William Pakenham

Admiral Sir William Christopher Pakenham, (10 July 1861 – 28 July 1933) was a senior Royal Navy officer. He served as a British observer with the Imperial Japanese Navy during the Russo-Japanese War; during the First World War he commanded the 2nd Battle Cruiser Squadron at the Battle of Jutland, and from December 1916 was Commander-in-Chief of the Battle Cruiser Fleet. Background A member of the Pakenham family headed by the Earl of Longford, he was the second son of Rear-Admiral the Honourable Thomas Alexander Pakenham, third son of Thomas Pakenham, 2nd Earl of Longford. His mother was Sophia Frances Sykes, daughter of Sir Tatton Sykes, 4th Baronet. Career Pakenham entered the navy as a naval cadet in 1874 and served upon the training ship HMS Britannia. On completion of his training he was assigned to the Mediterranean Squadron, where he served on . He was promoted to midshipman in 1876. Noted for his swimming ability, Pakenham was commended for gallantry after jumping into the sea and rescuing a coxswain who had fallen overboard at Larnaca, Cyprus, in August 1878 and some years later endeavoured to save a man who fell overboard from at Kiel, Germany. Promoted to sub lieutenant in October 1880, he was transferred to in April 1883 and was promoted to lieutenant in October 1883. In June 1896, he was promoted to commander and took up a post with the Naval Intelligence Department from August 1899 to March 1901.