- Josiah Burchett
Josiah Burchett (1666? –
October 2 ,1746 ) was Secretary of theAdmiralty inEngland , a position he held for almost fifty years (26 September 1694 -14 October 1742 ). He was first a clerk toSamuel Pepys , the Englishcivil servant famous for his diary. Burchett eventually fell out of favour with Pepys, but gained the respect and favour ofLord Admiral Edward Russell , and eventually was appointed Secretary of the Admiralty. He served continuously as Secretary of the Admiralty until retiring at age 76.Burchett served on Russell's
flagship , the 100-gun HMS "Britannia", at the battle ofBarfleur in 1692 during theWar of the Grand Alliance . In 1693 he became the Deputy Judge Advocate of the Fleet, replacingSamuel Pepys in that office. Burchett was elected as a member of the English Parliament in 1705 as a Whig and member of the 'Court Group' representing theborough of Sandwich, England. He remained a member of Parliament until 1713, then returned in 1721 continuing as a member for 20 years.Using official reports received by the Admiralty, Burchett wrote the "Memoirs of Tranactions at Sea during the War with France", which was published in 1706 by the Queen's Printer, Edward Jones. In 1720 he published the lengthy book "A Complete History of the Most Remarkable Transactions at Sea", which was reissued in 1995 by
John Hattendorf of theU.S. Naval War College . This 1720 book was the first general naval history published in the English language. This book was published by the printing firm J. Walthoe under royal license of KingGeorge I of Great Britain and was clearly based on the official reports received in the Admiralty. Burchett's "A Complete History of the Most Remarkable Transactions at Sea", along with Thomas Lediard's 1735 "The Naval History of England", has become a key source ofnaval history of that era.Since he held the office of Secretary of the Admiralty, the key administrator of the
Royal Navy , longer than any other person and had extensive official correspondence and Admiralty papers that have been preserved, his books and writings are relied upon by maritime and naval war historians. Unlike his predecessor Samuel Pepys, Burchett left no known diary or private papers. He died at age 80 atHampstead nearLondon .
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