Jellicoe, Admiral Sir John Rushworth, 1st Earl Jellicoe (1859–1935)

Abstract The son of a merchant ship captain, Jellicoe topped his class at HMS Britannia in 1874 and saw extensive sea service before entering the Royal Naval College at Greenwich. In 1884 he joined the gunnery school on HMS Excellent, under Captain John Fisher. After service afloat Jellicoe returned to Excellent in December the same year. In 1889 Fisher took him to Whitehall. Promoted commander in June 1891, he was executive officer of HMS Victoria in 1893 when she sank off Tripoli after being rammed. Jellicoe was fortunate to escape: 358 men died. He was immediately appointed to the flagship of Admiral Sir Michael Culme‐Seymour, his model admiral. Promoted captain in 1897, he took a leading role during the 1900 Boxer Uprising. Thereafter, he combined short periods of sea service with longer periods at the Admiralty, working on Fisher's Dreadnought and the naval arms race. In December 1912 he became second sea lord: that year Fisher persuaded Winston Churchill to ensure Jellicoe would be in supreme command in 1914, the year he anticipated war. Increasingly concerned by mines, U‐boats, torpedoes, and Zeppelins, Jellicoe agreed with Fisher that the North Sea was no place for battlefleets.