Fisher, John Arbuthnot (1841-1920), was a British admiral. He joined the Royal Navy in 1854 and served during the Crimean War (1853-1856). He became first sea lord, the United Kingdom’s highest naval officer, in 1904. His reforms included a change from coal-burning to oil-burning warships and the introduction, in 1906, of the Dreadnought class of battleship. See Battleship .
Fisher was born on Jan. 25, 1841, in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). In 1909, he was given the title of Baron Fisher of Kilverstone. He retired in 1910 but was recalled as first sea lord in 1914, on the outbreak of World War I (1914-1918). Fisher resigned in 1915, after opposing the Allied landings in Gallipoli (see World War I ). He died on July 10, 1920.
