Navy Department (Ministry of Defence)
The Navy Department was a former ministerial service department of the British Ministry of Defence responsible for the control and direction of His Majesty's Naval Service. It was established on 1 April 1964 when the Admiralty was absorbed into a unified Ministry of Defence, where it became the Navy Department. Political oversight of the department originally lay with the Minister of Defence for the Royal Navy (1964-1967) it then passed to the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence for the Royal Navy (1967–1981), then later to the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Armed Forces (1981-1990), and finally the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (1991–1997).
| Department overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 1964–1997 |
| Preceding Department | |
| Dissolved | Active |
| Jurisdiction | United Kingdom |
| Headquarters | Ministry of Defence, Whitehall, London |
| Department executives |
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| Parent department | Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom) |
The departments military head was the First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff, (1964–1997) who was responsible for the day to day superintendence of the department. Following restructuring in 1997 the Navy Department as a ministerial department of the Ministry of Defence was abolished and following restructuring within the MOD the previous department became an operational grouping Ministry of Defence (Royal Navy) later called Ministry of Defence (Navy).