Naval Club

Naval Club

38 Hill Street, the site of the Naval Club between 1946-2020
Formation	1919 (Clubhouse occupied since 1946)
Type	Gentlemen's club
Legal status	Permanently Closed
Purpose	Club established for officers of the Royal Navy and RNVR
Location	38 Hill Street, London
Website	navalclub.co.uk

The Naval Club, formerly the RNVR (Auxiliary Patrol) Club (1919–1943), and the RNVR Club (1943–1969) was a gentlemen's club in London established in 1919, which closed down in 2021 (having not survived closure during the COVID19 pandemic). From 1946 it owned the premises at 38 Hill Street, Mayfair which was formerly occupied by the 2nd Earl of Chatham, and the building was put up for sale in April 2021 for £35 million.

History

It was founded as the RNVR (Auxiliary Volunteers) Club after World War I, for serving and retired officers of the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (RNVR). It leased interim premises from the Marlborough Club until 1946, when it acquired the Hill Street current townhouse with the financial assistance of the Astor family. The building also served as the headquarters of the RNVR Officers' Association.

In 1969, it changed its name to the Naval Club. The club's first president was Francis Curzon, 5th Earl Howe.

Notable members of the club have included Viscount Astor, Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma, Alan Lennox-Boyd, and Harold Watkinson, 1st Viscount Watkinson.

Following its closure in 2021, former members were offered up to 5 years free membership of the Army & Navy Club in Pall Mall.

External links

• The Naval Club Facebook Page

See also

• List of London's gentlemen's clubs