John Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe
Admiral of the Fleet John Rushworth Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe, GCB, OM, GCVO, DL, SGM (5 December 1859 – 20 November 1935) was a Royal Navy officer. He fought in the Anglo-Egyptian War and the Boxer Rebellion and commanded the Grand Fleet at the Battle of Jutland in May 1916 during the First World War. His handling of the fleet at that battle was controversial. Jellicoe made no serious mistakes and the German High Seas Fleet retreated to port, at a time when defeat would have been catastrophic for Britain, but the public was disappointed that the Royal Navy had not won a more dramatic victory given that they outnumbered the enemy. Jellicoe later served as First Sea Lord, overseeing the expansion of the Naval Staff at the Admiralty and the introduction of convoys, but was relieved at the end of 1917. He also served as the governor-general of New Zealand in the early 1920s.
Admiral of the Fleet The Right Honourable The Earl Jellicoe GCB OM GCVO SGM DL | |
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2nd Governor-General of New Zealand | |
In office 27 September 1920 – 12 December 1924 | |
Monarch | George V |
Prime Minister | William Massey |
Preceded by | The Earl of Liverpool |
Succeeded by | Sir Charles Fergusson |
First Sea Lord | |
In office 30 November 1916 – 10 January 1918 | |
Prime Minister | David Lloyd George |
Preceded by | Sir Henry Jackson |
Succeeded by | Sir Rosslyn Wemyss |
Member of the House of Lords | |
Lord Temporal | |
Hereditary peerage 7 March 1918 – 20 November 1935 | |
Succeeded by | The 2nd Earl Jellicoe |
Personal details | |
Born | 5 December 1859 Southampton, Hampshire, England |
Died | 20 November 1935 75) Kensington, London, England | (aged
Spouse |
Florence Cayzer (m. 1902) |
Children | 6 |
Military service | |
Allegiance | United Kingdom |
Branch/service | Royal Navy |
Years of service | 1872–1919 |
Rank | Admiral of the Fleet |
Commands | Grand Fleet 2nd Battle Squadron Atlantic Fleet Director of Naval Ordnance HMS Drake HMS Centurion |
Battles/wars | Anglo-Egyptian War Boxer Rebellion First World War
|
Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Member of the Order of Merit Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Sea Gallantry Medal |