William Houston Stewart
| Sir William Stewart | |
|---|---|
| Born | 7 September 1822 Kirkmichael House, Ayrshire |
| Died |
13 November 1902 (aged 80) London |
| Allegiance |
 United Kingdom
|
| Service/branch |
 Royal Navy
|
| Years of service | 1835–1885 |
| Rank | Admiral |
| Commands held |
Firebrand Dragon Impregnable Marlborough Plymouth Command |
| Battles/wars | Crimean War |
| Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath |
Admiral Sir William Houston Stewart, GCB (7 September 1822 – 13 November 1901) was a British naval officer who was Controller of the Royal Navy from 1872 to 1881.
William Houston Stewart was born on 7 September 1822 at Kirkmichael House, Ayrshire. He was the son of Admiral of the Fleet Sir Houston Stewart (1791–1875), and Martha (d. 1870), youngest daughter of Sir William Miller, Bart (1785–1846). William Houston Stewart is sometimes referred to as William Houston Shaw-Stewart; his paternal grandfather was Sir Michael Shaw-Stewart, Bt (1766–1825).
On 20 February 1850, he married Catherine Elizabeth Coote (1829–1867), only daughter of Eyre Coote (1806–1834) of West Park, Hampshire. Catherine died on 23 November 1867.
His remarried on 11 January 1872, this time to Blanche Caroline (1845–1927), the third child of Admiral Hon. Keith Stewart (1814–1879), and Mary Caroline Stewart (née Fitzroy) (1823–95). They had one daughter: Blanche Nita Mary Stewart (d. 1947).
Stewart entered the Navy on 29 April 1835. His first active service was aboard the Tweed during the Carlist Wars in Spain 1836-37, and then during the Syrian campaign 1840-41, in HMS Carysfort, during which time he was wounded and mentioned in dispatches. He served as lieutenant on 28-gun frigate Volage from 29 June 1843 until March 1843, though officially he was not promoted to Lieutenant until 26 September 1842. Volage was commanded by Captain William Dickson, and was on the North America and West Indies station. In March 1843 he was appointed lieutenant in the 74-gun two-decker Illustrious, commanded by Captain John Elphinstone Erskine, flagship of Vice-Admiral Charles Adam, on the North America and West Indies station. In 1844, he was appointed lieutenant in the 16-gun brig-sloop Ringdove, serving on the west coast of Africa station. The captain of Ringdove, Commander Sir William Daniell, died in command at Sierra Leone on 12 September 1845. (The previous commander of Ringdove was Commander Keith Stewart, whose daughter Blanche was later to become William Stewart's second wife.) William Stewart's next appointment was as lieutenant in the 50-gun razee frigate Grampus, which was commissioned at Woolwich by Captain Henry Byam Martin, and then went out to the Pacific station. Stewart served in Grampus until 1847, when he studied steam engineering at Woolwich. On 18 May 1848, he was promoted to commander.
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