Admiral Sir William Hannam Henderson, KBE (20 June 1845 – 29 April 1931) was a British flag officer of the Royal Navy, and the first editor of The Naval Review.
[2] From 1860 to 1864 he served aboard the 90-gun second rate ship of the line Nile, flagship of Rear Admiral Sir Alexander Milne, and also the steam sloop Styx, on the North America and West Indies Station,[3] receiving promotion to sub-lieutenant in 1864.
[3] He was promoted to commander on 1 January 1880, with seniority from 31 December 1879,[5] and served aboard the armoured cruiser Nelson, flagship of Commodore Sir James Erskine, on the Australia Station from 1881 to 1885.
[2] Undeterred by lack of official support, Henderson became a firm believer in value of a free debate, despite having taken part in a discussion on a paper by Sir Edward Reed at the United Service Institute, in which he criticised the Beagle-class sloops.
A few days later Henderson received a message from the First Sea Lord stating that his remarks had harmed his prospects of obtaining a command.
[9] On 22 August 1906 Henderson was appointed a member of a Royal Commission, led by Gerald William Balfour, alongside Frank Forbes Adam and Ivor John Caradoc Herbert, and with Charles Clive Bigham as Secretary, to inquire into management of navigational aids of the coast of the United Kingdom by the three General Lighthouse Authorities, and into the workings of these Authorities, and to report what changes, if any, were desirable.
[13] On 3 June 1924, in the King's Birthday Honours, Henderson was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (Military Division).