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50-763: Prior to 1912 responsibility for the management of historical materials was the responsibility of the Admiralty Library later called the Naval Historical Library, its collection transferred to the Naval Historical Branch when it was implemented by First Lord of the Admiralty , Winston Churchill during the period he established the Admiralty War Staff before the First World War. He requested

100-809: A Seaford House Paper on why the UK needed a 'Grand Strategy'. He attended the Higher Command and Staff Course at the Staff College, Camberley in 1993 before being promoted to commodore and becoming Director of Naval Staff Duties at the Ministry of Defence later that year. West became rear admiral on appointment as Naval Secretary in March 1994, responsible for officer appointing and also naval manning and moved its organisation from London to Portsmouth. In February 1996 he became Commander United Kingdom Task Group deploying to

150-408: A foreign country, the bugging of communications and accommodation was so widespread that Rosemary would say "Goodnight everybody" before turning off the light to sleep. West has admitted during security vetting to an extramarital affair, and was forced to respond to rumours in 2007 about his friendship with Anni-Frid Lyngstad of ABBA with "I'm not having an affair with her". Newspaper reports at

200-415: A historical perspective and by countering any misconceptions that may have arisen without evidence. Recent work includes papers concerning the debate on effects based warfare and the maritime contribution to dealing with terrorists. This work is complemented by the longer-term analysis of new classified staff histories. Histories in progress include an innovative Four-Nation study of maritime co-operation since

250-556: A security advisor to Prime Minister Gordon Brown . Prior to his ministerial appointment, he was First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff from 2002 to 2006. West was born on 21 April 1948 in Lambeth , London , and was educated at Windsor Grammar School and Clydebank High School . He joined Britannia Royal Naval College in 1965 and served in HMS Albion during her standby duty for

300-546: A short period (1827–28) when the Duke of Clarence was Lord High Admiral. The Board of the Admiralty comprised a number of "Lords Commissioners" headed by a First Lord. From the early 1800s the post was always held by a civilian (previously flag officers of the Royal Navy also held the post). In 1832 First Lord Sir James Graham instituted reforms and amalgamated the Board of Admiralty and

350-427: Is Sir Joseph Henry Porter, KCB . W. S. Gilbert wrote to Arthur Sullivan he did not intend to portray the real-life then First Lord, the bookseller and newsagent W. H. Smith , a Conservative , although some of the public, including Prime Minister Disraeli (who later referred to Smith as "Pinafore Smith"), identified Porter with him. The counterparts shared a known lack of naval background. It has been suggested

400-675: The 1990-1991 Gulf War , initiated by the chiefs of Naval Staff in Britain , the United States , Canada and Australia . The Branch also works with the fleet headquarters providing war diarist support and historically based training for naval and joint units. Recent examples include the naval war diaries for Operation Telic and a study of the Normandy landings for the Royal Navy's Fleet Battle Staff . The Naval Historical Branch works in partnership with Fleet Headquarters in order to ensure records of

450-635: The British Home Office , with responsibility for security in the administration of Gordon Brown, and that same day Brown announced that West was to be created a life peer . On 9 July 2007, he was created Baron West of Spithead , of Seaview in the County of Isle of Wight , and took his seat in the House of Lords . In November 2007 he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme that he was not "totally convinced" of

500-655: The First Sea Lord ’s Naval Staff, providing advice and support to defence policy and operations and fulfilling a wide range of tasks for both the Government and the public. Development of the Branch The Historical Section was temporarily established before the First World War , but war was declared before it could be properly set up. Information was collected during the war and also after it had finished,

550-718: The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). "They are running rings around us in terms of the social media they are putting out." He also suggested the West should consider working with Syrian president Bashar al-Assad , whom he qualified as a "loathsome man", while he called for Britain to consider joining the US in conducting air strikes against ISIL targets in Syria. In January 2016, following news emerging about serious power and propulsion problems with

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600-732: The Kosovo War . West was created a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in the 2000 New Year Honours . He became a full admiral in November 2000 when he took up the post of Commander-in-Chief Fleet , NATO Commander-in-Chief East Atlantic and NATO Commander Allied Naval Forces North . West co-ordinated the naval response to the September 11 attacks in the North Arabian Sea and Afghanistan . West

650-557: The Navy Board . By the provisions of the Admiralty Act of 1832, two Lords in committee could legalise any action of the Board. In 1868 Prime Minister, William Gladstone appointed Hugh Childers First Lord, who would introduce a new system at the Admiralty. However these changes restricted communication between the board members who were affected by these new regulations, and the sittings of

700-703: The Nigerian Civil War and circumnavigated the globe in HMS Whitby , taking part in the Beira Patrol . He was confirmed as a sub-lieutenant on 1 September 1969, and promoted to lieutenant on 1 May 1970. After his command of the Ton-class minesweeper HMS Yarnton in Hong Kong in 1973, he qualified as a principal warfare officer in 1975 and then served as operations officer in the frigate HMS Juno in 1976 and then

750-515: The Solent reviewed by Queen Elizabeth II and the First Sea Lord. West led the demand by the Royal Navy for a major ceremony. He is credited with persuading the government to make the event include a large-scale fleet review. In 2005 he served as the chief mourner at a reenactment of Horatio Nelson 's funeral. In the 2004 New Year Honours , he was advanced to a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of

800-532: The Admiralty Act, vesting in the Commissioners the powers formerly held by the Lord High Admiral of England. and at this point became a permanent Cabinet position. The Admiralty Commission was dissolved in 1701, but was reconstituted in 1709 on the death of Prince George of Denmark, who had been appointed Lord High Admiral. The office has been held in commission from that time onwards, however, except for

850-503: The Admiralty, and Secretary of State for Air became formally subordinated to that of Minister of Defence , which had itself been created in 1940 for the co-ordination of defence and security issues. In 1964, the office of First Lord of the Admiralty was abolished, the last holder being the second Earl Jellicoe , whose father, Admiral of the Fleet the first Earl Jellicoe , had served as First Sea Lord nearly 50 years earlier. The functions of

900-607: The Bath . He completed his term as First Sea Lord on 6 February 2006 and was succeeded by Admiral Sir Jonathon Band . West was installed as the first Chancellor for Solent University (formerly Southampton Institute and Southampton Solent) on 28 June 2006, appointed to the board of the Imperial War Museum on 6 July 2006 and made chairman of the advisory board of defence contractor QinetiQ in October 2006. West left his role at Southampton Solent University in summer 2018 after

950-573: The Board were discontinued altogether. This situation described was further exacerbated by the disaster of HMS  Captain in 1870, a poorly-designed new vessel for the navy. The responsibility and powers of the First Lord of the Admiralty were laid down by an Order in Council dated 14 January 1869, and a later Order (19 March 1872) made the First Lord responsible to the Sovereign and to Parliament for all

1000-808: The Gulf for the first UK fighter patrols over Iraq (conducted by Sea Harrier FA2 ) and to the South China Sea to cover the withdrawal from Hong Kong (Operation OceanWave). In October 1997 he was promoted to vice admiral and Chief of Defence Intelligence . He was responsible for the move of the Intelligence school from Ashford to Chicksands , and provision of intelligence to the Chiefs of Staff on operations in Sierra Leone , East Timor , Operation Desert Fox in Iraq , and

1050-573: The Historical Section combined and organized materials. It also produced hundreds of classified studies and began a comprehensive history of the maritime war. Budget cuts meant this work was never completed, with negative consequences, but the work achieved despite this was more important, underwriting such measures as the immediate introduction of convoys in 1939. At the outbreak of war the Branch's limited staff were assigned purely to collection. However,

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1100-544: The Home Office, he produced the United Kingdom's first-ever National Security Strategy (as trailed in his Seaford House paper of 1992) and Cyber Security strategy as well as formulating a series of other new strategies: the counter-terrorist policy, cyber security, chemical, biological radiological and nuclear security, science and technology for countering international terrorism and guidance for local government in enhancing

1150-590: The Lords Commissioners were then transferred to an Admiralty Board , which forms part of the tri-service Defence Council of the United Kingdom . From 1 April 1964 Elizabeth II assumed the title of Lord High Admiral . Ministerial responsibility for the Royal Navy was transferred to the newly created Secretary of State for Defence . Notes: The "Radical" First Lord, and a major character, in Gilbert and Sullivan 's comic opera H.M.S. Pinafore (1878),

1200-451: The Navy on a canal towpath. These documents were recovered and then published by a journalist from The Mail on Sunday . At a subsequent court martial West pleaded guilty to charges of negligence and breaching security. He explained that they had fallen from his coat pocket whilst walking a friend's dog. West was issued with a severe reprimand, the second lightest sentence available. The reprimand

1250-641: The Royal Navy Type 45 destroyer , West argued it was a "national disgrace" that the Navy only had 19 destroyers and frigates. In August 2016, he described the issues facing the MoD post- Brexit as a " perfect storm ", insisting that there were great difficulties for the British military as a result of Britain's exit from the European Union . In April 2018, he expressed doubts as to whether Assad's government perpetrated

1300-568: The Royal Navy's effectiveness. After the war, these were developed into authoritative histories which incorporated captured German materials and are used extensively with the defence community. They were a basis for the Official Histories and many subsequent works, and NHB is currently publishing them to make them more widely available. Naval Historical Branch Today The Branch continues to provide information and advice across defence in order to improve policy decisions. It does so by supplying

1350-428: The Royal Navy's wide range of activities are produced, preserved and organized, so that their content is permanently accessible. This is vital for the Branch's main business but is also central to legal and compensation issues. These are an increasing aspect of the Branch's work and have considerable financial implications. While the Branch does not ‘judge’ any cases, it does provide a vital expert input, which both assists

1400-436: The US right flank in the invasion of Iraq . During his time as First Sea Lord, West implemented the defence white paper entitled Delivering Security in a Changing World which proposed cutting three Type 23 frigates , three Type 42 destroyers , four nuclear submarines, six minehunters and reducing the planned purchase of Type 45 destroyers from twelve to eight. In a message to the Royal Navy, West said "We must continue

1450-498: The War Staff include a historical section, explaining it should, “…be the means of sifting, developing and applying the results of history and experience, and of preserving them as a general stock of reasoned opinion available as an aid and guide for all who are called upon to determine, in peace or war, the naval policy of the country,” This is still relevant today because the Naval Historical Branch (NHB) continues to function as part of

1500-510: The alleged Douma chemical attack and dismissed the White Helmets as having "a history of doing propaganda for the opposition forces in Syria". On BBC Television News he said, "When I was Chief of Defence Intelligence I had huge pressure put on me politically to try and say that our bombing campaign in Bosnia was achieving all sorts of things which it wasn't. I was put under huge pressure. So I know

1550-450: The business of the Admiralty. However, by describing the Lords of the Admiralty as the "assistants" of the First Lord, and by specifically defining their duties, this had, in fact, partially disabled the collective power of the Board. In 1931, for the first time since 1709, the First Lord was not a member of the cabinet. In 1946, the three posts of Secretary of State for War , First Lord of

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1600-571: The character was drawn on Smith's actual "Radical" predecessor of 1868–71, Hugh Childers . Alan West, Baron West of Spithead Alan William John West, Baron West of Spithead , GCB , DSC , PC (born 21 April 1948) is a retired admiral of the Royal Navy and formerly, from June 2007 to May 2010, a Labour Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the British Home Office with responsibility for security and

1650-574: The direction and control of the Admiralty , and also of general administration of the Naval Service of the Kingdom of England , Great Britain in the 18th century, and then the United Kingdom, including the Royal Navy, the Royal Marines , and other services. It was one of the earliest known permanent government posts. Apart from being the political head of the Naval Service the post holder was simultaneously

1700-519: The earlier Office of the Admiralty and Marine Affairs . During most of the 17th century and the early 18th century, it was not invariable for the Admiralty to be in commission, so there are gaps in the list of First Lords, and a small number of First Lords were for a time Lord High Admiral. After the Revolution, in 1690, a declaratory Act was passed, during the reign of William and Mary. Parliament passed

1750-484: The early resolution of legitimate claims and helps challenge any which may be more doubtful. As the First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir Alan West , put it: ‘To those who are sceptical about the cost of this historical input, the loss of just one legal case because of lack of written documents would pay for the Branch… Incomplete list: This article contains text from this source https://www.gov.uk/government/Chronology of

1800-674: The first Armilla Patrol . In 1982 he laid a wreath off Norway , on the spot inside the Arctic Circle where the previous Ardent had been sunk in 1940 by the German battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau . Shortly after, the ship deployed to the South Atlantic for the Falklands War , where she was sunk in Falkland Sound on 21 May during the successful retaking of the islands. West

1850-524: The first serious German threat to Britain proved to be mines laid in the sea off the coasts. The Vice Chief of the Naval Staff required historical analysis to effectively counter this. When presented with a mass of raw data and on one to interpret it, he immediately had the Branch reconstituted as both a collection and analytical organization. During the war, the NHB produced hundreds of reports, including immediate Battle Summaries, which allowed rapid improvements in

1900-522: The frigate HMS Ambuscade in 1977. Promoted to lieutenant commander on 1 April 1978, he attended the Royal Navy Staff College that year and then qualified as an advanced warfare officer before being posted to the destroyer HMS Norfolk in 1979. In 1980 he was promoted to commander and took command of the frigate HMS Ardent , and deployed to the Indian Ocean taking part in

1950-564: The graduation ceremonies. In April 2010 West also became patron of the Docklands Sinfonia symphony orchestra. In 2014 he presented the 15-part BBC Radio 4 series "Britain at Sea". He has been, since at least November 2014, a member of the Henry Jackson Society 's Political Council. He is also a non-executive chairman of Spearfish Maritime Security. On 29 June 2007, West was appointed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at

2000-641: The historical branches of the 3 services , which is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 . © Crown copyright. First Lord of the Admiralty The First Lord of the Admiralty , or formally the Office of the First Lord of the Admiralty , was the political head of the English and later British Royal Navy . He was the government's senior adviser on all naval affairs, responsible for

2050-425: The need for 42-day detention (without trial) of terrorist suspects. But less than two hours later, following a meeting with the prime minister , he said he was "convinced" of the need for the new legislation. The incident was an embarrassment for the government, particularly as West was the minister charged with navigating the controversial Counter-Terrorism Act 2008 through the House of Lords. During his time with

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2100-456: The pre-eminent member of the Board of Admiralty . The office of First Lord of the Admiralty existed from 1628 until it was abolished when the Admiralty, Air Ministry , Ministry of Defence and War Office were all merged to form the new Ministry of Defence in 1964. Its modern-day equivalent is the Secretary of State for Defence . In 1628, during the reign of Charles I , George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham , Lord High Admiral of England,

2150-410: The run-up to September's referendum on that issue . In 2014, he challenged Michael Gove to a boxing match after Gove's reported comments ahead of the centenary commemorations that left-wing academics were spreading unpatriotic myths about the First World War via programmes like Blackadder . In the wake of the June 2015 Sousse attack , he said Britain must step up the "propaganda war" against

2200-429: The security of crowded places. In May 2010, Lord West departed the Home Office . In September 2011, he contributed to a book entitled What Next for Labour? Ideas for a New Generation ; in his piece he highlights his view that defence spending under Tony Blair was insufficient. In August 2014, West was one of 200 public figures who were signatories to a letter to The Guardian opposing Scottish independence in

2250-439: The shift in emphasis away from measuring strength in terms of hull numbers and towards the delivery of military effects... I am confident that these changes will leave the Navy better organised and equipped to face the challenges of the future." In 2004, he appeared on BBC Radio 4 and spoke about Trafalgar 200 . Trafalgar 200 was a celebration of the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar . It saw an international fleet in

2300-602: The things that can happen with 'intelligence', and I would just like to be absolutely sure." In October 2020, he said migrants arriving in the UK across the English Channel should be put in "a concentrated place, whether it's a camp or whatever", prompting outrage. West's commentaries on foreign militaries, such as his assessment on the strategic weaknesses of Russia 's armed forces, have been distributed by news agencies such as Times Radio . In 1973, West married Rosemary Anne Linington Childs; they have two sons and one daughter. West said that during one overseas posting in

2350-425: Was appointed as First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff in September 2002. He was also a member of the Defence Council and Admiralty Board as well as First and Principal Naval Aide-de-Camp to the Queen . In his role he had overall responsibility for fighting effectiveness and morale of the Naval Service (Royal Navy, Royal Marines, Royal Fleet Auxiliary and medical services) for the successful operations on

2400-425: Was assassinated and the office was placed in commission, under the control of a Board of Commissioners. The first such First Lord of the Admiralty was Richard Weston, 1st Earl of Portland , who was appointed in 1628. The First Lord was not always a permanent member of the board until the Admiralty Department was established as an official government department in 1709 with the First Lord as its head; it replaced

2450-434: Was the last to leave the sinking ship and was subsequently awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his leadership. West led the victory parade through the City of London on return from the Falkland Islands. He remains the President of the HMS Ardent Association. He was promoted to captain on 30 June 1985. In 1986, while working on the Naval Staff at the Ministry of Defence, West left documents detailing large cuts to

2500-450: Was time expired before he became eligible for promotion to flag rank. In 1987 he was given command of HMS Bristol and the Dartmouth training squadron in March of that year and led the study into employment of women at sea before spending three years as head of naval intelligence rewriting the NATO intelligence manual after the collapse of the Soviet Union . In 1992 he attended the Royal College of Defence Studies , where he produced

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