Tim wrote:
Short Wave Sportfishing wrote:
"Don't talk to me about naval tradition. It's nothing but rum, sodomy
and the lash." Sir Winston Churchill

I always wondered why it seems that all the male members of Englands
Royal Familily become officers in the Royal Navy......

It's called the Rule of Prima Genitor. Basically, the first born son
inherits all the property, lands, titles, etc. The second born usually
went into either the Navy or Army with a title (no land) and was
expected to earn his own way (with political assistance from the first
born son). The Royal Navy has an interesting archive of officers and
when you look through it, you see a lot of enrollees with titles like
Midshipman Sir Rodney Somethingorother.

The Army was a little different in that commissions could be purchased
usually with a loan from the first born without any experience and
promotion was often a matter of money crossing hands. Naval commissions,
once the officer passed the Lieutenant boards, could also be purchased
but were usually the result of political pressure up to and past the
point of Posting which was a sort of "regular" Navy vs "reserve" Navy.

Third, fourth and fifth born sons were expected to join the Church
(England or Roman depending) and expected to make their way there.
Usually they were given parish assignments immediately after theology
school. Whatever political push they obtained was with assistance of
the first born.

First/second born daughters were considered major political alliance
tools by marriage, daughters after were sent to convent and either
became nuns or were used for minor marriage alliances. Occasionally,
only daughters were produced in which the lands were inherited by marriage.

That's how it basically was. There were variations depending on the
times and circumstances.