Martin Smith (Royal Marines officer)
Martin Smith
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File:Major-General Martin Smith RM (Parade Reception).jpg
Major General Smith in 2014
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Born | 30 July 1962 |
Allegiance | United Kingdom |
Service/ |
File:RoyalMarineBadge.svg Royal Marines |
Years of service | 1984 – present |
Rank | Major General |
Commands held | Commandant General Royal Marines 3 Commando Brigade 30 Commando Information Exploitation Group |
Battles/wars | The Troubles Gulf War Iraq War War in Afghanistan |
Awards | Member of the Order of the British Empire |
Major General Martin Linn Smith MBE (born 30 July 1962) is a senior Royal Marines officer and who served as Commandant General Royal Marines. He was previously commander of 3 Commando Brigade, and before that Commanding Officer of 30 Commando Information Exploitation Group and Deputy Commander of 3 Commando Brigade.[1]
Early life
Smith was born in 1962. He studied zoology at the University of Bristol.[2]
Military career
Smith was commissioned into the Royal Marines in May 1984.[2][3] During his early career, he served as a troop commander, a forward air controller and a mortar troop commander. He completed postings to Northern Ireland during The Troubles, and to Norway.[4][5] He went on to specialise in reconnaissance and was deployed as part of the Gulf War in 1991.[4]
In 1995, he attended the Royal Navy Staff Course and completed a Master of Arts (MA) degree in defence studies. From 1996 to 1997, he served as a staff officer specialising in operations. He then joined Headquarters Royal Marines where he served as Staff Officer to the Chief of Staff.[4] In the 1998 Queen's Birthday Honours, he was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE).[6] From 2000 to 2001, he worked at the Permanent Joint Headquarters within its Operations Division.[4]
Following the 9/11 terrorist attacks, he was posted to the United States as part of the initial UK advisory team attached to the United States Central Command. In November 2001, he was appointed Second in Command of 45 Commando. With them, he deployed to Afghanistan and took part in Operation Jacana in 2002. With the start of the Iraq War, he was posted to the multinational headquarters as Deputy Chief of Operations.[4]
Smith was appointed Commanding Officer of 30 Commando Information Exploitation Group.[1][4] In August 2006, he joined FLEET Operations as head of plans. In July 2008, he was appointed Deputy Commander of 3 Commando Brigade. He was deployed to Afghanistan where he served as Commander Battle Group Centre South during Op HERRICK 9.[4] In 2011, he was appointed commander of 3 Commando Brigade.[1] In June 2013, he left to study at the Royal College of Defence Studies.[4]
Smith was promoted to major general and appointed Commandant General Royal Marines on 13 June 2014, in succession to Major General Ed Davis.[4][7]
Honours and awards
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Martin Smith (Royal Marines officer). |
Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) | 1998[6] | |
General Service Medal | With Northern Ireland clasp[7] | |
Gulf Medal | [7] | |
Iraq Medal | [7] | |
Operational Service Medal for Afghanistan | [7] | |
Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal | 2002[7] | |
Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal | 2012[7] |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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- ↑ 6.0 6.1 The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 55155. p. 5. 15 June 1998. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Military offices | ||
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Preceded by | Commandant General Royal Marines 2014–2016 |
Succeeded by Robert Magowan |
- Use dmy dates from April 2012
- Pages with broken file links
- Commons category link is defined as the pagename
- 1962 births
- 20th-century Royal Marines personnel
- 21st-century Royal Marines personnel
- Alumni of the Royal College of Defence Studies
- Alumni of the University of Bristol
- British military personnel of the Troubles
- Graduates of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich
- Living people
- Members of the Order of the British Empire
- Royal Marines officers
- Royal Navy personnel of the Gulf War
- Royal Navy personnel of the Iraq War
- Royal Navy personnel of the War in Afghanistan (2001–present)