Royal Naval College, Greenwich facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Royal Naval College, Greenwich
Royal Naval College, Greenwich
Active	1873–1998
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	Royal Navy
Type	Training
Role	Higher officer training
Garrison/HQ	Greenwich, London, UK
Nickname(s)	RNC
Motto(s)	Tam Minerva Quam Marte ("By Wisdom as much as by War")

The Royal Naval College, Greenwich was a special school for training officers in the Royal Navy. It operated from 1873 to 1998. This college was where naval officers went for advanced training, much like a university for the Navy.

A Look Back: The College's History

The Royal Naval College, Greenwich, started on January 16, 1873. It was created by a special rule called an Order in Council. The college had a leader called a President, who was always a high-ranking naval officer.

It also had a Captain from the Royal Navy and a Director of Studies. There were professors who taught subjects like Math, Science, Chemistry, and Engineering. The college was for officers who were already Sub-Lieutenants. It was meant to be the "university of the Navy."

World Wars and Changes

In 1914, another naval training school, the Royal Naval War College, moved to Greenwich. During First World War, the college was used for other things. It became a place for soldiers to stay and for science experiments. Officer training did not start again until 1919.

When Second World War began in 1939, the college started training women officers too. These women were part of the Women's Royal Naval Service. The college trained many more officers, both men and women, for the bigger Navy. About 35,000 people finished their training there during the war.

In 1943, a German bomb hit the beautiful Admiral's House at the college. Another bomb hit the front of the main building.

New Discoveries and Royal Visits

In 1959, a new department opened at the college. It was for Nuclear Science and Technology. A special research reactor called JASON was built there in 1962. It was used for training and research.

In 1967, Queen Elizabeth II visited the college. She honored Francis Chichester there. He was the first person to sail solo around the world using the old clipper ship route. It took him nine months and one day.

Moving On and Closing Down

Also in 1967, the Royal School of Naval Architecture moved from the college. It became part of University College London. The Royal Naval College continued to train women until 1976. After that, their courses moved to another college.

By 1998, the Royal Navy was getting smaller. So, the decision was made to close the Royal Naval College, Greenwich. Now, all new officer training happens at the Britannia Royal Naval College. A new college, the Joint Services Command and Staff College, took over the advanced training roles.

The Amazing Buildings

The beautiful former chapel of the Royal Naval College

The college was located in very old and grand buildings. These buildings were designed by a famous architect named Sir Christopher Wren. They were built between 1696 and 1712.

Originally, these buildings were not for a college. They were meant to be Greenwich Hospital. This was a home for sailors who were injured or disabled. The hospital closed in 1869. This left the buildings free for the new Royal Naval College.

Before the hospital, a medieval palace called the Palace of Placentia stood on this spot. It was started in 1428. After the Royal Navy left in 1998, the buildings became open to the public. They are now known as the Old Royal Naval College.

Important People: Presidents of the College

The President was the main leader of the college. This was a full-time job until 1982. After that, it became an honorary role. Some of the Presidents included:

• Vice-Admiral Sir Astley Cooper Key (1873–1875)
• Admiral Sir Edward Gennys Fanshawe (1875–1878)
• Admiral Sir Charles Frederick Alexander Shadwell (1878–1881)
• Admiral Sir Geoffrey Phipps Hornby (1881–1882)
• Admiral William Garnham Luard (1882–1885)
• Vice-Admiral Sir Thomas Brandreth (1885–1888)
• Admiral Sir William Graham (1888–1891)
• Admiral Sir Richard Vesey Hamilton (1891–1894)
• Admiral Sir Walter James Hunt-Grubbe (1894–1897)
• Admiral Sir Richard Tracey (1897–1900)
• Admiral Sir Robert More-Molyneux (1900–1903)
• Admiral Sir Robert Hastings Penruddock Harris (1903–1906)
• Admiral Sir Arthur Dalrymple Fanshawe (1906–1908)
• Admiral Sir John Durnford (1908–1911)
• Admiral Sir Frederic William Fisher (1911–1914)
• Vice-Admiral The Hon. Sir Alexander Edward Bethell (1914–1915)
• Vice-Admiral Sir Lewis Bayly (1915–1916)
• Admiral Sir Henry Bradwardine Jackson (1916–1919)
• Vice-Admiral Sir William Christopher Pakenham (1919–1920)
• Vice-Admiral Sir Frederick Tudor (1920–1922)
• Rear-Admiral Herbert Richmond (1922–1923)
• Admiral Sir George Hope (1923–1926)
• Admiral Sir Richard Webb (1926–1929)
• Vice-Admiral John McClintock (1929)
• Vice-Admiral Sir William Henry Dudley Boyle (1929–1932)
• Vice-Admiral Sir Barry Domvile (1932–1934)
• Vice-Admiral Sir Ragnar Colvin (1934–1937)
• Vice-Admiral Sir Sidney Bailey (1937–1938)
• Vice-Admiral Sir Charles Kennedy-Purvis (1938–1940)
• Vacant (1940–1943)
• Commodore Augustus Agar (1943–1946)
• Vice-Admiral Sir Patrick Brind (1946–1948)
• Vice-Admiral Geoffrey Oliver (1948–1950)
• Admiral Sir Harold Kinahan (1950–1952)
• Vice-Admiral Sir Aubrey Mansergh (1952–1954)
• Admiral Sir William Andrewes (1954–1956)
• Vice-Admiral Sir Geoffrey Barnard (1956–1958)
• Rear-Admiral David Cairns, 5th Earl Cairns (1958–1961)
• Rear-Admiral Sir Alexander Gordon-Lennox (1961–1962)
• Rear-Admiral Morgan Morgan-Giles (1962–1964)
• Vice-Admiral Sir Ian Lachlan Mackay McGeoch (1964–1965)
• Rear-Admiral Patrick Bayly (1965–1967)
• Vice-Admiral Sir Horace Lyddon (1967–1968)
• Rear-Admiral Edward Gueritz (1968–1970)
• Rear-Admiral Martin Noel Lucey (1970–1972)
• Rear-Admiral Edward William Ellis (1972–1974)
• Rear-Admiral Derek Willoughby Bazalgette (1974–1976)
• Rear-Admiral Charles Weston (1976–1978)
• Rear-Admiral Anthony John Cooke (1978–1980)
• Rear-Admiral John Hildred Carlill (1980–1982)
• Admiral Sir Simon Cassels (1982–1986)
• Admiral Sir Richard George Alison Fitch (1986–1988)
• Admiral Sir Brian Brown (1988–1991)
• Admiral Sir Michael Livesay (1991–1993)
• Admiral Sir Michael Henry Gordon Layard (1993–1994)
• Admiral Sir John Richard Brigstocke (1994–1995)
• Vice-Admiral Sir Jeremy Joe Blackham (1995–1997)

Important People: Directors of Studies

The Director of Studies was in charge of the college's academic side. Here are some of the people who held this role:

Important People: Notable Professors

Many smart people taught at the Royal Naval College. Here are a few:

• William Burnside, a Math Professor (1885–1919)
• Bernard Parker Haigh, a Professor of applied mechanics (started 1913)
• Peter Stanley Lyons, Director of Music (1950–1954)
• John Knox Laughton, Head of Meteorology (weather) and Marine Surveying (1873–1885)
• Christopher Lloyd, a History Professor (1962–1967)
• Bryan Ranft, a Professor of History and International Affairs (1967–1977)
• Arnold William Reinold, a Physics Professor (1873–1908)

Important People: Famous Students

Many important people studied at the Royal Naval College. They went on to do great things in the Navy and other areas. Here are some of them:

• Rear-Admiral Abul Kalam Azad, a Bangladeshi Naval officer
• Commodore Augustus Agar VC (1890–1968)
• Admiral of the Fleet David Beatty, 1st Earl Beatty (1871–1936)
• George Richard Bethell (1849–1919), a Royal Navy officer and politician
• Admiral Hugo Biermann (1916–2012), Chief of the South African Navy
• Basil Charles Barrington Brooke (1895–1983), an admiral and cricketer
• Sir Henry Harvey Bruce (1862–1948), an admiral
• Admiral of the Fleet Lord Cunningham of Hyndhope (1883–1963)
• Vice Admiral A. H. Asoka de Silva (1931–2006), Commander of the Navy of Sri Lanka
• Vice Admiral Henry George DeWolf (1903–2000), a Canadian naval officer
• John Sholto Douglas, 9th Marquess of Queensberry (1844–1900), known for boxing rules
• Admiral Sir Frederic Charles Dreyer (1878–1956)
• Admiral of the Fleet Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (1921-2021)
• Admiral Sir William Wordsworth Fisher (1875–1937)
• Prince Charles, Count of Flanders, Prince-Regent of Belgium
• Admiral D. Basil Gunasekara (born 1929), Commander of the Sri Lankan Navy
• Admiral Henry Perera, Commander of the Sri Lankan Navy
• Hugh Alfred Vernon Haggard (1908–1991), a Royal Navy submariner
• Admiral of the Fleet Lord Hill-Norton (1915–2004)
• Vice Admiral Sir J. G. T. Inglis (1906–1972), Head of Naval Intelligence
• Prince Abhakara Kiartivongse (1880-1923), from the Siamese royal family
• Admiral of the Fleet Lord Lewin (1920–1999)
• Rear-Admiral Simon Robert Lister (born 1959), a Royal Navy officer
• Dudley Leigh Aman, 1st Baron Marley (1884–1952), a soldier and politician
• Rear Admiral Sir David Martin (1933–1990), a Royal Australian Navy officer
• Vice Admiral Mark Mellett, Chief of Staff of the Irish Defence Forces
• Admiral of the Fleet Earl Mountbatten of Burma (1900–1979), a very important naval leader
• Lieutenant-General Arthur Ernest Percival (1887–1966)
• Marshal of the Royal Air Force Charles Portal, 1st Viscount Portal of Hungerford (1893–1971), Chief of the Air Staff
• Admiral Sa Zhenbing (1859–1952), Premier of the Republic of China
• Prince Arisugawa Takehito (1862–1913), from the Japanese imperial family
• Rear Admiral David Watson Taylor (1864–1940), a naval engineer from the United States
• Admiral of the Fleet Tōgō Heihachirō (1848–1934), from the Imperial Japanese Navy
• Admiral of the Fleet Lord Tovey (1885–1971)
• Sir Patrick Wall (1916–1998), a Royal Marines commando and politician
• Josiah Wedgwood, 1st Baron Wedgwood (1872–1943), a politician

What's There Now?

The college buildings are now called the Old Royal Naval College. They are open to visitors. You can see the amazing Painted Hall and the beautiful Chapel. There is also a visitor center called Discover Greenwich.

The site has also been used in movies! You might have seen it in Sherlock Holmes (2009) or The Foreigner (2017). It was also the setting for a big fight scene in Thor: The Dark World.

See also

• Britannia Royal Naval College
• Royal Naval College of Canada
• Royal Canadian Naval College
• Royal Australian Naval College