George Anson was born on April 23, 1697, at Shugborough in Staffordshire, the younger son of William Anson and Isabella Carrier. His family belonged to the landed gentry and possessed political connections, but as a younger son George needed a profession. He entered the Royal Navy in 1712 during the final years of the War of the Spanish Succession.

Anson learned his trade in the Mediterranean and Baltic, serving under experienced officers and advancing to lieutenant in 1716. He became a commander in 1722 and a post captain in 1724. Much of his early command experience came from protecting trade and suppressing piracy along the Carolina coast. These assignments taught him the importance of commerce, overseas bases, accurate charts, and the health of crews serving far from Britain.

His most famous early undertaking began in 1740, when he led a squadron into the Pacific during the War of Jenkins’ Ear. The circumnavigation was devastated by storms, scurvy, and defective planning, but Anson maintained command, captured the Spanish treasure galleon Nuestra Señora de Covadonga, and returned to Britain in 1744. The voyage brought wealth and fame while exposing severe weaknesses in naval supply, recruitment, medicine, and administration.

Anson became a member of Parliament and a senior admiral. At the First Battle of Cape Finisterre in 1747, his fleet defeated a French force and captured valuable ships. He later joined the Admiralty and promoted reforms based on hard experience, including clearer regulations, improved discipline, professional advancement, and better strategic coordination. By the 1750s he had become First Lord of the Admiralty. His combination of global command, parliamentary influence, and administrative knowledge prepared him to direct the Royal Navy during a worldwide conflict.