.[2] It continued to exist in the inter-war years but in 1930 the Admiralty reduced it in size on the basis that war was unlikely in the ensuing 10 years (the Government's Ten Year Rule).[3] At the start of the Second World War the Reserve Fleet, under the command of Vice Admiral Sir Max Horton,[4] was again brought to a state of readiness.[5] Some 15,000 men were called up in May 1939 to man the Reserve Fleet which became ready for service on 15 June 1939.[6] During the 1950s ships were regularly 'cocooned' for the Reserve Fleet[7] and it ceased to exist in 1960.[8]

Commanding admirals

Admirals commanding included:[9]

1919–1920 Vice-Admiral Sir Henry Oliver
1920–1922 Vice-Admiral Sir Richard Phillimore
1922–1923 Vice-Admiral Sir Douglas Nicholson
1923–1924 Vice-Admiral Sir William Goodenough
1924–1926 Vice-Admiral Sir Victor Stanley
Mar – Oct 1926 Vice-Admiral Sir Rudolph Bentinck
1926–1928 Vice-Admiral Sir Hugh Watson
1928–1929 Vice-Admiral Sir William Boyle
1929–1930 Vice-Admiral Percival Hall-Thompson
1930–1932 Vice-Admiral Sir Frank Larken
1932–1934 Vice-Admiral Sir William Kerr
1934–1935 Vice-Admiral Edward Astley-Rushton
1935–1937 Vice-Admiral Sir Gerald Dickens
1937–1939 Vice Admiral Sir Max Horton

command then disbanded until 1944

Flag Officers commanding

Included:[10]

1944–1945 Rear-Admiral Charles Harris
1945–1947 Rear-Admiral Leslie Ashmore
1947–1948 Rear-Admiral Reginald Servaes
1948–1951 Vice-Admiral Sir Robin Bridge
1951–1953 Vice-Admiral Sir Henry McCall
1953–1954 Vice-Admiral Sir Ian Campbell
1954–1955 Vice-Admiral Sir John Eaton
1955–1956 Vice-Admiral Sir Peter Cazalet
1956–1958 Vice-Admiral Sir Richard Onslow
1958–1959 Vice-Admiral Sir Guy Sayer
1959–1960 Rear-Admiral John Grant

Reserve divisions

Subordinate officers included[11][12]

Rear Admiral Commanding Portsmouth Reserve

Rear-Admiral Edward F. Bruen, 1 February 1919 – 23 April 1919
Rear-Admiral Cole C. Fowler, 23 April 1919 – 23 April 1920
Rear-Admiral Clement Greatorex, 23 April 1920 – 1 October 1921
Rear-Admiral Edmond H. Parker, 1 October 1921

Rear Admiral Commanding Devonport Reserve

Rear-Admiral Douglas R. L. Nicholson, 1 February 1919 – 18 March 1919
Rear-Admiral James A. Fergusson, 18 March 1919 – 9 April 1919
Rear-Admiral Maurice Woollcombe, 9 April 1919 – 9 April 1920
Rear-Admiral Philip H. Colomb, 9 April 1920
Rear-Admiral Charles D. Johnson, 9 April 1921

Captain Commanding

Captain Alfred A. Ellison, 16 May 1922 – 1 November 1922
Captain Rowland H. Bather, 15 April 1922 – 1 July 1922 (temporary)
Captain John E. Cameron, 1 November 1922 – April, 1924
Captain Herbert A. Buchanan-Wollaston, 25 July 1927 – 17 April 1928
Captain Edward B. Cloete, 3 November 1929 – 4 May 1931

Rear Admiral Commanding Nore Reserve

Rear-Admiral A. Thomas Hunt, 1 February 1919 – 8 March 1919
Rear-Admiral Henry L. Mawbey, 17 March 1919 – 17 March 1920
Rear-Admiral Vivian H. G. Bernard, 17 March 1920 – 17 March 1921
Rear-Admiral William J. S. Alderson, 17 March 1921 – 15 April 1922

Captain Commanding Nore Reserve

Captain Lawrence W. Braithwaite, 24 April 1925 – 17 August 1926
Captain Arthur L. Snagge, c. 1927
Captain Claude C. Dobson, 17 October 1931 – 17 October 1933
Captain Richard M. King, 17 October 1933 – 16 January 1935 (and as Captain of Cardiff)
Captain Hamilton C. Allen, 16 January 1935 – 24 July 1935
Captain John H. Young, 1 October 1935 – 1 September 1936

Vice-Admiral/Rear Admiral Commanding Rosyth Reserve

Vice-Admiral Sir Trevylyan D. W. Napier, 1 February 1919 – 1 May 1919
Rear-Admiral Charles F. Corbett, 1 May 1919 – 1 May 1920
Rear-Admiral Crawford Maclachlan, 1 May 1920
Captain Henry P. Boxer, 28 January 1937 – 1 June 1938

Rear Admiral Commanding Portland Reserve

Rear-Admiral Sir Douglas R. L. Nicholson, 1 November 1919 – 1 April 1920

Vice-Admiral Reserve Fleet destroyers

Vice-Admiral Commanding

Vice-Admiral Sir R. H. T. Balkes (1939-1945) (retired)

References

Pinnock, William (2012). The Guide to Knowledge, Volume 1. Rare Books Club. p. 420. ISBN 978-1153734462.
"Admiral of the Fleet Sir John Fisher, 1st Baron Fisher of Kilverstone 1841–1920". National Archives. Archived from the original on 20 November 2008. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
Moretz, p. 82
"Reserve Fleet". Orbat. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
"Britain's Reserve Fleet 1939". British Pathe. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
"Maritime War-The British Shore Organisation". The War at Sea. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
"Reserve Fleet 1950". British Pathe. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
"Royal Navy Maintenance and Supply Ships". Royal Navy Ships. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
Senior Royal Navy Appointments Archived 15 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine
"Naval Commands and Flag Officers (Hansard, 10 April 1946)". hansard.millbanksystems.com. Hansard, vol 421 cc1897-9. Retrieved 15 February 2018.
Harley, Simon; Lovell, Tony. "Reserve Fleet (Royal Navy)". dreadnoughtproject.org. The Dreadnought Project.Org, 5 September 2016. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
Mackie, Colin. "Royal Navy Senior Appointments from 1865" (PDF). gulabin.com. Colin Mackie, pp.143-144, December 2017. Retrieved 29 December 2017.

Sources

Moretz, Joseph (2002). The Royal Navy and the Capital Ship in the Interwar Period: An Operational Perspective. Routledge. ISBN 978-0714651965.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.

[1] Pinnock, William (2012). The Guide to Knowledge, Volume 1. Rare Books Club. p. 420. ISBN 978-1153734462.

[2] "Admiral of the Fleet Sir John Fisher, 1st Baron Fisher of Kilverstone 1841–1920". National Archives. Archived from the original on 20 November 2008. Retrieved 23 September 2012.

[3] Moretz, p. 82

[4] "Reserve Fleet". Orbat. Retrieved 23 September 2012.

[5] "Britain's Reserve Fleet 1939". British Pathe. Retrieved 23 September 2012.

[6] "Maritime War-The British Shore Organisation". The War at Sea. Retrieved 23 September 2012.

[7] "Reserve Fleet 1950". British Pathe. Retrieved 23 September 2012.

[8] "Royal Navy Maintenance and Supply Ships". Royal Navy Ships. Retrieved 23 September 2012.

[9] Senior Royal Navy Appointments Archived 15 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine

[10] "Naval Commands and Flag Officers (Hansard, 10 April 1946)". hansard.millbanksystems.com. Hansard, vol 421 cc1897-9. Retrieved 15 February 2018.

[11] Harley, Simon; Lovell, Tony. "Reserve Fleet (Royal Navy)". dreadnoughtproject.org. The Dreadnought Project.Org, 5 September 2016. Retrieved 1 November 2016.

[12] Mackie, Colin. "Royal Navy Senior Appointments from 1865" (PDF). gulabin.com. Colin Mackie, pp.143-144, December 2017. Retrieved 29 December 2017.

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