Frederick Hamilton (Royal Navy officer)
Encyclopedia
Admiral Sir Frederick Tower Hamilton GCVO
KCB
(8 March 1856 – 4 October 1917) was a senior Royal Navy
officer who went on to be Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel
.
in 1869 as a cadet on the training ship Britannia
. He fought in Naval Brigade
in the Zulu War
in 1879, for which service he was mentioned in despatches. After promotion to Lieutenant he specialised into the Torpedo Branch and in 1884 after training was appointed a staff officer at the Torpedo Schoolship Vernon. In 1892 he was promoted to commander
and given command of the battleship
HMS Hood
. He was Aide-de-Camp to the King
between 1906 and 1907.
At the outset of World War I
he was Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel
and was promoted to full Admiral
in June 1916. He went on to be Commander-in-Chief, Rosyth
later that year but died suddenly from a heart attack in 1917 and is buried in Fife
.
He lived at Anmer Hall near King's Lynn
in Norfolk
.
.
He married Maria Walpole Keppel, the daughter of Admiral Sir Henry Keppel
; they went on to have two sons and two daughters. Their elder son was Admiral Sir Louis Keppel Hamilton
.
Royal Victorian Order
The Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood and a house order of chivalry recognising distinguished personal service to the order's Sovereign, the reigning monarch of the Commonwealth realms, any members of her family, or any of her viceroys...
KCB
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(8 March 1856 – 4 October 1917) was a senior Royal Navy
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...
officer who went on to be Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel
Second Sea Lord
The Second Sea Lord and Commander-in-Chief Naval Home Command , commonly just known as the Second Sea Lord , is one of the most senior admirals of the British Royal Navy , and is responsible for personnel and naval shore establishments.-History:In 1805, for the first time, specific functions were...
.
Naval career
Hamilton joined the Royal NavyRoyal 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...
in 1869 as a cadet on the training ship Britannia
HMS Prince of Wales (1860)
HMS Prince of Wales was one of six 121-gun screw-propelled first-rate three-decker line-of-battle ships of the Royal Navy. She was launched on 25 January 1860...
. He fought in Naval Brigade
Naval Brigade
A Naval Brigade is a body of sailors serving in a ground combat role to augment land forces.-Royal Navy:Within the Royal Navy, a Naval Brigade is a large temporary detachment of Royal Marines and of seamen from the Royal Navy formed to undertake operations on shore, particularly during the mid- to...
in the Zulu War
Anglo-Zulu War
The Anglo-Zulu War was fought in 1879 between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom.Following the imperialist scheme by which Lord Carnarvon had successfully brought about federation in Canada, it was thought that a similar plan might succeed with the various African kingdoms, tribal areas and...
in 1879, for which service he was mentioned in despatches. After promotion to Lieutenant he specialised into the Torpedo Branch and in 1884 after training was appointed a staff officer at the Torpedo Schoolship Vernon. In 1892 he was promoted to commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
and given command of the battleship
Battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
HMS Hood
HMS Hood (1891)
The second warship to be named HMS Hood was a modified Royal Sovereign-class battleship of the Royal Navy, and the last of the eight built. She differed from the Royal Sovereign class in that she had cylindrical gun turrets instead of barbettes, a lower freeboard and a higher metacentric height...
. He was Aide-de-Camp to the King
Edward VII of the United Kingdom
Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...
between 1906 and 1907.
At the outset of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
he was Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel
Second Sea Lord
The Second Sea Lord and Commander-in-Chief Naval Home Command , commonly just known as the Second Sea Lord , is one of the most senior admirals of the British Royal Navy , and is responsible for personnel and naval shore establishments.-History:In 1805, for the first time, specific functions were...
and was promoted to full Admiral
Admiral
Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. It is usually considered a full admiral and above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet . It is usually abbreviated to "Adm" or "ADM"...
in June 1916. He went on to be Commander-in-Chief, Rosyth
Flag Officer Scotland, Northern England, Northern Ireland
The Flag Officer Scotland, Northern England and Northern Ireland is a senior post in the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom. It is based at HM Naval Base Clyde and the holder of the post is the Royal Navy’s senior officer in Scotland with representational duties everywhere north of the M4. The...
later that year but died suddenly from a heart attack in 1917 and is buried in Fife
Fife
Fife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...
.
He lived at Anmer Hall near King's Lynn
King's Lynn
King's Lynn is a sea port and market town in the ceremonial county of Norfolk in the East of England. It is situated north of London and west of Norwich. The population of the town is 42,800....
in Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
.
Honours and awards
- 21 November 1903 - During the visit of the King to Malta Captain Frederick Tower Hamilton, Royal Navy, Flag Captain to Commander-in-Chief, Malta was appointed a Member of the Royal Victorian Order.
- 9 November 1908 - Rear-Admiral Frederick Tower Hamilton, MVO, is promoted to be a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order
- 1 January 1913 - Vice-Admiral Frederick Tower Hamilton, CVO, is appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
Family
Frederick was the nephew of the geologist and MP William John HamiltonWilliam John Hamilton
William John Hamilton, FRS was an English geologist.He was the son of William Richard Hamilton , and was educated at Charterhouse School and the University of Göttingen. He became a fellow of the Geological Society of London in 1831...
.
He married Maria Walpole Keppel, the daughter of Admiral Sir Henry Keppel
Henry Keppel
Admiral of the Fleet Sir Henry Keppel, GCB, OM was a British admiral, son of the 4th Earl of Albemarle and of his wife Elizabeth, daughter of Lord de Clifford.-Naval career:...
; they went on to have two sons and two daughters. Their elder son was Admiral Sir Louis Keppel Hamilton
Louis Keppel Hamilton
Admiral Sir Louis Henry Keppel Hamilton KCB, DSO was a senior Royal Navy officer who was Flag Officer in Malta and later served as First Naval Member & Chief of Staff of the Royal Australian Navy. During his early career he was generally known as L. H...
.