Third Fleet (United Kingdom)

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Active1 May 1912–1914
Branch Royal Navy
Third Fleet
Active1 May 1912–1914
Country United Kingdom
Branch Royal Navy
TypeReserve fleet
Size2 x Battle squadrons
6 x Cruiser squadrons
3 x Local Defence Flotilla

The Third Fleet was a reserve formation of the Royal Navy that briefly existed before the First World War.

Formed on 1 May 1912 from the 4th Division of the Home Fleet, its elderly ships were ordinarily only manned by a small maintenance crew during peacetime, but were intended to be manned by naval reservists when mobilised.[1] It was conducting a test mobilisation in July 1914 as tensions increased between Great Britain and Imperial Germany[2] and was only partially demobilised before full mobilisation was ordered on 2 August. At this time it consisted of the 7th and 8th Battle Squadrons of pre-dreadnought battleships and five squadrons of cruisers.[3]

Vice-Admiral Commanding

RankFlagNameTerm
Vice-Admiral Commanding Third Fleet[4]
1Vice-AdmiralSir Frederick T. HamiltonDecember 1911-December 1913
2Vice-AdmiralSir Cecil BurneyDecember 1913-August 1914.

Components

Included[5]
UnitNotes
17th Battle Squadron(8 pre-dreadnoughts)[6]
28th Battle Squadron(6 pre-dreadnoughts)[7]
37th Cruiser Squadron(5 armoured cruisers)[8]
38th Cruiser Squadron(5 armoured/protected cruisers)[9]
49th Cruiser Squadron(8 armoured/protected cruisers)[10]
510th Cruiser Squadron(7 protected cruisers)-from Training Squadron at Queenstown[11]
611th Cruiser Squadron(5 protected cruisers)[12]
712th Cruiser Squadron(4 protected cruisers)[13]
8Devonport Local Defence Flotilla[14]
9Nore Local Defence Flotilla[15]
10Portsmouth Local Defence Flotilla[16]

Footnotes

Bibliography

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