Robert Hawgood Crew

Robert Hawgood Crew
Born	23 August 1762 City of London, England
Died	16 September 1839 Brighton, Sussex, England
Resting place	Horsham, Sussex, England
Nationality	British
Known for	Secretary of the Board of Ordnance
Spouse(s)	Mary Sophia Foreman

Robert Hawgood Crew (23 August 1762 – 16 September 1839) was an English civil servant who served as Secretary to the Board of Ordnance during the French Revolutionary Wars and Napoleonic Wars. His department was a major contributor to the naval and military successes of the United Kingdom and its allies.

Baptised on 12 September 1762 in the church of St Dunstan-in-the-West in the City of London, he was the son of Robert Crew and his wife Elizabeth Oare. By 1777 he had a position with the Ordnance Department. This was the government department responsible for the military establishment of the United Kingdom and its overseas possessions, excluding India. The Ordnance provided buildings, fortifications, weapons and supplies for the two fighting arms, the British Army and the Royal Navy, as well as controlling the Royal Artillery and the Royal Engineers. It was the second largest department after HM Treasury and its head, the Master-General of the Ordnance, had a seat in the Cabinet.

In 1782, during the American Revolutionary War, it was decided to create the separate post of Secretary to the Board of Ordnance, with an office in Westminster close to the Houses of Parliament and a house so that he was always on site for urgent business. This senior post, equivalent to a permanent undersecretary in other civil service departments, carried pay and allowances of 556 pounds a year (worth about 57,000 pounds in 2014) plus the free residence. In May 1794 during the French Revolutionary Wars, the Master-General, Charles Lennox, 3rd Duke of Richmond, appointed Robert as Secretary. in place of Augustus Rogers who had died. His duties were :

...
Wikipedia