Robert Harris (Royal Navy officer)

Admiral Sir Robert Hastings Penruddock Harris KCB, KCMG (12 October 1843 – 25 August 1926) was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, Cape of Good Hope Station.

Sir Robert Harris
Born12 October 1843
Died25 August 1926 (1926-08-26) (aged 82)
AllegianceUnited Kingdom United Kingdom
Service/branch Royal Navy
RankAdmiral
Commands heldCape of Good Hope Station
Royal Naval College, Greenwich
Battles/warsCretan Revolt
Second Boer War
AwardsKnight Commander of the Order of the Bath
Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George

Harris joined the Royal Navy in 1856.[1] Promoted to captain in 1879 and to rear-admiral in 1891, he commanded the Training Squadron from 1893 to 1895 before becoming Second-in-Command of the Mediterranean Fleet in 1896.[1] In that role he was involved in the Cretan Revolt.[2][3]

He was appointed Commander-in-Chief, Cape of Good Hope Station in 1898 and played an important role in the Second Boer War:[1] in October 1899 he formed a Naval Brigade and despatched the brigade to support General Frederick Forestier-Walker in defeating of the Boers at the Battle of Ladysmith – one of the guns surrendered by the Boers survives at Devonport today.[4] Promoted to vice admiral in 1901[5][6] he went on to serve as President of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich in 1903 with promotion to admiral in 1904.[7][8]

He lived at a house called The Brake in Yelverton, Devon.[9][8]

Family

He married Florence Cordelia Henn-Gennys; they had three sons and five daughters.[9][8]

References
  1. Anglo-Boer War Archived 31 October 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  2. "Contact Support". mickmctiernan.com. Archived from the original on 6 January 2018. Retrieved 6 January 2018.
  3. "British warships off Canea. March 1897". 17 March 2014.
  4. HMS Doris GunMoseley, Brian (March 2007). "HMS Doris Gun". The Encyclopaedia of Plymouth History. Plymouth Data. Archived from the original on 13 September 2010. Retrieved 15 February 2015.
  5. "No. 27288". The London Gazette. 22 February 1901. p. 1350.
  6. Vice Admiral Sir Robert Harris Sydney Morning Herald, 23 February 1901
  7. Royal Navy Flag Officers, 1 June 1906
  8. 'HARRIS, Adm. Sir Robert Hastings', in Who Was Who 1916–1928 (London: A & C Black, 1992 reprint, ISBN 0-7136-3143-0)
  9. Admiral Sir Robert Hastings Penruddock Harris
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