Chapter XXI: Appendix: II

SYNOPSIS OF LORD FISHER’S CAREER.

_Born January 25, 1841, at Rambodde, Ceylon._

Son of Captain William Fisher, 78th Highlanders, A.D.C. to the Governor of Ceylon, and Sophia, daughter of A. Lambe, of New Bond Street, and granddaughter of Alderman Boydell. His godmother was Lady Wilmot Horton, wife of the Governor of Ceylon; and his godfather Sir Robert Arbuthnot, Commanding the Forces in Ceylon.

_Entered the Royal Navy, June 13, 1854._

Received a nomination for the Navy from Admiral Sir William Parker, the last of Nelson’s Captains. Joined his first ship, the “Victory,” at Portsmouth, on July 12, 1854. The “Victory” was also the last ship to fly his flag as an Admiral, October 20, 1904.

Served in Russian War, in Baltic (Medal) in “Calcutta” 84 guns.

Served in the China War, 1856–60, including the capture of Canton and Peiho Forts. (China Medal, Canton and Taku Clasps.) Given command of a small vessel by Admiral Sir James Hope, Commander-in-Chief, the “Coromandel,” of which he was acting Captain at the age of 19.

Also served in “Highflyer,” Captain Shadwell; “Chesapeake,” Captain Hilles; and “Furious,” Captain Oliver Jones. Returned home in 1861 from the China Station.

_Lieutenant, November 4, 1860._

In passing for Lieutenant, he won the Beaufort Testimonial; and was advanced to Mate on January 25, 1860, and confirmed as Lieutenant within eleven months.

_March 28, 1863._

Appointed to H.M.S. “Warrior,” Captain the Hon. A. A. Cochrane, the first seagoing ironclad, for gunnery duties. Served in her for three and a half years.

_November 3, 1866._

Appointed to the Staff of H.M.S. “Excellent,” gunnery schoolship, Portsmouth, Captain Arthur W. A. Hood.

_August 2, 1869._

Promoted to Commander, and appointed to the China flagship.

_September 19, 1872._

On returning from China in H.M.S. “Ocean,” was appointed to “Excellent” for Torpedo Service. Started the “Vernon” as a Torpedo Schoolship. Visited Fiume to arrange for the purchase of the Whitehead Torpedo.

_October 30, 1874._

Promoted to Captain, and re-appointed to “Excellent” for torpedo service and instructional duties, remaining until 1876.

_November 16, 1876._

Appointed for special service in “Hercules,” flagship of Vice-Admiral the Hon. Sir James Drummond, Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean.

_March 15, 1877._

Appointed Flag-Captain to Admiral Sir A. Cooper-Key, Commander-in-Chief, North American Station, in the “Bellerophon.”

_June 7, 1878._

Appointed Flag-Captain to Admiral Sir A. Cooper-Key, Commanding the Particular Service Squadron, in the “Hercules.”

_January 1, 1879._

Appointed in command of the “Pallas,” corvette, on Mediterranean Station, returning home in July. President of a Committee for the revision of the “Gunnery Manual of the Fleet.”

_September 25, 1879._

Appointed Flag-Captain to Vice-Admiral Sir Leopold M’Clintock, Commander-in-Chief, North American Station, in the “Northampton.”

_January 18, 1881._

Appointed to command the “Inflexible,” the largest ship in the Navy.

_July 11, 1882._

Took part in the bombardment of Alexandria. Afterwards landed with the Naval Brigade at Alexandria. Arranged for the first “armoured train,” and commanded it in various skirmishes with the enemy.

_August 14, 1882._

Awarded the C.B. for service at Alexandria; also Egyptian Medal, with Alexandria Clasp; Khedive’s Bronze Star; Order of Osmanieh, 3rd Class; etc.

_November 9, 1882._

Invalided home through illness contracted on active service.

_April 6, 1883._

Appointed in command of “Excellent,” gunnery schoolship.

_1884._

Collaborated with Mr. W. T. Stead in the production of “The Truth About the Navy,” resulting in increased Navy Estimates and the opening of a new era in the provision of an adequate Fleet.

_November 1, 1886._

Appointed Director of Naval Ordnance, occupying this post four and a half years. Carried out the transfer of the control of naval ordnance from the War Office to the Admiralty.

_August 2, 1890._

Promoted to Rear-Admiral.

_May 21, 1891._

Appointed Admiral-Superintendent of Portsmouth Dockyard. Expedited the completion of the “Royal Sovereign,” first of a new type of battleships. Acted as host when the French Squadron under Admiral Gervais visited the Dockyard, 1891.

_February 1, 1892._

Appointed Third Sea Lord and Controller of the Navy, and served in the administrations of Lord George Hamilton, Earl Spencer, and Mr. G. J. Goschen as First Lords; and Admirals Sir A. Hood, Sir A. H. Hoskins and Sir F. W. Richards as First Sea Lords. During this period the firm stand of the Admiralty Board brought about the resignation of Mr. Gladstone, March 3, 1894.

_May 26, 1894._

Appointed K.C.B.

_May 8, 1896._

Promoted to Vice-Admiral.

_August 24, 1897._

Hoisted his flag in H.M.S. “Renown” as Commander-in-Chief, North American Station.

_1899._

Attended the first Hague Peace Conference as Naval Delegate.

_July 1, 1899._

Appointed Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean Station, with his flag in the “Renown,” remaining in this post until June 2nd, 1902. Admiral Lord Beresford, Second-in-Command, says of this period in his “Memoirs”: “While Vice-Admiral Sir John Fisher was Commander-in-Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet, he greatly improved its fighting efficiency. As a result of his representations, the stocks of coal at Malta and Gibraltar were increased, the torpedo flotillas were strengthened, and the new breakwaters at Malta were begun. Some of Sir John Fisher’s reforms are confidential; but among his achievements which became common knowledge, the following are notable: From a 12-knot Fleet with breakdowns, he made a 15-knot Fleet without breakdowns; introduced long range target practice, and instituted the Challenge Cup for heavy gun shooting; instituted various war practices for officers and men; invited, with excellent results, officers to formulate their opinions upon cruising and battle formation; drew up complete instructions for torpedo flotillas; exercised cruisers in towing destroyers and battleships in towing one another, thereby proving the utility of the device for saving coal in an emergency; and generally carried into execution Fleet exercises based, not on tradition, but on the probabilities of war.”

_1900._

Received from the Sultan of Turkey the 1st Class of the Order of Osmanieh.

_November 2, 1901._

Promoted to Admiral.

_June 5, 1902._

Returned to the Admiralty as Second Sea Lord, remaining until August 31, 1903, with Lord Selborne, First Lord, and Admiral Lord Walter Kerr, First Sea Lord.

_June 26, 1902._

Appointed G.C.B. in the Coronation Honours List.

_December 25, 1902._

Launched new scheme of naval entry and education for officers, with training colleges at Osborne and Dartmouth.

_May 2, 1903._

Made his first public speech at the Royal Academy Banquet.

_August 31, 1903._

Appointed Commander-in-Chief at Portsmouth, in order to supervise personally the inauguration of his new education scheme at Osborne College. Also energetically promoted the formation and development of the first British submarine flotilla.

_November 7, 1903._

Appointed member of Committee with Lord Esher and Colonel Sir George Clarke (Lord Sydenham) to reorganise the War Office on the lines of the Admiralty Board.

_October 21, 1904._

Appointed First Sea Lord in Lord Selborne’s administration, and held this office for five years and three months, the period of his greatest activity and his preparation for a war with Germany. Some of the more notable of his many reforms are dealt with in his “Memories.”

Also appointed, October 21, 1904, First and Principal Naval Aide-de-Camp to King Edward VII.

_December 6, 1904._

Admiralty Memorandum on the Distribution of the Fleet, introducing nucleus crew system for ships in reserve, and withdrawing obsolete craft from foreign stations.

_January, 1905._

Committee appointed to inquire into the reorganisation of the dockyards.

_March 6, 1905._

Appointment of Rear-Admiral Percy Scott to newly-created post of Inspector of Target Practice. By this and other means, including the service of Captain J. R. Jellicoe as Director of Naval Ordnance, the marksmanship of the Navy was vastly improved.

_December 4, 1905._

Awarded the Order of Merit, and promoted by Special Order in Council to be an additional Admiral of the Fleet, thus giving him five more years on the active list in order to carry out his policy.

_February 10, 1906._

Launch of the “Dreadnought,” the first all-big-gun and turbine-driven battleship, as recommended by the Admiralty Committee on Design presided over by the First Sea Lord (Sir John Fisher).

_November, 1906._

Establishment of the Naval War College at Portsmouth.

_January, 1907._

Institution of a service of Fleet Auxiliaries--ammunition and store ships, distilling and hospital ships, fleet repair ships, fishing trawlers as, mine sweepers, etc., etc., etc., etc.,

_March, 1907._

Creation of a new Home Fleet, with the “Dreadnought” as flagship for service in the North Sea.

_August, 1907._

New scheme of advancement and pay of naval ranks and ratings introduced.

_September, 1907._

Establishment of a wireless telegraphy branch, and installation erected on the Admiralty building.

_November 9, 1907._

Speech at the Lord Mayor’s Banquet, assuring his countrymen that they could sleep quietly in their beds, and not be disturbed by invasion bogeys.

_June, 1908._

Visited Reval with King Edward and Queen Alexandra on their visit to the Tsar of Russia. Awarded G.C.V.O. on the conclusion of this cruise.

_June 17, 1908._

Created honorary LL.D. of Cambridge University.

_June, 1909._

Entertained delegates to Imperial Press Conference at a review of the Fleet at Spithead, and a display of submarines, etc.

_December 7, 1909._

Raised to the peerage as Baron Fisher of Kilverstone, in the County of Norfolk, after the manor bequeathed to his only son by the late Mr. Josiah Vavasseur, C.B.

_January 25, 1910._

Retired from office of First Sea Lord, and was succeeded by Admiral of the Fleet Sir Arthur Wilson, but remained a member of the Committee of Imperial Defence. Recording his retirement in the First Lord’s Memorandum, dated March 4, 1910, Mr. Reginald McKenna said: “The measures which are associated with his name and have been adopted by several successive Governments will prove of far-reaching and lasting benefit to the Naval Service and the country.”

_March 10, 1910._

Took the oath and his seat in the House of Lords.

_May 24, 1912._

Visited at Naples by Mr. Churchill (the new First Lord) and Mr. Asquith (Prime Minister).

_July 30, 1912._

Appointed Chairman of the Royal Commission on Oil Fuel and Oil Engines for the Navy.

_September 7, 1914._

Appointed Honorary Colonel of the First Naval Brigade, Royal Naval Division.

_October 30, 1914._

Recalled to the Admiralty as First Sea Lord.

_December 8, 1914._

Victory of Admiral Sir Doveton Sturdee over Admiral Count von Spee, due to the prompt dispatch from England of two battle-cruisers immediately on receipt of the news of the Coronel disaster. This was the most decisive battle of the war, the German force being practically annihilated.

_January 24, 1915._

Action of Sir David Beatty off the Dogger Bank, and sinking of the “Blücher” another striking success of the battle-cruiser design.

_May 15, 1915._

Resignation as First Sea Lord over the Dardanelles question.

_July 5, 1915._

Appointed Chairman of the Board of Invention and Research.

_November 16, 1915._

First speech in House of Lords, in reference to Mr. Churchill’s speech on the previous day, following the latter’s resignation from Cabinet.

_March 21, 1917._

Second speech in House of Lords, declaring his refusal to discuss Dardanelles report during the war.

Awarded the Grand Cordon, with Paulownia, of the Japanese Order of the Rising Sun.

_May 5, 1919._

Speech at the luncheon to Mr. Josephus Daniels, U.S. Naval Secretary.

_October 21_ (Trafalgar Day), _1919._

Publication of “Memories.”

_December 8_ (Falkland Islands Day), _1919._

Publication of “Records.”

FOOTNOTES

[1] _Was that our Sea Policy during the War?_ Did we not keep our Fleet in cotton wool?

[2] These mottoes were painted up in my first ship, and I have had them in every ship I have commanded since.

[3] ONE SAMPLE OUT OF MANY.--“Lord Tweedmouth and Mr. Robertson, having tasted blood in their reduction of this year’s Estimates, are about to strike a blow at the vital efficiency of the Navy. But what are we to think of the naval officers on the Admiralty Board, men who cannot plead the blindness and ignorance of their civilian colleagues? No one knows better than Sir John Fisher the real nature and the inevitable consequences of those acts to which he is a consenting party. And we are not speaking at random when we assert that more than any one man, the responsibility and the guilt for those reductions lies at his door.” (The _Globe_, 21 Sept. 1906.)

[4] This was written in October, 1906.

[5] Not reprinted.

[6] There are two alternative schemes which may possibly be preferred to this.

[7] The “Pegasus” was massacred at Zanzibar by the Germans!--F. 1919.

[8] For these predictions, see Letter to Lord Esher of (?) Jan., 1904 “Memories,” p. 173.

[9] See below, p. 181.

[10] Only this morning (November 5th, 1919), I have arranged to deal with the drawings of a proposed Submersible Battleship carrying many Big Guns, and clearly a practicable production.

[11] NOTE.--For steam raising 3 tons of oil are only equivalent to 4 tons of coal.

[12] The War stopped this.--F. 1919.

[13] This was said in 1910, and Mr. Asquith did leave office as here predicted, in November, 1916, six years afterwards! And Sir John Jellicoe took command of the Grand Fleet forty-eight hours before war was declared, and the war with Germany did break out as predicted in 1914!

[14] These are the five Battle Cruisers built on my return to the Admiralty in 1914–1915.

[15] This 18-in. gun was ordered by me without any of the usual preliminary trials or any reference to any Gunnery Experts whatever. The credit of its great success is due to Major Hadcock, Head of the Elswick Ordnance Manufacturing Department, who also designed the 20-in. gun for the fast Battleship Type which was to have been built had I remained at the Admiralty in May, 1915.

A model of this 20-in. gun Battle Cruiser of 35 knots speed, was got out before I left the Admiralty--three days more they would have started building.

[16] See Chapter XV.

[17] The Foreign Office would not permit an efficient blockade, and the outrageous release of vessels carrying war-helping cargoes caused intense dissatisfaction in the fleet. No vessels ever passed our chain of Cruisers without detention and examination.

[18] See Chapter XI.

INDEX

A

Action, 45

Adams, John Couch, 21

Admiralty House, Portsmouth, King Edward’s visit to, 24, 25

Admiralty policy: replies to criticisms, 98 _et seq._

Alcester, Lord, 30

Alderson, General, 54

Alexandria, bombardment of, 63, 256

Allan, Sir William, 88

Allenby, Lord, 241

American advance on Verdun, 246

Animated biscuits, 8

Arabi Pasha, 30

Arbuthnot, Sir Robert, 261

Archbishop and the pack of cards, the, 32

Armoured trains, institution of, 30

Ascension, the, 45

Asquith, Rt. Hon. H. H., 65, 179, 194, 214, 222, 242, 247, 269

Augé, M., 59

Automatic dropping mines for ocean use, 223–224

Aylesford, Lord, 3

B

Bacon, Admiral Sir Reginald, 128, 181;
on the big gun, 204–206

Baker, Mrs., Lord Fisher’s cook, 25;
invited to Buckingham Palace by King Edward, _ibid._

Balfour, Rt. Hon. A. J., 56, 65, 98

Balliol College, Oxford, 2

Baltic project, the, 217 _et seq._, 236, 241

Battle hymn of the American Republic, the, 77, 78

Beatty, Earl, 269

Beaufort Testimonial, won by Lord Fisher, 255

Beaumont, Admiral Sir Lewis, 30

Beilby, Sir George, 66

Benbow, Sir Henry, letter of, to Lord Fisher, 171

Beresford, Admiral Lord Charles, on training of officers and men for
the Navy, 167–170;
265

Bethmann-Hollweg, Herr von, 247

Bible, the, and other reflections, 38 _et seq._;
Wyclif’s translation, 43;
Tyndale’s, _ibid._;
Coverdale’s, 44;
Authorised, _ibid._;
Revised, _ibid._;
Cranmer’s “Great Bible,” _ibid._

Big gun, the, 204 _et seq._

Birthday Honours List a serial novel, 73

Black, Dr. Hugh, 38, 39, 77

Boar, Mr., 128

Board of Invention and Research, 193, 269

Bodmin, ancestral home of the Fishers, 3

Borden, Sir Robert, and hereditary titles in Canada, 72

Borkum, 245

Bourke, Mr. Maurice, 95

Boydell, Alderman, 1, 261

Boys, training of, for the Navy, 166

Brampton, Lord, 26, 31, 33

Brest, blockade of, 6

Bright, John, 69, 70

British submarines before and during the war, 186

Brodrick, Mr., 83

Browning, Sir Thomas, 201

Brutality in the Navy, former, 10

Buonaparte, Napoleon, Archbishop Whately, on, 100

Burnham, the first Lord, 31, 32, 33

“Buying up opportunities,” 61 _et seq._

Byron, Lord, 4

C

Cabman’s retort to the Admiral, the, 52

Campbell-Bannerman, Rt. Hon. Sir Henry, 31, 32, 51, 53

Canada and hereditary titles, Sir Robert Borden on, 73

Cape Observatory, the, 124

Capri, 41

Cawdor, Lord, 98

Cawdor memorandum, the, 107, 117

Childers, Rt. Hon. Hugh, 56, 139

China Seas, an Admiral’s unique manner of surveying, 9

Chinese, the ingenious, 9

Christmas Day joys on a man-of-war, 22

Churchill, Rt. Hon. Winston, 86, 179, 188, 191, 192, 194, 230, 269,
270

Clarke, Sir George, 266

Claverhouse, 78

Clemenceau, M., 240

Clive, Lord, 74

Coastguard, service, the, 120 _et seq._

Cochrane, Captain the Hon. A. A., 262

Collingwood, Admiral, 90, 92

Commerce, the submarine and, 183–185

Common entry into the Navy, 156 _et seq._

Congreve, William, 92

Cooper-Key, Admiral Sir A., 262

Corbett, Sir Julian, 34

Cornwallis, Admiral, 6, 90

Coronel, 261

Coverdale, Miles, 42, 43, 44

Cowdray, Lord, 196

Cranmer’s Bible, 43, 44

Cromwell, Thomas, 42, 43, 44

Currie, General, 74

Curzon, Earl, 193

D

Dalby, Prof., 193

Daniels, Mr. Josephus, 79;
report on oil-burning battleships, 203, 270

Davies, Mr., American dentist to the Kaiser, 75

Dawson, Sir Trevor, 189

Defects and repairs, 112 _et seq._

Democracy, 69 _et seq._

Deterding, Mr., 200, 201

Devonport, Viscount, 247

Diesel, Dr., 197

Dilke, Sir C., 102

Disraeli, Mr., 20

Diving methods of the Chinese, 9

Dogger Bank, 269

“Dreadnought” and “Invincible,” the, 109

Dreadnought battle cruiser, the, 232–233

Drumclog, 78

Drummond, Admiral the Hon. Sir James, 262

E

Eardley-Wilmot, Admiral Sir Sydney, 210

Edison, Mr., 21

Edmunds, Mr. Henry, 21, 22

Empress of Russia, Dowager, 29

“Equal opportunity for all,” 71 _et seq._

Esher, Lord, 11, 53, 173, 266

Essentials of sea fighting, the, 88 _et seq._

F

Falkland Islands, 66

Fisher Baronetcy, lapse of, 2

Fisher’s career, Lord, synopsis of, 255 _et seq._

Fisher, Sir Clement, 2, 3

Fisher, John, 2

Fisher, Rev. John, of Bodmin, 3;
four generations of, 4

Fisher, Mr. John Arbuthnot, 5

Fisher, Sir Robert, of Packington, 3

Fisher, Sir Robert, 4

Fisher, William, father of Lord Fisher, 261

Fisher, Mary, wife of Lord Aylesford, 3

Fisher motto, the, 2

Fiume, 256

“Fleet Street” conspiracy, a, 101

Foch, Marshal, 246

Forgiveness, 49

“Free Tank Day,” a, 22

Frederick the Great and the Seven Years’ War, 217, 218

Freedom of the seas nonsense, 75

French, Lord, 247

Friedland-Eylau campaign, 221

Friend, Lord Fisher’s letter to a, 76

Fushishima, Prince, 227

G

Gallifet, General, 31

Gard, Mr., 128

Gardiner, Mr. A. G., 11

Gaunt, John of, 96

Geddes, Sir Eric, 67, 246

German Emperor, the, 227, 230

German submarine menace, the, 65, 242

Gervais, Admiral, 264

Ginsburg, Dr., letter from Lord Fisher to, 41

Gladstone, Rt. Hon. W. E., final resignation of, 50 _et seq._, 264

Goodenough, Commodore, 211

Gould, Sir F. C., 36

Goschen, Rt. Hon. G. J., 264

Gracie, Mr., 128

Grafton, Richard, printer of the 1539 Bible, 38

Grant, Sir Hope, 17

Graves, Admiral, 7

“Great Silent Navy,” the, 95, 96

Greenwich Observatory, 124

Gunboat, the use of the, 116 _et seq._

Gunning, Miss, wife of two dukes and mother of four, 5, 6

H

Hadcock, Major A. G., 210, 233

Hamilton, Duke of, 5

Hamilton, Lady, 1, 6

Hamilton, Lord George, 54, 264

Hankey, Sir Maurice P. A., 173;
letter to Lord Fisher, 214–215;
letter of Lord Fisher to, 244

Hanotaux, M., 250

Harcourt, Lord, 53

Harcourt, Rt. Hon. Sir William, 51, 52, 53

Hawke, Admiral, Capt. A. T. Mahan on, 91

Hawkins, Sir Henry, _see_ Brampton, Lord

Hay, General, commandant of the Hythe School of Musketry, 17, 18

Heligoland Bight, a Naval Officer, on the battle of, 230, 245

Henderson, Wilfrid, 128

Hereditary titles out of date, 73;
Canada and, _ibid._

Hicks-Beach, Rt. Hon. Sir Michael, 51

Hilles, Captain, 261

Hole, Dean, 65

Hood, Captain Arthur W. A., 262

Hood, Sir H., 262, 264

Hope, Sir James, 14, 15, 261

Hopkins, Sir John, 170;
letter of, to Lord Fisher, _ibid._

Horton, Lady Wilmot, 4, 261

Hoskins, Sir A. H., 264

Hostile submarines, 183

House of Lords, Lord Fisher’s speech in, November, 1915, 86;
March 21, 1917, 87

How the Great War was carried on, 64 _et seq._

Howe, Julia Ward, 77

Hunger and thirst the way to Heaven, 10

Huxley, T. H., 42

Hythe School of Musketry, the, 17

I

Incarnation of Revolution, Lord Fisher as the, 20

Inge, Dean, 28, 47, 48

Ireland under military law, 31

J

Jackson, Sir Henry, 128

Jellicoe, Viscount, 128, 214, 215, 223, 226, 242, 243, 247, 267

Joffre, General, 247

“Jolly and Hustle,” 58 _et seq._

Jonah’s Gourd, 97 _et seq._

Jones, Captain Oliver, 15, 16, 17, 261

K

Keble, John, 19

Kelvin, Lord, 21, 61, 62, 63

Kerr, Lord Walter, 265

Kiel Canal, 214, 236, 237, 240

King Edward, 4, 24;
characteristic thoughtfulness of, 25–27;
his friendship for Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman, 32;
57, 60, 180, 227, 266, 268

King William IV, 1

Kitchener, Lord, 54, 229, 243, 247

Knollys, Lord, 24

Knox, Sir Ralph, 55

Krupp, 196, 197, 199

L

Labouchere, Mr. Henry, 31, 32

Lambe, A., grandfather of Lord Fisher, 261

Lambe, Sophia, mother of Lord Fisher, 261

Lane, Jane, 2

Latimer, Bishop, 211

Laurier, Sir Wilfrid, 73

Law, Rt. Hon. Bonar, 244

League of Nations nonsense, 75

Lectures to officers of the Fleet, 89 _et seq._

“Let ’em all come,” 81

Lethbridge, Captain, 11

Leverrier, Urbain, 21

Lloyd George, Rt. Hon., 77;
letter from Lord Fisher to, 222–223; 230

Lloyd’s, 125

Lochee, Lord, _see_ Robertson, Mr. Edmund

“Loop Detection” scheme, the, 67

Lord Mayor’s Banquet 1907, the, Lord Fisher’s speech at, 83

Loreburn, Lord, 31

Lucy, Sir Henry, 36, 37

M

M’Clintock, Admiral Sir Leopold, 263

McCrea, Admiral, 59

McKechnie, Sir James, 189

McKenna, Rt. Hon. Reginald, 268

McLaughlin, A. C., Professor of History at Chicago, 69, 73, 74

Madden, Admiral, 128

Mahan, Capt. A. T., 90, 91;
on Nelson, 135

Marienbad, 29, 30, 32, 34, 36

Marlborough, Duke of, 74

Masterton-Smith, Sir J. E., 34

Memorandum on “Oil and its Fighting Attributes,” 200

Men, training of, for the Navy, 166

Mercantile Marine, the, 125

Midleton, Lord, _see_ Brodrick, Mr.

Midshipman and the Admiral, the, Mr. A. G. Gardiner’s story of, 11, 12

Midshipmen’s food, 6

Midshipmen past and present, comparison between, 7, 8

Miller, Captain, 11

Mitchell, Dr. Weir, 46

Mons, 246

“Monstrous” cruisers, the, 230, 232

Montecuccoli, Admiral Count, Austrian Minister of Marine, 180

Moresby, Admiral J., 248

Morley, Rt. Hon. John, on the Navy, 1893, 135

Morley, Lord, “Life of Gladstone,” 50

Motto, a Fisher, 2

N

Napoleon, 74, 129;
Friedland-Eylau campaign, 221;
231

Napoleon III, 179

Nargen, Island of, 8

National Lifeboat Institution as substitute for Coastguard, 123

Naval base reforms, 249 _et seq._

Naval candidate’s essay, a, 171–172

Naval captain and cavalry colonel, 17

Naval education, 156 _et seq._

Naval officer, a, on the battle of Heligoland Bight, 230

Navigation, ignorance of, in the Navy, 19

Navy, common entry into, 156 _et seq._

Navy in the war, the, 225 _et seq._

Nelson, 1, 6, 19, 81, 83, 129, 231, 232;
Capt. A. T. Mahan on, 135;
at Toulon, 136

Northbrook, Lord, 30

Nucleus crews, 147

O

Observatories, 124 _et seq._

Obsolete vessels, purging the Navy of, 139 _et seq._

Officers, training of, for the Navy, 166;
Lord Charles Beresford on, 167–170

Oil and oil engines, 189 _et seq._

Oil-burning battleships, Mr. Josephus Daniels’ report on, 203

Organisation for war, 133

Osborne system of Naval education, 7, 157, 248

“Out of date” fighting ships, 130

P

Paganini, 164

Page-Roberts, Dr., Dean of Salisbury, 49

Pakenham, Admiral, 110, 208

Parker, Admiral Sir William, last of Nelson’s captains, nominates
Lord Fisher for the Navy, 4, 261

Parkes, Mr. Oscar, 208

Parsons, Hon. Sir Charles, 66, 197

Peace, 74, 75

Pechili, Gulf of, 16

Penniless, friendless and forlorn, Lord Fisher’s entry into the Navy,
10

Plumer, General, 173

Pope, the, and Tyndale, 43, 44

Pre-war prophecy, a, 227

Public speeches, 79 _et seq._

Purging the Navy of obsolete vessels, 139 _et seq._

Q

Queen Alexandra, her kindly disposition, 26;
28, 29, 268

Queen Elizabeth, 135

Queen Elizabeth of Bohemia, 34

Queen Victoria, 30, 55

R

Rambodde, Ceylon, Lord Fisher’s birthplace, 255

Redesdale, Lord, 25, 26

Redmond, John, 31

Redmond, William, 31

Redundant dockyard workmen, discharge of, 56, 57

Resentment, 46

Retrospect, a (July, 1906), 150 _et seq._

Reval, 268

Rhodes, Cecil, 28

Richards, Sir Frederick, 50, 51;
cabman’s retort to, 52;
264

Ridley, Bishop, 211

Riga, 236

Ripon, Lord, 53

Roberts, Lord, 36

Robertson, Mr. Edmund, 98, 101 _n._

Robertson, Rev. F. W., of Brighton, 46, 47, 49

Robertson, Sir W., 247

Rombulow-Pearse, Lieut., 159

Royal Academy Banquet, 1903, the, Lord Fisher’s speech at, 79

Royal Dutch-Shell Combination, the, 201

Royal Marines, Lord Charles Beresford on the, 168–169

Rozhdestvensky, Admiral, 207

Rumbold, Sir H. G. M. (Ambassador at Vienna), 31, 33

Russell, Lord, 31, 32, 33

Russian catastrophe, the reason of the, 228

Russian War, the, 1854–5, 8

S

Saintly Naval captain, a, 12, 13, 14

Salisbury, Lord, 54, 55, 88

Salt-beef snuff-box, a, 10

Samuel, Sir Marcus, 193

Sankey, Mr., 77

Satanic captain, a, 15

Scapa Flow, 225–226, 243

Schwab, Mr., 187

Schwarzhoff, General Gross von, 55

Science, contempt for, in the Navy, 19

Scott, Admiral Percy, 80, 81, 267

Sea of Japan, battle of, 111

Sea-gull, a delicacy, 16

Secrecy and secretiveness, 93 _et seq._

Selborne, Lord, 101;
letter of Sir John Fisher to, 127; 265, 266

Seven Years’ War, the, 217, 218, 222

Shadwell, Captain, 12, 13, 14, 261

Shadwell, Sir Lancelot, last Vice-Chancellor of England, 12

Shand, Lord, 31, 33

Ship-building and dockyard workers, 56 _et seq._

Siegel, Admiral von, 55

“Sleep quiet in your beds,” speech at Lord Mayor’s banquet, 1907, 85

Smith, Rt. Hon. W. H., 54

“Snail and Tortoise Party,” the, 212

Snuff-box of salt beef, 10

Some predictions, 211

“Sow the North Sea with mines,” Lord Fisher’s advice in 1914, 237–239

Spee, Admiral von, 66, 206, 232, 233, 269

Spencer, Earl, 50, 51, 52, 264

Spencer, Herbert, 42

Staal, M. de, 55

Standard Oil Trust, America, 201

State education in the Navy, 160–162

Stead, Mr. W. T., 52, 53, 55;
on Lord Fisher’s great naval reforms, 253 _et seq._;
263

Stewart, Mr., “Jolly and Hustle,” 61

Stolypin, M., 222

Sturdee, Admiral Sir Doveton, 269

Submarine boat, the, 82

Submarine and commerce, the, 183–185

Submarines, 173 _et seq._

Submarines and oil fuel, 179–181

Submarines, British, before and during the war, 186

Subsidiary services of war, 148 _et seq._

Swan, Mr., inventor of the incandescent light, 21

Sydenham, Lord, _see_ Clarke, Sir George.

Sylt, 245

T

Taylor, Bishop Jeremy, 46

Tennyson-d’Eyncourt, Sir Eustace, 208

Tepl, monks’ colony at, 29

Thackeray, 79

“The World, the Flesh, and the Devil,” 33

Thomson, Sir J. J., O.M., 65

Thurlow, Major, 1

Thursfield, Mr. J. R., 160

Tirpitz, Admiral von, 225, 247

Titles, hereditary, and Canada, 73

Togo, Admiral, 110, 174, 207, 226, 227

Training of boys for the Navy, 166

Training of men for the Navy, 166;
Lord Charles Beresford on the, 167–170

Training of officers for the Navy, 166, 167–169

Tsar of Russia, 268

Tweedmouth, Lord, 98, 101 _n._

Twiss, General, 89

Two-Power standard, the, 13, 105

Tyndale, John, 42, 43, 44

U

Uruguay, 119

Use of the gunboat, the, 116 _et seq._

V

Vavasseur, Mr. Josiah, 268

Verdun, 5;
American advance on, 246

“Victory,” the, Lord Fisher’s first and last ship, 4, 5

Villeneuve, Admiral, 89

Vladivostok, 110, 111

W

War, organisation for, 133

War, subsidiary services of, 148 _et seq._

Warsaw, Napoleon at, 129

Watch, a historic, 3

Watson, Sir William, 78

Way to Victory, the, Lord Fisher’s letters to the Prime Minister,
234–236

Wellington, Lord, 74

Wesley, John, 46

Whately, Archbishop, 99, 100

Whitchurch, Edward, printer of the 1539 Bible, 38

Whitehead torpedo, 177, 262

Wilson, Sir Arthur, 268

Wilson, President, 77

Winchester, Bishop of, 114

Wireless Telegraphy, 82

Wotton, Sir Henry, 34

Wyclif, John, 42, 43

Y

Yamamoto, Admiral, 226

Yates, Edmund, 31, 32

Youthful midshipmen, advantage of, 5, 7;
arduous lives of, 6

PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN BY R. CLAY AND SONS, LTD.,
BRUNSWICK STREET, STAMFORD STREET, S.E. I, AND BUNGAY, SUFFOLK.

Transcriber’s Notes

Punctuation, hyphenation, and spelling were made consistent when a predominant preference was found in the original book; otherwise they were not changed.

Simple typographical errors were corrected; unbalanced quotation marks were remedied when the change was obvious, and otherwise left unbalanced.

Illustrations in this eBook have been positioned between paragraphs and outside quotations. In versions of this eBook that support hyperlinks, the page references in the List of Illustrations lead to the corresponding illustrations.

Footnotes, originally at the bottoms of the pages that referenced them, have been sequentially renumbered and moved to the end of the book, just before the Index.

The index was not checked for proper alphabetization or correct page references.