Lieutenant General Sir Philip Charles Cornwallis Trousdell (born 13 August 1948) is a retired senior British Army officer who was General Officer Commanding Northern Ireland and Commandant of the

Royal Military Academy Sandhurst The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS or RMA Sandhurst), commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is one of several military academies of the United Kingdom and is the British Army's initial officer training centre. It is located in the town of ...

. He was commanding officer of the 2nd Battalion, Royal Irish Rangers before advancing to high command and in that capacity was deployed to

Bosnia-Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and Pars pro toto#Geography, often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of Southern Europe, south and southeast Euro ...

Early life

Trousdell was educated at Berkhamsted School,

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

, England.

Military career

Trousdell was commissioned into the Royal Irish Rangers on 2 August 1968 as a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

. He was promoted to lieutenant on 2 February 1970, Between 1968 and 1974, he served in the United Kingdom,

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, Libya, Bahrain, Oman and Northern Ireland. He was promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

on 2 August 1974. Between 1974 and 1977, he served as Signals Officer and

Adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of human resources in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed forces as a non-commission ...

of 2nd Battalion, Royal Irish Rangers. Having attended the

Staff College, Camberley Staff College, Camberley, Surrey, was a staff college for the British Army and the presidency armies of British India (later merged to form the Indian Army). It had its origins in the Royal Military College, High Wycombe, founded in 1799, which i ...

, Trousdell was promoted to

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

on 30 September 1980. He then became an instructor in the Junior wing of Camberley. He returned to 2nd Battalion, Royal Irish Rangers as a Company Commander. He served as Officer Commanding a

company A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of people, whether Natural person, natural, Legal person, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common p ...

in Berlin, Germany and in

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

, Kent. From 1985 to 1987, he was posted to the

Ministry of Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...

as a Military Assistant to the Assistant Chief of the General Staff, then Major-General John MacMillan. He was promoted to

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

on 31 December 1986, with seniority from 30 June 1986. He spent the next two years as a member of the

Directing Staff Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''Di ...

at Camberley. Trousdell was

Commanding Officer The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitu ...

of 1Bn Royal Irish Rangers from February 1989 to August 1991. He attended the Higher Command and Staff Course, graduating in April 1991, and was promoted to colonel on 30 June 1991. From August 1991 to January 1992, he was based in Northern Ireland, overseeing the amalgamation of the Ulster Defence Regiment and the Royal Irish Rangers into the Royal Irish Regiment. He was promoted to brigadier on 31 December 1991, with seniority from 30 June 1991. From January 1992 to November 1993, he was

commanding officer The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitu ...

of the 48 Gurkha Brigade in Hong Kong. He was posted to the

from November 1993 until January 1997 as Director of Public Relations (Army). Trousdell was promoted to major-general on 23 April 1997 with seniority from 22 February 1996. He served as Chief of Staff at Headquarters Land Command from 1997 to 2000. On 6 March 2000, he was appointed Deputy Commander of Operations for the Stabilisation Force in Bosnia-Herzegovina. In 2001 he was appointed Commandant of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. On 13 January 2003, he was promoted to

lieutenant-general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

and appointed General Officer Commanding Northern Ireland. He retired on 10 August 2005.

Later life

Trousdell has been Chairman of the Civil Nuclear Police Authority since 29 September 2011, having been interim Chairman from 20 May 2011. He is a trustee of Help for Heroes.

Honours and decorations

Trousdell was appointed Commander of the Order of the Bath (CB) in the

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

Queen's Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning British monarch's official birthday by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are present ...

. In the

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

Queen's Birthday Honours, he was appointed

Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(KBE). He held the

honorary An honorary position is one given as an honor, with no duties attached, and without payment. Other uses include: * Honorary Academy Award, by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, United States * Honorary Aryan, a status in Nazi Germany ...

position of Colonel of The Queen's Own Gurkha Transport Regiment from 27 October 1993 to 1 July 2003. He was appointed

Deputy Colonel Colonel (Col) is a rank of the British Army and Royal Marines, ranking below brigadier, and above lieutenant colonel. British colonels are not usually field commanders; typically they serve as staff officers between field commands at battali ...

of The Royal Irish Regiment on 1 July 1996, relinquishing the appointment on 1 July 2001 when he was appointed Colonel of the Regiment. On 1 April 2001, he was appointed Colonel Commandant of Media Operations Group (Volunteers), and his tenure expired on 1 April 2006. He was appointed Colonel Commandant of the

Brigade of Gurkhas The Brigade of Gurkhas is the collective name which refers to all the units in the British Army that are composed of Nepalese Gurkha soldiers. The brigade draws its heritage from Gurkha units that originally served in the British Indian Army ...

from 1 July 2003 to 1 April 2007.

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Trousdell, Philip British Army generals Companions of the Order of the Bath Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire People educated at Berkhamsted School Royal Irish Rangers officers Living people People from Downpatrick Commandants of Sandhurst 1948 births Academics of the Staff College, Camberley Graduates of the Staff College, Camberley