Henry Bradwardine Jackson

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Admiral Sir Henry Bradwardine Jackson was born in 1855 and died in 1929. He was British First Sea Lord in 1915 during World War I.

Admiral Sir Henry Jackson

1 Early life
2 First Sea Lord
3 Later life
4 See also

[edit] Early life

Henry Jackson entered the navy in 1868 and gained an early reputation as a pioneer of ship-to-ship radio technology, where he worked with Marconi, earning himself appointment as a Fellow to the Royal Society. He was promoted through the ranks to Vice Admiral. From 1905-1908 Jackson served as Third Sea Lord and Comtroller of the Navy. After that he was promoted to full Admiral and served as head of Portsmouth's Naval War College and the Admiralty War Staff in 1913.The arrival of the First World War in August 1914 enabled Jackson to work on the co-ordination of British attacks on Germany's colonial possessions.

[edit] First Sea Lord

He was selected as the surprise successor to Admiral Fisher upon the latter's spectacular resignation in May 1915.Despite his cordial working relationship with First Lord of the Admiralty (and former Prime Minister) Arthur Balfour, Jackson was sometimes seen to be a weak First Sea Lord, overly concerning himself with administrative matters and ineffectually attempting to extend the Dover Barrage. Jackson did however oppose Winston Churchill's original Dardanelles plans, believing a naval expedition without army support on land to be unfeasible. With British naval success rather low in 1916 arguments grew for Jackson's replacement as First Sea Lord. Consequently Sir John Jellicoe was appointed to replace Jackson in November 1916.

[edit] Later life

Jackson saw out the rest of the war as King George V's aide-de-camp and as president of the Royal Naval College at Greenwich. In 1919 Jackson was appointed Admiral of the Fleet; he retired five years after that, where he soon died in 1929.