Help with reading a RN service history!

[NavyFCO]

All:

I thought it was tough to read Soviet service histories. That was because I am a native English speaker. Then, I downloaded a service history for a Royal Navy petty officer...wow! Tough for a native English speaker!

I just bought this fellow's Russian For Zeal medal from the HMS Jupiter and am trying to research him. Looks like he served from 1886 to 1919 (33 years!) I have to ask - is this number of ships normal for a RN petty officer back then? Seems like an awful lot! Also, what is the box about gunnery engagements? Does that mean acutal combat? I couldn't place any combat given the dates...

Any help/translation on this document is MOST appreciated!

Dave

[NavyFCO]

A bit larger...top half...

[NavyFCO]

Bottom half...

[Brian Wolfe]

Hi Dave,

I have a few groups to Navy personnel and most served aboard three or four ships at the most, however, one fellow served aboard 16 different ships. My guy was an artificer (I hope I got the spelling correct) which is a mechanic so that would account for him being on so many ships.

I will be very interested to hear what more informed collectors than myself have to say about this Petty Officer's service.

Regards

Brian

[NavyFCO]

Here's how I read his record from the research I've done today...

Inpregnable - school ship

Constance - corvette

Cambridge - gunnery ship

Garnet - corvette

Liffey - frigate (store hulk)

Champion - corvette

Garnet (2)

Champion (2)

Vivid I - Barracks (Plymouth)

Cambridge (2)

Vivid I (2)

Cruiser - sloop

Vivid I (3)

Thunderer - battleship

Hood - battleship (not the WW2 one)

Cambridge (3)

Britannia - battleship

Vivid - depot ship at Devenport

Russell - battleship

Vivid I (4)

Espiegle - sloop

Vivid I (5)

Jupiter - cruiser

Vivid I (6)

Grive - couldn't find anything about this...

Vivid II - Accounting base in Devenport

Looks like (to my count) he served on 13 ships over 33 years. Quite a career. Some of the ships (like the corvettes) were nice (large) ships...not the little ships that we'd expect them to be these days.

Interesting!

Dave

[Ralph]

deleted

Edited April 1, 2010 by Ralph

[Hugh]

Here's how I read his record from the research I've done today...

Inpregnable - school ship

Constance - corvette

Cambridge - gunnery ship

Garnet - corvette

Liffey - frigate (store hulk)

Champion - corvette

Garnet (2)

Champion (2)

Vivid I - Barracks (Plymouth)

Cambridge (2)

Vivid I (2)

Cruiser - sloop

Vivid I (3)

Thunderer - battleship

Hood - battleship (not the WW2 one)

Cambridge (3)

Britannia - battleship

Vivid - depot ship at Devenport

Russell - battleship

Vivid I (4)

Espiegle - sloop

Vivid I (5)

Jupiter - cruiser

Vivid I (6)

Grive - couldn't find anything about this...

Vivid II - Accounting base in Devenport

Looks like (to my count) he served on 13 ships over 33 years. Quite a career. Some of the ships (like the corvettes) were nice (large) ships...not the little ships that we'd expect them to be these days.

Interesting!

Dave

The RN used to name shore stations with the "HMS So-and-so" designation. I had a list once upon a time, but it's deeply buried somewhere. I suspect some of these "ships" may well be shore stations.

Hugh

[Jim Maclean]

If you look carefully at his service history you'll see that on the 24th October 1906 he was discharged shore and pension. This was a day after his 38th birthday. This would have given him 20 years reckonable service from the age of 18. You'd have to research the service required for pension, it's currently 22 years and has been for a long time. Service up to the age of 18 is not reckonable for pension. Your man apparently joined as a Boy 2nd class on 11th July 1884.

On discharge it looks as though he joined the RNR for 5 years, this I believe was not an option at the time. He was then called up again at the start of WW1, you'll notice he joined again at Vivid (still today existing as the RNR unit at Devonport). He then after a few days went to HMS Jupiter, a Majestic class battleship. After a year on that it was back to Vivid for 4 months then to HMS Grive??? can't find any references to that but he was there for a year and a bit and then back to Vivid. Then demobbed Jan 1919.