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 Assheton Gore Curzon-Howe (10 August 1850 – 1 March 1911) was a British naval officer who served as Commander-in-Chief of the

Mediterranean Fleet The British Mediterranean Fleet, also known as the Mediterranean Station, was a formation of the Royal Navy. The Fleet was one of the most prestigious commands in the navy for the majority of its history, defending the vital sea link between ...

from 1908 to 1910.

Early life

Curzon-Howe was the thirteenth and youngest child of Richard Curzon-Howe, 1st Earl Howe, and his second wife Anne Gore (died 1877), daughter of Vice-Admiral Sir John Gore. His paternal great-grandfather was Admiral

Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe Admiral of the Fleet Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe (8 March 1726 – 5 August 1799) was a Royal Navy officer and politician. After serving in the War of the Austrian Succession, he gained a reputation for his role in amphibious operations agai ...

Career

In 1894 Curzon-Howe flew his flag as Commodore on the corvette on the North America and West Indies Station. By January 1900 he had been promoted

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 ...

, and was appointed in command of the

battleship A battleship is a large, heavily naval armour, armored warship with a main battery consisting of large naval gun, guns, designed to serve as a capital ship. From their advent in the late 1880s, battleships were among the largest and most form ...

when she was commissioned 20 February 1900 for service on the

Mediterranean Station The British Mediterranean Fleet, also known as the Mediterranean Station, was a military formation, formation of the Royal Navy. The Fleet was one of the most prestigious commands in the navy for the majority of its history, defending the vita ...

. She transferred to the

China Station The Commander-in-Chief, China, was the admiral in command of what was usually known as the China Station, at once both a British Royal Navy naval formation and its admiral in command. It was created in 1865 and deactivated in 1941. From 1831 to 1 ...

in January 1901, in response to the

Boxer Rebellion The Boxer Rebellion, also known as the Boxer Uprising, was an anti-foreign, anti-imperialist, and anti-Christian uprising in North China between 1899 and 1901, towards the end of the Qing dynasty, by the Society of Righteous and Harmonious F ...

. Curzon-Howe was appointed a Naval Aide de Camp (ADC) to

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

in July 1899, and was re-appointed as a Naval Aide de Camp to her successor

King Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria and ...

in February 1901. He was promoted to flag rank as

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 ...

in July 1901, which ended the appointment as Naval ADC. On 5 June 1902 he was appointed second-in-command of the Channel Squadron, and temporarily hoisted his flag on board HMS ''Cambridge'', gunnery ship at Devonport, before he transferred to the battleship later the same month. Shortly before his departure from London he was received in audience by King Edward VII. With ''Magnificent'', he took part in the fleet review held at

Spithead Spithead is an eastern area of the Solent and a roadstead for vessels off Gilkicker Point in Hampshire, England. It is protected from all winds except those from the southeast, with the Isle of Wight lying to the south-west. Spithead and the ch ...

on 16 August 1902 for the

coronation A coronation ceremony marks the formal investiture of a monarch with regal power using a crown. In addition to the crowning, this ceremony may include the presentation of other items of regalia, and other rituals such as the taking of special v ...

of King Edward VII, and visited the

Aegean Sea The Aegean Sea is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia. It is located between the Balkans and Anatolia, and covers an area of some . In the north, the Aegean is connected to the Marmara Sea, which in turn con ...

for combined manoeuvres with the

the following month. Later the same year he was appointed a Commander of the

Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order () is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of the m ...

(CVO) in the November 1902 Birthday Honours list, and was invested with the insignia by King

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until Death and state funeral of Edward VII, his death in 1910. The second child ...

Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a royal official residence, residence in London, and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and r ...

on 18 December 1902. He was flying his flag in (Captain Sydney Fremantle) in 1906. In 1907, he was Commander-in-Chief of the Atlantic Fleet. Curzon-Howe the served as Commander-in-Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet from 1908 to 1910.Janus: The Papers of Reginald McKenna
/ref> He was promoted to Admiral in 1909. He was

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 ...

, from 1 May 1910 until his death, age 60, on 1 March 1911. During this time he flew his flag in .

Family

On 25 February 1892, at the age of 41, Assheton married Alice Anne Cowell, daughter of General Rt. Hon. Sir John Cowell. They had five children: * Captain Leicester Charles Assheton St. John Curzon-Howe (8 July 1894 – 21 February 1941), the father of Anne Rita Curzon-Howe, who married Captain Christopher Roper-Curzon, 19th Baron Teynham. * Victoria Alexandrina Alice Curzon-Howe (1 September 1896 – 3 February 1910) * Assheton Penn Curzon-Howe-Herrick (21 August 1898 – 23 February 1959) * Joyce Mary Curzon-Howe (16 July 1906 – 24 September 1997) * Elizabeth Anne Curzon-Howe (15 November 1909 – ?) His wife Alice died on 5 November 1948. Assheton's elder sister, Lady Mary Curzon (1848–1929), was the great-great-grandmother of

Diana, Princess of Wales Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997), was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William, ...

. Wikipedia: Richard William Penn Curzon-Howe, 1st Earl Howe

Footnotes

, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Curzon-Howe, Assheton Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Royal Navy admirals Younger sons of earls 1850 births 1911 deaths Assheton Assheton