Stuart Skeates

Stuart Skeates
Skeates in 2011
Born1966 (age 57–58)
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Service / branchBritish Army
Years of service1989–2023
RankLieutenant General
CommandsStanding Joint Force
Royal Military Academy Sandhurst
19th Light Brigade
26th Regiment Royal Artillery
Battles / warsThe Troubles
Gulf War
Bosnian War
Iraq War
War in Afghanistan
AwardsCompanion of the Order of the Bath
Commander of the Order of the British Empire

Lieutenant General Stuart Richard Skeates, CB, CBE (born 1966) is a retired senior British Army officer. He served as Deputy Commander of JFC Brunssum from December 2018 to December 2021. He also previously served as Standing Joint Force Commander from 2015 to 2018.

Early life and education

Skeates was born in 1966. He was educated at The Judd School in Tonbridge, King's College London (BA History, 1988; MA Defence Studies, 1999) and the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.[1]

Military career

Skeates was commissioned into the Royal Artillery in 1989.[2] He served in the Gulf War and in the Bosnian War, took part in the invasion of Iraq in 2003 and then served as Military Assistant to the General Officer Commanding Northern Ireland in the final years of Operation Banner.[3] He became Commanding Officer of 26th Regiment Royal Artillery in Gütersloh, then Deputy Commander of 52nd Brigade (deployed as Task Force Helmand) and then Deputy Assistant Chief of Staff Operations at Permanent Joint Headquarters.[3] He became Commander of 19th Light Brigade in December 2009, and Deputy Commander of I Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward) in 2011.[1]

Skeates was appointed Commandant of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in August 2013.[4] He was appointed as Standing Joint Force Commander on 24 June 2015.[5] He was promoted to lieutenant general and appointed as Deputy Commander JFC Brunssum from 4 December 2018.[6][7] From 12 October 2022 he was on secondment to the Home Office: he is tasked with commanding the refugee processing centre at RAF Manston and dealing with the increased English Channel migrant crossings.[8][9] He was Colonel Commandant of the Royal Artillery until 1 June 2023,[10] and retired from the army in August 2023.[11]

Skeates was appointed Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) in the 2022 New Year Honours.[12][13]

References

  1. ^ a b "Deputy Commander". Allied Joint Force Command Brunssum. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
  2. ^ "No. 51524". The London Gazette (Supplement). 7 November 1988. p. 12499.
  3. ^ a b Leaders Archived 20 April 2013 at the Wayback Machine US Marine Corps
  4. ^ Army Commands Archived 5 July 2015 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ The Times, 2015, "Senior Military Appointments", The Times, 24 June 2015, p. 55
  6. ^ "Generals November 2018" (PDF). gulabin.com. 30 November 2018.
  7. ^ "No. 62486". The London Gazette (Supplement). 4 December 2018. p. 21992.
  8. ^ Robert Jenrick, The Minister for Immigration (27 October 2022). "Cross-Channel Migrants: Manston Facility". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 721. United Kingdom: House of Commons. col. 401–402.
  9. ^ Hymas, Charles (25 October 2022). "Afghan war general given new role tackling surge in Albanian migrants crossing the Channel". The Telegraph. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  10. ^ "No. 64276". The London Gazette (Supplement). 2 January 2024. p. 26494.
  11. ^ "No. 64214". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 October 2023. p. 21847.
  12. ^ "No. 63571". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 January 2022. p. N2.
  13. ^ "The Military Division of the New Year Honours 2022". GOV.UK. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
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Military offices
Preceded by Commandant of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst
2013–2015 		Succeeded by