was carried by a lucid presentation by Brigadier-General Henry Wilson, and Prime Minister H. H. Asquith (who thought the Royal Navy plan "puerile and wholly impracticable") ordered the Navy to fall in with the Army's plans to deploy an Expeditionary Force to France. After the meeting Churchill was appointed First Lord of the Admiralty and began setting up a Naval Staff (Admiral Fisher having been opposed to setting one up), whilst Hankey began to draw up the War Book detailing mobilisation plans. Wilson survived for even less time than was intended by the stop-gap nature of his appointment because of his opposition to the establishment of a Naval Staff. In the opinion of historian Hew Strachan: "the combination of frequent change and weak appointees (Wilson, Bridgeman and Battenberg) ensured that the professional leadership of the Royal Navy lost its direction in the four years preceding the war". Wilson left the Admiralty in December 1911 and received the Order of Merit on 8 March 1912. He was recalled by Winston Churchill in 1914 at the start of World War I to provide advice on strategy. He advocated offensive schemes in the North Sea including the capture of Heligoland and was an early proponent of the development and use of submarines in the Royal Navy. He ceased his role as an advisor in November 1918 and inherited a baronetcy from his brother in October 1919. He died, unmarried, in Swaffham on 25 May 1921 and is buried in the churchyard of St Peter and St Paul's Church. His VC was donated to the Royal Naval Museum, Portsmouth. Nicknames Wilson's nickname of 'Tug' reputedly comes from an incident when he repeatedly ordered a battleship to try to come alongside, and in exasperation offered her captain a tug to assist. He was also known as 'Old 'Ard 'Art' for his refusal to consider the cares and comforts of officers and men. References Sources Further reading External links William Loney RN Career History |- |- |- |- |- 1842 births 1921 deaths People educated at Eton College People from Swaffham Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom British recipients of the Victoria Cross First Sea Lords and Chiefs of the Naval Staff Grand Crosses of the Order of the Dannebrog Grand Officiers of the Légion d'honneur Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Lords