TheClerk of the Acts,[1] originally known as theKeeper of the King's Ports and Galleys,[2][3][4][5] was a civilian officer in theRoyal Navy and a principal member of theNavy Board. The office was created byKing Charles II in 1660 and succeeded the earlier position ofClerk of the Navy (1546 to 1660). The Clerk was responsible for the organisation ofNavy Office, processing naval contracts and coordinating the administrative and secretarial side of the Navy Board's work. The post lasted until 1796, when its duties were merged with that of theSecond Secretary to the Admiralty later known as the Permanent Secretary to the Admiralty.[6]
The ultimate origins of the office lie in the reign ofKing John, who developed a royal fleet and the earliest known administrative structure for the English Navy, through his appointment ofWilliam of Wrotham asKeeper of the King's Ports and Galleys in the early 13th century. According to modern historians, William had a "special responsibility for ports, customs, and the navy".[citation needed]Murray (1935),Oppenheim (2014),Lloyd (1970) andRunyan (1987) support the view that his office continued until the creation of theNavy Board in 1546 and is therefore a direct predecessor of the later Clerk of the Acts and theSecretary of the Admiralty.[2] However, a clear definition of Wrotham's office is not conclusive and has been viewed by other sources such asTurner (1994) to be similar to that of theFirst Lord of the Admiralty.[7] King John's son and successorHenry III[8] continued to refine the administration the royal fleet. However it was duringEdward III's reign that a formal naval administration really began to evolve when the Keeper was succeeded by the office ofClerk of the King's Ships,[9] according to naval historianNicholas A. M. Rodger in his bookThe Admiralty (1979) states "Insofar as mediaeval Kings of England possessed a permanent administrator of their navies, he was the 'Clerk of the Kings Ships'. The post first appears in a distinct form under King John with William de Wrotham asKeeper of the Kings Ports and Galleys, the Clerk of the Kings Ships was not a one man department of state but a permanent agent of the crown"[10] For a period of over 300 years this official was responsible, sometimes really and sometimes nominally, for control of naval organisation until the formation of theNavy Board in 1546.[11] During the course of the following centuries the title changed its name. In the fifteenth century the post was known as theClerk of Marine Causes and during the sixteenth century the office was known as theClerk of the Navy, in the seventeenth century,Clerk of the Acts.[12][13] Between the years 1673 and 1677 the office was held jointly by two clerks of the acts, and then again from 1702 until 1706. Between 1673 and 1680 the post was held simultaneously with theSecretary of the Admiralty. In the same year the Clerk of the Acts was appointed an assistant to alleviate him of some of his secretarial duties[14] and thus separating those responsibilities from the office of the secretary. In 1796 the offices of Clerk of the Acts and three other offices, those ofComptroller of Storekeepers Accounts,Comptroller of Treasurer Accounts andComptroller of Victualling Accounts,[15] were abolished and the Board reconstituted; the function of the Navy Office was then supervised by three Committees, of Correspondence, Accounts and Stores.[16]
Note:The post is assumed to have been left vacant, this is because no official court records have been found after this date listing any other similar office holders until the appearance of the clerk of the kings ships at the beginning of the fourteenth century
Clerks of the King's Ships (also referred to as Keeper of the King's Ships or Clerk of the Ships)
^Oppenheim, Michael (23 February 2014) [1940]. "The Administration of the Royal Navy before 1509".A History Of The Administration Of The Royal Navy And Of Merchant Shipping In Relation To The Navy, from MDIX To MDCLX, with an Introduction Treating Of The Preceding Period. Nabu Press. p. 3.ISBN9781295694860.
^Clowes, Wm. Laird (1897).The Royal Navy : a history from the earliest times to the present, Volume 1 ([Repr.]. ed.). London: Chatham Pub. p. 350.ISBN1861760108.{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
^Oppenheim, M. (1988).A history of the administration of the Royal Navy and of merchant shipping in relation to the Navy from 1509 to 1660 with an introduction treating of the preceding period ([Repr.] ed.). Aldershot, England: Temple Smith. pp. 3–79.ISBN9780566055720.
^Winfield, Rif (2010)."Introduction".British Warships in the Age of Sail 1603–1714: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. Seaforth Publishing. p. xxii.ISBN9781783469246.
