Barney White-Spunner
Encyclopedia
Lieutenant General Sir Barnabas William Benjamin White-Spunner, KCB
, CBE
is the current Commander of the British
Field Army.
and the University of St Andrews
, Barney White-Spunner was commissioned into the Blues and Royals
in 1979. He was appointed Commanding Officer
of the Household Cavalry
in 1996 and in that capacity was deployed to Bosnia. In 1998, he was promoted to colonel and became Deputy Director of Defence Policy at NATO and in 2001 he took charge of an operation to disarm Albanian
insurgents in Macedonia.
He was given command of the Kabul Multinational Brigade
in 2002 and then became Chief of Joint Force Operations for the national contingent in the Middle East in 2003.
By 2005 he was Chief of Staff at Land Command and in 2007 he was appointed General Officer Commanding
3rd (UK) Mechanised Division. He went on to be General Officer Commanding
Multinational Division (South East)
in Iraq
in 2008 and Commander of the Field Army
in 2009.
He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire
(CBE) in 2002 and Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
(KCB) in the 2011 Birthday Honours
.
On 7 January 2010, White-Spunner gave evidence to the Iraq Inquiry.
in 1992. He became editor of Baily's Hunting Directory in 1994. He is also the author of a history of the Horse Guards
.
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
, CBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
is the current Commander of the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Field Army.
Military career
Educated at Eton CollegeEton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
and the University of St Andrews
University of St Andrews
The University of St Andrews, informally referred to as "St Andrews", is the oldest university in Scotland and the third oldest in the English-speaking world after Oxford and Cambridge. The university is situated in the town of St Andrews, Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It was founded between...
, Barney White-Spunner was commissioned into the Blues and Royals
Blues and Royals
The Blues and Royals is a cavalry regiment of the British Army, part of the Household Cavalry. The Colonel-in-Chief is Her Majesty The Queen and the Colonel is HRH The Princess Royal...
in 1979. He was appointed Commanding Officer
Commanding officer
The commanding officer is the officer in command of a military unit. Typically, the commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitude to run the unit as he sees fit, within the bounds of military law...
of the Household Cavalry
Household Cavalry
The term Household Cavalry is used across the Commonwealth to describe the cavalry of the Household Divisions, a country’s most elite or historically senior military groupings or those military groupings that provide functions associated directly with the Head of state.Canada's Governor General's...
in 1996 and in that capacity was deployed to Bosnia. In 1998, he was promoted to colonel and became Deputy Director of Defence Policy at NATO and in 2001 he took charge of an operation to disarm Albanian
Albanians
Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...
insurgents in Macedonia.
He was given command of the Kabul Multinational Brigade
Regional Command Capital
Regional Command Capital is a multinational military formation, part of the International Security Assistance Force. The headquarters is in Kabul. Since 6 August 2006, Regional Command Capital is the new name given to the former Kabul Multinational Brigade...
in 2002 and then became Chief of Joint Force Operations for the national contingent in the Middle East in 2003.
By 2005 he was Chief of Staff at Land Command and in 2007 he was appointed General Officer Commanding
General Officer Commanding
General Officer Commanding is the usual title given in the armies of Commonwealth nations to a general officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, a general might be the GOC II Corps or GOC 7th Armoured Division...
3rd (UK) Mechanised Division. He went on to be General Officer Commanding
General Officer Commanding
General Officer Commanding is the usual title given in the armies of Commonwealth nations to a general officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, a general might be the GOC II Corps or GOC 7th Armoured Division...
Multinational Division (South East)
Multi-National Division (South-East) (Iraq)
Multi-National Division was a British commanded division responsible for security in the south east of Iraq from 2003 to 2009. It was responsible for the large city of Basra and its headquarters were located at Basra Airport. The division was initially responsible for the governorates of Al...
in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
in 2008 and Commander of the Field Army
Commander Field Army (United Kingdom)
The Commander Field Army was a senior British Army officer who had command over the Deployable Divisions of the British Army i.e. those divisions on full strength...
in 2009.
He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(CBE) in 2002 and Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(KCB) in the 2011 Birthday Honours
2011 Birthday Honours
The Birthday Honours 2011 for the Commonwealth Realms were announced on 7 June 2011 in New Zealand and 11 June 2011 in United Kingdom to celebrate the Queen's Birthday of 2011.-Privy Councillors:...
.
On 7 January 2010, White-Spunner gave evidence to the Iraq Inquiry.
Literary career
White-Spunner started his literary career writing for The FieldThe Field (magazine)
The Field is the world's oldest country and field sports magazine, having been published continuously since 1853.The famous sportsman Robert Smith Surtees, the creator of Jorrocks, was the driving force behind the initial publication...
in 1992. He became editor of Baily's Hunting Directory in 1994. He is also the author of a history of the Horse Guards
Horse Guards
Horse Guards or horse guards can refer to:* A Household Cavalry regiment:** Troops of the Horse Guards Regiment of the British Army from 1658-1788** The Royal Horse Guards, which is now part of the Blues and Royals...
.