A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada, Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka, and Kenya.
The Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) is one of the two volunteer reserve forces of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. Together with the Royal Marines Reserve, they form the Maritime Reserve. The present RNR was formed by merging the original Royal Naval Reserve, created in 1859, and the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (RNVR), created in 1903. The Royal Naval Reserve has seen action in World War I, World War II, the Iraq War and the War in Afghanistan.
HMS Cromer is a former Sandown-class minehunter commissioned by the Royal Navy in 1992. She was named after the North Norfolk seaside town of the same name.
The University Royal Naval Units (URNU) are Royal Navy training establishments under the command of Britannia Royal Naval College, who recruit Officer Cadets from a university or a number of universities, usually concentrated in one geographical area. There are 17 URNUs in the UK, with each URNU having land-based facilities near the universities they recruit from, with the exception of URNU Virtual, whose drill nights are conducted virtually.
HMS Raleigh is a stone frigate, serving as the basic training facility of the Royal Navy at Torpoint, Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is spread over several square miles, and has damage control simulators and fire-fighting training facilities, as well as a permanently moored training ship, the former HMS Brecon. Its principal function is the delivery of both New Entry Training and Basic Training.
The Royal Naval College, Osborne, was a training college for Royal Navy officer cadets on the Osborne House estate, Isle of Wight, established in 1903 and closed in 1921.
British Forces Gibraltar constitute those elements of the British Armed Forces stationed in the British overseas territory of Gibraltar. Gibraltar is used primarily as a training area, thanks to its good climate and rocky terrain, and as a stopover for aircraft and ships en route to and from deployments East of Suez or in Africa.
Admiral Percy Walker Nelles, was a flag officer in the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) and the Chief of the Naval Staff from 1 January 1934 to 15 January 1944. He oversaw the massive wartime expansion of the RCN and the transformation of Canada into a major player in the Battle of the Atlantic. During his tenure U-boats raided the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canadian Northwest Atlantic command was created, and the RCN provided up to 40% of all escort forces in the North Atlantic. His handling of the RCN's war effort had its opponents however, and he was removed from his post as Chief of the Naval Staff in January 1944. He was sent to London as Overseas Naval Attaché, coordinating RCN operations for Operation Overlord. He retired in January 1945 as a full admiral.
The Fleet Operational Standards and Training (FOST) is a Royal Navy training organisation. FOST is the training organisation responsible for ensuring that Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessels are fit to join the operational fleet.
The Royal Air Force College (RAFC) is the Royal Air Force academy which provides initial training to all RAF personnel who are preparing to become commissioned officers. The College also provides initial training to aircrew cadets and is responsible for all RAF recruiting along with officer and aircrew selection. Originally established as a naval aviation training centre during World War I, the College was established as the world's first air academy in 1919. During World War II, the College was closed and its facilities were used as a flying training school. Reopening after the War, the College absorbed the Royal Air Force Technical College in 1966.
HMS King Alfred is a Royal Naval Reserve shore establishment in Portsmouth, England. The unit has a complement of over 200 reservists and provides training facilities to other lodger units, including the local Royal Marines Reserve (RMR) City of London, and local University Royal Naval Unit (URNU).
Admiral Sir Philip Andrew Jones, is a retired senior Royal Navy officer. After service in the South Atlantic in 1982 during the Falklands War, he commanded the frigates HMS Beaver and HMS Coventry. He went on to be Flag Officer, Scotland, Northern England and Northern Ireland, Commander United Kingdom Maritime Forces and Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff before being appointed Fleet Commander and Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff. Jones served as First Sea Lord from April 2016 to June 2019.
The picket boat of the Royal Navy, was a twin screw boat in use at Britannia Royal Naval College in Dartmouth primarily to train officer cadets in boat handling and seamanship.
Vice Admiral Hikkaduwage Ananda Silva, VSV was a Sri Lankan senior naval officer who was the 11th Commander of the Sri Lankan Navy.
Vice Admiral Jeremy Paul Kyd, is a former senior Royal Navy officer. He has served as the Lieutenant Governor of Jersey since October 2022. He formerly served as Fleet Commander from March 2019 to September 2021.
Admiral Sir Benjamin John Key, is a senior Royal Navy officer. He has served as First Sea Lord since November 2021. He has commanded HM Ships Sandown, Iron Duke and Lancaster, and deployed on operations to Kosovo and Iraq. He was appointed Fleet Commander in 2016, and the Chief of Joint Operations in 2019.
The Upper Yardman Scheme had its origin in 1912, when Admiral Prince Louis of Battenberg, the then First Sea Lord, initiated a scheme to allow Royal Navy ratings the chance to gain a commission at a relatively young age and so enable them to compete for promotion to the highest ranks. Until 1931 it was known as the Mate Scheme because successful candidates were promoted to the rank of mate, but that title was very much disliked and from 1932 onwards the scheme became known as the Upper Yardman Scheme, those successful being promoted to the rank of sub-lieutenant.
The University Royal Naval Unit East Scotland is one of 17 University Royal Naval Units and a Royal Navy training establishment based in Scotland, accepting roughly 65 Officer Cadets from universities in Edinburgh, Fife and the Tayside region. It is one of the University Service Units and is under the command of Britannia Royal Naval College, Dartmouth. The unit's affiliated P2000 ship is HMS Archer, which is predominantly used for training Officer Cadets.
Captain Sarah Ellen Oakley is a British Royal Navy officer, who, until December of 2023, served as the commanding officer of Britannia Royal Naval College, Dartmouth.
