East Indies Station
Encyclopedia
The East Indies Station was a formation of the British Royal Navy
from 1865 to 1941.
From 1831 to 1865 the East Indies and the China Station
were a single command known as the East Indies and China Station
. The East Indies Station, established in 1865, covered the Indian Ocean
(excluding the waters around the Dutch East Indies
, South Africa
and Australia
) and included the Persian Gulf
and the Red Sea
. These responsibilities did not imply territorial claims but the navy would actively protect Britain's trading interests.
The East Indies Station had bases at Colombo
, Trincomalee
, Bombay, Basra
and Aden
. In response to increased Japan
ese threats, the separate East Indies Station was merged with the China Station
in December 1941 to form the Eastern Fleet.
Commander-in-Chief, East Indies & Cape of Good Hope Station
Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
from 1865 to 1941.
From 1831 to 1865 the East Indies and the China Station
China Station
The China Station was a historical formation of the British Royal Navy. It was formally the units and establishments responsible to the Commander-in-Chief, China....
were a single command known as the East Indies and China Station
East Indies and China Station
The East Indies and China Station was a formation of the British Royal Navy from 1831 to 1865.-History:The Station was formed in 1831; it ceased to exist when it was separated into the East Indies Station and the China Station in 1865. Its area covered the Indian Ocean and the coasts of China and...
. The East Indies Station, established in 1865, covered the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
(excluding the waters around the Dutch East Indies
Dutch East Indies
The Dutch East Indies was a Dutch colony that became modern Indonesia following World War II. It was formed from the nationalised colonies of the Dutch East India Company, which came under the administration of the Netherlands government in 1800....
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
) and included the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
and the Red Sea
Red Sea
The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...
. These responsibilities did not imply territorial claims but the navy would actively protect Britain's trading interests.
The East Indies Station had bases at Colombo
Colombo
Colombo is the largest city of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, the capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo is often referred to as the capital of the country, since Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is a satellite city of Colombo...
, Trincomalee
Trincomalee
Trincomalee is a port city in Eastern Province, Sri Lanka and lies on the east coast of the island, about 113 miles south of Jaffna. It has a population of approximately 100,000 . The city is built on a peninsula, which divides the inner and outer harbours. Overlooking the Kottiyar Bay,...
, Bombay, Basra
Basra
Basra is the capital of Basra Governorate, in southern Iraq near Kuwait and Iran. It had an estimated population of two million as of 2009...
and Aden
Aden
Aden is a seaport city in Yemen, located by the eastern approach to the Red Sea , some 170 kilometres east of Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000. Aden's ancient, natural harbour lies in the crater of an extinct volcano which now forms a peninsula, joined to the mainland by a...
. In response to increased Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese threats, the separate East Indies Station was merged with the China Station
China Station
The China Station was a historical formation of the British Royal Navy. It was formally the units and establishments responsible to the Commander-in-Chief, China....
in December 1941 to form the Eastern Fleet.
Commanders-in-Chief
Commanders-in-Chief have included:Commander-in-Chief, East Indies & Cape of Good Hope Station
- Commodore Frederick MontresorFrederick MontresorAdmiral Frederick Byng Montresor was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, East Indies & Cape of Good Hope Station.-Naval career:Montresor was made a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy in 1835...
(1865) - Commodore Charles HillyarCharles HillyarAdmiral Sir Charles Farrell Hillyar KCB was a Royal Navy admiral who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, China Station.-Naval career:...
(1865-1867)
Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station
- Rear Admiral Leopold HeathLeopold HeathVice Admiral Sir Leopold George Heath KCB was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station.-Naval career:...
(1867-1870) - Rear Admiral James CockburnJames Cockburn (Royal Navy officer)Rear Admiral James Horsford Cockburn was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station.-Naval career:...
(1870-1872) - Rear Admiral Arthur CummingArthur Cumming (Royal Navy officer)Admiral Sir Arthur Cumming KCB was an officer of the Royal Navy. He was born in Nancy, France to Sir Henry Cumming, a general in the British Army and received naval education at the Royal Naval College in Portsmouth...
(1872-1875) - Rear Admiral Reginald MacdonaldReginald MacdonaldAdmiral Sir Reginald John James George Macdonald KCB KCSI was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station.-Naval career:...
(1875-1877) - Rear Admiral John CorbettJohn Corbett (Royal Navy officer)Admiral Sir John Corbett KCB was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station.-Naval career:...
(1877-1879) - Rear Admiral William Gore JonesWilliam Gore JonesAdmiral William Gore Jones CB was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station.-Naval career:...
(1879-1882) - Rear Admiral William HewettWilliam Nathan Wrighte HewettVice Admiral Sir William Nathan Wrighte Hewett VC, KCB, KCSI was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.-Life:Hewett was born at Brighton to Dr. William Hewett,...
(1882-1885) - Rear Admiral Frederick RichardsFrederick RichardsAdmiral of the Fleet Sir Frederick William Richards GCB was the British First Naval Lord from 1893 to 1899.-Early life:...
(1885-1888) - Rear Admiral Edmund FremantleEdmund FremantleAdmiral Sir Edmund Robert Fremantle GCB CMG was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth.-Naval career:...
(1888-1891) - Rear Admiral Frederick RobinsonFrederick Robinson (Royal Navy officer)Vice Admiral Frederick Charles Bryan Robinson was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station.-Naval career:...
(1891-1892) - Rear Admiral William KennedyWilliam Kennedy (Royal Navy officer)|-...
(1892-1895) - Rear Admiral Edmund DrummondEdmund Drummond (Royal Navy officer)Admiral Edmund Charles Drummond was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station.-Naval career:...
(1895-1898) - Rear Admiral Archibald DouglasArchibald Lucius DouglasAdmiral Sir Archibald Lucius Douglas, GCB, GCVO was a Royal Navy officer of the 19th century.-Naval career:Douglas was born in Quebec City in pre-Confederation Canada in 1842...
(1898-1899) - Rear Admiral Day BosanquetDay BosanquetAdmiral Sir Day Hort Bosanquet GCVO, KCB was the Governor of South Australia from 18 February 1909 until 22 March 1914.-Naval career:Born in Alnwick in Northumberland, Bosanquet joined the Royal Navy in 1857...
(1899-1902) - Rear Admiral Charles DruryCharles Carter DruryAdmiral Sir Charles Carter Drury, GCB, GCVO, KCSI was a Canadian Royal Navy Admiral who went on to be Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel.-Naval career:...
(1902-1903) - Rear Admiral George Atkinson-WillesGeorge Atkinson-WillesAdmiral Sir George Lambart Atkinson-Willes KCB was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station.-Naval career:...
(1903-1905) - Rear Admiral Edmund PoëEdmund PoëAdmiral Sir Edmund Samuel Poë GCVO KCB was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, East Indies station.-Naval career:Educated at the Royal Naval Academy, Gosport, Poë joined the Royal Navy in 1862....
(1905 - 1907) - Rear Admiral Sir George WarrenderSir George Warrender, 7th BaronetVice-Admiral Sir George John Scott Warrender of Lochend, 7th Baronet KCB KCVO was a senior officer in the Royal Navy during World War I.-Early career:...
(1907-1909) - Rear Admiral Edmond SladeEdmond SladeAdmiral Sir Edmond John Warre Slade KCVO, KCIE was a British rear-admiral and a director of the Naval Intelligence Division...
(1909-1912) - Rear Admiral Alexander BethellAlexander BethellAdmiral The Hon. Sir Alexander Edward Bethell GCMG KCB was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth.-Naval career:...
(1912) - Rear Admiral Richard PeirseRichard Peirse (Royal Navy officer)Vice Admiral Sir Richard Henry Peirse KCB MVO was a senior Royal Navy officer during World War I.-Naval career:Peirse joined the Royal Navy and, in 1885, developed a new naval director which was to become the fire-control system used in all ships with large guns...
(1913-1915) - Rear Admiral Rosslyn WemyssRosslyn Wemyss, 1st Baron Wester WemyssAdmiral of the Fleet Rosslyn Erskine Wemyss, 1st Baron Wester Wemyss GCB, CMG, MVO , known as Sir Rosslyn Wemyss between 1916 and 1919, was a British naval commander...
(1916-1917) - Rear Admiral Ernest GauntErnest GauntAdmiral Sir Ernest Frederick Augustus Gaunt KBE , a native of Australia, was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief of the Western Approaches.-Naval career:...
(1917-1919) - Rear Admiral Hugh TothillHugh TothillAdmiral Sir Hugh Henry Darby Tothill KCB KCMG KCVO was a Royal Navy officer who served as Captain in World War I and went on to become Commander-in-chief of East Indies Station following his promotion to Admiral.-History:...
(1919-1921) - Rear Admiral Lewis Clinton-BakerLewis Clinton-BakerAdmiral Sir Lewis Clinton-Baker KCB KCVO CBE was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station.-History:...
(1921-1923) - Rear Admiral Herbert RichmondHerbert RichmondAdmiral Sir Herbert William Richmond KCB was a prominent naval officer, who also served as Vere Harmsworth Professor of Imperial and Naval History at Cambridge University and Master of Downing College, Cambridge...
(1923-1925) - Rear Admiral Walter EllertonWalter EllertonAdmiral Walter Maurice Ellerton CB was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station.-Naval career:...
(1925-1927) - Rear Admiral Bertram ThesigerBertram ThesigerAdmiral Sir Bertram Sackville Thesiger KBE CB CMG was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station.-Naval career:...
(1927-1929) - Rear Admiral Eric FullertonEric FullertonAdmiral Sir Eric John Arthur Fullerton KCB DSO was a British Royal Navy officer.-Naval career:Fullerton was the second son of Admiral Sir John Fullerton and entered the Royal Navy himself in 1892 as a Cadet in HMS Britannia. He was promoted Sub-Lieutenant in 1899 and Lieutenant in 1900...
(1929-1932) - Rear Admiral Martin Dunbar-Nasmith (1932-1934)
- Vice Admiral Forrester RoseForrester RoseVice Admiral Sir Forrester Rose KCB DSO was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station.-Naval career:...
(1934-1936) - Vice Admiral Alexander Ramsay (1936-1938)
- Vice Admiral James SomervilleJames SomervilleAdmiral of the Fleet Sir James Fownes Somerville GCB, GBE, DSO was one of the most famous British Admirals of World War II.-Early career:...
(1938-1939) - Admiral Sir Ralph LeathamRalph LeathamAdmiral Sir Ralph Leatham KCB was a Royal Navy officer who served as Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth during World War II.-Naval career:...
(1939-1941)