Richmond, Herbert (1871–1946)

British admiral and naval historian. In his naval career he reached eminence on the technical side as a torpedo officer, and later became recognized as a leading authority not only on naval history but on naval strategy. As a captain he commanded the battleship Dreadnought. He was promoted to rear-admiral in 1920 and in 1923 became commander-in-chief on the East Indies station. When the College of Imperial Defence was created in 1926, Richmond was its first commandant and in 1929 he was promoted to admiral.

He retired from the navy in 1931 and became Vere Harmsworth Professor of Imperial and Naval History at Cambridge University in 1934. Subsequently he was elected master of Downing College. His publications include The Navy in the War of 1739–48 (1920), National Policy and Naval Strength (1922), Economy of Naval Security (1931), Sea Power in the Modern World (1934), and Statesman and Sea Power (1946).