Percy Scott

Admiral Sir Percy Moreton Scott, 1st Baronet, (10 July 1853 – 18 October 1924) was a British Royal Navy officer and a pioneer in modern naval gunnery. During his career he proved to be an engineer and problem solver of some considerable foresight, ingenuity and tenacity. He did not, however, endear himself to the Navy establishment for his regular outspoken criticism of the Navy's conservatism and resistance to change and this undoubtedly slowed the acceptance of his most important ideas, notably the introduction of directed firing. In spite of this, his vision proved correct most of the time and he rose to the rank of admiral and amongst other honours was made baronet, a hereditary title. Early years Scott was educated at Eastman's Royal Naval Academy, Southsea, and entered the navy as a cadet in 1866, at the age of thirteen, and in 1868 received a post on HMS Forte, a 50-gun frigate. He served in the Third Anglo-Ashanti War and was based at Cape Coast Castle. He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant in 1875. In 1878 he attended a course at HMS Excellent to qualify as a gunnery lieutenant. It was during this period that, having created a serviceable running track on Whale Island (which had been largely created when dumping the mud spoil from the excavation of the basins which were to form Portsmouth dockyards), he put forward the suggestion that Whale Island should be levelled and drained to allow the construction of a new gunnery establishment to replace the 80-year-old ship which at the time was rotting and needed replacement. The proposal was rejected as ridiculous. Having completed the course, there followed a year's tour of duty as an instructor after which Scott was posted as gunnery lieutenant on part of a squadron responsible for training officers and men in the use of masts and sails. In October 1880 the ship set off for a world cruise but having visited South America, was ordered from the Falkland Islands, on the outbreak of the First Boer War to sail to South Africa, arriving in mid-February. They were not involved in the hostilities and by mid-April had sailed once more for Australia. It was during this cruise Scott devised an electrical indicator system to communicate target ranges from the lookout position on the masthead to the gun deck. Fifteen months later he received a commendation from the Admiralty for his work but ruefully pointed out in his autobiography that on returning to England he discovered his idea had been "...