| Unit Name: | 1st Cruiser Squadron |
| Dates: | 1904–1952 |
| Country: | United Kingdom |
| Allegiance: | British Empire |
| Branch: | Royal Navy |
| Battles: | Battle of Dogger Bank Battle of Jutland |
The First Cruiser Squadron was a Royal Navy squadron of cruisers that saw service as part of the Grand Fleet during World War I, then later as part of the Mediterranean during the Interwar period and World War II. It was first established in 1904 and existed until 1952.
The squadron was formed in December 1904 when Cruiser Squadron was re-designated the 1st Cruiser Squadron. In March 1909, then consisting of battlecruisers, it was assigned to the 1st Division of the Home Fleet until April 1912. When the First World War began, the squadron was assigned to the Mediterranean Fleet where it participated in the pursuit of the German battlecruiser and the light cruiser . It joined then Grand Fleet in January 1915 where it participated in the battles of Dogger Bank and the Battle of Jutland. It was disbanded after the battle as three of its four ships had been sunk in June 1916. In July 1917 H.M. Ships, and were detached from the 3rd Light Cruiser Squadron and named the First Cruiser Squadron, part of the newly formed Light Cruiser Force. It remained part of Light Cruiser Force until April 1919 when it was once again disbanded.
| Rank | Flag | Name | Term | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rear-Admiral/Vice-Admiral Commanding, 1st Cruiser Squadron [3] | ||||
| 1 | Rear-Admiral | Edmund S. Poe | December, 1904 - July, 1905 | |
| 2 | Rear-Admiral | George Neville | July, 1905 - July, 1907 | |
| 3 | Rear-Admiral | Sir Percy M. Scott | July, 1907 - September, 1908 | |
| 4 | Rear-Admiral | Charles H. Adair | September, 1908 - February, 1909 | |
| 5 | Rear-Admiral | Hon. Stanley C. J. Colville | February, 1909 - February, 1911 | |
| 6 | Rear-Admiral | Lewis Bayly | February, 1911 - January, 1913 | |
| 7 | Rear-Admiral | Ernest C.T. Troubridge | January, 1913 - September, 1914 | |
| 8 | Rear-Admiral | Sir Archibald G. H.W. Moore | November, 1914 - January, 1915 | |
| 9 | Rear-Admiral | Sir Robert K. Arbuthnot | January, 1915 - May, 1916 | |
| squadron disbanded 06/1916 - 06/1917 | ||||
| 10 | Vice-Admiral | Trevylyan D.W.Napier | July, 1917 - April, 1919 | |
| squadron disbanded 1919-1924 | ||||
As per:[4]
As of:[5]
Armoured cruisers
Light cruisers
As of:[6]
As of:[7]
As of:[8]
As of:[9]
As of:[10]
In October 1924 the 1st Light Cruiser Squadron was re-designated the 1st Cruiser Squadron. This took effect in November 1924 and the squadron was reformed as an enlarged unit of the Mediterranean Fleet under the command of Rear Admiral Arthur Waistell.
In June 1942 the squadron under the commander of Rear-Admiral Louis Keppel Hamilton was assigned to provide distant cover for Convoy PQ 17. The squadron consisted of the British cruisers (flagship) and, the American cruisers and and four destroyers, two from the United States Navy. Louis Mountbatten served as commander of the squadron in the Mediterranean Fleet after the war. Having been granted the substantive rank of vice admiral on 22 June 1949, Mountbatten became Second-in-Command of the Mediterranean Fleet in April 1950.
Post holders included:[11] [12]
| Rank | Flag | Name | Term | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rear-Admiral/Vice-Admiral Commanding, 1st Cruiser Squadron [13] | |||||
| 1 | Rear-Admiral | Arthur K.Waistell | November, 1924 - October, 1926 | ||
| 2 | Rear-Admiral | William H.D. Boyle | October, 1926 - October, 1928 | ||
| 3 | Rear-Admiral | Henry W. Parker | October, 1928 - March, 1930 | ||
| 4 | Rear-Admiral | Joseph Henley C. W. Henley | March, 1930 -April 1932 | ||
| 5 | Rear-Admiral | George K. Chetwode | April, 1932 - June, 1933 | ||
| 6 | Vice-Admiral | John K. im Thurn | June, 1933 - July, 1935 | ||
| 7 | Vice-Admiral | Max K. Horton | July, 1935 - October, 1936 | ||
| 8 | Vice-Admiral | Charles E.Kennedy-Purvis | October, 1936-September, 1938 | ||
| 9 | Vice-Admiral | September, 1938 - December, 1940 | |||
| 10 | Rear-Admiral | W. Frederic Wake-Walker | December, 1940 - February 1942 | ||
| 11 | Rear-Admiral | Louis H.K. Hamilton | February 1942 - August, 1943 | ||
| 12 | Vice-Admiral | Arthur F.E. Palliser | August, 1943 - March, 1944 | ||
| 13 | Vice-Admiral | Sir Rhoderick R. McGrigor | March, 1944 - July 1945 | ||
| 14 | Rear-Admiral | Harold R.G. Kinahan | June, 1946 - June, 1947 | ||
| 15 | Rear-Admiral | Richard V. Symonds-Tayler | June, 1947 - October, 1948 | ||
| 16 | Vice-Admiral | Earl Mountbatten of Burma | October, 1948 - May, 1950 | ||
| 17 | Rear-Admiral | C.T. Mark Pizey | May, 1950 - July, 1951 | ||
| 18 | Vice-Admiral | Ralph A.B. Edwards | July, 1951 – 1952 | ||
Included:[14]
| from | to | deployed to | notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| March 1909 | April 1912 | ||
| July 1914 | January 1915 | ||
| January 1915 | June 1916 | ||
| July 1917 | April 1919 | ||
| November 1924 | August 1939 | ||
| August 1939 | 1952 | ||
. Julian Corbett. Naval Operations to the Battle of the Falklands. 2nd, reprint of the 1938. History of the Great War: Based on Official Documents. I. Imperial War Museum and Battery Press. London and Nashville, TN. 0-89839-256-X.
. Julian Corbett. Naval Operations. reprint of the 1929 second. History of the Great War: Based on Official Documents. II. 1997. Imperial War Museum in association with the Battery Press. London and Nashville, TN. 1-870423-74-7.
. Julian Corbett. Naval Operations. reprint of the 1940 second. History of the Great War: Based on Official Documents. III. 1997. Imperial War Museum in association with the Battery Press. London and Nashville, TN. 1-870423-50-X.