Robert Swinburne Lowry

Admiral Sir Robert S. Lowry, 1915.
© National Portrait Gallery, London.

Admiral SIR Robert Swinburne Lowry, K.C.B., R.N. (4 March, 1854 – 29 May, 1920) was an officer of the Royal Navy.

Early Life & Career

In 1873, Lowry was awarded the Royal Humane Society's Bronze Medal for saving life at sea.

Lowry was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant on 15 October, 1875.

Lowry was promoted to the rank of Commander on 31 December, 1889.

On 7 January, 1890, Lowry was appointed to the Undaunted.

Captain

Lowry was promoted to the rank of Captain on 30 June, 1896.

Lowry was given command of battleship Ramillies in January, 1900.

Thereafter, he was appointed in command of the battleship Hood from 19 April, 1902 to 25 June, 1903 in the Home Fleet.^{[Citation needed]}

In December 1905, he was appointed to command Russell, remaining in command until the next November.

According to Captain Humphrey H. Smith:

Lowry, the Flag Captain, was a deeply religious man, whose profound faith in Providence kept him cool, cheerful, and collected under all circumstances. Nothing could ever rattle him or upset his equanimity, and both his physical and his moral courage were infinitely great. He was very strong, very active, and extremely keen on fishing and shooting. Whenever he landed or came off to the ship in his gig he would, if he was not in uniform, make his coxswain steer the boat, while he pulled the stroke oar, and a mighty good oar he could pull. I once saw him handle a case of insubordination in an original way that led to the very best results. In those days it sometimes happened that a hasty-tempered young man, who felt either restless or aggrieved under naval discipline, would strike a superior in order to be dismissed the Service, even though such dismissal would be accompanied by a sentence to imprisonment with hard labour. A young ordinary seaman on board the Ramillies, who had been going wrong for some time, finally put the hat on his previous misdeeds by refusing, in unpardonable language, to obey an order given him by the captain of the forecastle. He was therefore brought up before the Commander, who forwarded the case to be investigated by the Flag Captain.

The ordinary seaman appeared at "Captain's Defaulters" under the charge of an escort of Marines. Lowry, having heard the evidence of the captain of the forecastle and various witnesses, asked the ordinary seaman what he had to say in his defence. The man made no reply, but he stepped out and struck Lowry as hard as he could in the chest. Of course the escort of Marines sprang to seize him, but before they could do so Lowry with his open right fetched the ordinary seaman such a terrific blow that the latter fell down and spun round and round like a top. At the same time Lowry remarked, with a chuckle: "Ha, ha! I can hit harder than you." The ordinary seaman was then removed, and kept a prisoner until the following day, when he was again brought before Lowry. "You have been making a fool of yourself," said Lowry. "Now, if I let you off, will you promise not to make a fool of yourself again?" "Yes, sir," replied the man. He was let off, and he kept his promise.

Flag Rank

Lowry was promoted to the rank of Rear-Admiral on 17 October, 1906, vice Campbell.

President of the Royal Naval War College from 1 November, 1907.

He commanded the Fifth Cruiser Squadron for some time spanning over 31 December, 1908.

Lowry was promoted to the rank of Vice-Admiral on 6 March, 1911.

On the occasion of the King's birthday he was appointed an Ordinary Member of the Second Class, or Knight Commander, in the Military Division of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath (K.C.B.) on 3 June, 1913. He was promoted to the rank of Admiral on 13 December vice Winsloe. He was placed on the Retired List at his own request on 19 August, 1917, "in order to facilitate the promotion of younger officers."

Bibliography

• "Admiral Sir Robert Lowry" (Obituaries). The Times. Monday, 31 May, 1920. Issue 42424, col C, p. 19.
• Lowry, Lieutenant, R. S., R.N. (1885). “Musketry Instruction Afloat, and the Application of Rifle Fire in Ship Actions.” The Journal of the Royal United Service Institution. Vol. XXIX. London: W. Mitchell & Co.

Service Records

• The National Archives. ADM 196/87.
• The National Archives. ADM 196/39.
• The National Archives. ADM 196/19.

Naval Appointments
Preceded by Robert L. Groome	Rear-Admiral in the Channel Fleet 1907	Succeeded by Francis J. Foley
Preceded by Edmond J. W. Slade	Rear-Admiral Commanding, Royal Naval War College 1907 – 1908	Succeeded by Lewis Bayly
Preceded by George A. Callaghan	Rear-Admiral Commanding, Fifth Cruiser Squadron 1908 – 1909	Succeeded by Command Renamed
Preceded by New Command	Rear-Admiral Commanding, Second Cruiser Squadron 1909 – 1910	Succeeded by Sir George J. S. Warrender, Bart.

Naval Appointments
Preceded by John R. Prickett	Captain of H.M.S. Ganges 9 Mar, 1894	Succeeded by Charles H. Coke
Preceded by Charles G. Dicken	Assistant Director of Naval Intelligence, Foreign Division 21 Oct, 1897	Succeeded by F. C. Doveton Sturdee
Preceded by William Des V. Hamilton	Captain of H.M.S. Ramillies 1 Jan, 1900 – 27 Feb, 1902	Succeeded by The Hon. Walter G. Stopford
Preceded by John E. Blaxland	Captain of H.M.S. Hood 19 Apr, 1902 – 5 Dec, 1902	Succeeded by William S. Rees
Preceded by Alfred E. Tizard	Captain of Royal Naval Engineering College, Keyham 6 Dec, 1902	Succeeded by T. H. Martyn Jerram
Preceded by Thomas H. Martyn Jerram	Captain of H.M.S. Russell 6 Dec, 1905 – 16 Nov, 1906	Succeeded by Frederick A. Warden
Preceded by Edmond J. W. Slade as Captain of the War Course College	In Command of the Royal Naval War College 1 Nov, 1907 – 26 Nov, 1908	Succeeded by Lewis Bayly
Preceded by Charles H. Adair	Rear-Admiral Commanding, Second Cruiser Squadron 27 Nov, 1908 – 29 Nov, 1910	Succeeded by George John Scott Warrender
Preceded by ?	Commander-in-Chief, Coast of Scotland 1 Jul, 1913 – 1 Jul, 1916	Succeeded by Sir Frederick T. Hamilton as Commander-in-Chief, Rosyth