First Lords of the Admiralty

Office of the First Lord of the Admiralty
Seal of H.M. Government
Department of the Admiralty
Member of	Board of Admiralty
Reports to	Prime Minister
Nominator	Prime Minister
Appointer	Prime Minister Subject to formal approval by the Queen-in-Council
Term length	Not fixed (typically 3–7 years)
Inaugural holder	Richard Weston, 1st Earl of Portland
Formation	1628-1964

The First Lord of the Admiralty or formally the Office the First Lord of the Admiralty was the political head of the Royal Navy who was the government's senior advisor on all naval affairs and responsible for the direction and control of Admiralty Department as well as general administration of the Naval Service of the United Kingdom, that encompassed the Royal Navy, the Royal Marines and other services. It was one of the earliest known permanent government posts, apart from being the political head of the Royal Navy the post holder simultaneously held the title of the President of the Board of Commissioners for Exercising the Office of Lord High Admiral known as (the Board of Admiralty). The office of First Lord of the Admiralty existed from 1628 until it was abolished when the Admiralty, Air Ministry, Ministry of Defence and War Office were all merged to form the new Ministry of Defence in 1964.

In 1628, during the reign of Charles I, the Duke of Buckingham, Lord High Admiral of England, was assassinated and the office was placed in commission, under the control of a Board of Commissioners.

The first such First Lord of the Admiralty was Richard Weston, 1st Earl of Portland, who was appointed in 1628 the First Lord was not always a permanent member of the board until the Admiralty Department was established as an official government department in 1709 with the First Lord as its head, it replaced the earlier Office of the Admiralty and Marine Affairs,. During most of the 17th century and the early 18th century, it was not invariable for the Admiralty to be in commission, so there are gaps in the list of First Lords, and a small number of First Lords were for a time Lord High Admiral.