John McColl (British Army officer)

General Sir John Chalmers McColl, KCB, CBE, DSO, KStJ (born 17 April 1952) is a retired senior British Army officer and a past Lieutenant Governor of Jersey. McColl previously served as Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe from 2007 to 2011.

John McColl
McColl in 2012
Lieutenant Governor of Jersey
In office
26 September 2011 – 30 November 2016
PremierIan Gorst
Preceded bySir Andrew Ridgway
Succeeded bySir Stephen Dalton
Personal details
Born
John Chalmers McColl

(1952-04-17) 17 April 1952 (age 72)
London, England
Military service
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Branch/serviceBritish Army
Years of service1973–2011
RankGeneral
CommandsDeputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe (2007–11)
Regional Forces (2004–07)
Joint Services Command and Staff College (2003–04)
3rd Mechanised Division (2000–03)
International Security Assistance Force (2001–02)
1st Mechanised Brigade (1997–99)
Battles/warsThe Troubles
Sierra Leone Civil War
Kosovo War
Bosnian War
Iraq War
War in Afghanistan
AwardsKnight Commander of the Order of the Bath
Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Distinguished Service Order
Knight of the Order of St John
Mentioned in Despatches
Officer of the Legion of Merit (United States)

Army career

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McColl as DSACEUR

Educated at Culford School in Suffolk, England,[1] McColl was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Royal Anglian Regiment in 1973[2] and promoted to lieutenant on 8 September 1974.[3] He was promoted to captain on 8 March 1979 and to major on 30 September 1984.[4][5] In 1989, he became a squadron commander in the 3rd Royal Tank Regiment, was promoted to lieutenant colonel on 30 June 1990, and to acting colonel shortly after.[6] He was promoted to colonel on 30 June 1995 and to brigadier on 31 December 1996 (seniority 30 June).[7][8] He held a variety of commands and military posts before commanding 1st Mechanised Brigade in 1997. In 1999, he became Assistant Chief of Staff at Land Command and in 2000, he was given command of 3rd (UK) Mechanised Division. In 2001, he was appointed the first leader of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan.[9]

In 2003, he became Commandant of the Joint Services Command and Staff College. He was deployed as Senior British Military Representative and Deputy Commanding General, Multinational Force, Iraq in March 2004 and at the end of that year he became Commander of Regional Forces at Land Command.[10] He became Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe (DSACEUR) in the rank of general in October 2007,[11] and was appointed Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB) in the 2008 New Year Honours.[12]

McColl was the preferred choice of Afghanistan for the role of UN Special Envoy after Paddy Ashdown withdrew.[13] However, on 7 March 2008, Norwegian diplomat Kai Eide was appointed as the UN Special Representative for Afghanistan.[14] McColl retired as DSACEUR in March 2011.[15]

Lieutenant Governor of Jersey

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On 26 October 2010 it was announced that he would be appointed to the role of Lieutenant Governor of Jersey.[16] He took office on 26 September 2011.[17] On 5 June 2012, Sir John, and his wife Lady McColl, represented Jersey at the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Dedication Service at St Paul's Cathedral.[18] After his fixed term of office, his tenure ended on 30 November 2016 and he was succeeded by Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen Dalton.[19]

Honours and awards

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  Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB) 29 December 2007[12]
  Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) 13 May 1997[20]
  Companion of the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) 29 October 2002[21]
  Knight of the Order of St John (KStJ) 5 August 2016[22]
  Legion of Merit (Officer) 22 May 2007[23]

References

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  1. ^ General McColl visits Culford Archived 24 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine Culford School, 21 September 2007
  2. ^ "No. 45956". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 April 1973. p. 4934.
  3. ^ "No. 46419". The London Gazette (Supplement). 2 December 1974. p. 12158.
  4. ^ "No. 47797". The London Gazette (Supplement). 20 March 1979. p. 3697.
  5. ^ "No. 49897". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 October 1984. p. 13949.
  6. ^ "No. 52200". The London Gazette (Supplement). 3 July 1990. p. 11361.
  7. ^ "No. 54091". The London Gazette (Supplement). 4 July 1995. p. 9195.
  8. ^ "No. 54648". The London Gazette (Supplement). 14 January 1997. p. 465.
  9. ^ "John McColl Profile on". BBC News. 19 December 2001. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  10. ^ Oxford Leverhulme biography Archived 25 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  11. ^ Senior Officer appointments Archived 10 June 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  12. ^ a b "No. 58557". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 December 2007. p. 2.
  13. ^ "Ashdown pulls out of Afghan role". BBC News. 27 January 2008. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
  14. ^ Leithead, Alastair (28 March 2008). "UN's new Afghan envoy begins work". BBC News. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
  15. ^ New Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe Appointed Archived 26 January 2011 at the Wayback Machine Natsource, 29 September 2010
  16. ^ Sir John McColl named as is Jersey Lieutenant Governor BBC News, 26 October 2010.
  17. ^ "Jersey Lieutenant Governor Gen Sir John McColl sworn in". BBC News. 26 September 2011. Retrieved 27 September 2011.
  18. ^ "Lieutenant Governor represents Jersey at St Paul's". BBC. 5 June 2012. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  19. ^ "The Lieutenant-Governor Designate". Office of the Lieutenant-Governor. 20 December 2016. Archived from the original on 31 January 2017. Retrieved 18 March 2017.
  20. ^ "No. 54763". The London Gazette (Supplement). 13 May 1997. p. 5627.
  21. ^ "No. 56735". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 October 2002. p. 7.
  22. ^ "No. 2589550". The London Gazette. 5 August 2016. p. 1120.
  23. ^ "Award Of The Legion Of Merit" (PDF). 22 May 2007.
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Military offices
New post Commander of the International Security Assistance Force
2001–2002
Succeeded by
Preceded by General Officer Commanding the 3rd Mechanised Division
2000–2003
Succeeded by
Preceded by Commandant of the Joint Services Command and Staff College
2003–2004
Succeeded by
Preceded by Senior British Military Representative
and Deputy Commanding General, Multinational Force, Iraq

March–October 2004
Succeeded by
Preceded by Commander Regional Forces
2004–2007
Succeeded by
Preceded by Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe
2007–2011
Succeeded by
Government offices
Preceded by Lieutenant Governor of Jersey
2011–2016
Succeeded by