The Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth, was a senior commander of the Royal Navy for hundreds of years. The commanders-in-chief were based at premises in High Street, Portsmouth from the 1790s until the end of Sir Thomas Williams's tenure, his successor, Sir Philip Durham, being the first to move into Admiralty House at the Royal Navy Dockyard, where subsequent holders of the office were based until 1969. Prior to World War I the officer holder was sometimes referred to in official dispatches as the Commander-in-Chief, Spithead. The Command extended along the south coast from Newhaven in East Sussex to Portland in Dorset. In 1889 the Commander-in-Chief took HMS Victory as his flagship.

History

In the late 18th century port admirals began to reside ashore, rather than on board their flagships; the Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth was provided with a large house at 111 High Street, which was renamed Admiralty House (and which had formerly been home to the Mayor of Portsmouth). In the 1830s Admiralty House was sold to the War Office (as Government House, it went on to house the Lieutenant-Governor of Portsmouth for the next fifty years). The Commander-in-Chief moved in turn into the former Dockyard Commissioner's house, which still stands within HMNB Portsmouth. During the Second World War the Command Headquarters was at Fort Southwick. Rear Admiral Lancelot Holland, commanding the 3rd Battle Squadron, was briefly tasked also to command the Channel Force, operating from Portland Harbour in September-October 1939, within the Portsmouth command boundaries but responsible directly to the Admiralty. Operation Aerial, the evacuation from western French ports in 1940, was commanded by Admiral William Milbourne James, the Commander-in-Chief. James lacked the vessels necessary for convoys and organised a flow of troopships, storeships and motor vehicle vessels from Southampton, coasters to ply from Poole and the Dutch schuyts to work from Weymouth, while such warships as were available patrolled the shipping routes. Demolition parties sailed in the ships but it was hoped that supplies and equipment could be embarked as well as troops. During World War II several subordinate commanders along the coast were appointed: Flag Officer-in-Charge Southampton, 1942-45; a Captain as Naval Officer-in-Charge Weymouth, 1941-43; Naval Officer-in-Charge Newhaven, 1942-44, held by two retired vice-admirals; and Commander C.B. Hastings RN (retired) as Naval Officer-in-Charge Poole, 1940-44. Also located at HMS Vernon for a time within the C-in-C Portsmouth's command boundaries was the Rear-Admiral in charge of the Royal Navy Coastal Forces. However operational control of the various Coastal Forces flotillas was the responsibility of the local area commander-in-chief rather than Rear-Admiral Coastal Forces. Later in the war Coastal Forces HQ was moved to North London. In 1952 the Commander-in-Chief took up the NATO post of Commander-in-Chief, Channel (CINCHAN). This move added Allied Command Channel to the NATO Military Command Structure. The admiral commanding at Portsmouth had control naval operations in the area since 1949 under WUDO auspices. The post of Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth, was merged with that of Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth, in 1969 to form the post of Commander-in-Chief, Naval Home Command. The posts of Second Sea Lord and Commander-in-Chief Naval Home Command were amalgamated in 1994 following the rationalisation of the British Armed Forces following the end of the Cold War.

Units and formations

Considered as the most prestigious of the home commands, the Commander-in-Chief was responsible for the central part of the English Channel between Newhaven and the Isle of Portland. Below is a list of units that served under this command. The Commander-in-Chief had a Chief of Staff serving under him from 1832–1969. Senior officers included:

Flotillas and squadrons

Included:

Shore establishments

Included:

Commanders-in-Chief

Post holder have included: ❌ = died in post