Admiral Sir Charles Edmund Kingsmill was born in Guelph, Ontario. He attended Upper Canada College and in 1869, entered the Royal Navy in Britain. In 1908, he returned to Canada. He was the Director of Canada’s first standing navy from its founding in 1910 until 1920 and was responsible for Canada’s naval contribution during the First World War. He asserted Canadian autonomy over naval operations and bases, organized Allied mercantile convoys out of Halifax and Sydney, and established inshore patrols and a continent-wide supply system for the Allied fleet. Providing sound administrative oversight, Kingsmill set up command structures and training institutions that later enabled the Royal Canadian Navy to expand into one of the world’s largest naval forces during the Second World War.
This bust of Admiral Sir Charles Kingsmill was sculpted in 2010 by Christian Corbet. It was presented on January 3, 2011, for the Naval Centennial and is part of the Naval Museum collection. In 2012, Christian was named the Royal Canadian Navy sculptor-in-residence. This was the first such honour to be bestowed by the Royal Canadian Navy. He received it in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the Royal Canadian Navy and the preservation of its legacy.
Christian began working with the Royal Canadian Navy in 2010, which was Canada’s Naval Centennial. He offered to donate a sculpted bust of Admiral Sir Charles Kingsmill, known as the Father of the Royal Canadian Navy. The Royal Canadian Navy’s appreciation of this gift inspired Christian to donate a second bust in 2011. This one was of Chief Petty Officer Max Bernays, a Canadian navy hero from the Second World War.
Other works by Christian Corbet include: Commander Adelaide Sinclair Bust, Rear-Admiral Leonard Warren Murray Bust, Midshipman William A. Palmer Bust, Vice Admiral Ralph Lucien Hennessy Bust and Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve Bust.
