Port Admiral

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Port Admiral was a positional rank, now apparently defunct, in the British Royal Navy.

A Port Admiral was not an actual Admiral, but 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. As the Port Admiral technically had control of a fleet of ships, albeit mostly in drydock and layup, the position was granted the status of a Navy Admiral.

The most powerful Port Admiral of the 18th and 19th century British Navy was the Port Admiral of Portsmouth, considered the leading harbour of the Royal Navy.

[edit] Fictional references

The rank of Port Admiral has also made appearances in science fiction regarding futuristic military organisations.

In the Lensman novels, the rank of Port Admiral appeared as the most senior naval officer of the Galactic Patrol, with de facto supreme command over its forces. Three specific Port Admirals were mentioned by name: Roderick K. Kinnison, the first Port Admiral and ancestor of series protagonist Kimball Kinnison; Port Admiral Haynes, who commanded the Patrol during Kimball Kinnison's early career and was a mentor and father figure to him; and Raoul Laforge, an Academy classmate and friend of Kinnison's who had replaced the retired Haynes by the time of the last novel.

In the Starfire universe, a Fleet Admiral (five-star admiral) holds the position of Port Admiral, presiding over The Yard, the Terran Federation's largest and most important naval base and shipyard.