Ralph Henry Knox

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Ralph Henry Knox was a British civil servant who served as Permanent Under-Secretary of State for War from 1897 to 1901.

He was born on 21 April 1836, the son of Robert Knox, editor of the Morning Herald. He studied at Trinity College Dublin and joined the War Office as a temporary clerk in January 1856, later becoming a junior clerk in 1858. He worked as secretary to two royal commissions and, in 1882, became Accountant-General at the War Office.

In 1897, Knox was promoted to Permanent Under-Secretary of State for War, a role he held until his retirement in 1901. After retiring, he served on several commissions, including ones related to the Cardwell Reforms.

Knox was honored with CB in 1880 and promoted to KCB in 1895. He was sworn into the Privy Council in 1903.

In 1863, he married Georgina Augusta Chance. They had six sons, including cricketers Frank Knox and Neville Knox, and four daughters.

He died in 1913 on a train travelling from Oxted to London, where he lived.