The British Merchant Navy is the collective name given to British civilian ships and their associated crews, including officers and ratings. In the UK, it is simply referred to as the Merchant Navy or MN. Merchant Navy vessels fly the Red Ensign and the ships and crew are regulated by the

Maritime and Coastguard Agency The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) is an executive agency of the United Kingdom that is responsible for implementing British and international maritime law and safety policy. It works to prevent the loss of lives at sea and to prevent mar ...

(MCA), a specialist agency of the UK Department of Transport. British merchant ships are registered under the UK or Red Ensign group ship registries. British Merchant Navy deck officers and ratings are certificated and trained according to

STCW Convention International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) sets minimum qualification standards for masters, officers and watch personnel on seagoing merchant ships and large yachts. STCW was adop ...

and the syllabus of the Merchant Navy Training Board in maritime colleges and other training institutes around the UK.

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. George was born during the reign of his pa ...

bestowed the title of "Merchant Navy" on the British merchant shipping fleets following their service in the

First World War 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 ...

; a number of other nations have since adopted the title. Previously it had been known as the Mercantile Marine or Merchant Service, although the term "Merchant Navy" was already informally used from the 19th century. The British Merchant Navy was historically one of the largest ship registries and source of crew in the world, with 33% of global tonnage registered in 1939. However, since the mid 20th century, the number of shipowners, ships, officers and crew have declined dramatically as a result of globalisation and the rise of flags of convenience. As of 2023, the British Merchant Navy numbered 1,054 ships.

History

The Merchant Navy has been in existence for a significant period in English and British history, owing its growth to trade and imperial expansion. It can be dated back to the 17th century, when an attempt was made to register all seafarers as a source of labour for the

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 ...

in times of conflict. That registration of merchant seafarers failed, and it was not successfully implemented until 1835. The merchant fleet grew over successive years to become the world's foremost merchant fleet, benefiting considerably from trade with

British possessions A British possession is a country or territory other than the United Kingdom which has the British monarch as its head of state. Overview In common statutory usage the British possessions include British Overseas Territories, and the Commonwe ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and the

Far East The Far East is the geographical region that encompasses the easternmost portion of the Asian continent, including North Asia, North, East Asia, East and Southeast Asia. South Asia is sometimes also included in the definition of the term. In mod ...

. The lucrative trades in

sugar Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose Glucose is a sugar with the Chemical formula#Molecular formula, molecul ...

contraband Contraband (from Medieval French ''contrebande'' "smuggling") is any item that, relating to its nature, is illegal to be possessed or sold. It comprises goods that by their nature are considered too dangerous or offensive in the eyes of the leg ...

opium Opium (also known as poppy tears, or Lachryma papaveris) is the dried latex obtained from the seed Capsule (fruit), capsules of the opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid mor ...

to China,

spices In the culinary arts, a spice is any seed, fruit, root, Bark (botany), bark, or other plant substance in a form primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of pl ...

, and tea (carried by ships such as the '' Cutty Sark'') helped to entrench this dominance in the 19th century. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, maritime education expanded to train merchant navy officers. For example, in 1855 Leith Nautical College provided training for seafarers in Scotland. Other maritime colleges developed in this period included the South Tyneside Marine and Technical College, founded 1861 (now the South Tyneside College) and the Southampton School of Navigation, 1902 (now the Warsash Maritime School). In the First and

Second The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of U ...

World Wars, the merchant service suffered heavy losses from German

U-boat U-boats are Submarine#Military, naval submarines operated by Germany, including during the World War I, First and Second World Wars. The term is an Anglicization#Loanwords, anglicized form of the German word , a shortening of (), though the G ...

attacks. A policy of unrestricted warfare meant that merchant seafarers were at risk of attack from enemy ships. The tonnage lost to U-boats in the First World War was around 7,759,090 tons, and around 14,661 merchant seafarers were killed. In honour of the sacrifice made by merchant seafarers in the First World War,

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936. George w ...

granted the title "Merchant Navy" to the companies. In 1928 George V gave Edward, Prince of Wales the title of "Master of the Merchant Navy and Fishing Fleets"; which he retained after his accession to the throne in January 1936 and relinquished only at his abdication that December. Since Edward VIII, the title has been held by the sovereigns

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952 ...

and

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

. When the United Kingdom and the British Empire entered the Second World War in September 1939, George VI issued this message: INF3-127 War Effort Under the Red Duster they sustain our Island Fortress

INF3-127 War Effort Under the Red Duster they sustain our Island Fortress

The Royal Navy during the Second World War A11821

''In these anxious days, I would like to express to all Officers and Men and in the British Merchant Navy and the British Fishing Fleets my confidence in their unfailing determination to play their vital part in defence. To each one I would say: Yours is a task no less essential to my people's experience than that allotted to the Navy, Army and Air Force. Upon you, the Nation depends for much of its foodstuffs and raw materials and for the transport of its troops overseas. You have a long and glorious history, and I am proud to bear the title "Master of the Merchant Navy and Fishing Fleets". I know that you will carry out your duties with resolution and with fortitude, and that high chivalrous traditions of your calling are safe in your hands. God keep you and prosper you in your great task.''

During the Second World War, German U-boats sank nearly 14.7 million tons of Allied shipping, which amounted to 2,828 ships (around two-thirds of the total allied tonnage lost). The United Kingdom alone suffered the loss of 11.7 million tons, which was 54% of the total Merchant Navy fleet at the outbreak of the Second World War. 32,000 merchant seafarers were killed aboard convoy vessels in the war, but along with the Royal Navy, the convoys successfully imported enough supplies to allow an Allied victory. Between 1941 and 1949, the SR Merchant Navy class steam locomotives were built in the UK.Burridge, Frank: ''Nameplates of the Big Four'' (Oxford Publishing Company: Oxford, 1975) Each locomotive of the class was named after British shipping lines from the Second World War, principally those operating out of

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

. In honour of the sacrifices made in both World Wars, representatives of the Merchant Navy lay wreaths of remembrance alongside the armed forces in the annual

Remembrance Day Remembrance Day (also known as Poppy Day owing to the tradition of wearing a remembrance poppy) is a memorial day observed in Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth member states since the end of the First World War to honour armed forces me ...

service on 11 November. Following many years of lobbying to bring about official recognition of the sacrifices made by merchant seafarers in the two world wars and since, Merchant Navy Day became an official day of remembrance on 3 September 2000. The merchant navy was also called upon to serve during the Falklands War and provided forty vessels, including transports, tankers and other vessels, with a total of 500,000 grt. The merchant ship SS Atlantic Conveyor, being used to ferry Harrier fighters and other aircraft to the South Atlantic, was lost during the conflict after being struck by an air-launched Exocet missile. The ship's captain, Ian North, and 11 other crew members died in the attack which constituted the first loss of a British merchant navy ship to an armed attack since the Second World War. Historically a person wishing to become a

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 ...

, or master prior to about 1969, had three choices: to attend one of the three elite naval schools from the age of 12, the fixed-base HMS ''Conway'' and HMS ''Worcester'' or Pangbourne Nautical College, which would automatically lead to an

apprenticeship Apprenticeship is a system for training a potential new practitioners of a trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study. Apprenticeships may also enable practitioners to gain a license to practice in a regulat ...

as a seagoing cadet officer; apply to one of several training programmes elsewhere; or go to sea immediately by applying directly to a merchant shipping company at about age 17. Then there would be three years (with prior training or four years without) of seagoing experience aboard ship, in work-clothes and as mates with the deck crew, under the direction of the bo'sun cleaning bilges, chipping paint, polishing brass, cement washing freshwater tanks, and

holystoning Holystone is a soft and brittle sandstone that was formerly used in the Royal Navy and US Navy for scrubbing and whitening the wooden decks of ships. A variety of origins have been proposed for the term, including that such stones were taken fro ...

teak decks, and studying navigation and seamanship on the bridge in uniform, under the direction of an officer, before taking exams to become a second mate. Historically, the composition of the crew on UK ships was diverse. This was a characteristic of the extant of the shipping companies trade, the extent 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 ...

and the availability of crew in different ports. One ship might have a largely all British crew, while another might have a crew composed of many Indians, Chinese or African sailors. Crews from outside Britain were usually drawn from areas in which the ship traded, so

trading ships had either Singapore or Hong Kong crews, banana boats had West Indian crews, ships trading to West Africa and Southern Africa had African crews and ships trading to the Indian Ocean (including East Africa) had crews from the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...

. Crews made up of recruits from Britain itself were commonly used on ships trading across the North Atlantic, to South America and to Australia and New Zealand.

Merchant Navy today

Fleet

Despite maintaining its dominant position for many decades, the decline of the

, the rise of the use of the

flag of convenience Flag of convenience (FOC) refers to a business practice whereby a ship's owners Ship registration, register a Merchant vessel, merchant ship in a ship register of a country other than that of the ship's owners, and the ship flies the civil ens ...

, and foreign competition led to the decline of the merchant fleet. For example, in 1939 the Merchant Navy was the largest in the world with 33% of total tonnage. By 2012, the Merchant Navy – while still remaining one of the largest in the world – held only 3% of total tonnage. In 2010 the Merchant Navy consisted of 504 UK registered ships of or over. In addition, UK merchant marine interests possessed a further 308 ships registered in other countries and 271 foreign-owned ships were registered in the UK. In 2012 British merchant marine interests consisted of 1,504 ships of or over. This included ships either directly UK-owned, parent-owned or managed by a British company. This amounted to: or alternatively . This is according to the annual maritime shipping statistics provided by the

British Government His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central government, central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

and the

Department for Transport The Department for Transport (DfT) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport ...

. In the last decade, ship numbers have continued to decline. In 2023, the British Ship Register had reduced to 1,054 ships.

Officers and ratings

As a signatory to the

UK ships are commanded by deck officers and engineering officers. Officers undergo 3 years of training, known as a cadetship at one of the approved maritime colleges in the United Kingdom. These include Warsash Maritime Academy, South Tyneside College,

Fleetwood Fleetwood is a coastal town in the Borough of Wyre in Lancashire, England, at the northwest corner of the Fylde. It had a population of 25,939 at the 2011 United Kingdom census, 2011 census. Fleetwood acquired its modern character in the 1830 ...

, Plymouth University and City of Glasgow College. Cadets usually have a choice of two academic routes:

Foundation Degree A foundation degree is a combined academic and vocational qualification in higher education in the United Kingdom, equivalent to two-thirds of an honours bachelor's degree. Foundation degrees were introduced by the Department for Education and ...

Higher National Diploma Higher National Diploma (HND), part of the Higher Nationals suite of qualifications, is an academic higher education qualification in the United Kingdom and various other countries. They were introduced in England and Wales in 1920 alongside th ...

. Successful completion of this results in a qualification in marine operations or marine engineering. Generally the costs of a cadetship will be met by sponsorship from a UK shipping company. During the three years of training, cadets also go to sea, for a period of a year or more, usually spread across the cadetship. This affords a practical education, that along with the academic time in college prepares a candidate for a separate and final oral exam. This oral exam is carried out with a

master mariner A master mariner is a licensed mariner who holds the highest grade of licensed seafarer qualification; namely, a master's license. A master mariner is therefore allowed to serve as the captain (nautical), master of a merchant ship for which natio ...

at an office of the

. Successful completion of the oral exam will result in the award of a certificate of competency. This is the international qualification, issued by the UK government which allows an officer to work in their qualified capacity on board a ship. Certificates are issued for different ranks and as such an officer will usually return to complete a subsequent series of studies until they reach the highest qualification. The first UK deck officer certificates of competency were issued in 1845, conducted then, as now, by a final oral exam with a master mariner. The training regime for officers is set out in the official syllabus of the Merchant Navy Training Board. This training still encompasses all of the traditional trades such as celestial navigation, ship stability, general cargo and seamanship, but now includes training in business, legislation, law, and computerisation for deck officers and marine engineering principles, workshop technology, steam propulsion, motor (diesel) propulsion, auxiliaries, mechanics, thermodynamics, engineering drawing, ship construction, marine electrics as well as practical workshop training for engineering officers. Traditionally and still now, the ships ratings are supervised by the bosun, as overseen by a responsible deck officer, usually the

chief mate A chief mate (C/M) or chief officer, usually also synonymous with the first mate or first officer, is a licensed mariner and head of the deck department of a merchant ship. The chief mate is customarily a watchstander and is in charge of the ship ...

. A ship may also have different sub-departments, such as the galley, radio department or hospitality services, overseen by a chief cook, radio officer or chief steward. Many of these roles have now changed, as ships crews have become smaller in commercial shipping. On most ships the radio department has disappeared, along with the radio officer (colloquially known as 'sparks') replaced by changes in technology and the requirement under the

for deck officers to hold individual certification in the GMDSS system. Electro-technical officers (ETO) also serve aboard some ships and are trained to fix and maintain the more complex systems. In 2023, the UK Merchant Navy had 10,930 certificated officers, 10,180 ratings, 1,450 merchant navy cadets and 1,540 other officers.

Charities

Merchant navy related charities are active in the UK. The Merchant Navy Welfare Board administers the MN fund for charitable support. Other charities include the Shipwrecked' Mariners Society, the Seafarer's Charity, the Scottish Nautical Welfare Society and the Scottish Shipping Benevolent Association.

Flags

Ensigns

Ensigns are displayed at the stern of the vessel or displayed on the

gaff Gaff may refer to: Ankle-worn devices * Spurs in variations of cockfighting * Climbing spikes used to ascend wood poles, such as utility poles Arts and entertainment * A character in the ''Blade Runner'' film franchise * Penny gaff, a 19th- ...

, on a

yardarm A yard is a spar on a mast from which sails are set. It may be constructed of timber or steel or from more modern materials such as aluminium or carbon fibre. Although some types of fore and aft rigs have yards, the term is usually used to de ...

. Red Ensigns can be defaced, those can only be flown with a warrant on board the vessel.

Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...

(historically part of

British North America British North America comprised the colonial territories of the British Empire in North America from 1783 onwards. English colonisation of North America began in the 16th century in Newfoundland, then further south at Roanoke and Jamestown, ...

, but left out of the

Confederation of Canada Canadian Confederation () was the process by which three British North American provinces—the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick—were united into one federation, called the Dominion of Canada, on July 1, 1867. This process ...

) flies the red ensign also as a territorial flag on land, as did other British North American colonies that still do so as

Provinces A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...

of modern

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 ...

, including

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

(other

British Overseas Territories The British Overseas Territories (BOTs) or alternatively referred to as the United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs) are the fourteen dependent territory, territories with a constitutional and historical link with the United Kingdom that, ...

that fly a nautical ensign as the territorial flag on land use the

Blue Ensign The Blue Ensign is a British ensign that may be used on vessels by certain authorised yacht clubs, Royal Research Ships and British merchant vessels whose master holds a commission in the Royal Naval Reserve or has otherwise been issued a wa ...

which in Bermuda is only flown from civil government vessels such as ferry boats). File:British-Merchant-Navy-Ensign.png, Merchant Navy

British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies ensigns

File:Flag of Bermuda.svg,

File:Civil Ensign of the British Virgin Islands.svg,

British Virgin Islands The British Virgin Islands (BVI), officially the Virgin Islands, are a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean, to the east of Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands, US Virgin Islands and north-west ...

File:Civil Ensign of the Cayman Islands.svg,

Cayman Islands The Cayman Islands () is a self-governing British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory, and the largest by population. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, which are located so ...

File:Civil Ensign of the Falkland Islands.svg,

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; ), commonly referred to as The Falklands, is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and from Cape Dub ...

File:Civil Ensign of Gibraltar.svg,

Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...

File:Civil Ensign of Guernsey.svg,

Guernsey Guernsey ( ; Guernésiais: ''Guernési''; ) is the second-largest island in the Channel Islands, located west of the Cotentin Peninsula, Normandy. It is the largest island in the Bailiwick of Guernsey, which includes five other inhabited isl ...

File:Civil Ensign of the Isle of Man.svg,

Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...

File:Civil Ensign of Jersey.svg,

Jersey Jersey ( ; ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is an autonomous and self-governing island territory of the British Islands. Although as a British Crown Dependency it is not a sovereign state, it has its own distinguishing civil and gov ...

File:Civil Ensign of the Turks and Caicos Islands.svg,

Turks and Caicos Islands The Turks and Caicos Islands (abbreviated TCI; and ) are a British Overseas Territory consisting of the larger Caicos Islands and smaller Turks Islands, two groups of tropical islands in the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean and no ...

Yacht club ensigns

File:HDC Original defaced Red Ensign.gif, Hamilton Dinghy Club File:Ensign of the House of Commons Yacht Club.svg, House of Commons Yacht Club File:Ensign of the Royal Dart Yacht Club.svg, Royal Dart Yacht Club File:Ensign of the Royal Fowey Yacht Club.svg, Royal Fowey Yacht Club File:RHADC defaced Red Ensign.svg, Royal

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

Amateur Dinghy Club File:Ensign of the Royal Norfolk and Suffolk Yacht Club.svg, Royal Norfolk and Suffolk Yacht Club File:Red Ensign defaced with crown.svg, Royal Portsmouth Corinthian Yacht Club and the Royal St George Yacht Club File:Ensign of the Royal Victoria Yacht Club.svg, Royal Victoria Yacht Club File:Ensign of the Royal Windermere Yacht Club.svg, Royal Windermere Yacht Club File:RYA Ensign.png, Royal Yachting Association File:Ensign of the St Helier Yacht Club.svg, St Helier Yacht Club File:Ensign of the West Mersea Yacht Club.svg, West Mersea Yacht Club

Institution ensigns

File:Trinity House Ensign.svg, Trinity House File:Ensign of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.svg,

Royal National Lifeboat Institution The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is the largest of the lifeboat (rescue), lifeboat services operating around the coasts of the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man, as well as on s ...

File:Red Ensign of the Maritime Volunteer Service.jpg, Maritime Volunteer Service File:Company of Watermen and Lightermen Ensign.gif,

Company of Watermen and Lightermen The Company of Watermen and Lightermen (CWL) is a historic City guild in the City of London. However, unlike the city's 111 livery companies, CWL does not have a grant of livery. Its meeting rooms are at Waterman's Hall on St Mary at Hill, Londo ...

File:UK NHS Fleet Ensign.svg, Ship of the National Historic Fleet File:UK National Historic Ships Ensign.svg, Registered vessel of the National Historic Fleet

House flags

House flags are personal and designed by a company. A house flag is displayed on a port halyard of a

Yardarm A yard is a spar on a mast from which sails are set. It may be constructed of timber or steel or from more modern materials such as aluminium or carbon fibre. Although some types of fore and aft rigs have yards, the term is usually used to de ...

Notable people

A number of notable Merchant Navy personnel include: * Fred Blackburn: England footballer. * Chris Braithwaite (''c.'' 1885–1944): seafarers' organiser and Pan-Africanist. *

Joseph Conrad Joseph Conrad (born Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski, ; 3 December 1857 – 3 August 1924) was a Poles in the United Kingdom#19th century, Polish-British novelist and story writer. He is regarded as one of the greatest writers in the Eng ...

: joined the Merchant Navy in 1874, rising through the ranks of Second Mate and First Mate, to Master in 1886. Left in order to write professionally, becoming one of the 20th century's greatest novelists. *

James Cook Captain (Royal Navy), Captain James Cook (7 November 1728 – 14 February 1779) was a British Royal Navy officer, explorer, and cartographer famous for his three voyages of exploration to the Pacific and Southern Oceans, conducted between 176 ...

: FRS. (1728–1779) British explorer. * Lionel 'Buster' Crabb: Naval frogman, cadet at HMS Conway 1923-1925. *

Victoria Drummond Victoria Alexandrina Drummond, Order of the British Empire#Current classes, MBE (14 October 1894 – 25 December 1978), was the first woman Engine officer, marine engineer in the UK and the first woman member of Institute of Marine Engineering, ...

: MBE, (1894–1978) Britain's first woman ship's engineer. * Ian Duncan-Smith Politician. Cadet at HMS Conway 1968-1972. *

Gerry Fitt Gerard Fitt, Baron Fitt (9 April 1926 – 26 August 2005), was a politician from Belfast, Northern Ireland. He was a founder and the first leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), a social democratic and Irish nationalist party. ...

: founder of the

Social Democratic and Labour Party The Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP; ) is a social democratic and Irish nationalist political party in Northern Ireland. The SDLP currently has eight members in the Northern Ireland Assembly ( MLAs) and two members of Parliament (M ...

in Northern Ireland *Air Marshal Sir Peter Horsley: Deputy Commander in Chief of

RAF Strike Command The Royal Air Force's Strike Command was the military formation which controlled the majority of the United Kingdom's bomber and fighter aircraft from 1968 until 2007 when it merged with Personnel and Training Command to form the single Air ...

1973–75. He started work as a deck boy in 1939 aboard TSS ''Cyclops''. * Charles Howard GC FRS

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and Literature, letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". ...

(1906–1941), Earl of Suffolk and of Berkshire. Apprentice officer on the windjammer ''Mount Stewart''; bomb disposal expert in World War II. * Gareth Hunt: actor, notably in '' The New Avengers'', and '' Upstairs, Downstairs'' * Violet Jessop: stewardess who survived the sinking, and author of autobiography about sailing. * Frank Laskier: WWII Merchant Navy steward who became a public icon for recruitment efforts. * Freddie Lennon: Merchant Navy steward whose son John later founded the musical group

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

. * Kevin McClory:

Irishman The Irish ( or ''Na hÉireannaigh'') are an ethnic group and nation native to the island of Ireland, who share a common ancestry, history and culture. There have been humans in Ireland for about 33,000 years, and it has been continually inhab ...

who spent 14 days in a lifeboat and later went on to write the James Bond movies ''Never Say Never Again'' and ''Thunderball''. *

John Masefield John Edward Masefield (; 1 June 1878 – 12 May 1967) was an English poet and writer. He was Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom, Poet Laureate from 1930 until his death in 1967, during which time he lived at Burcot, Oxfordshire, near Abingdon ...

: served in Merchant Navy in 1890s: Cadet at HMS Conway 1891-1894. later Poet Laureate. * Henry Nelson, 7th Earl Nelson * Peter de Neumann: GM. "The Man From Timbuctoo", The "de Neumann Way" named for him. * Alun Owen: later wrote the screenplay for '' A Hard Day's Night''. * Frederick Daniel Parslow: VC. Merchant Navy recipient of the Victoria Cross. *

Arthur Phillip Arthur Phillip (11 October 1738 – 31 August 1814) was a British Royal Navy officer who served as the first Governor of New South Wales, governor of the Colony of New South Wales. Phillip was educated at Royal Hospital School, Gree ...

: joined the Merchant Navy in 1751 and 37 years later founded the city of

Sydney, Australia Sydney is the capital city of the state of New South Wales and the most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about 80 km (50 mi) from the Pacific Ocean ...

as the First Governor of New South Wales, which then included the eastern half of the Australia we know today, plus New Zealand. *

John Prescott John Leslie Prescott, Baron Prescott (31 May 1938 – 20 November 2024) was a British politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and as First Secretary of State from 2001 to 2007. A member of the ...

: Merchant Navy steward who became

Deputy Prime Minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a Minister (government), government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to th ...

in 1997 under

Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He was Leader ...

. *

Ken Russell Henry Kenneth Alfred Russell (3 July 1927 – 27 November 2011) was a British film director, known for his pioneering work in television and film and for his flamboyant and controversial style. His films were mainly liberal adaptations of ...

: directed films such as '' Tommy'', ''

Altered States ''Altered States'' is a 1980 American science fiction horror film directed by Ken Russell, and adapted by playwright and screenwriter Paddy Chayefsky from his 1978 novel of the same name. The novel and the film are based in part on John C. Li ...

'', and '' The Lair of the White Worm''. * Archibald Bisset Smith: VC. Merchant Navy Victoria Cross recipient. *

Tommy Steele Sir Thomas Hicks (born 17 December 1936), known professionally as Tommy Steele, is an English entertainer, regarded as Britain's first teen idol and rock and roll star. After being discovered at the 2i's Coffee Bar in Soho, London, Steele recor ...

: Merchant Navy steward who went on to become an early British rock and roll singer. *Captain Matthew Webb: (19 January 184824 July 1883) Cadet at HMS Conway 1860-1862 was the first recorded person to swim the English Channel without the use of artificial aids.

Medals and awards

Members of the UK Merchant Navy have been awarded the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

George Cross The George Cross (GC) is the highest award bestowed by the British government for non-operational Courage, gallantry or gallantry not in the presence of an enemy. In the British honours system, the George Cross, since its introduction in 1940, ...

George Medal The George Medal (GM), instituted on 24 September 1940 by King George VI,''British Gallantry Medals'' (Abbott and Tamplin), p. 138 is a decoration of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, awarded for gallantry, typically ...

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a Military awards and decorations, military award of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, awarded for operational gallantry for highly successful ...

, and Distinguished Service Cross for their actions while serving in the Merchant Navy. Canadian Philip Bent, ex-British Merchant Navy, joined the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

at the outbreak of

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 ...

and won the

. Members of the Merchant Navy who served in either World War also received relevant campaign medals. In the Second World War many Merchant Navy members received the King's Commendation for Brave Conduct.

Lloyd's of London Lloyd's of London, generally known simply as Lloyd's, is a insurance and reinsurance market located in London, England. Unlike most of its competitors in the industry, it is not an insurance company; rather, Lloyd's is a corporate body gover ...

awarded the Lloyd's War Medal for Bravery at Sea to 541 Merchant Navy personnel for their bravery in 1939–45. Many Royal Humane Society medals and awards have been conferred on Merchant Navy seafarers for acts of humanity in both war and peacetime. In September 2016 the UK Government introduced the Merchant Navy Medal for Meritorious Service. The medal is awarded: ''"to those who are serving or have served in the Merchant Navy and fishing fleets of the UK, Isle of Man or Channel Islands for exemplary service and devotion to duty, rewarding those who have set an outstanding example to others."'' It is the first state award for meritorious service in the history of the Merchant Navy. Recipients must be nominated by someone other than themselves, with at least two written letters of support and are normally required to have completed 20 years service in the Merchant Navy (although in exceptional circumstances it may be less).

Ranks

British shipping companies

The British Merchant Navy consists of various private shipping companies. Over the decades many companies have come and gone, merged, changed their name or changed owners. British Shipping is represented nationally and globally by the UK Chamber of Shipping, headquartered in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. British shipping registrars belong to the Red Ensign Group. Below is a list of some of the British shipping companies, past and present: * Aberdeen Line *Alexander Shipping Co. *American and Indian Line; Bucknall Steamship Lines *Anchor-Donaldson * Anchor Line *Australind Steam Navigation Company * Anglo-Saxon Petroleum Company (Shell Tankers), now Royal Dutch Shell * Atlantic Steam Navigation Company *Bank Line * Ben Line * Bibby Line *Blue Anchor Line * Blue Funnel Line (Alfred Holt) * Blue Star Line * Booth Steamship Company *Bolton Steam Shipping Co. Ltd. *Bowker and King *British and African Steam Navigation Company *British and Burmese Steam Navigation Company * British India Steam Navigation Company *BP * British Tanker Company *Thos & Jno Brocklebank Ltd *Bullard, King and Company, including Natal Direct Line *Burns and Laird Lines *Byron Marine Ltd *Cairns, Noble and Company * Caledonian MacBrayne, formerly Caledonian Steam Packet Company and David MacBrayne * Carisbrooke Shipping *P & A Campbell * The China Navigation Company * Clan Line *Clyde Shipping Company * Coast Lines * William Cory and Son * Counties Ship Management *Crescent Shipping *

Cunard Line The Cunard Line ( ) is a British shipping and an international cruise line based at Carnival House at Southampton, England, operated by Carnival UK and owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. Since 2011, Cunard and its four ships have been r ...

*Currie Line – Leith *Denholm Line Steamers *Donaldson Line *Donaldson Atlantic Line *Dundee, Perth and London Shipping Company * Eagle Oil and Shipping Company * Elder Dempster Lines, including Glen Line and Shire Line * Ellerman Lines, including many companies taken over * Evan Thomas Radcliffe *F T Everard & Sons Ltd *Federal Steam Navigation Company *Fisher, Renwick Manchester – London Steamers *Fletcher Shipping Ltd. *

Furness Withy Furness Withy was a major United Kingdom, British transport business. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange. History The company was founded by Christopher Furness, 1st Baron Furness, Christopher Furness and Henry Withy (1852–1922) in 18 ...

* Fyffes Line *GATX-Oswego Steam Navigation Company *General Steam Navigation Company * Global Marine Systems, previously Cable & Wireless Marine and British Telecom Marine * Harrison Line (T&J Harrison) *Harrison Clyde Ltd Woodside Crescent Glasgow *Head Line Ulster Steamship Co. Ltd. – Belfast *P Henderson and Company *JP Henry and MacGregor – Leith * Houlder Brothers and Company (Houlder Line) *RP Houston and Company (Houston Line) * Indo-China Steam Navigation Company Ltd. * Isle of Man Steam Packet Company * Isles of Scilly Steamship Company * Lamport and Holt *Leyland Line * London & Overseas Freighters * Loch Line * Manchester Liners *Mississippi and Dominion Steamship Company (Dominion Line) *North of Scotland and Orkney and Shetland Steam Navigation Company *North Star Shipping * Ocean Steam Navigation Company (White Star Line) * Orient Steam Navigation Company (Anderson, Green and Company) * Palm Line * Pacific Steam Navigation Company * Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company (P&O) * Port Line, formerly the Commonwealth and Dominion Line *Prince Line * Reardon Smith * Red Funnel Line *Ropner Shipping Company * Royal Mail Steam Packet Company *

Wightlink Wightlink is a ferry company operating routes across The Solent between Hampshire and the Isle of Wight in the south of England. It operates Roll-on/roll-off, car ferries between Lymington and Yarmouth, Isle of Wight, Yarmouth, and Portsmouth a ...

, Previously Sealink its immediate predecessors the

Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a History of rail transport in Great Britain, British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, ...

, LMS, LNER, Southern Railway and many of their antecedents *Scottish Ship Management *Scottish Shire Line * Shaw, Savill & Albion Line *Shell International Shipping Services * Silver Line *Stag Line * Star Line * Stephenson Clarke Shipping * Townsend Brothers Ferries, later Townsend Thoresen *Tyne-Tees Steam Shipping Company * Union-Castle Line *

United Africa Company The United Africa Company (UAC) was a British company which principally traded in West Africa during the 20th century. The United Africa Company was formed in 1929 as a result of the merger of Royal Niger Company, The Niger Company, which had b ...

*United Baltic Corporation * Wandsworth and District Gas Company * Andrew Weir and Company *Wilson Line *Yeoward Line

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * *Press, Jonathan (1976)
''The Merchant Seamen of Bristol, 1747-1789''
(Bristol Historical Association pamphlets, no. 38), 23 pp. *

External links

{{Commons category, Merchant Navy (United Kingdom)
The Marine Society

Mercantile Marine
Community
British Merchant Navy AssociationRecords of World War Two Medals issued to Merchant Seamen from The National Archives.Search and download WW2 Merchant Shipping movement cards from The National Archives.

Historical

Educational and professional

Maritime and Coastguard Agency UK

The Merchant Navy Training Board

Nautilus International

The Nautical Institute

Merchant Navy Colleges

UK Chamber of Shipping
British Merchant Navy, Ship registration Military history of the United Kingdom during World War II United Kingdom home front during World War II