George Warrender, 7th Baronet

Infobox Military Person
name= Vice Admiral George Warrender, 7th Baronet
lived= 3 July 1860 - 8 January 1917
placeofbirth=Edinburgh, Scotland
placeofdeath=London


caption=
nickname=
allegiance=flag|United Kingdom
branch=navy|United Kingdom
serviceyears= 1873-1916
rank=Vice Admiral
commands=East India Squadron
2nd Battle Squadron
Devonport Dockyard
battles=Zulu War
Boxer Rebellion
World War I
awards=Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order
laterwork=

George John Scott Warrender of Lochend, 7th baronet K.C.B. K.C.V.O. (31 July 1860 – 8 January 1917) was a Vice-Admiral in the Royal Navy during World War One.

Warrender was the son of Sir George Warrender, 6th Baronet (1825-1901) and Helen Purves-Hume-Campbell, born at Bruntsfield House, Edinburgh. He married Lady Ethel Maud Ashley Cooper, daughter of the 8th earl of Shaftesbury, on 6 February 1894 at St. Paul's Church, Knightsbridge, London. He had three children, Sir Victor Alexander George Anthony Warrender 8th Bt., 1st Baron Bruntisfield (1942), Harold John Warrender and Violet Helen Marie Warrender. The family were respected in society, and Queen Victoria agreed to be godmother to Victor.

Naval Career

Warrender joined the navy as a cadet in 1873 at Dartmouth. He qualified as a French interpreter in 1878. He served in the Zulu War in 1879 as midshipman on the corvette HMS "Boadicea". As a member of the naval brigade he was part of the force send to relieve Eshowe and was present at the Battle of Gingindlovu, so receiving the South Africa medal. In 1880 he was promoted to Lieutenant, specialising in gunnery.

He was a staff officer at HMS "Excellent" between 1884 and 1885, and was promoted to commander in 1893. He commanded the royal yacht HMY "Victoria and Albert II" between 1896 and 1899.

He was appointed captain on 13 May 1899. He fought at the Boxer Rebellion in 1900 as flag captain to Admiral Sir James Bruce and commander of HMS "Barfleur" (1899-1902). He was captain of HMS "Lancaster" in the Mediterranean between 1904 and 1905, followed by the command of HMS "Carnavon", also in the Mediterranean from 1905. From 1907 to 1908 he was Aide-de-Camp to King Edward VII and on 2 July 1908 he was promoted to Rear Admiral. He served as Commander in chief of the East Indies Station from 1907 to 1909. He became commander of the second cruiser squadron in 1910, serving as such until 1912, and was awarded KCVO in 1911. He became commander of the 2nd Battle Squadron, with the new dreadnought battleship HMS "King George V" as his flagship, in 1912, holding the command until December 1915, and was awarded KCB in 1913. He was promoted to Vice-Admiral on 4 June 1913.

World War I

In June 1914, just before the outbreak of the First World War his squadron visited the German naval port of Kiel, during the annual regatta attended by the Kaiser and senior German admirals. The objective was to show off the modern British ships, and also inspect the German fleet. During the week long visit, news arrived of the assasination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria. During the farewell dinner, Warrender commented in his departing speech, "Friends in the past, friends forever". ['Dreadnought' p.849-853] Shortly afterwards he temporarily commanded the Grand Fleet ordered to move to Scapa Flow after annual exercises, when a declaration of war was considered imminent.

Warrender was considered a good admiral during peacetime, but his reputation suffered as the war proceeded. His squadron was regarded as one of the best trained in gunnery in the fleet. He was described by Commodore William Goodenough as having "an imperturbability that no circumstances could ruffle", although others ascribed this stolidity to simply a lack of initiative. [ 'Castles' p.335 citing Goodenough p. 86]

One of the battleships in his command, HMS "Audacious", sank after striking a mine when at sea for gunnery practice in October 1914. He commanded a British squadron of six battleships, four battlecruisers, cruisers and destroyers which attempted to intercept Admiral Hipper following Hipper's raid on Scarborough. Hipper escaped, some of his ships slipping past Warrender despite being spotted and coming within range of his superior force. First Sea Lord Fisher wanted Warrender replaced for his poor performance, but Warrender was a friend of Admiral John Jellicoe commanding the Grand Fleet, who kept him in his post because of his past experience handling large fleets. Warrender was also suffering from increasing deafness and was replaced in December 1915. He became Commander in Chief at Devonport dockyard, Plymouth in 1916, but asked for retirement in December 1916 because of increasingly poor health. He died in January 1917, was cremated at Golders Green on 12 January and his ashes placed at the church of the Annunciation, Bryanston Street, London.

References

* [http://www.thepeerage.com/p14067.htm#i140666 the peerage] biography
* [http://www.admirals.org.uk/admirals/individual.php?RecNo=527 admirals.org] service recordadd
* [http://www.kcl.ac.uk/lhcma/locreg/WARRENDER.shtml Liddle Hart Centre] service record
*citation| newspaper=The Times |title= Death of Sir George Warrender |issue=41371 |pages= |date=1917-01-09
*citation| newspaper=The Times |title= Funeral of Sir George warrender |issue=41375 |pages=11 |date=1917-01-13
*Cite book |author=Robert Massie|title= |location = London |year= 2004| publisher= Johnathan Cape |isbn= 0224 040928
*Cite book |title= |publisher= Random House |year=1991 |author= Robert K. Massie | ISBN= 0-394-52833-6
*Cite book |author=Admiral Sir William Goodenough| title= A rough record| location= London and New York| publisher=Hutchinson |year=1943
*Cite book |author= Arthur Marder |title=From the Dreadnought to Scapa Flow Volume II, The war years :To the eve of Jutland 1914-1916 |year= 1965 |location= London |publisher= Oxford University Press

###@@@KEY@@@###succession box
title = Baronet "'(of Lochend)
years = "'1901–1917
before = George Warrender
after = Victor Warrender