George Holmes Borrett
Admiral George Holmes Borrett, C.B., Royal Navy, Retired (10 March, 1868 – 10 June, 1952) was an officer of the Royal Navy.
Contents
Life & Career
Borrett scored 1,322 marks in the competitive examinations for cadetships in the Royal Navy, coming third out of his batch of twenty.[1]
Borrett was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant on 13 November, 1889.[2]
Borrett was specially promoted to the rank of Commander on 1 January, 1901, for services in China.[3]
Borrett was promoted to the rank of Captain on 31 December, 1906.[4]
He was appointed in command of the second class protected cruiser Indefatigable on 23 January, 1908.[5] A nineteen month command of the more imposing battleship Majestic came in February 1911.[6]
On 20 September 1912, he assumed command of the armoured cruiser Donegal.[7]
Great War
At the outbreak of war, he was in command of Warrior, operating with the First Cruiser Squadron in the Mediterranean.[8]
He commanded the battleship Monarch at the Battle of Jutland.
On 5 October, 1917, he was appointed a Naval Aide-de-Camp to King George V, vice Ley.[9] He was appointed an Additional Member of the Third Class, or Companion, in the Military Division of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath (C.B.) on 1 January, 1918.[10]
Borrett was appointed in command of the Seventh Light Cruiser Squadron on 6 April, 1918[11] and was promoted to the rank of Rear-Admiral on 16 August.[12]
Post-War
Borrett was appointed Rear-Admiral Commanding the Fifth Light Cruiser Squadron, dated 1 March, 1919.[13]
He was promoted to the rank of Vice-Admiral on 14 October, 1923, vice Colomb.[14] He was placed on the Retired List at his own request on 17 February, 1925.[15]
He was advanced to the rank of Admiral on the Retired List on 1 August, 1927.[16]
Assessment
Speaking to Captain Herbert W. Richmond in 1917, Borrett apparently said of Jutland, "We had them [the Germans] stone cold & we let them go."[17] Accepting that this conversation took place, this writer has been unable to find among the Jutland papers any mention of Captain Borrett hauling Monarch out of the line after the Germans, or of him signalling his immediate superior in the battle line, Rear-Admiral Leveson, suggesting that he do the same. — SIMON HARLEY, Co-editor.
Footnotes
- ↑ "Naval and Military Intelligence" (Official Appointments and Notices). The Times. Monday, 27 June, 1881. Issue 30231, col E, p. 8.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 25994. p. 6135. 19 November, 1889.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 27263. p. 82. 4 January, 1901.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 27982. p. 31. 1 January, 1907.
- ↑ The Navy List (October, 1908). p. 331.
- ↑ Mackie, Colin. ROYAL NAVY WARSHIPS.
- ↑ The Navy List (July, 1913). p. 302.
- ↑ Naval Operations. Volume I. p. 440.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 30343. p. 10762. 19 October, 1917.
- ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 30451. p. 80. 1 January, 1918.
- ↑ Squadrons and Senior Naval Officers in Existence on 11th November, 1918. p. 26ex.
- ↑ Borrett Service Record. f. 505.
- ↑ "End of Grand Fleet" (Official Appointments and Notices). The Times. Thursday, 3 April, 1919. Issue 42065, col D, p. 13.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 32886. p. 8537. 7 December, 1923.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 33025. p. 1426. 27 February, 1925.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 33300. p. 5105. 5 August, 1927.
- ↑ Diary entry for 4 May, 1917. Quoted in Marder. Portrait of an Admiral. p. 247.
Bibliography
- "Admiral G. H. Borrett" (Obituaries). The Times. Wednesday, 11 June, 1952. Issue 52335, col D, p. 8.
Service Records
- The National Archives. ADM 196/88.
- The National Archives. ADM 196/42.
| Naval Appointments | ||
| Preceded by New Command |
Rear-Admiral Commanding, Seventh Light Cruiser Squadron 1918 – 1919 |
Succeeded by A. Thomas Hunt And as Commander-in-Chief on the South America Station
|
| Preceded by Alfred A. Ellison |
Rear-Admiral and Senior Naval Officer, Yangtze 1920 – 1921 |
Succeeded by Crawford Maclachlan
|
| Naval Appointments | ||
| Preceded by George P. W. Hope |
Captain of H.M.S. Pioneer 29 Aug, 1904 – ? |
Succeeded by ? |
| Preceded by Philip Nelson-Ward |
Captain of H.M.S. Indefatigable 1 Jan, 1908 – ? |
Succeeded by ? |
| Preceded by Arthur W. Ewart |
Captain of H.M.S. Ramillies 18 Apr, 1910 – ? |
Succeeded by ? |
| Preceded by Bertram M. Chambers |
Captain of H.M.S. Majestic Feb, 1911 – ? |
Succeeded by Guy R. A. Gaunt |
| Preceded by Lionel Halsey |
Captain of H.M.S. Donegal 20 Sep, 1912 – ? |
Succeeded by Cunningham R. de C. Foot |
| Preceded by James A. Fergusson |
Captain of H.M.S. Warrior 25 Aug, 1913 – ? |
Succeeded by Vincent B. Molteno |
| Preceded by Frederick L. Field |
Captain of H.M.S. Monarch 16 Dec, 1915 – ? |
Succeeded by Sidney R. Drury-Lowe |
| Preceded by Alfred A. Ellison |
Senior Naval Officer, Yangtze May, 1920 – ? |
Succeeded by Crawford Maclachlan |
