Admiral-of-the-Fleet Sir Hedworth Lambton-Meux

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedworth_Meux

Admiral Hon. Sir Hedworth Meux was baptised with the name of Hedworth Lambton.2 He fought in the Egyptian Campaign in 1882.2 He was Pruivate Secretary to the successive First Lords of the Admiralty between 1894 and 1897.2 He fought in the Siege of Ladysmith between 1899 and 1900, where he commanded the Naval Brigade.2 He was commanding officer of the the Royal Yacht Victoria and Albert between 1901 and 1902.2 He held the office of Extra Equerry to HM King Edward VII between 1902 and 1910.2 He was second in command of the Channel Fleet between 1903 and 1904.2 He was commanding officer of the 3rd Cruiser Squadron between 1904 and 1906.2 He was Commander-in-Chief of the China Squadron between 1908 and 1910.2 He was decorated with the award of Grand Officer, Order of St. Maurice of Italy.2 He was decorated with the award of Grand Officer, Legion of Honour.2 He was Keeper of the Crown Jewels at HM King George V's coronation in 1910.2 He was decorated with the award of Knight, Order of Dannebrog of Denmark.2 He held the office of Extra Equerry to HM King George V in 1910.2 He was invested as a Knight Grand Cross, Order of the Bath (G.C.B.).1 On 2 September 1911 his name was legally changed to Hedworth Meux by Royal Licence.2 He was Commander-in-Chief of the Portsmouth between 1912 and 1916.2 He held the office of Member of Parliament (M.P.) for Portsmouth between 1916 and 1918.2 He was invested as a Knight Commander, Royal Victorian Order (K.C.V.O.).2 He gained the rank of Admiral of the Fleet.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedworth_Meux

Admiral of the Fleet The Hon Sir Hedworth Meux GCB KCVO (pronounced Mews, formerly The Hon Hedworth Lambton (5 July 1856 - 20 September 1929) was an English naval officer famous for bringing help to the British forces in the Siege of Ladysmith.

The first forty years

Hedworth Lambton was born in London, son of the Earl of Durham. After going to Cheam School, he started naval life in 1870 as a cadet on the training ship Britannia. Over the next 20 years he was steadily promoted and gained experience in the East Indies and the Mediterranean, on the Egyptian coast at the time of the bombardment of Alexandria, and as commander of the royal yacht Osborne. He was a friend of the then Prince of Wales, later Edward VII.

After a spell in the Pacific, in 1894 he was appointed naval private secretary to the First Lord of the Admiralty, Earl Spencer, and continued in this post when Viscount Goschen took over as First Lord. Both Spencer and Goschen, who were politicians and not naval officers, gave Lambton's opinion considerable weight in making senior naval appointments, but his judgement did not always correspond with that of the admirals, the so-called naval lords. During this time he also antagonised senior naval officers through a "lack of consideration".

Siege of Ladysmith

In 1897 he commanded one of the largest warships of the time, HMS Powerful, on a posting to China. On the return voyage in 1899 he was ordered to Durban, South Africa at an important point in the Second Boer War. He stopped at Mauritius, and on his own initiative picked up a battalion of soldiers stationed there. Knowing that the British forces at Ladysmith urgently needed more powerful guns, Captain Percy Scott from the Powerful's sister ship, the Terrible, devised carriages to transport naval cannon, and Lambton then led a Naval Brigade to the rescue with four twelve-pounders and two other guns.

The enthusiastic response in Britain to the "heroes of Ladysmith" was enormous and made Captain Hedworth Lambton a well-known public figure. Queen Victoria sent a telegram saying, "Pray express to the Naval Brigade my deep appreciation of the valuable services they have rendered with their guns." while a reception and celebratory march through London were among the first events ever recorded on film.

A newspaper described the Powerful's return home: "As the great vessel steamed into Portsmouth Harbour at four o'clock this afternoon, she was greeted with thunders of applause .... vessels lying off here were dressed with flags, and their crews, swarming along the yards, swelled the roar of welcome......By three o'clock the jetty was thronged with men, women and children. ... A more eager, joyous gathering I never saw.....We cheered, we waved hats and handkerchiefs and we were half wild with delight." Lambton was awarded the CB, and it was in this year that his caricature was published in Vanity Fair.

It was against this background that Lambton met Valerie Lady Meux (née Langdon, a.k.a. Val Reece), a beautiful socialite who reputedly was a former actress (some sources suggest that she had been a prostitute). After hearing the story of the naval guns at Ladysmith, she had ordered six 12-pounder cannon on travelling carriages to be made and sent out to South Africa. Lambton called on her to describe his experiences there, and praise the patriotic spirit of her gift. Lady Meux was "touched by this tribute" and wrote a will making Lambton the heir to the large fortune left by her husband Sir Henry Brent Meux upon his death in 1900, including her house at Theobalds Park in Hertfordshire. The only condition was that Lambton should change his name to Meux.

1901 onwards

The next two years saw Lambton in charge of the king's yachts, with a promotion to Rear Admiral. In June 1903 he joined Lord Charles Beresford and the Channel fleet, then commanded the cruiser division in the Mediterranean from 1904 to 1906. During this time he became an ally of Beresford's in an ongoing dispute between Beresford and Fisher about navy policies. His next promotion was to Vice Admiral and Commander-in-Chief of the China Station in 1908.

April 1910 started a period of significant change for Lambton. He married the widow of Henry Cadogan, Viscount Chelsea shortly after coming back to England from China, then a few months later inherited a substantial fortune when Lady Meux died. In March 1911 he was made a full Admiral, and later that year changed his surname by royal licence, as stipulated in Lady Meux's will. In the same year his friend George V supported moves to have Hedworth Lambton made First Sea Lord, but a "Fisherite" was chosen instead. The next year Fisher was angered, and the king pleased, by Meux's appointment to be Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth.

When war broke out, Meux' main responsibility was defending cross-Channel communications, including transport for the British expeditionary force crossing to France. He also initiated and organised a life-saving patrol service of small boats. In March 1915, he became Admiral of the Fleet and stayed in the Royal Navy until 1916, when he was persuaded to stand as the Conservative candidate in the Portsmouth by-election. He made some speeches in parliament on naval affairs but "he was not really interested in parliamentary work" and retired at the general election of December 1918.

He was now free to pursue his long-standing interest in horses and racing. For a quarter of century he had bred bloodstock, first with a trainer in Yorkshire, then at the racing stables at Theobalds Park, part of the inheritance from Lady Meux. He died in 1929 at Danebury, an estate he had bought in Hampshire.

His naval service had been "an interest rather than a profession" for this "aristocrat and court favourite". One writer has called him "a very able sea-officer with no great administrative talent … but lazy and rather spoiled". Another view is that he was "a man of strong and independent character, though by no means a typical naval officer . . . He carried out his duties with marked ability and won the confidence not only of King Edward VII but of all his associates in the service."

Outline

1856 Birth of the Hon Hedworth Lambton to George Lambton, 2nd Earl of Durham and Lady Beatrix Frances (Hamilton)

1865? Cheam School

1870 Cadet on Britannia

1871 Frigate Endymion, Channel squadron

1874 August - flagship Agincourt under Admiral Sir Beauchamp Seymour

1875 Flagship Undaunted, East Indies, made sub-lieutenant end of 1875

1876-1879 Flagship Alexandra, Mediterranean, under Admiral Sir Geoffrey Hornby

1879 February - promoted to lieutenant

1880 The bombardment of Alexandria, on the Alexandra, under Admiral Seymour

1882 Started breeding bloodstock; his trainer was Tom Green at Stapleton Park, Pontefract

1883 Admiral Seymour, now at Board of Admiralty gets haul-down promotion for Lambton

1883 Dublin as aide-de camp to 5th Earl Spencer 

1886 July - given command of sloop Dolphin, Mediterranean

1888 February - commands Osborne

1889 Promoted to Captain

1890-1892 Flag captain to Charles Hotham on Warspite, Pacific

1894-1897 Admiralty, London

1895 His horse Ruy Lopez won Gold Cup

1897-1899 Powerful, China

1899-1900 Ladysmith

1900 Awarded CB

1900 First met Lady Meux

1900 Failed to win as Liberal candidate at Newcastle East in general election

1901 April - command of Royal Yacht Victoria and Albert

1901 Appointed Commodore in charge of the king's yachts

1901 CVO

1902 October - Rear Admiral

1902 Criticised Fisher in Fisher-Beresford dispute over officer training[13]

1903 June - second-in-command to Lord Charles Beresford in the Channel Fleet for one year

1904 November - commanded the cruiser division of the Mediterranean Fleet for two years

1906 Leading figure on Beresford's side of Fisher-Beresford dispute

1906 Elected to Jockey Club

1906 KCVO

1908 Jan - made Vice Admiral and Commander-in-Chief of the China Station

1908 KCB

1910 April - married Mildred Cecilia Harriet (27 Feb 1869 – 17 Sept 1942), daughter of 1st Baron Alington, and widow of Henry Cadogan, Viscount Chelsea (d.1908)

1910 December - death of Valerie, Lady Meux; inherited Theobalds Park

1911 March - made Admiral

1911 September - changed name to Meux

1912 July - Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth

1913 GCB

1914 First World War began

1915 March - Admiral of the Fleet

1915 Unionist MP for Portsmouth

1918 Retired from public life - horses, racing and private life

1929 Death of Admiral The Hon Sir Hedworth Meux GCB KCVO at Danebury, his estate near Stockbridge

Admiral of the Fleet The Hon Sir Hedworth Meux GCB KCVO (pronounced Mews[1]), formerly The Hon Hedworth Lambton (5 July 1856 – 20 September 1929) was a Royal Navy officer. As a junior officer he was present at the bombardment of Alexandria during the Anglo-Egyptian War.

In 1899, during the Second Boer War, Lambton stopped at Mauritius, and on his own initiative picked up a battalion of soldiers stationed there. Knowing that the British forces at Ladysmith urgently needed more powerful guns, Lambton led a naval brigade to the rescue with four twelve-pounders and two other guns. The enthusiastic response in Britain to the "heroes of Ladysmith" was enormous and made Captain Hedworth Lambton a well-known public figure. He went on to be Commander of the Third Cruiser Squadron in the Mediterranean Fleet and then Commander-in-Chief of the China Station.

During the First World War Meux, as he was then known, served as Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth in which role his main responsibility was defending cross-Channel communications, including transport for the British Expeditionary Force crossing to France. He also initiated and organised a life-saving patrol service of small boats.

Born the son of George Lambton, 2nd Earl of Durham and Lady Beatrix Frances Hamilton (daughter of James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Abercorn), Hedworth Lambton was educated at Cheam School and then joined the Royal Navy as a cadet in the training ship HMS Britannia on 15 January 1870.[2] He joined the frigate HMS Endymion in the Channel Squadron in December 1871 and, having been promoted to midshipman, he transferred to the armoured frigate HMS Agincourt, flagship of the Channel Squadron.[3] He joined the frigate HMS Undaunted at Sheerness in March 1875 and, having been promoted to sub-lieutenant on 20 September 1875, he transferred to the battleship HMS Alexandra, flagship of the Mediterranean Fleet in late 1876.[4] Promoted to lieutenant on 27 February 1879,[5] he became flag lieutenant to the Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean Fleet in February 1880 and was present at the bombardment of Alexandria in July 1882 during the Anglo-Egyptian War.[4] He was awarded the Turkish Order of the Medjidie, Third Class, on 3 February 1883.[6]

Promoted to commander on 10 March 1883,[7] Lambton attended the Royal Naval College, Greenwich and then became aide-de-camp to John Spencer, 5th Earl Spencer, who was at that time Lord Lieutenant of Ireland.[4] Lambton became commanding officer of the sloop HMS Dolphin in the Mediterranean Fleet in July 1886 and commanding officer of the royal yacht HMY Osborne in February 1888.[4] Promoted to captain on 30 June 1889,[8] he became flag captain to the Commander-in-Chief, Pacific Station in the cruiser HMS Warspite in 1890.[4] He was also awarded the Turkish Order of the Medjidie, Second Class, on 17 February 1890.[9]

Lambton became Private Naval Secretary to Earl Spencer, who had become First Lord of the Admiralty, in 1894 and continued in that role under Viscount Goschen when he became First Lord of the Admiralty in June 1895.[4] Both Spencer and Goschen, who were politicians and not naval officers, gave Lambton's opinion considerable weight in making senior naval appointments, but his judgement did not always correspond with that of the naval lords and during this time he generally antagonised the naval lords through a "lack of consideration".[2] He became commanding officer of the cruiser HMS Powerful on the China Station in 1897.[4]

On the return voyage in 1899 Lambton was ordered to Durban, South Africa at an important point in the Second Boer War. He stopped at Mauritius, and on his own initiative picked up a battalion of soldiers stationed there. Knowing that the British forces at Ladysmith urgently needed more powerful guns, Captain Percy Scott from the Powerful's sister ship, the cruiser HMS Terrible, devised carriages to transport naval cannon, and Lambton then led a naval brigade to the rescue with four 12-pounders and two other guns.[4]

The enthusiastic response in Britain to the "heroes of Ladysmith" was enormous and made Captain Hedworth Lambton a well-known public figure.[10] Queen Victoria sent a telegram saying, "Pray express to the Naval Brigade my deep appreciation of the valuable services they have rendered with their guns"[11] while a reception and celebratory march through London were among the first events ever recorded on film.[12]

The Daily News described the Powerful's return home: "As the great vessel steamed into Portsmouth Harbour at four o'clock this afternoon, she was greeted with thunders of applause .... vessels lying off here were dressed with flags, and their crews, swarming along the yards, swelled the roar of welcome......By three o'clock the jetty was thronged with men, women and children. ... A more eager, joyous gathering I never saw.....We cheered, we waved hats and handkerchiefs and we were half wild with delight."[13] Lambton was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath on 13 March 1900.[14]

It was against this background that Lambton met Valerie, Lady Meux, a beautiful socialite. After hearing the story of the naval guns at Ladysmith, she had ordered six 12-pounder cannon on travelling carriages to be made and sent out to South Africa. Lambton called on her to describe his experiences there, and praise the patriotic spirit of her gift. Lady Meux was "touched by this tribute" and wrote a will making Lambton the heir to the large fortune left by her husband Sir Henry Brent Meux upon his death in 1900, including her house at Theobalds Park in Hertfordshire. The only condition was that Lambton should change his name to Meux.[2] He became a naval aide-de-camp to Queen Victoria on 9 January 1901,[15] attended her funeral on 2 February 1901[16] and then became naval aide-de-camp to King Edward VII on 25 February 1901.[17]

Later career[edit] Lambton transferred to the command of the Royal Yacht HMY Victoria and Albert II in April 1901[18] and became Commodore, Royal Yachts in July 1901.[19] For his service to the Royal Family he was appointed a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order on 16 August 1901[20] and was also appointed an extra equerry to the King on 9 November 1902.[21]

Promoted to rear admiral on 3 October 1902,[22] Lambton became Second-in-Command of the Channel Fleet, with his flag in the battleship HMS Magnificent, in June 1903.[19] He went on to be commander of the Third Cruiser Squadron in the Mediterranean Fleet, with his flag in the armoured cruiser HMS Leviathan, in November 1904.[19] During this time he became an ally of Lord Charles Beresford in an ongoing dispute between Beresford and Sir John Fisher about navy policies.[19] He was advanced to Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order on 16 April 1906.[23] Promoted to vice admiral on 1 January 1907,[24] he became Commander-in-Chief of the China Station, with his flag in the armoured cruiser HMS King Alfred in January 1908.[19] He was advanced to Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath on 26 June 1908,[25] attended the funeral of King Edward VII in May 1910[26] and became an extra equerry to King George V on 10 June 1910.[27]

Following the death of Lady Meux in December 1910, Lambton changed his surname by royal licence to Meux, as stipulated in Lady Meux's will, thereby enabling him to inherit a substantial fortune.[28] Promoted to full admiral on 1 March 1911,[29] he was considered for the role of First Sea Lord but was considered too much of a playboy and became Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth instead in July 1912.[30] He was advanced to Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath on 3 June 1913.[31]

When the First World War broke out, Meux's main responsibility was defending cross-Channel communications, including transport for the British Expeditionary Force crossing to France. He also initiated and organised a life-saving patrol service of small boats. He was promoted Admiral of the Fleet on 5 March 1915[32] and stayed in the Royal Navy until February 1916, when he was persuaded to stand as the Conservative candidate in the Portsmouth by-election. He made some speeches in parliament on naval affairs but "he was not really interested in parliamentary work" and retired at the general election of December 1918.[2]

Meux was now free to pursue his long-standing interest in horses and racing. He bred bloodstock, first with a trainer in Yorkshire, then at the racing stables at Theobalds Park, part of the inheritance from Lady Meux.[2] He died on 20 September 1929 at Danebury, an estate he had bought in Hampshire, and was buried at Cheshunt Cemetery.[33]

In 1910 Lambton married Mildred Cecilia Harriet, daughter of Henry Sturt, 1st Baron Alington and widow of Henry Cadogan, Viscount Chelsea; they had no children

He was given the name of Hedworth Lambton at birth.2 He fought in the Egyptian Campaign in 1882.2 He was Pruivate Secretary to the successive First Lords of the Admiralty between 1894 and 1897.2 He fought in the Siege of Ladysmith between 1899 and 1900, where he commanded the Naval Brigade.2 He was commanding officer of the the Royal Yacht Victoria and Albert between 1901 and 1902.2 He held the office of Extra Equerry to HM King Edward VII between 1902 and 1910.2 He was second in command of the Channel Fleet between 1903 and 1904.2 He was commanding officer of the 3rd Cruiser Squadron between 1904 and 1906.2 He was Commander-in-Chief of the China Squadron between 1908 and 1910.2 He was Keeper of the Crown Jewels at HM King George V's coronation in 1910.2 He was decorated with the award of the Grand Officer, Order of St. Maurice of Italy.2 He was decorated with the award of the Knight, Order of Dannebrog of Denmark.2 He was decorated with the award of the Grand Officer, Legion of Honour.2 He held the office of Extra Equerry to HM King George V in 1910.2 He was invested as a Knight Grand Cross, Order of the Bath (G.C.B.).1 On 2 September 1911 his name was legally changed to Hedworth Meux by Royal Licence.2 He was Commander-in-Chief of the Portsmouth between 1912 and 1916.2 He held the office of Member of Parliament (M.P.) for Portsmouth between 1916 and 1918.2 He was invested as a Knight Commander, Royal Victorian Order (K.C.V.O.).2 He gained the rank of Admiral of the Fleet.1