William Sims (engineer)
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William Sowden Sims (October 15, 1858 – September 28, 1936) was an admiral in the
United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
who fought during the late 19th and early 20th centuries to modernize the navy. During
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, he commanded all United States naval forces operating in Europe. He also served twice as
president of the Naval War College The president of the Naval War College is a flag officer in the United States Navy. The President's House in Newport, Rhode Island is their official residence. The functions of the president of the Naval War College actually predate the estab ...
.


Career

Sims was born to American father Alfred William (1826–1895) and Canadian mother Adelaide (née Sowden; b. 1835) living in Port Hope, Canada West. He graduated from the
United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (USNA, Navy, or Annapolis) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as United States Secre ...
in 1880, the beginnings of an era of naval reform and greater professionalization. Commodore Stephen B. Luce founded the
Naval War College The Naval War College (NWC or NAVWARCOL) is the staff college and "Home of Thought" for the United States Navy at Naval Station Newport in Newport, Rhode Island. The NWC educates and develops leaders, supports defining the future Navy and associa ...
in Newport, Rhode Island in 1884, to be the service's professional school. During the same era, Naval War College instructor Captain
Alfred Thayer Mahan Alfred Thayer Mahan (; September 27, 1840 – December 1, 1914) was a United States Navy officer and historian whom John Keegan called "the most important American strategist of the nineteenth century." His 1890 book '' The Influence of Sea Pow ...
was writing influential books on naval strategy and sea power. In March 1897, shortly after his promotion to lieutenant, Sims was assigned as the military attaché to Paris and St. Petersburg. In this position he became aware of naval technology developments in Europe as well gaining familiarity with European politics which would greatly assist him during World War I. He was in this assignment during the
Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...
during which Sims was able to use his diplomatic connections to gain information on Spain and its high-ranking officials.


Gunnery

As a young officer, Sims sought to reform naval gunnery by improving target practice. His superiors resisted his suggestions, failing to see the necessity. He was also hindered by his low rank. In 1902, Sims wrote directly to President
Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...
. The president, who had previously served as
Assistant Secretary of the Navy Assistant Secretary of the Navy (ASN) is the title given to certain civilian senior officials in the United States Department of the Navy. From 1861 to 1954, the Assistant Secretary of the Navy was the second-highest civilian office in the Depart ...
, was intrigued by Sims' ideas and made him the Navy's Inspector of Naval Gunnery on November 5, 1902, shortly after which Sims was promoted to lieutenant commander. He was promoted to
commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...
in 1907. From 1911 to 1912, Sims attended the
Naval War College The Naval War College (NWC or NAVWARCOL) is the staff college and "Home of Thought" for the United States Navy at Naval Station Newport in Newport, Rhode Island. The NWC educates and develops leaders, supports defining the future Navy and associa ...
. Promoted to
captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...
in 1911, he became Commander, Atlantic Destroyer Flotilla in July 1913. On March 11, 1916, Sims became the first captain of the battleship . ''Nevada'' was the largest, most modern and most powerful ship in the U.S. Navy at that time. His selection as her captain shows the esteem in which he was held in the Navy.


First World War

Shortly before the United States entered World War I, then
Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...
Sims was assigned as the president of the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island in February 1917. Just before the U.S. entered the war, the
Wilson administration Woodrow Wilson served as the 28th president of the United States from March 4, 1913, to March 4, 1921. A History of the Democratic Party (United States), Democrat and former governor of New Jersey, Wilson took office after winning the 1912 Uni ...
sent him to London as the senior naval representative. After the U.S. entry in April 1917, Sims was given command over U.S. naval forces operating from Britain. He received a temporary promotion (brevet) to
vice admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of Vice ...
in May 1917. The major threat he faced was a highly effective German submarine campaign against freighters bringing vital food and munitions to the Allies. The combined Anglo-American naval war against U-boats in the western approaches to the British Isles in 1917–18 was a success due to the ability of Sims to work smoothly with his British counterpart, Admiral Sir
Lewis Bayly Lewis Bayly (died 26 October 1631) was a bishop of the Church of England. Life Bayly is thought to have been born in either Carmarthen or Biggar, Scotland, the curate of Carmarthen, Thomas Bayly, may have been his father. He was educated at ...
. Sims believed the Navy Department in Washington, which was effectively headed by Assistant Secretary
Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...
, was failing to provide him with sufficient authority, information, autonomy, manpower, and naval forces. He ended the war as a vice admiral, in command of all U.S. naval forces operating in Europe. Shortly after the Armistice , Sims was promoted to temporary admiral in December 1918 but reverted to his permanent rank of rear admiral in April 1919 when he was assigned as president of the Naval War College.


Attack on Daniels

In 1919 after the war ended in Allied victory, Sims publicly attacked the deficiencies of American naval strategy, tactics, policy, and administration. He charged the failures had cost the Allies 2,500,000 tons of supplies, thereby prolonging the war by six months. He estimated the delay had raised the cost of the war to the Allies by $15 billion, and that it led to the unnecessary loss of 500,000 lives. Secretary of the Navy
Josephus Daniels Josephus Daniels (May 18, 1862 – January 15, 1948) was a newspaper editor, Secretary of the Navy under President Woodrow Wilson, and U.S. Ambassador to Mexico under President Franklin D. Roosevelt. He managed ''The News & Observer'' in R ...
was more of a politician than a naval strategist, so he ably countered the accusations. He pointed to Sims'
anglophilism An Anglophile is a person who admires or loves England, its people, its culture, its language, and/or its various accents. In some cases, Anglophilia refers to an individual's appreciation of English history and traditional English cultural icon ...
, and said his vantage point in London was too narrow to assess accurately the overall war effort by the U.S. Navy. Daniels cited prewar naval preparations and strategy proposals made by other American leaders during the war to disprove Sims' charges. Despite the public acrimony, Sims emerged with his reputation unharmed, although some historians believe it cost him promotion to the rank of
Admiral of the Navy Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navy, navies. In the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general officer, general in the army or the air force. Admiral is r ...
. He did however serve a second tour as president of the Naval War College (1919–1922). It was during his time at the Naval War College that he wrote and published his book ''
The Victory at Sea ''The Victory at Sea'' is a 1920 military history book by Admiral William Sims in collaboration with Burton J. Hendrick. It concern's Sims' career in the Atlantic theater of World War I. It won the 1921 Pulitzer Prize for History The Pulitze ...
'' which describes his experiences in World War I. In 1921 ''The Victory at Sea'' won the
Pulitzer Prize for History The Pulitzer Prize for History, administered by Columbia University, is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes that are annually awarded for Letters, Drama, and Music. It has been presented since 1917 for a distinguished book about the histor ...
. Sims is, possibly, the only career naval officer to win a Pulitzer Prize. (Rear Admiral Samuel E. Morison won two Pulitzer Prizes but only served nine years in the Naval Reserve.)


Retirement and death

Sims retired from the Navy in October 1922, having reached the mandatory retirement age of 64. In retirement he lived at 73 Catherine Street in Newport, Rhode Island. He appeared on the cover of the October 26, 1925 issue of ''Time'' magazine and was the subject of a feature article. He was promoted to full admiral on the retired list in 1930. Admiral Sims died in
Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
, in 1936 at the age of 77. He is buried in
Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...
.


Personal life

Sims married Anne Erwin Hitchcock, who was sixteen years his junior, in 1905. The couple had five children, three daughters (Margaret, Adelaide and Anne) and two sons (William S. Sims, Jr. and Ethan Sims). Mrs. Sims died in 1960 at age 85.


Awards

His account of the U.S. naval effort during World War I, ''The Victory at Sea'', won the 1921
Pulitzer Prize for History The Pulitzer Prize for History, administered by Columbia University, is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes that are annually awarded for Letters, Drama, and Music. It has been presented since 1917 for a distinguished book about the histor ...
. In 1929 was honored with a
Doctor of Laws A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...
from
Bates College Bates College () is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Lewiston, Maine. Anchored by the Historic Quad, the campus of Bates totals with a small urban campus which includes 33 Victorian ...
.
Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
conferred the honorary degree of doctor of laws upon Rear Admiral Sims on 2 June 1920. Several weeks later,
Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim ...
conferred on him the honorary degree of doctor of laws during its June 21, 1920, commencement exercises. Four U.S. Navy vessels have been named for Sims. Two ships have been named —the World War II-era destroyer and destroyer escort . A transport vessel was named . Additionally the was commissioned in 1970 and decommissioned in 1991. The United States Postal Service issued a commemorative stamp panel on February 4, 2010. One of the stamps depicted Admiral Sims. In 1947, the Naval War College acquired an existing barracks building, which they converted to a secondary war-gaming facility, naming it Sims Hall after its former president.


Honours and awards

;United States military awards; *
Distinguished Service Medal Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a high award of a nation, state or country. Examples include: *Distinguished Service Medal (Australia) (established 1991), awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force for distinguished leadership in act ...
(declined in a dispute with Secretary Daniels over awards) *
Spanish Campaign Medal The Spanish Campaign Medal was a military award of the United States Armed Forces which recognized those men of the U.S. military who had served in the Spanish–American War. Although a single decoration, there were two versions of the Spanish ...
*
Philippine Campaign Medal The Philippine Campaign Medal is a medal of the United States Armed Forces which was created to denote service of U.S. military men in the Philippine–American War between the years of 1899 and 1913. Although a single service medal, the Philippin ...
*
Mexican Service Medal The Mexican Service Medal was an award of the United States military for service in Mexico from 1911 to 1919. History The Mexican Service Medal awarded by the Army was established by General Orders of the United States War Department on December ...
* Victory Medal ;Foreign honors; * Honorary Knight Grand Cross of the
Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III ...
(United Kingdom) (1918) * Grand Officer of the
Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...
(France) (1919) * Grand Cordon in the
Order of Leopold Order of Leopold may refer to: * Order of Leopold (Austria), founded in 1808 by emperor Francis I of Austria and discontinued in 1918 * Order of Leopold (Belgium), founded in 1832 by king Leopold I of Belgium * Order of Leopold II, founded in Congo ...
(Belgium)Rd of 22.12.1919 * Grand Officer of the
Order of the Crown of Italy The Order of the Crown of Italy ( or OCI) was founded as a national order in 1868 by King Victor Emmanuel II of Italy, Vittorio Emanuele II, to commemorate Italian unification, the unification of Italy in 1861. It was awarded in five degrees for ...
;Other honors; *
Theodore Roosevelt Association The Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA) is a historical and cultural organization dedicated to honoring the life and work of Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919), the 26th President of the United States. The group is based in Oyster Bay, New York, on ...
Distinguished Service Medal (1926) *
American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is an Voluntary association, organization of United States, U.S. war veterans headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. It comprises U.S. state, state, Territories of the United States, U.S. terr ...
Distinguished Service Medal (1930) *
Pulitzer Prize for History The Pulitzer Prize for History, administered by Columbia University, is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes that are annually awarded for Letters, Drama, and Music. It has been presented since 1917 for a distinguished book about the histor ...
(1921)


Dates of rank

*Cadet Midshipman, United States Naval Academy - 24 June 1876 *
Midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest Military rank#Subordinate/student officer, rank in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Royal Cana ...
- 22 June 1880 *Ensign (junior grade) - 3 March 1883 *Ensign - 26 June 1884 *Lieutenant (junior grade) - 9 May 1893 *Lieutenant - 1 January 1897 *Lieutenant Commander - 21 November 1902 *Commander - 1 July 1907 *Captain - 4 March 1911 *Rear Admiral - Selected on 29 August 1916, but remained number 31 of 30 flag officers remaining in the rank of captain while awaiting billet until 23 March 1917. *Vice Admiral (temporary) - 25 May 1917 *Admiral (temporary) - 4 December 1918 *Rear Admiral - Upon returning to the Presidency of the Naval War College on 11 April 1919 *Rear Admiral, Retired List - 15 October 1922 *Admiral, Retired List - June 21, 1930


See also

* List of people on the cover of ''Time'' magazine: 1920s


Notes


References

* Allard, Dean C., "Admiral William S. Sims and United States Naval Policy in World War I" in ''
American Neptune ''The American Neptune: A Quarterly Journal of Maritime History and Arts'' was an academic journal covering American maritime history from its establishment in 1941 until it ceased publication in 2002. History Established by Samuel Eliot Moriso ...
'' 35 (April 1975): 97–110. *Coletta, Paolo E. "Naval Lessons of the Great War: The William Sims-Josephus Daniels Controversy," ''American Neptune,'' Sept 1991, Vol. 51 Issue 4, pp 241–251 * Hagan, Kenneth J., "The Critic Within" in ''Naval History'' (December 1998): 20-25 * Hagan, Kenneth J., "William S. Sims: Naval Insurgent and Coalition Warrior" in ''The Human Tradition in the Gilded Age and Progressive Era'' Ballard C. Campbell, ed. (Wilmington, DE: Scholarly Resources, 2000), 187-203 * Hagan, Kenneth J., and Michael T. McMaster, "His Remarks Reverberated from Berlin to Washington," ''U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings'' (December 2010): 66–71. * Little, Branden, and Kenneth J. Hagan, "Radical, But Right: William Sowden Sims (1858–1936)" in ''Nineteen Gun Salute: Case Studies of Operational, Strategic, and Diplomatic Naval Leadership during the 20th and early 21st Centuries'', eds. John B. Hattendorf and Bruce Elleman (Newport, RI and Washington, D.C.: Naval War College Press & Government Printing Office, 2010), 1-10. * Morison, Elting E., ''Admiral Sims and the Modern American Navy'' (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1942), the standard scholarly biography, by the husband of his daughter Anne Hitchcock Sims * Simpson, Michael, "William S. Sims, U.S. Navy, and Admiral Sir Lewis Bayly, Royal Navy: An Unlikely Friendship, and Anglo-American Cooperation" in ''Naval War College Review'', Vol. 41 (Spring 1988): 60-80 *Steele, Chuck. "America's Greatest Great-War Flag Officer," ''Naval History Magazine'' (2013) 27#
online


External links



* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20040225100109/http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/a3/admiral_w_s_sims.htm ''Admiral W.S. Sims'' (AP-127) Dictionary of American Fighting Naval Shipsbr>Naval History Bibliography, World War I, 1917-198, Naval Historical CenterRegister of the Papers of William S. Sims
* *
William S. Sims Navigation Notes, 1892 MS 373
held by Special Collections & Archives, Nimitz Library at the United States Naval Academy
Admiral Jellicoe Greets Admiral Sims, 20:53 to 21:35, and the First American Destroyers Arrive in England, 21:36 to 24:10
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sims, William S. 1858 births 1936 deaths American military personnel of the Spanish–American War United States Navy World War I admirals Pulitzer Prize for History winners United States Naval Academy alumni United States Navy admirals People from Northumberland County, Ontario Presidents of the Naval War College Naval War College alumni Canadian emigrants to the United States Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George United States naval attachés Canadian military personnel from Ontario