List of governors and commandants of Sandhurst explained

This is a list of the governors and commandants of the Royal Military College, first at Great Marlow (1802–1812), then at Sandhurst (1813–1939), and of its successor on the same site, the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (1947 to date).

The Commandant of the Academy, as of the former Royal Military College, is its commanding officer and is always a senior officer of field rank. Most Commandants serve for between two and three years and many go on to further significant promotions.

History of the role

The Royal Military College Sandhurst was originally led by a Governor (a figurehead), a Lieutenant Governor (in command of the college) and a Commandant (responsible for the cadets).^[1] In 1812 the posts of Lieutenant Governor and Commandant were merged into the role of Commandant.^[1] In 1888 the posts of Governor and Commandant were merged into the role of Governor and Commandant and in 1902 that single role was retitled Commandant.^[1]

With the creation of the merged Royal Military Academy in 1947, the commanding officer continued to be called the Commandant.

List of governors

• 1802–1811: General Sir William Harcourt (from 1809 the 3rd Earl Harcourt)
• 1811–1819: General Sir Alexander Hope^[2]
• 1819–1824: Major-General Sir George Murray^[3]
• 1824–1826: General Sir Alexander Hope^[4]
• 1826–1837: General Sir Edward Paget^[5]
• 1837–1856: General Sir George Scovell^[6]
• 1856–1866: General Sir Harry Jones^[7]
• 1866–1868: General Sir George Wetherall^[8]
• 1868–1875: Major-General Sir Duncan Cameron^[9]
• 1875–1882: Major-General William Napier
• 1883–1886: General Richard Chambré Hayes Taylor
• 1886–1888: General David Anderson

List of lieutenant-governors

• 1801–1811: Major-General John Gaspard Le Marchant^[10]
• 1811–1829: Colonel James Butler
• 1829–1837: Major-General Sir George Scovell^[6]
• 1837–1854: Major-General Thomas William Taylor
• 1854–1857: Colonel George Walter Prosser
• 1857–1864: Colonel Charles Rochfort Scott

List of commandants

The Commandants include:^[11]

Royal Military College, Sandhurst

• 1864–1869: Colonel Edmund Gilling Hallewell
  • 1865–1874: Colonel Joseph Edward Addison (Superintendent of Studies)
  • 1874–1879: Colonel Frederick Dobson Middleton^[12] (Assistant to the Governor)
• 1879–1884: Colonel Frederick Middleton^[13] (Commandant reporting to the Governor)
• 1884–1886: Colonel Frederick Solly-Flood (Commandant reporting to the Governor)
• 1886–1888: Colonel Aylmer Cameron^[14] (Commandant reporting to the Governor)
• 1888–1893: Lieutenant-General Edward Clive^[15] (Governor and Commandant)
• 1893–1898: Lieutenant-General Sir Cecil East^[16] (Governor and Commandant)
• 1898–1902: Lieutenant-General Sir Edwin Markham^[17] (Governor and Commandant)
• 1902–1907: Major-General Gerald Kitson^[18]
• 1907–1911: Colonel William Capper^[19]
• 1911–1914: Major-General Lionel Stopford
• 1914–1916: Brigadier-General Stuart Rolt^[20]
• 1916–1919: Major-General Lionel Stopford
• 1919–1923: Major-General Sir Reginald Stephens^[21]
• 1923–1923: Major-General Herbert Shoubridge^[22]
• 1923–1927: Major-General Charles Corkran^[23]
• 1927–1930: Major-General Eric Girdwood^[24]
• 1931–1934: Major-General Reginald May^[25]
• 1934–1937: Major-General Bertie Fisher^[26]
• 1938–1939: Major-General Ralph Eastwood^[27]

Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, 1947 to present

• 1947–1948: Major-General Francis Matthews
• 1948–1950: Major-General Hugh Stockwell
• 1951–1954: Major-General David Dawnay
• 1954–1956: Major-General Reginald Hobbs
• 1956–1960: Major-General Ronald Urquhart
• 1960–1963: Major-General George Gordon-Lennox
• 1963–1966: Major-General John Mogg
• 1966–1968: Major-General Peter Hunt
• 1968–1972: Major-General Philip Tower
• 1972–1973: Major-General Jack Harman
• 1973–1976: Major-General Robert Ford
• 1976–1979: Major-General Philip Ward
• 1979–1982: Major-General Richard Vickers
• 1982–1983: Major-General Geoffrey Howlett
• 1983–1987: Major-General Richard Keightley
• 1987–1989: Major-General Simon Cooper
• 1989–1991: Major-General Peter Graham
• 1991–1994: Major-General Timothy Toyne Sewell
• 1994–1995: Major-General Hew Pike
• 1995–1997: Major-General Jack Deverell
• 1997-2000: Major-General Arthur Denaro
• 2001–2002: Major-General Philip Trousdell
• 2002–2006: Major-General Andrew Ritchie
• 2006–2007: Major-General Peter Pearson
• 2007–2009: Major-General David Rutherford-Jones
• 2009–2012: Major-General Patrick Marriott^[28]
• 2012–2013: Major-General Timothy Evans^[29]
• 2013–2015 Major-General Stuart Skeates
• 2015–2020 Major-General Paul Nanson
• 2020–2022 Major-General Duncan Capps
• 2022–present Major-General Zachary Stenning

See also

Royal Military College, Sandhurst

Notes and References

1. http://www.sandhurstcollection.org.uk/Conference.aspx Conference Room
2. Web site: Visitation of England and Wales volume 12, p.29 . 2011-07-20 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120330202729/http://histfam.familysearch.org/getperson.php?personID=I86787&tree=Nixon . 2012-03-30 . dead .
3. 'Murray, Sir George (1772–1846)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 2, Melbourne University Press, 1967, pp 270–271.
4. Memorial in Sandhurst Chapel
5. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/21106?docPos=2 Edward Paget at Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
6. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/24945 George Scovell at Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
7. http://www.icevirtuallibrary.com/docserver/fulltext/imotp.1870.23040.pdf?expires=1311202369&id=id&accname=guest&checksum=A3ED60FE5AB5CBCA22EB31656BE46558 ICE Virtual Library
8. http://www.biographi.ca/009004-119.01-e.php?&id_nbr=4769 Dictionary of Canadian Biography
9. http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/1966/cameron-sir-duncan-alexander-gcb/1 'CAMERON, Sir Duncan Alexander, G.C.B.'
10. 16423. Le Marchant, John Gaspard (1766–1812).
11. http://www.gulabin.com/armynavy/pdf/Army%20Commands%201900-2011.pdf Army Commands
12. Hart's Army List for 1875, p. 127.
13. 'MIDDLETON, Lt-Gen. Sir Frederick Dobson', in Who Was Who 1897–1915 (A. & C. Black, 1988 reprint:)
14. 'CAMERON, Col Aylmer', in Who Was Who 1897–1915 (A. & C. Black, 1988 reprint:)
15. http://thepeerage.com/p7509.htm#i75084 The Peerage.com
16. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/32957 Cecil East at Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
17. https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1900/may/14/royal-military-college-sandhurst-sir-e Royal Military College, Sandhurst
18. http://www.ebooksread.com/authors-eng/edward-walford/the-county-families-of-the-united-kingdom-or-royal-manual-of-the-titled-and-un-fla/page-206-the-county-families-of-the-united-kingdom-or-royal-manual-of-the-titled-and-un-fla.shtml The county families of the United Kingdom; or, Royal manual of the titled and untitled aristocracy of England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland by Edward Walford, p.206
19. https://archive.org/stream/listoffellows1910zooluoft/listoffellows1910zooluoft_djvu.txt List of Fellows of the Zoological Society of London, 1910
20. 'ROLT, Brig.-Gen. Stuart Peter', in Who Was Who 1929–1940 (A. & C. Black, 1967 reprint:)
21. 'STEPHENS, General Sir Reginald Byng’, in Who Was Who 1951–1960, (A. & C. Black, 1984 reprint:)
22. 'SHOUBRIDGE, Maj.-Gen. (Thomas) Herbert', in Who Was Who 1916–1928, (A. & C. Black, 1992 reprint:)
23. 'CORKRAN, Major-General Sir Charles Edward', in Who Was Who 1929–1940 (A. & C. Black, 1967 reprint:)
24. http://www.kcl.ac.uk/lhcma/locreg/GIRDWOOD.shtml Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
25. 'MAY, General Sir Reginald Seaburne', in Who Was Who 1951–1960, (A. & C. Black, 1984 reprint:)
26. 'FISHER, Lieut-General Sir Bertie Drew', in Who Was Who 1971–1980 (A. & C. Black, 1989 reprint:)
27. 'EASTWOOD, Lt-Gen. Sir T. Ralph', in Who Was Who 1951–1960 (A. & C. Black, 1984 reprint:)
28. http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/U249461/ MARRIOTT, Major-General Patrick Claude
29. http://www.defenceviewpoints.co.uk/defence-news/up-and-out-june-2011 Defence Viewpoints