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Remembered Today:

H.M.S. "President II."


Doug Lewis

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Could anyone tell me anything about H.M.S. "President II." Was this a land based facility or actually a ship?

Regards Doug

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Malcolm,

By stone frigate you refer to the admiralty buildings I presume with regard to President?

Roop

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Yes in the same way as some Navy barracks are HMS .................

I note the present day President has a very large ' ballroom ' for meetings.

Aye.

Malcolm

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Thanks Malcolm,

I have seen this reference to President many times including my own GGF's SR however there was also the President on the Thames which I believe was President I??. Dont seem to get many invites to the ball do we!!

Roop

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Thanks for the information Malcolm,I thought it might be some kind of barracks but was unsure.

Regards Doug.

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Could anyone tell me anything about H.M.S. "President II." Regards Doug

President II was the accounting base for the RNAS. Sometimes the clerks would write where the person was in brackets after it and that could range from Luce Bay to Crystal Palace and also included Calais or Dunkerque. As it was an accounting base someone listed at President II could also be on a ship or boat too small for it’s own paymaster.

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  • 1 year later...

Pals

I have a man based at President II (Crystal Palace). What was at Crystal Palace? My man was a RNAS (later RAF) Aircraft Mechanic.

Rgds

Andy

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Pals

I have a man based at President II (Crystal Palace). What was at Crystal Palace? My man was a RNAS (later RAF) Aircraft Mechanic.

Rgds

Andy

Andy, The Crystal Palace at Sydenham was taken over by the RN in early September 1914 to be the RND Divisional Depot (in November 1914 this role was taken over by Blandford Camp). More importantly, it was the initial training establishment for all the RNVR volunteers and also for officers destined for the RND. Later, other categories of naval personnel (eg RNAS) also got their initial training there. Large numbers passed through its training battalions.

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H2

Many thanks for the info. My man joined up in Dec 1916 and was transferred to RAF in April 1918, so I guess that he was still in training at that point when the naval records finish.

Rgds

Andy

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Dec 1916 - 1/4/18 sounds way too long to still be in training. Does his RAF record shed more light?

Crystal Palace was a main camp, most RNAS camps had sub units so he could have been on detached duties.

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I know this isn't Great War but I am researching my late mother's family name of Hefford and one Albert George Hefford died in 1942 and is buried in Eastbourne Cemetery. The CWGC site gives him as with HMS President 111 which I always assumed was a ship hence being buried on the coast but was this also a land base?

John

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HMS PRESIDENT is/was the London Accounting Base for numerous naval ships and establishments that were not self-accounting. The sub-divisions I, II, II etc were merely a means of dividing up the various 'customers'. The same principles apply to HMS VICTORY I, II, II etc, except that Victory was the Portsmouth Accounting Base. Both these two (and others) are/were shore-based offices. AG Hefford's pay accounts were held at PRESIDENT III at the time of his death but he could have been serving in any of several ships/bases. This would be indicated in his record by PRESIDENT III (HMS xxxxxx).

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President III was the accounting base for Defensively Equipped Merchant Ships in WW2, see the threads on Defensively Armed Merchant Ships or DAMS, which is what they were called in WW1.

To confuse the enemy, the offices for President III were evacuated to Windsor and Eton!

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PAPMPT

My great-uncle was a carpenter by trade (which makes sense in terms of aircraft construction), only been working on his history since Monday so have no further info (as yet) on his RAF career. I know that he was only "Hostilities only", so I guess could of been based anywhere in the SE of England.

Still have a wooden toolbox that he made which is covered in doped fabric.

Rgds

Andy

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  • 2 weeks later...

Andy

His RAF record should be in AIR 79 at Kew. As you have his RNAS number you need to covert it to the RAF one by adding 200,000 and then order the original document.

Per Ardua

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Hello

PRESIDENT I London/Shrewsbury Accounting Base 1918-1928

PRESIDENT II Chatham/London/Shrewsbury Accounting Base. In 1916 included Dunkerque, Claais, and Hendon

PRESIDENT III Bristol, Windsor, London Accounting Basde. 1916 active service RFR, RNVR, and RNR. 1918 DAMS accounts to VIVID 1 Oct 19.

PRESIDENT IV London Accounting Base 1918 to 1926 Admiral Commanding CG and Reserves

PRESIDENT V London Accounting Base. Antiaircraft duties, also RNR ratings at Admiralty and RNVR. Some POWs, Armoured Car Squadron 20, Stratford Experimental Station, Officers and men lent to Air Force

PRESIDENT VI London Accounting Base. 1918-1926 Transport Services, Base for Murmansk tugs February 1919, Officers in North Russia to LOBSTER July 1919.

Information from Ben Warlow's SHORE ESTABLISHMENTS OF THE ROYAL NAVY.

All best

don

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  • 1 month later...
Guest John Evans
Could anyone tell me anything about H.M.S. "President II." Was this a land based facility or actually a ship?

Regards Doug

Hello Doug,

According to my research It was a ship.

HMS Gannet (Osprey-class screw sloop), renamed HMS President in 1903, then President II in 1909.

My source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Gannet_%281878%29

Hope this helps.

John

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It is claimed that the "President" moored on the Thames is the last remaining example of a Special Service Ship (aka Decoy Ship or Q Ship).

Formerly HMS Saxifrage, a Flower (Anchusa) class convoy sloop, completed end January 1918, renamed President 1921 for service as London RNVR base.

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'In 1909 the ship [HMS Gannet] was renamed President II and in the spring of 1911, was relieved by HMS Buzzard, again finding herself on the list of non-effective vessels.' So by WW1 Gannet was not President II

All shore facilities had a nominal ship carrying the name, but the people allocated were not found on board. If you look through the Navy List at all the officers on President there wouldn't be room enough for them all, let alone crew!

Edited by per ardua per mare per terram
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The Royal Naval Siege Guns were emplaced on the Belgian coast below Nieuport and were nominally based at Dunkerque. As Kin47 advised in Post #19, the accounting base for Dunkerque in 1916 was President II.

Below is the envelope of a letter dated 25 March 1916 from the OC RNSG to the Paymaster in Chief.

Mick

post-11021-1159152748.jpg

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Doug,

"Could anyone tell me anything about H.M.S. "President II." Was this a land based facility or actually a ship?"

The answer is both, all Royal naval Personel had to belong to a Commisioned warship to be subject to Naval Discipline, so any shore base had to have a ship as tender this went on until the 1950s.

Regards Charles

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