The Australian Squadron was the name given to the British naval force assigned to the Australia Station from 1859 to 1911.Dennis et al. 2008, p. 67. The Squadron was initially a small force of

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 ...

warships based in Sydney, and although intended to protect the colonies of Australia and New Zealand, the ships were primarily used for surveying and police work. The isolation of Australia from the rest of the

British Empire The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...

meant the force was easily neglected, and by the 1870s, was perceived to be useless for its intended role. Following the passing of the ''Australasian Naval Defence Act 1887'' (51 Vict. No. 39 (NZ)), the ''Australasian Naval Force Act 1887'' (51 Vict. No. 22 (NSW)), the ''Australasian Naval Force Act 1887'' (No. 829 (Vic.), the ''Australasian Naval Force Act 1887'' (51 Vict No. 18 (Tas.)) and the Imperial Defence Act 1888 ( 51 & 52 Vict. c. 32 (Imp.)) an additional 'Auxiliary Squadron' was assigned to the Station by the

British Admiralty The Admiralty was a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, department of the Government of the United Kingdom that was responsible for the command of the Royal Navy. Historically, its titular head was the Lord High Admiral of the ...

with the responsibility for protecting trade in the region. During the early 1900s, the Australian and New Zealand governments agreed to help fund the Squadron, while the Admiralty committed itself to keeping the Squadron at a constant strength. As a British force, the Australian Squadron ceased on 4 October 1913, when the ships of the

Royal Australian Navy The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) is the navy, naval branch of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). The professional head of the RAN is Chief of Navy (Australia), Chief of Navy (CN) Vice admiral (Australia), Vice Admiral Mark Hammond (admiral), Ma ...

(RAN) entered Sydney Harbour for the first time.Dennis et al. 2008, p. 68. However, the term was subsequently used between 1926 and 1949 to refer to the ships of the RAN: after the decommissioning and scuttling of the battlecruiser and other cutbacks, the term 'Australian Fleet' was thought to be inappropriate to describe the navy's strength. served as squadron flagship between 1922 and 1928.

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References

* {{Named squadrons of the Royal Navy Royal Navy squadrons Military history of Australia

See also

Notes

References