About The Naval Review

In 1912, a group of Royal Navy officers started a Naval Society for correspondence on professional matters. In February 1913, they published the first issue of a new quarterly journal, The Naval Review. The officers were: Admiral Sir W H Henderson (Honorary Editor), Lieutenant R M Bellairs RN, Commander K G B Dewar RN, Lieutenant T Fisher RN, Captain E W Harding RM, Commander the Hon R A R Plunkett RN, Captain H W Richmond RN, and Lieutenant H G Thursfield RN.

The First Lord of the Admiralty, Winston Churchill had set up the Naval War Staff in 1912 and there was official resistance to the new society. Indeed, shortly after the outbreak of World War I, the Admiralty ordered The Naval Review to stop publication in the interest of national security. Admiral Sir Henderson concurred but continued to collect material and at the end of the war published The Naval Review, year by year, as it would have appeared if there had been no Admiralty embargo. Since 1919 The Naval Review has been published continuously. In World War II there was no censorship, and the regular “Notes on the War at Sea” and “Diary of the War at Sea” are important records of naval events during World War II.

Over a century later The Naval Review continues to represent the interests and concerns surrounding Military Maritime Matters. Its members are drawn from serving and retired personnel in the Royal Navy, Royal Marines and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary and their Reserve arms above and below decks. Those of a like mind who also have a genuine and bonafide interest are also welcome to apply to join. A new ‘Digital First’ approach is being launched in 2023 to encourage a more dynamic exchange of ideas in real time as well as maintaining the hardcopy quarterly journal for those who prefer a more traditional product.

For more information on the Founders see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naval_Review_(magazine)