List of Royal Navy admirals (1707–current)

Admiral is a senior rank of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom, which equates to the NATO rank code OF-9, formally outranked only by the rank admiral of the fleet. The rank of admiral is currently the highest rank to which an officer in the Royal Navy can be promoted, admiral of the fleet being used nowadays only for honorary promotions.

This list aims to include all who have been promoted to the rank of admiral in the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom following the Acts of Union 1707, or to historical variations of that rank (the main article on the rank includes a history of the rank, including the pre-1864 use of colour for admirals of the various squadrons).

Royal Navy officers holding the ranks of rear-admiral, vice-admiral and admiral of the fleet are sometimes considered generically to be admirals. These are not listed here unless they gained the rank of full admiral.

For a very long time, promotion to the ranks above captain was an entitlement of everyone who had become a captain and occurred in strict order of seniority as captain; this was enacted in 1718 and is still evident in Navy Lists of the 1940s. Various stratagems were developed to move those who had seniority over captains who it was actually desired to promote out of the way of the functional promotions, including promotion "without distinction of squadron", "dormant commissions", "superannuation", a variety of pension schemes, a "reserved list", and a "retired list"; these were frequently enacted by Order in Council. Despite being moved off the active list, vice-admirals could still be promoted to admiral after all previously promoted vice-admirals of their category had been promoted or died, whether on an honorific basis or as a means of granting them a pension increase.

Persons listed are shown with the titles they held at the time of their deaths whether or not these were held at the time of their promotion to the rank of full admiral. Those who held the rank of full admiral only on an acting basis are not shown.

List of admirals

Promoted Name Born Died NotesGeorge Byng, 1st Viscount Torrington KB16631733Senior Naval Lord 1710–1712, 1714–1717 and 1718–1721;promoted to Admiral of the Fleet 1718 John Jennings16641743Senior Naval Lord 1721–1727Sir John Norris16701749Senior Naval Lord 1727–1730; promoted to Admiral of the Fleet 1734 Sir James Wishart16591723Dictionary of National Biography volume 62 page 253 has an extended discussion of the disputed relative seniority of these 5 promotions; threedecks.org indicates Wishart was dismissed from the Navy in 1715 Sir Charles Wager16661743Senior Naval Lord 1730–1733; First Lord of the Admiralty 1733–1742 Sir George Walton16651739Retired on pension 1736 Philip Cavendish16951743Sir John Balchen16701744Lost at sea with HMS Victory (1737);promoted to Admiral of the White August 1743 from Vice-Admiral of the RedThomas Mathews16761751Dismissed from the Navy after court-martialNicholas Haddock16861746Sir Chaloner Ogle KB1681 1750Promoted to Admiral of the Fleet 1749Edward Vernon16841757Dismissed 1746Richard Lestock16791746James Steuart16781757Promoted to Admiral of the Fleet 1750George Clinton1686?1761Promoted to Admiral of the Fleet 1757 Sir William Rowley KB1690?1768Senior Naval Lord 1751–1756 and 1757; promoted to Admiral of the Fleet 1762 William Martin1696?1756Retired shortly after promotion Isaac Townsend1685?1765Governor of Greenwich Hospital, 1754George Anson, 1st Baron Anson16971762Senior Naval Lord 1749–1751; promoted to Admiral of the Fleet 1761Vere Beauclerk, 1st Baron Vere16991781Senior Naval Lord 1746–1749; retired 1749John Byng17041757Executed after court-martialEdward Hawke, 1st Baron Hawke17051781First Lord of the Admiralty 1766–1771; promoted to Admiral of the Fleet 1768 Thomas Griffin16921771Henry Osborn16941771Thomas Smith17071762"Retired from active service" October 1758John Forbes17141796Senior Naval Lord 1761–1763; promoted to Admiral of the Fleet 1781Edward Boscawen PC17111761Senior Naval Lord 1756–1757 and 1757–1761Sir Charles Knowles, 1st Baronet1704?1777Sir George Pocock KB17061792Resigned commission 1766George Townshend17161769Francis Holburne17041771Senior Naval Lord 1770–1771George Carnegie, 6th Earl of Northesk17161792Sir Charles Saunders, KB1715?1775Senior Naval Lord 1765–1766; First Lord of the Admiralty 1766Charles Hardy1716?1780Sir Thomas Frankland, 5th Baronet17181784?Harry Powlett, 6th Duke of Bolton17201794Sir Thomas Pye1709?1785Some sources say born 1713London Gazette 11549Sir Francis Geary, 1st Baronet17091796George Brydges Rodney, 1st Baron Rodney KB17181792James Young17171789Rodney and Young were promoted directly to Admiral of the White (The London Gazette 11844)Sir Peircy Brett17091781Senior Naval Lord 1766–1770Sir John Moore, 1st Baronet17181779Sir James Douglas, 1st Baronet17031787George Edgcumbe, 1st Earl of Mount Edgcumbe17201795Samuel Graves17131787William Parry17051779Augustus Keppel, 1st Viscount Keppel17251786Senior Naval Lord 1766; First Lord of the Admiralty 1782–1783London Gazette 11844John Amherst17181778Died 16 days after promotionMatthew Buckle17161784Robert ManLondon Gazette number 12122 page 41783First Naval Lord 1779–1780Clark Gayton17121785Sir Robert Harland, 1st Baronet17151784First Naval Lord 1782–1783Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe KG17241799Senior Naval Lord 1763–1765; promoted to Admiral of the Fleet 1796John Montagu17191795Hugh Pigot17221792Molyneux Shuldham, 1st Baron Shuldham1717?1798John VaughanHaydn,Book of Dignities page 2861789John Reynolds1713?1788Sir Hugh Palliser, 1st Baronet17231796Matthew Barton1715?1795Sir Peter Parker, 1st Baronet17211811Promoted to Admiral of the Fleet 1799Samuel Barrington17291800London Gazette number 13499 page 99Mariot Arbuthnot17111794Robert Roddam17191808Headed the list when rank Admiral of the Red was created in November 1805 (The London Gazette 15859 page 1373)William Lloyd17251796Sir Edward Hughes1720?1794John Evans17171794Mark Milbanke17241805Nicholas Vincent1723?1809Threedecks.org: "He accepted no commission after his promotion to flag rank"; but was second on 1805 list of Admirals of the RedSir Edward Vernon17231794Richard Edwards17151795Thomas Graves, 1st Baron Graves KB17251802Robert Digby 17321815London Gazette 13639 page 315 Benjamin Marlow1715?1795Alexander Hood, 1st Viscount Bridport KB17261814Sir Chaloner Ogle, 1st Baronet17261816Samuel Hood, 1st Viscount Hood17241816First Naval Lord 1789–1795Sir Richard Hughes, 2nd Baronet1729?1812John Elliot17321808William Hotham, 1st Baron Hotham17361813Joseph Peyton17251804John Carter Allen17241800Charles Middleton, 1st Baron Barham17261813First Naval Lord 1795; First Lord of the Admiralty 1805–1806John Laforey1729?1796John Dalrymple1722?1798Herbert Sawyer1730?1798Sir Richard King, 1st Baronet17301806Jonathan Faulknor the elder1795Died in the month of his promotionPhilip Affleck17261799John Jervis, 1st Earl of St Vincent, GCB17351823First Lord of the Admiralty 1801–1804;promoted to Admiral of the Fleet 1821Adam Duncan, 1st Viscount Duncan17311804Samuel Granston Goodall????1801Richard Brathwaite1728?1805Name as spelled in 1799 gazette but linked references use a variationPhillips Cosby1729?1808 Samuel Pitchford Cornish17391816 John Brisbane????1807Not active at flag rank Charles Wolseley17411808Not active at flag rankWilliam IV of the United Kingdom17651837Later Admiral of the Fleet (1811) and Lord High Admiral (1827) before becoming KingSir Richard Onslow, 1st Baronet17411817Sir Robert Kingsmill, 1st Baronet17301805 Sir George Bowyer, 5th Baronet17401800 Sir Hyde Parker17391807 Sir Benjamin Caldwell GCB17391820Sir William Cornwallis, GCB17441819 William Allen17281804John Macbride1735?1800 George Vandeput??1800Charles Buckner1735?1811John Gell17401806 William Dickson??1803 Alan Gardner, 1st Baron Gardner17421809 Robert Linzee17391804James Wallace17311803William Peere Williams-Freeman17421832Retired list; promoted to Admiral of the Fleet June 1830Sir Thomas Pasley, 1st Baronet17341808 Sir Thomas Rich, 5th Baronet1733?1803 James Cumming17381808Sir John Colpoys GCB1742?1821Skeffington Lutwidge17371814Sir Archibald Dickson, 1st Baronet??1803Sir George Montagu GCB1750 1829 Thomas Dumaresq17291802George Keith Elphinstone, 1st Viscount Keith GCB174618231814 Navy List James Pigott??1822 William Waldegrave, 1st Baron Radstock17531825Thomas Mackenzie17531813 Sir Roger Curtis, 1st Baronet GCB17461816 Sir Henry Harvey KB17431810Retired listRobert Mann1748?1813Surname spelled "Man" in 1808 gazette Charles Holmes Everitt Calmady17541807 John Bourmaster17361807 Sir George Young17321810 John Henry17371829 Sir Richard Rodney Bligh GCB17371821 Alexander Graeme17411818 George Keppel?1804 Isaac Prescott17371830 John Bazely17401809 Sir Thomas Davy Spry17541828 Sir John Orde, 1st Baronet17511824Sir William Young, GCB17511821James Gambier, 1st Baron Gambier GCB17561833First Naval Lord 1795–1801, 1804–1806 and 1807–1808; promoted to Admiral of the Fleet July 1830 Sir Andrew Mitchell KB17571806 Charles Chamberlayne17501810 Peter Rainier17411808 Philip Patton17391815 Sir Charles Pole, 1st Baronet17571830Promoted to Admiral of the Fleet July 1830London Gazette 16140 (7 admirals this day) John Brown17511808Died four days after promotion John Leigh Douglas 17411810Rear-Admiral of the White; had been promoted to Commander 1777, Captain 1779, Rear-Admiral 1797 and Vice-Admiral 1801 William Swiney17471829 Sir Charles Edmund Nugent1759?1844Promoted to Admiral of the Fleet 1833Charles Powell Hamilton17471825 Edmund Dod17341815 Sir Charles Cotton, 5th Baronet17531812 John Thomas17511810 James Brine17381814Sir Erasmus Gower17421814 John Holloway1747?1826George Wilson17561826 Sir Charles Henry Knowles, 2nd Baronet, GCB17541831Sir Thomas Pakenham GCB17571836Not active in Navy after 1795 Robert Deans17401815Sir James Hawkins-Whitshed, 1st Baronet, GCB17621849Promoted to Admiral of the Fleet 1844 Arthur Kempe17431823Smith Child17301813Annual Register reprint of London GazetteThomas Taylor1812Haydn,Book of Dignities page 291.Sir John Duckworth, 1st Baronet17481817Sir Robert Calder, 1st Baronet, KCB17451818Sir George Cranfield Berkeley GCB17531818 Thomas West1821Haydn, Book of Dignities page 291.Immediately preceded Douglas on 1814 Navy List James Douglas1755?1839Ranked after Whitshed on 1832 Navy List and after Whitshed and Arthur Kempe on earlier Royal Naval Biography list