Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

Sir Archibald Lucius Douglas, (8 February 1842 – 12 March 1913) was a

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

officer of the 19th century.

Naval career

Douglas was born in

Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...

in pre-Confederation

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

in 1842. Educated at the Quebec High School, he joined the

as a

cadet A cadet is a student or trainee within various organisations, primarily in military contexts where individuals undergo training to become commissioned officers. However, several civilian organisations, including civil aviation groups, maritime ...

in 1856.W. Stewart WALLACE, ed., The Encyclopedia of Canada, Vol. II, Toronto, University Associates of Canada, 1948, 411p., p. 229 He served as a Gunnery Lieutenant on HMS Aurora during the Fenian Raids in 1866. He was selected to head the second British naval mission to

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

in 1873, and served as a foreign advisor to the fledgling

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, Potsdam Declaration, when it was dissolved followin ...

until 1875. Douglas was based at the Imperial Japanese Navy Academy, then located at

Tsukiji Tsukiji (築地) is a district of Chūō, Tokyo, Japan. Literally meaning "reclaimed land", it lies near the Sumida River on land reclaimed from Tokyo Bay in the 18th century during the Edo period. The eponymous Tsukiji fish market opened in 193 ...

in Tokyo, where he trained a class of 30 officers. During his tenure, his advice was called upon for the Taiwan Expedition of 1874, the first major overseas deployment for the Japanese navy. During his stay in Japan, he is also credited with having introduced the sport of

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

to Japanese naval cadets. During the

Russo-Turkish War The Russo-Turkish wars ( ), or the Russo-Ottoman wars (), began in 1568 and continued intermittently until 1918. They consisted of twelve conflicts in total, making them one of the longest series of wars in the history of Europe. All but four of ...

of 1877–1878, Douglas commanded on an intelligence gathering mission to Petropavlovsk in

Kamchatka The Kamchatka Peninsula (, ) is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of about . The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk make up the peninsula's eastern and western coastlines, respectively. Immediately offshore along the Pacific ...

, which he found to have been abandoned by its Russian garrison. Douglas was appointed Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station in 1898 and Second Naval Lord in 1899. He was promoted to the rank of

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 ...

on 15 June 1901, In June 1902 he was appointed Commander-in-chief of the

North America and West Indies Station The North America and West Indies Station was a formation or command of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy stationed in North American waters from 1745 to 1956, with main bases at the Imperial fortresses of Bermuda and Halifax, Nova Scotia. The ...

, and he arrived in Halifax to take up the position on 15 July with his

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...

, the cruiser HMS ''Ariadne''. He went on to be

Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth The Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth, was a senior commander of the Royal Navy for hundreds of years. The commanders-in-chief were based at premises in High Street, Portsmouth from the 1790s until the end of Thomas Williams (Royal Navy officer), Si ...

in 1904 and retired from the service in 1907. In 1910 he was made an honorary LL.D. of

McGill University McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...

; in 1902 he was created a KCB, in 1905 a GCVO, and in 1911 a GCB. Douglas died in

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

in 1913.

Family

His brother was

Campbell Mellis Douglas Campbell Mellis Douglas (5 August 1840, in Quebec City – 31 December 1909), was a Canadian 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 Commo ...

, who was awarded the Victoria Cross in 1867. Douglas married, in 1871, Constance Ellen Hawks, daughter of Rev. William Hawks. Mrs. Douglas (as she was known then) was godmother to HMS ''Lancaster'' in March 1902.
One of their sons Lt.-Cdr. David William Shafto Douglas R.N. (1883-1916) was KIA when his ship HMS Black Prince (1904) was lost with all hands at the battle of Jutland.

References

Bibliography

*Douglas, Archibald C. Life of Admiral Sir Archibald Lucius Douglas, G.C.B, G.C.V.O, Commander of the Legion of Honour, Order of the Rising Sun of Japan, Spanish Naval Order of Merit, by his son. Mortimer Bros (1938) ASIN B001CO3IT8 , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Douglas, Archibald Lucius 1842 births 1913 deaths 20th-century Royal Navy personnel 19th-century Royal Navy personnel Canadian Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Lords of the Admiralty Military personnel of the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) Military personnel from Quebec City Royal Navy admirals Anglophone Quebec people Foreign advisors to the government in Meiji-era Japan Recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun Canadian expatriates in Japan Canadian Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order