SIR C. F. HOTHAM.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19475, 9 May 1925, Page 15

SIR C. F. HOTHAM.

SENIOR ADMIRAL OE THE FLEET,

SERVICES IN NEW ZEALAND. (Feom Oub Own Correspondent.) LONDON, March 24. An interesting personality has been removed from naval circles by tho. death of Admiral of the Fleet, Sir Charles Hotham, G.C.8.. G.C.V.0.. tho Senior Officer of his rank iii the Royal Navy. Admiral Hotham [passed away on March 22, at his London residence, at tho ago of 82. Dady Hotham died in 1918. There were two sons and a daughter of the marriage, of whom the older son, John Beaumont Hotham, became clerk in the House of Lords in 1898, and died last December, ami the younger, Alan Geoffrey Hotham, entered the Navy and is now a Rear-Admiral and Director of Naval Intelligence. The daughter is Mrs C. W. Forbes, of Callendar. Born on March 20, 1343, it is over sixtynine years since this officer entered the senior service as a cadet in HALS. I'oi'th, then under the command of Admiral of the Fleet, Lord John Hay. Though he was only 13 years of ago at the time, Sir Charles, in accordance with the custom ot that period, proceeded to sea without any preliminary training, and before ho celebrated his twenty-first birthday had already seen war service in the Pacific, where at that time, this country then maintained a more po vorful squadi on than any other Power, in view of its supreme commercial and territorial interests. Consequently Sir Charles had served under three successive Sovereigns, and when ho retired in the year before the opening of the war, had filled some of tho most responsible positions in the naval service. The late Admiral of tho Fleet belonged to a family distinguished in the service of the country for several hundred years. One member was Lord Chancellor of England in Edward ll.’s reign; Sir John Hotham was Governor of Hull in the time ot Charles 1., and his name will always be associated with the opening of the Civil War; in tho eighteenth century Sir William Hotham was created a Baron for his services as an Admiral of (he Blue during the French wars; Admiral Sir Henry Hotham died in 1833 while in command of tho Mediterranean Fleet. Other members of the family have won distinction in tho Army; while the late admiral’s only surviving son, Rhar-Admiral Alan Hotham, is now Director of Intelligence a; the Admiralty. In this manner, in tho records of this one family, as of so many others, century has been linked with century. Sir Charles Hotham was the eldest son of Captain Joint Hotham, of the Bengal Horse Artillery, by his first wife, a daughter of Mr Henry 'Thompson, of Holgate Lodge, York. After a short period in the Forth, the young cadet was transferred to the Cordelia, (lion under tho orders of Commander Harcourt, Vcrron, afterwards proceeding to tho Australian station. While he was m Pacific waters trouble occurred with the Maoris, and the ships on the Australian fetation wore required to intervene to restore peace, although (Ids country had no concern with what was a purely native dispute. In the result, troops had to he sent out to New Zealand, and Navy and Army co-operated in suppressing the rising, Charles Hotham as a midshipman took his share In these operations, and then returned home, to be promoted (o sub-lieutenant in 18(12. He was hack in New Zealand again within a few months. Further trouble subsequently occurred with the Maoris, and when it was decided to organise another expedition Lieutenant llotham was landed with the Naval Brigado. In one of the attacks on the redoubt nt Rnngnriri Pah, Lieutenant Hc-t----ham was severely wounded. On his recovery ho saw further service. He was mentioned in despatches, and, having reached the rank of lieutenant early in ISG3, was promoted to commander on April 19, 1805. PEACE SERVICES. In subsequent years Sir Charles Hotham took his part in the ordinary peace service of tho Fleet, living promotel to captain on December 29, TS7I. His next opportunity of seeing war service occurred in 1882, when he was Hag captain to Amiral Sir Beauchamp Seymour, the Commander-In-Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet. The story of the Egyptian rebellion is now u matter of history. Sir Charles Hotham had his full share of all (he, work which the naval operations entailed, am} in recognition of his services he was made a Commander of the Bath, besides receiving the Egyptian Medal with the Alexandra clasp, the Khedive’s bronze star, and the third class of the Osnmnich. This was (ho last war service which fell to Sit Charles Hotham. While serving as senior officer on the South-East Coast of America he was appointed A.D.C. to Queen Victoria. In ISSS he became a rear-admiral and was selected to serve ns Lord of the Admiralty within a few weeks of his promotion. His service ashore continued until the end of 18S9, when ho was selected for the command of the Pacific Station. Ho remained in tills positifin for three years, and in 1897 took up the post of Coinmander-in-Chief at the Nore, from which he passed to be Commander-In-Chief at Portsmouth on October 3, 1900. In the meantime, Sir Charles Hotham had been promoted to full Admiral at the early age of 57 years. It was while he was a Com-mander-in-Chief at Portsmouth that Queen Victoria died nt Osborne, and it fell to the Commander-in-Chiof at Portsmouth to make all the arrangements for the conveyance of her Majesty’s body across the Solent. This appointment as Commander-in-Chicf at Portsmouth, then regarded as the bine riband of tho Naval Service, marked the end of Sir Charles Hotham’s active career. Many honours had already fallen to him—he had become a G.C.V.O. and a G.C.B.—when he received promotion to the highest rank in the service as Admiral of the Fleet ou August 30, 1903.