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The post of Controller of the Navy (abbreviated as CofN) was originally created in 1859 when the
Surveyor of the Navy The Surveyor of the Navy, originally known as Surveyor and Rigger of the Navy, held overall responsibility for the design of British warships from 1745. He was a principal commissioner and member of the Navy Board from the inauguration of tha ...
's title changed to Controller of the Navy. In 1869 the controller's office was abolished and its duties were assumed by that of the Third Naval Lord whose title then changed to Third Naval Lord and Controller of the Navy. In 1904 the title was changed again to Third Sea Lord and Controller of the Navy. In 1965 the office of the Third Sea Lord was abolished. The post-holder is responsible for
procurement Procurement is the process of locating and agreeing to terms and purchasing goods, services, or other works from an external source, often with the use of a tendering or competitive bidding process. The term may also refer to a contractual ...
and matériel in the
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
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 ...
. Originally the post-holder was a member of the
Board of Admiralty The Board of Admiralty (1628–1964) was established in 1628 when Charles I put the office of Lord High Admiral into commission. As that position was not always occupied, the purpose was to enable management of the day-to-day operational requi ...
and later a member of the
Admiralty Board The Admiralty Board is the body established under the Defence Council of the United Kingdom for the administration of the Naval Service of the United Kingdom. It meets formally only once a year, and the day-to-day running of the Royal Navy is ...
.


History

The original office of Comptroller of the Navy was established in 1561 during the reign of
Elizabeth I of England Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor. Her eventful reign, and its effect on history ...
which was a very different function from what became known later as the ''Controller of the Navy''. They presided over the
Navy Board The Navy Board (formerly known as the Council of the Marine or Council of the Marine Causes) was the Regulatory agency, commission responsible for the day-to-day civil administration of the Royal Navy between 1546 and 1832. The board was headqua ...
from 1660, and generally superintended the business of the Navy Office, they were responsible for all naval spending and for the offices dealing with bills, accounts and wages during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. By the eighteenth century the principal officer responsible for estimating annual stores requirements, inspecting ships' stores and maintaining the Fleet's store-books and repair-bills was the
Surveyor of the Navy The Surveyor of the Navy, originally known as Surveyor and Rigger of the Navy, held overall responsibility for the design of British warships from 1745. He was a principal commissioner and member of the Navy Board from the inauguration of tha ...
however their duties passed increasingly to the Comptroller of the Navy during the latter half of this period. The office of the Surveyor did not altogether disappear. In 1805 for the first time, specific functions were assigned to each of the 'Naval' Lords, who were described as 'Professional' Lords, leaving to the civil lords to the routine business of signing off all official documents. In 1832 the original office of the Comptroller was abolished following a merger with the Board of Admiralty and the Surveyor was made the officer responsible under the First Sea Lord for the material departments. This section contains text from this source, which is available under th
Open Government Licence v3.0
© Crown copyright.
In 1859 the office the
Surveyor of the Navy The Surveyor of the Navy, originally known as Surveyor and Rigger of the Navy, held overall responsibility for the design of British warships from 1745. He was a principal commissioner and member of the Navy Board from the inauguration of tha ...
who had overall responsibility for ship design was renamed and the post became known as the Controller of the Navy. In the re-organisation of the Admiralty by
Order in Council An Order in Council is a type of legislation in many countries, especially the Commonwealth realms. In the United Kingdom, this legislation is formally made in the name of the monarch by and with the advice and consent of the Privy Council ('' ...
of 14 January 1869, the Controller of the Navy was given a seat on the
Board of Admiralty The Board of Admiralty (1628–1964) was established in 1628 when Charles I put the office of Lord High Admiral into commission. As that position was not always occupied, the purpose was to enable management of the day-to-day operational requi ...
as the Third Lord and Controller of the Navy. They also inherited the new duties of the Storekeeper-General of the Navy, whose post was abolished. The Controller lost the title of Third Lord and the seat on the board by an Order in Council of 19 March 1872, but regained them by a further Order in Council of 10 March 1882. In 1872 they again became subordinate to the First Sea Lord, but had the right to attend board meetings when the business of the department was under discussion. In 1882 the Controller again became independent of the First Sea Lord and became a board member again as Third Naval Lord and Controller. The Third Naval Lord's post was renamed to become known as the Third Sea Lord and Controller in 1904. The appointment of Controller of the Navy was abolished in September 1912, although that of Third Sea Lord remained. Thereafter, except for a period in 1917 to 1918 when there was a civilian Controller, the titles of Third Sea Lord and Controller of the Navy went together. The Third Sea Lord and Controller was mainly responsible for superintending the work of the Royal Naval Scientific Service and for a number of Admiralty departments, including those of the Department of the Director of Naval Construction, (from 1958 the Department of the Director General Ships), of the Department of the Engineer in Chief (formerly the Steam Department), of the Department of the Director of Naval Ordnance, of the Department of the Director of Dockyards and, following a board decision in 1911, of the Admiralty Compass Observatory, formerly under the control of the Hydrographer's Department War they also had responsibility for the supply of equipment to
Combined Operations Headquarters Combined Operations Headquarters was a department of the British War Office set up during Second World War to harass the Germans on the European continent by means of raids carried out by use of combined naval and army forces. History The comm ...
. From 1958 the Fourth Sea Lord was also known as ''Vice Controller of the Navy'' they assumed the superintendence of the naval dockyard organisation and the maintenance of the fleet. In 1965 the appointment of Third Sea Lord was abolished and the individual responsible for the materiel side of the navy became simply Controller of the Navy. From 2003 until April 2013 the post holder jointly held different titles such as Director, Land Maritime, 2003–2006, Director-General, Nuclear, 2006–2009, Capability Manager/Director (Precision Attack), 2009-2012 and Director, Maritime Capability and Transformation, 2012–2013. From April 2013 until November 2018 the post holder simultaneously held the titles of Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff (Capability) and Chief of Staff Navy Command (HQ) post holders include: From November 2018, the post holder has been just Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff (Capability). ACNS Capability is also known as Director Develop as of September 2020.


List of office holders


Third Naval Lords 1832–1868

* Rear Admiral Sir Samuel Pechell 1832–1834 * Rear Admiral Sir Charles Rowley 1834–1835 * Rear Admiral Sir George Elliot 1835–1837 * Rear Admiral Sir Edward Troubridge 1837–1841 * Rear Admiral Sir Samuel Pechell 1841 * Rear Admiral Sir George Seymour 1841–1844 * Rear Admiral Sir William Bowles 1844–1846 * Rear Admiral Sir Maurice Berkeley 1846–1847 * Rear Admiral Lord John Hay 1847–1850 * Rear Admiral Sir Houston Stewart 1850–1852 * Rear Admiral Sir James Stirling 1852 * Rear Admiral Sir Thomas Herbert 1852–1853 * Rear Admiral Sir Richard Dundas 1853–1854 * Rear Admiral Sir Peter Richards 1854–1857 * Rear Admiral Henry Eden 1857 * Rear Admiral Sir Alexander Milne 1857–1859 * Rear Admiral Sir Henry Leeke 1859 * Rear Admiral Sir Charles Eden 1859–1861 * Rear Admiral Charles Frederick 1861–1865 * Rear Admiral Sir Edward Fanshawe 1865–1866 * Rear Admiral Henry Seymour 1866–1868


Third Lords and Controllers of the Navy 1869–1872

* Admiral Sir Robert Robinson, 1869–1871 * Captain Robert Hall, 1871–1872


Controllers of the Navy 1872–1882

* Captain Robert Hall, 1872 * Admiral Sir William Stewart, 1872–1881 * Rear-Admiral Thomas Brandreth, 1881–1882


Third Naval Lords and Controllers of the Navy 1882–1904

Third Naval Lords and Controllers of the Navy include: * Vice-Admiral Thomas Brandreth, 1882–1886 * Vice-Admiral Sir William Graham, 1886–1888 * Vice-Admiral John Hopkins, 1888–1892 * Vice-Admiral Sir John Fisher, 1892–1897 * Rear-Admiral Arthur Wilson, 1897–1901 * Rear-Admiral William May, 1901–1905


Third Sea Lord and Controllers of the Navy 1904–1912

* Rear-Admiral Sir Henry Jackson, 1905–1908 * Rear-Admiral Sir John Jellicoe, 1908–1909 * Rear-Admiral
Reginald Bacon Admiral Sir Reginald Hugh Spencer Bacon, (6 September 1863 – 9 June 1947) was an officer in the Royal Navy noted for his technical abilities. According to Admiral of the Fleet (Royal Navy), Admiral of the Fleet John Fisher, 1st Baron Fisher, L ...
, 1909 * Rear-Admiral Charles Briggs, 1910–1912 * Rear-Admiral Gordon Moore, 1912


Third Sea Lords 1912–1918

* Rear-Admiral Gordon Moore, 1912–1914 * Rear-Admiral Frederick Tudor, 1914–1917 * Rear-Admiral Lionel Halsey, 1917–1918


Third Sea Lords and Controllers of the Navy 1918–1965

Third Sea Lords and Controllers of the Navy include: * Rear-Admiral Sir Charles de Bartolomé, 1918–1919 * Rear-Admiral Sir William Nicholson, 1919–1920 * Rear-Admiral Sir Frederick Field, 1920–1923 * Rear-Admiral Cyril Fuller, 1923–1925 * Vice-Admiral Sir Ernle Chatfield, 1925–1928 * Vice-Admiral Roger Backhouse, 1928–1932 * Vice-Admiral Charles Forbes, 1932–1934 * Admiral Sir Reginald Henderson, 1934–1939 * Vice-Admiral Sir Bruce Fraser, 1939–1942 * Admiral Sir Frederic Wake-Walker, 1942–1945 * Vice-Admiral Sir Charles Daniel, 1945–1949 * Admiral Sir Michael Denny, 1949–1953 * Admiral Sir Ralph Edwards, 1953–1956 * Admiral Sir Peter Reid, 1956–1961 * Admiral Sir Michael Le Fanu, 1961–1965


Controllers of the Navy 1965–current

Post holders include: * Admiral Sir Horace Law, 1965–1970 * Admiral Sir Michael Pollock, 1970–1971 * Admiral Sir Anthony Griffin, 1971–1975 * Admiral Sir Richard Clayton, 1975–1979 * Admiral Sir John Fieldhouse, 1979–1981 * Admiral Sir Lindsay Bryson, 1981–1984 * Admiral Sir Derek Reffell, 1984–1989 * Admiral Sir Kenneth Eaton, 1989–1994 * Vice-Admiral Sir Robert Walmsley, 1994–1996 * Rear-Admiral Frederick Scourse, 1996–1997 * Rear-Admiral
Peter Spencer Peter or Pete Spencer may refer to: *Peter Spencer (religious leader) Peter Spencer (1782–1843) was an American freedman who in 1813 founded the Union Church of Africans in Wilmington, Delaware. The denomination is now known as the African Un ...
, 1997–2000 * Rear-Admiral Nigel Guild, 2000–2003 * Rear-Admiral Richard Cheadle, 2003–2006 (also Director, Land Maritime) * Rear-Admiral Andrew Mathews, 2006–2007 (also Director-General, Nuclear) * Rear-Admiral Paul Lambert, 2007–2009 (ditto) * Rear-Admiral
Amjad Hussain Rear Admiral Amjad Mazhar Hussain, (born 15 May 1958) is a senior retired Royal Navy officer. He was the highest-ranking member of the British Armed Forces from an ethnic minority. Background and personal life Born in Pakistan, Hussain and his ...
, 2009–2012 (also Capability Manager/Director (Precision Attack)) * Rear-Admiral Henry Parker, 2012–2013 (also Director, Maritime Capability and Transformation) * Rear-Admiral Duncan Potts, April 2013 – September 2014 * Rear-Admiral James Morse, September 2014 – May 2016 * Rear-Admiral Paul Bennett, May 2016 – November 2017 * Major-General
Robert Magowan Lieutenant General Sir Robert Andrew Magowan, (born 12 September 1967) is a senior Royal Marines officer who serves as the Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff (Financial and Military Capability) since May 2022. He previously served as Commandant ...
, RM. November 2017 – November 2018 * Rear-Admiral Hugh Beard, November 2018 – January 2020 * Rear-Admiral Andrew Burns, January 2020 – September 2021 * Rear-Admiral James Parkin, September 2021 – present


Departments under the office

''At various times included:''


Current

* Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff Warfare * Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff Information Superiority * Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff Maritime Capability * Office Assistant Chief of Staff Integrated Change Programme


Former

At various times included: * Admiralty Compass Observatory, formerly under the control of the Hydrographer of the Navy's department *
Combined Operations Headquarters Combined Operations Headquarters was a department of the British War Office set up during Second World War to harass the Germans on the European continent by means of raids carried out by use of combined naval and army forces. History The comm ...
(supply of equipment only). * Department of the Director of Dockyards, (1885–1954) * Department of the Director of Naval Construction ** Royal Corps of Naval Constructors * Department of the Director General Ships * Department of the Director Contract-built ships * Department of the Director of Electrical Engineering * Department of the Director of Naval Equipment * Department of the Director of Scientific Research * Department of the Engineer in Chief (formerly the Steam Department) * Department of the Inspector of Dockyard Expense Accounts * Department of the Director of Torpedoes and Mines * Department of the Surveyor of Dockyards, (1872–1885) * Directorate of Naval Construction, (1913–1958) *
Naval Ordnance Department The Naval Ordnance Department, also known as the Department of the Director of Naval Ordnance, was a former department of the British Admiralty, Admiralty responsible for the procurement of naval ordnance of the Royal Navy. The department was mana ...
** Department of the Assistant Director of Torpedoes **
Naval Ordnance Stores Department The Naval Ordnance Stores Department, was a former department of the British Admiralty, Admiralty responsible for the management of naval ordnance storage facilities and depots of the Royal Navy the department was managed by a Superintendent of S ...
(1918–1964) * Naval Stores Department, (1869–1966) *
Dockyards and Fleet Maintenance Department A shipyard, also called a dockyard or boatyard, is a place where ships are built and repaired. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Compared to shipyards, which are sometimes more involved ...
, (1957–1964) * Department of Dockyards and Maintenance, (1964–1968) * Office of the Assistant Controller * Office of the Assistant Controller Research and Development * Office of the Controller, (1917–1918) * Office of the Deputy Controller of Navy, (1939–1941) * Office of the Deputy Controller Production * Office of the Inspector Gun Mountings * Office of the Superintendent of Stores, (1869–1917) * Office of the Vice Controller of the Navy, (1939–1945) * Office of the Vice Controller Air ** Department of the Director of Naval Equipment ** Armament Supply Department, (1891–1918) *** Royal Naval Armaments Depot ** Department of the Chief Inspector of Naval Ordnance, (1908–1922) ** Naval Ordnance Inspection Department, (1922–1964) * Royal Naval Scientific Service * Steam Department


See also

*
First Sea Lord First Sea Lord, officially known as First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff (1SL/CNS), is the title of a statutory position in the British Armed Forces, held by an Admiral (Royal Navy), admiral or a General (United Kingdom), general of the ...
*
Second Sea Lord The Second Sea Lord and Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff (formerly Second Sea Lord) is deputy to the First Sea Lord and the second highest-ranking officer currently to serve in the Royal Navy and is responsible for personnel and naval shore estab ...
* Fourth Sea Lord * Fifth Sea Lord * Comptroller of the Navy (1561–1832)


References

{{Board of Admiralty, state=collapsed * N