General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". O ...

Sir Jeremy John George Mackenzie, (born 11 February 1941) is a retired senior

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurkha ...

officer who served as Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe from 1994 to 1998.

Early life

Mackenzie was born on 11 February 1941 in

Nairobi Nairobi ( ) is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows through the city. The city proper ...

, Kenya, the son of Lieutenant Colonel John W.E. Mackenzie of the

Seaforth Highlanders The Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-shire Buffs, The Duke of Albany's) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, mainly associated with large areas of the northern Highlands of Scotland. The regiment existed from 1881 to 1961, and saw service ...

. He was educated at the Duke of York School, Nairobi and 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 o ...

Military career

Mackenzie was commissioned into the Queen’s Own Highlanders in July 1961, and posted to the 1st Battalion in Singapore. He took part in putting down the Brunei Rebellion in 1962 and later served in a training capacity with the SAS. He was appointed

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 1st Battalion in 1980. After graduating from 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, whic ...

, he was made a Company Commander with the

Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders Argyll (; archaically Argyle, in modern Gaelic, ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland. Argyll is of ancient origin, and corresponds to most of the part of the ancient kingdom of ...

in Northern Ireland and Brigade Major of the 24th Airportable Brigade. He was then second-in-command of the Queen’s Own Highlanders in South Armagh, being obliged to take command when the commanding officer was killed in the

Warrenpoint ambush The Warrenpoint ambush, also known as the Narrow Water ambush, the Warrenpoint massacre or the Narrow Water massacre, was a guerrilla attack by the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) on 27 August 1979. The IRA's South Armagh Brigade ambu ...

of 1979. In 1980/81 he commanded the 1st Battalion Queen's Own Highlanders in Hong Kong and was appointed an

Officer 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 ...

. He then spent a few years as an instructor at the Army Staff College, Camberley and served on the Staff at the Ministry of Defence as a colonel. In 1984 he was promoted brigadier and made Commander of the 12th Armoured Brigade and, from March 1989,

Commandant Commandant ( or ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ran ...

of the Staff College, Camberley. He then was made major general and General Officer Commanding 4th Armoured Division in December 1989, and on 2 December 1991 appointed the last Commander of 1st (British) Corps with the acting rank of lieutenant general. He was knighted as a

Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...

in December 1991. In 1992 he formed the Allied Command Europe Rapid Reaction Corps and became its first Commander. In 1994 he was promoted full general in 1994 and given the post of Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe with special responsibility for the Partnership for Peace Program and the Expansion of NATO, and responsible for coordinating 52,000 troops from 34 nations who moved into

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and ...

. He was also given the colonelcy of the

Highlanders (Seaforth, Gordons and Camerons) The Highlanders, 4th Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland (4 SCOTS) is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland. Prior to 28 March 2006, the Highlanders was an infantry regiment in its own right; The Highlanders (Seaforth, Gordon ...

from 1994 to 2001. He was made a

Knight Grand Cross of the 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 medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) as one ...

in 1999, having previously been awarded the US

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight u ...

twice in 1997 and 1999, the Czech Republic's Cross of Merit First Class, and the Officer's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary in 1998. He was also an Aide de Camp General to the Queen from 1992 to 1996, Governor of the

Royal Hospital Chelsea The Royal Hospital Chelsea is a retirement home and nursing home for some 300 veterans of the British Army. Founded as an almshouse, the ancient sense of the word "hospital", it is a site located on Royal Hospital Road in Chelsea. It is an ...

from August 1999 to September 2006, and a Deputy Lieutenant of

Greater London Greater may refer to: *Greatness Greatness is a concept of a state of superiority affecting a person or object in a particular place or area. Greatness can also be attributed to individuals who possess a natural ability to be better than al ...

. He retired from the army in 1999.

Retirement

In retirement Mackenzie became chairman of UK Gear (a footwear manufacturer), and chairman of

AC Cars AC Cars, originally incorporated as Auto Carriers Ltd., is a British specialist automobile manufacturer and one of the oldest independent car makers founded in Britain. As a result of bad financial conditions over the years, the company was re ...

(a car manufacturer). He also became a director of Blue Hackle (a security business).

Private life

He married Elizabeth Lyon (née Wertenbaker) and has a son and a daughter.

References

, - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Mackenzie, Jeremy 1941 births Academics of the Staff College, Camberley British Army generals Deputy Lieutenants of Greater London Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Officers of the Order of the British Empire Queen's Own Highlanders officers Living people NATO military personnel Commandants of the Staff College, Camberley Alumni of Lenana School Graduates of the Staff College, Camberley