Geoffrey Hornby British naval officer, Admiral of the Fleet Date of Birth: 10.02.1825 Country: Great Britain

1. Early Life and Naval Career
2. Further Career Progression
3. Admiralty and Mediterranean Command
4. Later Career and Honors
5. Death and Legacy
6. Family
7. Memoirs

Early Life and Naval Career

Jeffery Hornby was born as the middle son of Admiral Sir Phipps Hornby. His younger brother, James, became Provost of Eton College, while his cousin, Edward Stanley, 13th Earl of Derby, was both his cousin and brother-in-law. Lieutenant-General John Burgoyne, who was married to Lord Derby's daughter, was also Hornby's brother-in-law.

Hornby received his education at Winwick Grammar School and Southwood's School in Plymouth. In March 1837, he joined the Royal Navy as a first-class volunteer and sailed on the flagship "Princess Charlotte" under Sir Robert Stopford. He witnessed the capture of Acre in November 1840 during the Turco-Egyptian War. In August 1842, he was transferred to the flagship "Winchester" of Rear-Admiral Josceline Percy at the Cape of Good Hope.

Subsequently, Hornby was appointed as a mate aboard the "Cleopatra" of the West African Squadron and participated in anti-slavery operations. On June 15, 1845, he became a flag lieutenant and in September 1847, received an appointment on his father's flagship "Asia" at the Pacific Station.

Further Career Progression

On January 12, 1850, Hornby was promoted to commander. Following the resignation of his brother-in-law, Edward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby, Hornby was advanced to captain on December 18, 1852. In early 1853, he married and his connection to the Derby family put him in disfavor with the incoming Prime Minister, George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen, and particularly with Sir James Graham, First Lord of the Admiralty. As a result, Hornby received no further appointments and did not serve during the Crimean War.

Hornby settled in Sussex and managed his father's estate, Lordington House. Upon the change of government, Hornby was given command of the 32-gun frigate "Tribune" on the Pacific Station on August 15, 1858. Upon his arrival at Vancouver Island with a naval brigade, he discovered that American forces had seized San Juan Island in the "Pig War." Hornby became the senior naval officer on the island, and his tact and judgment played a significant role in the negotiation of a temporary settlement for joint occupation.

In February 1861, Hornby commanded the 120-gun ship "Neptune" in the Mediterranean Fleet under Sir William Fanshawe Martin, which he captained until 1862. In May 1863, Hornby became captain of the flag ship "Edgar" under Rear Admiral Sir Sydney Dacres, commander of the Channel Fleet. In January 1864, the squadron was ordered to shadow ships of the Austro-Hungarian Navy en route to Prussia and to sink them if they bombarded Copenhagen.

In September 1865, Hornby was made a commodore. In 1865-67, he sailed on "Bristol" in the West African Squadron. He condemned the independent rulers of West Africa for their continued slave trade, as all civilized nations except Brazil had abolished it.

On January 1, 1869, Hornby was promoted to rear admiral, and in June 1869, he commanded a Flying Squadron, with his flag in the frigate "Liverpool." Hornby commanded the squadron for two years, undertaking a journey around the world to demonstrate the Royal Navy's ability to reach any part of the globe.

Admiralty and Mediterranean Command

In September 1871, Hornby took command of the Channel Fleet, with his flag in the armored frigate "Minotaur," and held the post for three years. During this time, he met with U.S. President Ulysses Grant. On December 29, 1874, he was appointed as Second Naval Lord in Benjamin Disraeli's second government. On January 1, 1875, Jeffrey Hornby was promoted to vice admiral.

Early in 1877, he was selected as Commander-in-Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet. Hornby hoisted his flag in the battleship "Alexandra." Defying Turkish protests, Hornby took his fleet through the Dardanelles to prevent the advance of Russian forces. For his generalship in moving the fleet, enforcing discipline, and displaying tact and firmness in international dealings as Russian forces approached Constantinople, Hornby was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath on August 12, 1878. He returned home in 1880 with the reputation of being one of the ablest of admirals afloat.

Later Career and Honors

On June 15, 1879, Hornby was advanced to full admiral. In 1881, he became President of the Royal Naval College at Portsmouth and in November 1882, took command of the Portsmouth Naval Station, which he held from 1882-85. He was awarded a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath on December 19, 1885, on hauling down his flag. In May 1888, he was promoted to Admiral of the Fleet.

On January 18, 1886, Hornby became First and Principal Naval Aide-de-Camp to Queen Victoria. As the Queen's naval advisor and Admiral of the Fleet, he was appointed as an aide-de-camp to the German Emperor Wilhelm II during his visits to England in 1889 and 1890. Hornby retired in February 1895.

Death and Legacy

He died at his home in Lordington House on March 3, 1895, after a short illness (influenza). His ashes were scattered over West Sussex.

Family

In 1853, Hornby married Emily Frances Coles, sister of Captain Cowper Coles. Hornby survived his wife. They had three sons and two daughters. One of his sons, Edmund Phipps Hornby, a major of artillery, distinguished himself in South Africa in the Second Boer War, earning the Victoria Cross in 1900. Another son, Robert Hornby, rose to the rank of admiral in the Royal Navy.

Memoirs

The life of Jeffrey Hornby was written by his daughter, Mrs. Fred Egerton (1896). Although much of his career was spent during a time of peace, Hornby is remembered not only as an able administrator but also as a brilliant sea commander who contributed to the developments in naval tactics that saw the transition from sail to steam, turret ships, and the threat of torpedo attacks. Sir John Fisher, who served under Hornby in the Mediterranean, wrote that he "was without exception the finest admiral I ever served under since Nelson. There never was a more beautiful character or a grander sailor. He was incomparable." Hornby was seen as a man of intellect by the naval officers who knew him, with wide-ranging reading. The naval historian Sir William Laird Clowes, who knew Hornby well, wrote that "he was a natural diplomatist and a born tactician. By the entire independence and honesty of his character, he had made himself a master of technical questions, and he was familiar with all modern thought and all currents of progress - a very unusual thing in an officer of his seniority."