Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff (United Kingdom) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff
Ensign of the Royal Navy
Incumbent Vice-Admiral Martin Connell since 14 January 2022
Ministry of Defence
Abbreviation	DCNS
Member of	Board of Admiralty, Admiralty Board, Navy Board
Reports to	First Sea Lord
Nominator	First Lord of the Admiralty, Secretary of State for Defence
Appointer	Prime Minister Subject to formal approval by the King-in-Council
Term length	Not fixed (typically 1–3 years)
Formation	1917–1968, 2013–current
First holder	Vice Admiral Henry Oliver

The Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff (DCNS) is a very important job in the Royal Navy, which is the UK's navy. The person holding this role helps lead the entire navy. Currently, this position is held by the Second Sea Lord. The person in this role usually has a high rank, like a Vice-Admiral.

History of the Naval Staff Role

Starting in the World Wars

The job of Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff was first created in 1917. This was during World War I, when the navy needed more leaders to help manage everything. It took over from an older role called the Chief of the Admiralty War Staff.

The very first person to be the Deputy Chief was Vice Admiral Henry Oliver. He started in May 1917. His duties were shared with the First Sea Lord (the top leader of the navy) and the Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff.

Later in 1917, a new job called Deputy First Sea Lord was made because of the huge demands of the war. For a while, the Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff reported to this new Deputy First Sea Lord. But this changed in 1919 when that role was removed. The Deputy Chief then went back to reporting directly to the First Sea Lord until 1941.

Key Duties During Wartime

From 1917, the Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff had many important duties. These included:

• Helping the First Sea Lord with daily tasks.
• Planning how the navy's ships would move.
• Managing naval operations in important areas like the North Sea.
• Planning attacks and protecting trade ships from enemies.
• Looking after naval matters in other countries.
• Making sure troop ships and other vessels were safe from attack.

These duties continued until 1939, when World War II began. After 1939, the duties changed slightly to focus on:

• Major decisions about naval policy and sea battles.
• Making sure the navy was ready for fighting and well-organized.
• Deciding where all the navy's ships should be.
• Overseeing the navy's staff and its mapping department.
• Managing all naval communications.
• Supervising other important naval leaders.

In 1941, the name of the DCNS job was changed to Vice Chief of the Naval Staff. This name stayed until 1946. After the Second World War, the title went back to Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff and continued until 1968.

The Role Today: From 2013 Onwards

The position of Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff was brought back in 2013. Today, the person in this role is a member of both the Admiralty Board and the Navy Board. These boards are important groups within the Ministry of Defence that help run the navy.

Current Responsibilities

As of 2014, the Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff has key responsibilities, including:

• Leading all the navy's units that can be sent out on missions, including the Royal Marines.
• Making sure that ships, submarines, aircraft, and Royal Marine units are always ready for any operations the UK government needs.
• Being in charge of providing the navy with the right people, equipment, and bases for both now and in the future.

Who Has Been Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff?

Many important leaders have held this role throughout history. Here are some of them:

No.		Deputy Chief	Took office	Left office	Time in office	Ref
1		Oliver, HenryVice Admiral Sir Henry Oliver (1865–1965)	July 1917	January 1918	6 months	.
2		Fremantle, SydneyActing Vice Admiral Sir Sydney Fremantle (1867–1958)	January 1918	May 1919	1 year, 4 months	.
3		Fergusson, JamesRear Admiral Sir James Fergusson (1871–1942)	May 1919	August 1919	3 months	.
4		Brock, OsmondVice Admiral Sir Osmond Brock (1869–1947)	August 1919	November 1921	2 years, 3 months
5		Keyes, RogerVice Admiral Sir Roger Keyes (1872–1945)	November 1921	May 1925	3 years, 6 months
6		Field, FrederickVice Admiral Sir Frederick Field (1871–1945)	May 1925	May 1928	3 years
7		Fisher, WilliamVice Admiral Sir William Wordsworth Fisher (1875–1937)	May 1928	June 1930	2 years, 1 month
8		Dreyer, FredericAdmiral Sir Frederic Charles Dreyer (1878–1956)	June 1930	January 1933	2 years, 7 months
9		Little, CharlesVice Admiral Sir Charles J. C. Little (1882–1973)	January 1933	October 1935	2 years, 9 months
10		James, WilliamVice Admiral Sir William Milbourne James (1881–1973)	October 1935	October 1938	3 years
11		Cunningham, AndrewVice Admiral Sir Andrew B. Cunningham (1883–1963)	October 1938	May 1939	7 months
12		Phillips, TomVice Admiral Sir Tom S. V. Phillips (1888–1941)	June 1939	October 1941	2 years, 5 months

Note: The job was renamed from 1941 to 1946. Its duties were handled by the Vice Chief of the Naval Staff.

No.		Deputy Chief	Took office	Left office	Time in office	Ref
1		Oliver, RobertRear Admiral Robert Don Oliver (1895–1980)	April 1946	April 1947	1 year	.
2		Evans, EdwardVice Admiral Sir Edward Evans-Lombe (1901–1974)	December 1950	January 1953	2 years, 1 month	.
3		Barnard, GeoffreyRear Admiral Sir Geoffrey Barnard (1901–1974)	January 1953	April 1954	1 year, 3 months
4		Clifford, EricVice Admiral Sir Eric Clifford (1900–1964)	April 1954	September 1957	3 years, 5 months

Note: From 1957 to 1965, the job was also held by the Fifth Sea Lord.

No.		Deputy Chief	Took office	Left office	Time in office	Ref
1		Power, ManleyVice Admiral Sir Manley Power (1904–1981)	October 1957	February 1959	1 year, 4 months	.
2		Durlacher, LaurenceAdmiral Admiral Sir Laurence Durlacher (1904–1986)	February 1959	January 1962	2 years, 11 months
3		Gretton, PeterVice Admiral Sir Peter Gretton (1912–1992)	January 1962	January 1963	1 year
4		Hopkins, FrankVice Admiral Sir Frank Hopkins (1910–1990)	January 1963	March 1966	3 years, 2 months
5		Janvrin, RichardVice Admiral Sir Richard B. Janvrin (1915–1993)	March 1966	October 1968	2 years, 7 months

Note: The job was empty from 1969 to 2012. It was brought back in 2013. From 2013 to 2015, the Fleet Commander held the role, and from 2016, the Second Sea Lord held it.

No.		Deputy Chief	Took office	Left office	Time in office	Ref
1		Jones, PhilipVice Admiral Sir Philip Jones (born 1960)	30 November 2012	8 April 2016	3 years, 130 days
2		Woodcock, JonathanVice Admiral Jonathan Woodcock (born 1962)	8 April 2016	27 March 2018	1 year, 353 days
3		Radakin, TonyVice Admiral Tony Radakin (born 1965)	27 March 2018	26 April 2019	1 year, 30 days
4		Hine, NicholasVice Admiral Nick Hine (born 1966)	26 April 2019	12 January 2022	2 years, 261 days
5		Connell, MartinVice Admiral Martin Connell (born 1968)	12 January 2022	Incumbent	3 years, 167 days

See also

• Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff
• Vice Chief of the Naval Staff
• First Sea Lord
• Second Sea Lord
• Third Sea Lord
• Fourth Sea Lord
• Fifth Sea Lord