Nicholas Cottam
Encyclopedia
Major-General
Nicholas Jeremy Cottam CB
OBE
(born 1951) was a senior British Army
officer who went on to be Military Secretary.
in 1973. He became Commanding Officer
of his Regiment and was deployed in Northern Ireland
in the early 1990s being appointed to the OBE
and mentioned in despatches for his service there. In 1994 he went to South Africa
as part of a Commonwealth Peace Keeping Force.
He became Director of Personnel Services in 2001 for the Army and went on to be General Officer Commanding
5th Infantry Division in 2003 and Military Secretary in 2005. In that role he increased the retirement age for officers in the Territorial Army to 60 and carried out a review of the Reserves recommending that they be used for augmentation as much as for maximum effort.
In retirement he became Registrar of St Paul's Cathedral
.
Major-General (United Kingdom)
Major general is a senior rank in the British Army. Since 1996 the highest position within the Royal Marines is the Commandant General Royal Marines who holds the rank of major general...
Nicholas Jeremy Cottam CB
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 mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
OBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(born 1951) was a senior British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
officer who went on to be Military Secretary.
Military career
Cottam was commissioned into the Royal Green JacketsRoyal Green Jackets
The Royal Green Jackets was an infantry regiment of the British Army, one of two "large regiments" within the Light Division .-History:...
in 1973. He became Commanding Officer
Commanding officer
The commanding officer is the officer in command of a military unit. Typically, the commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitude to run the unit as he sees fit, within the bounds of military law...
of his Regiment and was deployed in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
in the early 1990s being appointed to the OBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
and mentioned in despatches for his service there. In 1994 he went to South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
as part of a Commonwealth Peace Keeping Force.
He became Director of Personnel Services in 2001 for the Army and went on to be General Officer Commanding
General Officer Commanding
General Officer Commanding is the usual title given in the armies of Commonwealth nations to a general officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, a general might be the GOC II Corps or GOC 7th Armoured Division...
5th Infantry Division in 2003 and Military Secretary in 2005. In that role he increased the retirement age for officers in the Territorial Army to 60 and carried out a review of the Reserves recommending that they be used for augmentation as much as for maximum effort.
In retirement he became Registrar of St Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Cathedral, London, is a Church of England cathedral and seat of the Bishop of London. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604. St Paul's sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City of London, and is the mother...
.