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See also: English See also: naval architect, was See also: born at See also: Devonport on the 2nd of See also: February 1845, and at the age of fourteen became an apprentice in the dockyard there
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In 1864 he took the first place in the scholarship competition at the Royal School of Naval Architecture, which had then just been established by the See also: Admiralty at See also: South See also: Kensington, and in 1867 he gained his diploma as See also: fellow of the school with first-class honours
.
At once joining the constructive staff of the Admiralty, he acted as confidential assistant to the chief constructor, See also: Sir See also: Edward See also: Reed, until the latter's retirement in 187o
.
The loss of the " Captain " in that See also: year was followed by an inquiry into designs for See also: ships of war, and in connexion with this See also: White, together with his old fellow-student,
See also: William
See also: John, worked out a long series of calculations as to the stability and strength of vessels, the results of which were published in an important paper read in 1871 before the Institution of Naval Architects
.
In 1872 White was appointed secretary to the Council of Construction at the Admiralty, in 1875 assistant constructor, and in 1881 chief constructor
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In
See also: April 1883 he See also: left the service of the Admiralty, at the invitation of See also: Lord (then Sir W
.
G.) See also: Armstrong, in See also: order to undertake the difficult task oforganizing a department for the construction of warships of the largest See also: size at the See also: Elswick See also: works; but he only remained there for two and a See also: half years, for in See also: October 1885 he returned to the Admiralty in succession to Sir Nathaniel Barnaby as director of naval construction, retaining that See also: post until the beginning of 1902, when See also: ill-See also: health obliged him to relinquish the arduous labours it entailed
.
During that See also: period, which in See also: Great Britain was one of unprecedented activity in naval See also: shipbuilding as a result of the awakening of public opinion to the vital importance of See also: sea-power, more than 200 vessels of various types were added to the See also: British See also: navy, at a See also: total cost of something like See also: loo millions sterling, and for the design of all of these, as well as for the See also: work of their construction, Sir William White was ultimately responsible
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In addition, he did much to further the knowledge of scientific shipbuilding
.
He was professor of naval architecture at the Royal School from 187o to 1873, and when in the latter year it was moved to See also: Greenwich to be merged in the Royal Naval See also: College, he reorganized the course of instruction and acted as professor for eight years more
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The lectures he gave in that capacity were the foundation of his See also: Manual of Naval Architecture, which has been translated into several See also: foreign See also: languages and is recognized as a See also: standard text-See also: book all over the See also: world
.
Sir William White, who was chosen a fellow of the Royal Society in 1888, also read many professional papers before various learned and See also: engineering See also: societies
.
He was created K.C.B. in 1895 . |
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