The idea of forming a militia of Royal Dockyard workmen was first suggested in 1846 by Lord Ellenborough, the First Lord of the Admiralty, and was supported by his successor Lord Auckland. The seven dockyards began raising their battalions in the summer of 1847. The force totalled some 10,500 men unevenly divided into artillery and infantry. Captain (later Admiral Sir) Bartholomew James Sulivan was appointed Colonel and Chief of Staff of the volunteers and was instructed to submit a plan for the systematic re-organisation of the battalions. This he did, but financial difficulties and the Naval Lords’ indifference to the scheme led the battalions to be disbanded in the summer of 1848.