Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff (United Kingdom)

Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff
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 senior appointment in the Royal Navy currently held by the Second Sea Lord.^[1] The incumbent is usually a three-star rank and had a NATO ranking code of OF-8, but the position has previously been held by an acting two-star ranked officer and a four-star ranked officer.

First and Second World Wars

The position was originally established in 1917 on the Board of Admiralty. It essentially replaced the position of Chief of the Admiralty War Staff.^[2]

The first incumbent was Vice Admiral Henry Oliver, the Chief of the Admiralty War Staff, who was appointed Deputy Chief of Naval Staff on 31 May 1917.^[3] The duties of the Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff, were shared with the First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff and with the Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff.^[2]

In September 1917 the new post of Deputy First Sea Lord was created to meet the demand of wartime operational requirements. The Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff then reported to the Deputy First Sea Lord until 1919 when that post was abolished. The Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff then resumed his previous role and reported to the First Sea Lord until 1941. Duties as of 1917 included:^[4]^[2]^[5]

Relieve the First Sea Lord of all the routine matters dealt with by sections under his immediate direction
Fleet Movements
All operations in the North Sea, the White Sea, the Baltic, and the Dover Area, except British coastal measures for the protection of trade
Offensive measures in the Mediterranean and abroad generally
The protection of trade in the North Sea, except the coastal trade on the East Coast of Great Britain. North Sea trade includes the Dutch trade, trade between Scandinavian countries and Great Britain, and Baltic trade, but not convoy from Lerwick, Southward
All questions relating to foreign stations, except protection of trade against submarine and mine attack
Policy of blockade and all questions relating thereto and to contraband of war
Organisation, movements and protection of troop transports and other vessels against attack by surface vessels; Atlantic convoys other than troop convoys being under the Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff

This remained in place until 1939. Duties after 1939 included:^[5]

Operations of War: All large Questions of Naval Policy and Maritime Warfare
Fighting and Sea-going Efficiency of the Fleet and its Organisation
Distribution and Movements of all Ships in Commission and in Reserve
Superintendence of the Naval Staff and the Hydrographic Department
Administering Naval communications
Superintendence of the Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff
Superintendence of the Director of the Naval Intelligence Division

In 1941 the DCNS post was renamed Vice Chief of the Naval Staff; this continued until 1946. After the Second World War the title was changed back to DCNS, and continued until 1968.

From 2013

In 2013 the office was brought back once more and the current Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff became both a member of the Admiralty Board and a member of the Navy Board of the Ministry of Defence.

Duties circa March 2014 included:^[6]

Full command of all deployable Fleet units including the Royal Marines
Responsible for providing ships, submarines, aircraft and Royal Marine units ready in all respects for any operations that the UK Government requires
Responsible for the delivery of the Naval Service's current and future personnel, equipment and infrastructure

Deputy Chiefs of the Naval Staff

Incumbents include:^[7]

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	^[8]
5	Keyes, RogerVice Admiral Sir Roger Keyes (1872–1945)	November 1921	May 1925	3 years, 6 months	^[8]
6	Field, FrederickVice Admiral Sir Frederick Field (1871–1945)	May 1925	May 1928	3 years	^[8]
7	Fisher, WilliamVice Admiral Sir William Wordsworth Fisher (1875–1937)	May 1928	June 1930	2 years, 1 month	^[9]
8	Dreyer, FredericAdmiral Sir Frederic Charles Dreyer (1878–1956)	June 1930	January 1933	2 years, 7 months	^[10]
9	Little, CharlesVice Admiral Sir Charles J. C. Little (1882–1973)	January 1933	October 1935	2 years, 9 months	^[11]
10	James, WilliamVice Admiral Sir William Milbourne James (1881–1973)	October 1935	October 1938	3 years	^[12]
11	Cunningham, AndrewVice Admiral Sir Andrew B. Cunningham (1883–1963)	October 1938	May 1939	7 months	^[13]
12	Phillips, TomVice Admiral Sir Tom S. V. Phillips (1888–1941)	June 1939	October 1941	2 years, 5 months	^[14]

Note: Post is renamed 1941 to 1946 its responsibilities are taken over 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	^[15]
4	Clifford, EricVice Admiral Sir Eric Clifford (1900–1964)	April 1954	September 1957	3 years, 5 months	^[16]

Note: From 1957 to 1965 the post was held jointly 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	^[17]
3	Gretton, PeterVice Admiral Sir Peter Gretton (1912–1992)	January 1962	January 1963	1 year	^[18]
4	Hopkins, FrankVice Admiral Sir Frank Hopkins (1910–1990)	January 1963	March 1966	3 years, 2 months	^[19]
5	Janvrin, RichardVice Admiral Sir Richard B. Janvrin (1915–1993)	March 1966	October 1968	2 years, 7 months	^{[citation needed]}

Note: Post was vacant from 1969 to 2012; it was re-established in 2013. From 2013 to 2015 it was held by the Fleet Commander and from 2016 it was held by the Second Sea Lord

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	^[20]^[21]
2	Woodcock, JonathanVice Admiral Jonathan Woodcock (born 1962)	8 April 2016	27 March 2018	1 year, 353 days	^[22]
3	Radakin, TonyVice Admiral Tony Radakin (born 1965)	27 March 2018	26 April 2019	1 year, 30 days	^[23]
4	Hine, NicholasVice Admiral Nick Hine (born 1966)	26 April 2019	12 January 2022	2 years, 261 days	^[24]
5	Connell, MartinVice Admiral Martin Connell (born 1968)	12 January 2022	Incumbent	2 years, 331 days	^[25]

References

^ "The Secretary of State announces new Senior Appointments in the Armed Services". www.gov.uk. Ministry of Defence, 29 January 2016. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
^ ^a ^b ^c Harley, Simon; Lovell, Tony. "Deputy Chief of Naval Staff". dreadnoughtproject.org. Dreadnought Project, 1 September 2016. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
^ Oliver Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. p. 319.
^ "War Staff Duties." Jellicoe Papers. British Library. Add. MS. 48992. ff. 94–95.
^ ^a ^b "Deputy Chief of Naval Staff – The Dreadnought Project,"War Staff Duties." Jellicoe Papers. British Library. Add. MS. 48992. ff. 94–95". www.dreadnoughtproject.org. Dreadnought Project. Retrieved 18 March 2017.
^ "Navy Command senior, as of March 2014". gov.uk. MOD, Updated 29 January 2015. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
^ Mackie, Colin. "Royal Navy – Senior Appointments" (PDF). Retrieved 23 November 2016.
^ ^a ^b ^c "The Admiralty British Government Department, 1920s". warwick.ac.uk. University of Warwick, 2011. Archived from the original on 15 January 2017. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
^ Stewart, William (2009). Admirals of the World: A Biographical Dictionary, 1500 to the Present. McFarland. p. 126. ISBN 9780786482887.
^ Bevand, Paul. "Biography: Admiral Sir Frederick Charles Dreyer". HMS Hood Association, 6 May 2014. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
^ McKercher, Brian J. C. (1999). Transition of Power: Britain's Loss of Global Pre-eminence to the United States, 1930–1945. Cambridge University Press. p. 191. ISBN 9781139425063.
^ "Vice-Admiral Sir William Milbourne James (1881–1973)". rmg.co.uk. Royal Museums Greenwich, Collections, 2016. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
^ Brown, [G.A. Titterton]. Vol. 1, September 1939 – October 1940 / with an introduction by David (2002). September 1939 – October 1940 ([New ed.]. ed.). London [u.a.]: Whitehall History Publ. in assoc. with Frank Cass. p. 3. ISBN 9780714651798.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^ Hunter, Brian Farrell & Sandy (2002). Sixty years on : the fall of Singapore revisited. Singapore: Eastern Univ. Press. p. 146. ISBN 9789812102027.
^ Cook, Chris (2012). The Routledge Guide to British Political Archives: Sources since 1945. Routledge. p. 13. ISBN 9781136509612.
^ "Adm. Eric Clifford, Headed U.N. Units Off Korea in '52". The New York Times. 10 September 1964. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
^ Rubinstein, William D.; Jolles, Michael A.; Rubinstein, Hilary L., eds. (2011). The Palgrave dictionary of Anglo-Jewish history. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. p. 235. ISBN 9781403939104.
^ Cook, Chris (2012). The Routledge Guide to British Political Archives: Sources since 1945. 85: Routledge. ISBN 9781136509612.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
^ Dyndal, Gjert Lage (2016). Land Based Air Power Or Aircraft Carriers?: A Case Study of the British Debate about Maritime Air Power in the 1960s. Routledge. p. 96. ISBN 9781317108405.
^ "Senior organogram". Ministry of Defence. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
^ "Senior Appointments". March 2013. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
^ "Navy Board". royalnavy.mod.uk. MOD, UK, 2016. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
^ "Navy Board". royalnavy.mod.uk. Royal Navy. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
^ "Navy Board". royalnavy.mod.uk. Royal Navy.
^ "New Second Sea Lord officially welcomed to role". www.royalnavy.mod.uk. Retrieved 9 March 2023.

Attribution

Primary source for this article is by Harley, Simon and Lovell, Tony, (2016) Deputy Chief of Naval Staff, The Dreadnought Project, http://dreadnoughtproject.org.

Sources

Rodger. N.A.M., (1979) The Admiralty (offices of state), T. Dalton, Lavenham, ISBN 978-0900963940.
Naval Staff, Training and Staff Duties Division (1929). The Naval Staff of the Admiralty. Its Work and Development. B.R. 1845 (late C.B. 3013). Copy at The National Archives. ADM 234/434.
Mackie, Colin, (2010–2014), British Armed Services between 1860 and the present day — I Royal Navy – Senior Appointments, http://www.gulabin.com/.

External links

[1] "The Secretary of State announces new Senior Appointments in the Armed Services". www.gov.uk. Ministry of Defence, 29 January 2016. Retrieved 26 November 2016.

[Harley-2] Harley, Simon; Lovell, Tony. "Deputy Chief of Naval Staff". dreadnoughtproject.org. Dreadnought Project, 1 September 2016. Retrieved 24 November 2016.

[3] Oliver Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. p. 319.

[4] "War Staff Duties." Jellicoe Papers. British Library. Add. MS. 48992. ff. 94–95.

[Dreadnought-5] "Deputy Chief of Naval Staff – The Dreadnought Project,"War Staff Duties." Jellicoe Papers. British Library. Add. MS. 48992. ff. 94–95". www.dreadnoughtproject.org. Dreadnought Project. Retrieved 18 March 2017.

[6] "Navy Command senior, as of March 2014". gov.uk. MOD, Updated 29 January 2015. Retrieved 24 November 2016.

[7] Mackie, Colin. "Royal Navy – Senior Appointments" (PDF). Retrieved 23 November 2016.

[Warwick-8] "The Admiralty British Government Department, 1920s". warwick.ac.uk. University of Warwick, 2011. Archived from the original on 15 January 2017. Retrieved 23 November 2016.

[9] Stewart, William (2009). Admirals of the World: A Biographical Dictionary, 1500 to the Present. McFarland. p. 126. ISBN 9780786482887.

[10] Bevand, Paul. "Biography: Admiral Sir Frederick Charles Dreyer". HMS Hood Association, 6 May 2014. Retrieved 24 November 2016.

[11] McKercher, Brian J. C. (1999). Transition of Power: Britain's Loss of Global Pre-eminence to the United States, 1930–1945. Cambridge University Press. p. 191. ISBN 9781139425063.

[12] "Vice-Admiral Sir William Milbourne James (1881–1973)". rmg.co.uk. Royal Museums Greenwich, Collections, 2016. Retrieved 24 November 2016.

[13] Brown, [G.A. Titterton]. Vol. 1, September 1939 – October 1940 / with an introduction by David (2002). September 1939 – October 1940 ([New ed.]. ed.). London [u.a.]: Whitehall History Publ. in assoc. with Frank Cass. p. 3. ISBN 9780714651798.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

[14] Hunter, Brian Farrell & Sandy (2002). Sixty years on : the fall of Singapore revisited. Singapore: Eastern Univ. Press. p. 146. ISBN 9789812102027.

[15] Cook, Chris (2012). The Routledge Guide to British Political Archives: Sources since 1945. Routledge. p. 13. ISBN 9781136509612.

[16] "Adm. Eric Clifford, Headed U.N. Units Off Korea in '52". The New York Times. 10 September 1964. Retrieved 24 November 2016.

[17] Rubinstein, William D.; Jolles, Michael A.; Rubinstein, Hilary L., eds. (2011). The Palgrave dictionary of Anglo-Jewish history. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. p. 235. ISBN 9781403939104.

[18] Cook, Chris (2012). The Routledge Guide to British Political Archives: Sources since 1945. 85: Routledge. ISBN 9781136509612.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)

[19] Dyndal, Gjert Lage (2016). Land Based Air Power Or Aircraft Carriers?: A Case Study of the British Debate about Maritime Air Power in the 1960s. Routledge. p. 96. ISBN 9781317108405.

[20] "Senior organogram". Ministry of Defence. Retrieved 27 November 2016.

[21] "Senior Appointments". March 2013. Retrieved 27 November 2016.

[22] "Navy Board". royalnavy.mod.uk. MOD, UK, 2016. Retrieved 24 November 2016.

[23] "Navy Board". royalnavy.mod.uk. Royal Navy. Retrieved 4 April 2018.

[24] "Navy Board". royalnavy.mod.uk. Royal Navy.

[25] "New Second Sea Lord officially welcomed to role". www.royalnavy.mod.uk. Retrieved 9 March 2023.

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v t e Admiralty Board
Chairman	Secretary of State for Defence
Civilian	Minister of State for the Armed Forces Minister for Defence Personnel, Welfare and Veterans Minister for Reserves Under Secretary of State & the Lords Spokesman on Defence Finance Director (Navy)
Naval	First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff Second Sea Lord and Deputy Chief of Naval Staff Fleet Commander Assistant Chief of Naval Staff (Policy)

v t e Navy Board
Naval	First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff Second Sea Lord and Deputy Chief of Naval Staff Fleet Commander Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff (Policy)
Civilian	Finance Director (Navy) Non Executive Director

v t e Board of Admiralty
Ministerial Lords	Office of the First Lord of the Admiralty and President of the Board (1628–1964)
Naval Lords	Senior Naval Lord (1689–1771) First Naval Lord (1771–1904) First Sea Lord (1904–1917) First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff (1917–1964) Second Naval Lord (1830–1869, 1872–1904) Second Sea Lord (1904–1917) Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel (1917–1964) Third Naval Lord (1832–1858) Controller of the Navy (1859–1869) Third Naval Lord and Controller (1869–1872) Controller of the Navy (1872–1882) Third Naval Lord and Controller of the Navy (1882–1904) Third Sea Lord and Controller of the Navy (1904–1912) Third Sea Lord (1912–1917) Controller of the Navy (1917–1918) Third Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Matériel (1918–1965) Junior Naval Lord (1868–1904) Fourth Sea Lord (1904–1917) Fourth Sea Lord and Chief of Supplies and Transport (1917–1955) Fifth Sea Lord (1917) Fifth Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Air Service (1917–1956)
Staff Naval Lords	Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff (1917–1964) Deputy First Sea Lord (1917–1919) Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff (1917–1964) Vice Chief of the Naval Staff (1941–1964) Deputy First Sea Lord (1942–1946)
Civil Lords	Civil Lord of the Admiralty (1830–1964) Accountant-General of the Navy (1832–1869) Controller of Victualling (1832–1869) Director-General of the Medical Department (1832–1869) Storekeeper-General of the Navy (1832–1869) Surveyor of the Navy (1832–1869) Controller of the Navy (1859–1869) Additional Civil Lord of the Admiralty (1882–1885) Additional Civil Lord of the Admiralty (1912–1917) Second Civil Lord (1918–1919) Third Civil Lord (1918–1919) Fourth Civil Lord (1918–1919)
Civil Secretaries	Secretaries to the Lords Admiral, Admiralty, Committees and Commissions (1625–1660) First Secretary to the Admiralty (1660–1763) First Secretary to the Admiralty (1763–1871) Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty (1871–1886) Parliamentary and Financial Secretary to the Admiralty (1886–1959) Joint-Deputy Secretary to the Admiralty (1702–1766) Second Secretary to the Admiralty (1783–1857) Permanent Secretary to the Admiralty (1869–1872) Naval Secretary to the Board of Admiralty (1872–1882) Permanent Secretary to the Admiralty (1882–1964)