| Sir John Kiszely KCB MC | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | John Panton Kiszely |
| Born | 2 April 1948 |
| Allegiance |
 United Kingdom |
| Service/branch |
 British Army |
| Years of service | 1969–2008 |
| Rank | Lieutenant General |
| Commands held |
1st Bn Scots Guards 7th Armoured Brigade 1st (UK) Armoured Division Regional Forces |
| Battles/wars |
Falklands War Bosnian war Iraq War |
| Awards |
Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath Military Cross Mention in Dispatches Queen’s Commendation for Valuable Service Legion of Merit (United States) |
Lieutenant General Sir John Panton Kiszely, KCB, MC (born 2 April 1948) was Director of the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom. He is a former National President of The Royal British Legion, having resigned over allegations that he had said to undercover journalists that he was able to lobby government defence ministers.
Early life[]
Kiszely was born on 2 April 1948, the son of Dr John Kiszely. He has a sister, Melinda. He was educated at Marlborough College.
Military career[]
On 20 December 1968, having attended the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, Kiszely was commissioned into the Scots Guards as a second lieutenant. He was given the service number 486680.[1] He served with the regiment as a platoon commander, company commander and commanding officer in Great Britain, Northern Ireland, Germany, Cyprus and the Falkland Islands.[2]
He became commanding officer of 1st Battalion the Scots Guards in 1986 and, following various other military appointments, took command of 7th Armoured Brigade in early 1993. In 1996 he was appointed General Officer Commanding 1st (UK) Armoured Division and served as Commander of the Multi-National Division (South-West) in Bosnia.[3]
In September 1998 Kiszely was appointed Assistant Chief of Defence Staff (Resource and Plans) at the Ministry of Defence.[4] In 2002 he was appointed Commander of Regional Forces at Land Command[2] and in 2004 he was deployed as Senior British Military Representative and Deputy Commanding General, Multinational Force, Iraq.[2] In 2005 he took up his post as Director of the Defence Academy.[2] He retired from this post on 30 May 2008.[5]
Later life[]
In December 2008 Kiszely was appointed as the new National President of The Royal British Legion. He took over the role from Air Marshal Ian Macfadyen CB OBE FRAeS who recommended him for the post.[6] He resigned this post on 15 October 2012 as a result of allegations that he had said to undercover journalists that he was able to lobby government defence ministers.[7] On 14 December 2009, Kiszely gave evidence to The Iraq Inquiry in which he claimed that American officials had refused to admit that they were dealing with an insurgency in Iraq.[8]
Honours and decorations[]
Kiszely was awarded the Military Cross for an action during the Battle of Mount Tumbledown during the Falklands War.[9]
Family[]
Lieutenant General Sir John Kiszely is married with three children.[10]
References[]
- ↑ "No. 44774". 24 January 1969. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/44774/page/
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Oxford Leverhulme Biography
- ↑ SFOR
- ↑ NATO/SFOR Informer
- ↑ Lieutenant General Andrew Graham takes over from Lieutenant General Sir John Kiszley
- ↑ Royal British Legion appoints new National President Royal British Legion, 15 December 2008
- ↑ "Inquiry into Legion lobby claim". BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19942581. Retrieved 15 October 2012.
- ↑ "US would not 'admit' the insurgency in post-war Iraq". BBC News. BBC. 15 December 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/8412317.stm. Retrieved 28 January 2010.
- ↑ "No. 49134". 8 October 1982. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/49134/page/
- ↑ The peerage.com
The original article can be found at John Kiszely and the edit history here.