The Royal College of Defence Studies (RCDS) instructs the most promising senior officers of the British Armed Forces,

His Majesty's Diplomatic Service His Majesty's Diplomatic Service (HMDS) is the diplomatic service of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, dealing with foreign affairs and representing British interests overseas, as opposed to the Home Civil Service, which ...

and Civil Service in national defence and international security matters at the highest level, to prepare them for the top posts in their respective services. It forms part of the

Defence Academy of the United Kingdom The Defence Academy of the United Kingdom provides higher education for personnel in the British Armed Forces, Civil Service, other government departments and service personnel from other nations. The Director General of the Defence Academy is ...

, and is its most senior and prestigious component. In addition, there are many overseas attendees, from countries who are close allies of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

History

In 1922, a cabinet committee under

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

, then Secretary of State for the Colonies, recommended the formation of the College. The college was founded in 1927 as the Imperial Defence College and was located at 9

Buckingham Gate Buckingham Gate is a street in Westminster, London, England, near Buckingham Palace. Location At the north-west end is a junction with Buckingham Palace Road and Birdcage Walk opposite Buckingham Palace. At the south-east end is a junction wi ...

until 1939. Its objective at that time was to instruct senior military officers the defence of the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts e ...

. In 1946, following the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the college reopened at

Seaford House Seaford House, originally called Sefton House, is a former aristocratic mansion and the largest of the detached houses sited on each corner of Belgrave Square, London, England. It is a magnolia stucco building with four main storeys most fame ...

Belgrave Square Belgrave Square is a large 19th-century garden square in London. It is the centrepiece of Belgravia, and its architecture resembles the original scheme of property contractor Thomas Cubitt who engaged George Basevi for all of the terraces fo ...

and members of the

United States Armed Forces The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is ...

started attending the course for the first time. It was renamed the Royal College of Defence Studies in 1970. In 2007

the Queen In the English-speaking world, The Queen most commonly refers to: * Elizabeth II (1926–2022), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 1952 until her death The Queen may also refer to: * Camilla, Queen Consort (born 1947), ...

and

Prince Philip Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 1921 – 9 April 2021) was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he served as the consort of the British monarch from E ...

visited the college.

RCDS Course

The RCDS Mission is: :"To prepare senior officers and officials of the United Kingdom and other countries, and future leaders from the private and public sectors, for high responsibilities in their respective organisations, by developing their analytical powers, knowledge of defence and international security, and strategic vision." RCDS forms a part of the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom. In fulfilment of its mission, the college runs one course a year, from September to July. Each course is attended by a maximum of 90 full-time members, around one-third from the UK and two-thirds from overseas. Attendees are military officers of

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...

Brigadier Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. I ...

or equivalent rank, and also include Home Office and Ministry of Defence civil servants, Foreign Office diplomats, police officers and a few representatives from the private sector. All members would have been selected to attend the course on the strength of their potential to progress to high positions within their professions. The course composition has been progressively widened to include members from over 40 countries. Graduates of the college are entitled to the post-nominal letters rcds, while prior to 1970 the post-nominal letters idc were used. Since 2001, course members have had the option of studying in a joint programme that leads to an MA in International Security and Strategy from King's College London.

Commandants

The College is led by the Commandantcurrently Sir

George Norton Lieutenant-General Sir George Pemberton Ross Norton is a retired British Army officer. He was the UK Military Representative to NATO. He is now Commandant of the Royal College of Defence Studies. Military career After being educated at Radl ...

. The Commandant leads the Senior Directing Staff of the College, who are in effect the faculty and are a mixture of active and retired military officers, diplomats and civil servants.

Alumni

References

External links

Royal College of Defence Studies
{{DEFAULTSORT:Royal College Of Defence Studies 1927 establishments in the United Kingdom Staff colleges Military training establishments of the United Kingdom King's College London