Lewis Beaumont

Summary

Admiral Sir Lewis Anthony Beaumont, GCB, KCMG (19 May 1847 – 20 June 1922) was a Royal Navy officer who served as Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth.

Sir

Lewis Beaumont
Born19 May 1847[1]
Paris, France[2]
Died20 June 1922 (1922-06-21) (aged 75)
Cuckfield, Sussex, England
AllegianceUnited Kingdom United Kingdom
Service/branch Royal Navy
RankAdmiral
Commands heldPacific Station
Australia Station
Plymouth Command
AwardsKnight Commander of the Order of the Bath
Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George

Naval career edit

Beaumont joined the Royal Navy as a boy in 1860 and was engaged in operations in Malaya by 1875.[3] Between 1875 and 1876 he took part as senior lieutenant in the British Arctic Expedition led by George Nares on HMS Discovery, an attempt to reach the North Pole and to explore the northwest coast of Greenland. Beaumont led a dogsled party that reached Sherard Osborn Fjord in May 1876 and left a cairn at Repulse Harbour.[4]

He was given command of HMS Excellent in 1893,[5] before becoming Director of Naval Intelligence in 1895.[6] He went on to be Commander-in-Chief, Pacific Station in 1899[7] and Commander-in-Chief, Australia Station in 1900.[8] During his time in Australia, he had HMS Royal Arthur as his flagship, and he was knighted as a Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG) on the occasion of the visit to Australia of the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York (later King George V and Queen Mary).[9] He was promoted to vice-admiral on 9 September 1902,[10] and left Australia in January 1903 returning to the United Kingdom via the United States.[11] On his return, he took up the position of Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth, serving as such until 1908.[12] He was First and Principal Naval Aide-de-Camp to the King in 1911.[13] He retired in 1912.[14]

 
British flag left at a depot on Repulse Harbour by then Lieutenant Lewis Beaumont during Captain Nares' British Arctic Expedition.

References edit

  1. ^ "Beaumont, Lewis Anthony". Records of the Admiralty, Naval Forces, Royal Marines, Coastguard, and related bodies. The National Archives. December 1860. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
  2. ^ 1891 England Census
  3. ^ "Australian Naval Station: The New Admiral". The Hobart Mercury. 25 January 1901 – via Trove.
  4. ^ Lewis Beaumont collection[dead link]
  5. ^ World Ships Forum[dead link]
  6. ^ Clowes, William Laird (1903). The Royal Navy: A history from earliest times to the present. Vol. VII. London: Sampson Low, Marston and Company – via The Internet Archive.
  7. ^ The Straits Times, 31 July 1902, Page 4[dead link]
  8. ^ "Admiral Beaumont's staff". The Sydney Morning Herald. 9 January 1901. p. 7 – via Trove.
  9. ^ "No. 27338". The London Gazette. 26 July 1901. p. 4950.
  10. ^ "No. 27473". The London Gazette. 12 September 1902. p. 5889.
  11. ^ "Naval & Military intelligence". The Times. No. 36980. London. 17 January 1903. p. 9.
  12. ^ Royal Navy Flag Officers, June 1, 1906[dead link]
  13. ^ "Principle Aide-de-Camp, London". The Adelaide Advertiser. 8 February 1911. p. 11 – via Trove.
  14. ^ "Death of Admiral Beaumont". Evening Post. Vol. CIII, no. 144. 21 June 1922. p. 8 – via Papers Past.
Military offices
Preceded by Director of Naval Intelligence
1895–1899
Succeeded by
Preceded by Commander-in-Chief, Pacific Station
1899–1900
Succeeded by
Preceded by Commander-in-Chief, Australia Station
1900–1903
Succeeded by
Preceded by Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth
1903–1908
Succeeded by
Honorary titles
Preceded by First and Principal Naval Aide-de-Camp
1911–1913
Succeeded by