Admiral (United Kingdom)

Admiral is a senior rank of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom, outranked only by the rank Admiral of the Fleet.

King Edward I of England appointed the first English Admiral in 1297 when he named William de Leyburn “Admiral of the sea of the King of England”. The rank of Admiral should not be confused with the office of Admiral of England or Lord High Admiral, which was an office held by the person with overall responsibility for the Navy.

The Royal Navy has had Vice and Rear Admirals since at least the 16th century. When in command of the fleet, the Admiral would either be in the lead or the middle portion of the fleet. When the Admiral commanded from the middle portion of the fleet his deputy, the Vice Admiral, would be in the leading portion or van. Below him was another admiral at the rear of the fleet, called Rear Admiral.

In Elizabethan times the fleet grew large enough to be organized into squadrons. The admiral’s squadron wore a red ensign, the vice admiral’s white, and the rear admiral’s blue. As the squadrons grew, each was eventually commanded by an Admiral (with Vice Admirals and Rear Admirals commanding sections) and the official titles became Admiral of the White, et cetera.

The squadrons ranked in order Red, White, and Blue, with admirals ranked according to their squadron:

1. Admiral of the Fleet
2. Admiral of the Red
3. Admiral of the White
4. Admiral of the Blue
5. Vice Admiral of the Red
6. Vice Admiral of the White
7. Vice Admiral of the Blue
8. Rear Admiral of the Red
9. Rear Admiral of the White
10. Rear Admiral of the Blue

Promotion up the ladder was in accordance with seniority in the rank of Post-Captain, and rank was held for life, so the only way to get promoted was for the person above you on the list to die or resign. Lord Nelson, when he died, was only Vice Admiral of the White. Another way was to promote unsuccessful captains to the rank of admiral without distinction of squadron (a practice known as yellowing — the Captain so raised became known as a yellow admiral).

In the 18th century, the original nine ranks began to be filled by more than one person per rank, although the rank of Admiral of the Red was always filled by only one person and was known as Admiral of the Fleet, but the organisation of the fleet into coloured squadrons was abandoned in 1864. The Red Ensign was allocated to the Merchant Marine, the White Ensign became the flag of the Royal Navy, and the Blue Ensign was allocated to the naval reserve and naval auxiliary vessels.

The 19th century British Navy also maintained a positional rank known as Port Admiral. A Port Admiral was typically a veteran Captain who served as the shore commander of a British Naval Port and was in charge of supplying, refitting, and maintaining the ships docked at harbour. The most powerful Port Admiral position was the Port Admiral of Portsmouth, considered the leading harbour of the Royal Navy.

The current ranks are Rear Admiral, Vice Admiral, Admiral and Admiral of the Fleet, also known as flag ranks because admirals, known as Flag Officers, are entitled to fly a personal flag. An Admiral of the Fleet flies a Union Jack at the masthead, while an Admiral flies a St George’s cross (red cross on white). Vice Admirals and Rear Admirals fly a St George’s cross differenced with one and two red discs in the hoist, respectively.

In 1996, the rank of Admiral of the Fleet was put in abeyance in peacetime, except for members of the Royal family. However, Admirals of the Fleet continue to hold their rank on the active list for life.