Simon Cooper
Encyclopedia
Major-General
Sir Simon Christie Cooper GCVO
(born 1936) was Major-General commanding the Household Division
and General Officer Commanding London District
and later Master of the Household
of the Royal Household
of the Sovereign
of the United Kingdom
, CB
DSO
OBE
and educated at Winchester School and at the Royal Military College Sandhurst, Cooper was commissioned into the Life Guards
in 1956.
He served in Aden
, London
, and in the British Army of the Rhine
from 1957 to 1963 when he became Adjutant
of the Household Cavalry Regiment
. He then became Aide-de-Camp
to the Chief of the General Staff in 1965. In 1966 and 1967 he served in Borneo
during the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation and Malaya
during the Malayan Emergency
.
Cooper attended the Staff College, Camberley
in 1968, and qualified as a staff officer. From 1969 to 1975 he was in the British Army of the Rhine
, and was commanding officer of the Life Guards
1974 to 1976. He then served as a General Staff Officer at the Staff College from 1976 to 1978 when he became officer commanding the Household Cavalry
and Silver Stick to Her Majesty The Queen
. In 1981 and 1982 he was officer commanding the Royal Armoured Corps
Centre.
In 1983 Cooper attended the Royal College of Defence Studies
. He was promoted to major-general on 20 October 1983, and was Director of the Royal Armoured Corps
from 1984 to 1987 when he was appointed Commandant of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. From 1989 to 1991 he was Major-General commanding the Household Division
and General Officer Commanding
London District
. He retired on 26 August 1991.
He was Master of the Household
of the Royal Household
of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom from 1992 to 2000. He was also made an Extra Equerry
in 1992.
He was also made Honorary Colonel
of the Royal Yeomanry
(Westminster Dragoons) in 1987.
Cooper received the KCVO
in 1991 on completion of his term commanding the Household Division, and was advanced to GCVO
on his retirement as Master of the Household in 2000.
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...
Sir Simon Christie Cooper GCVO
Royal Victorian Order
The Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood and a house order of chivalry recognising distinguished personal service to the order's Sovereign, the reigning monarch of the Commonwealth realms, any members of her family, or any of her viceroys...
(born 1936) was Major-General commanding the Household Division
Major-General commanding the Household Division
The Major-General commanding the Household Division commands the troops of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. He is also General Officer Commanding London District.-Recent Commanders:The holders of this office include:...
and General Officer Commanding London District
London District (British Army)
London District is the name given by the British Army to the area of operations encompassing the Greater London area. Established in 1870 as Home District, it was re-formed in 1905 as London District to be an independent district within the larger command structure of the army, and has remained so...
and later Master of the Household
Master of the Household
The Master of the Household is the operational head of the "below stairs" elements of the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom...
of the Royal Household
Royal Household
A Royal Household in ancient and medieval monarchies formed the basis for the general government of the country as well as providing for the needs of the sovereign and his relations....
of the Sovereign
Monarch
A monarch is the person who heads a monarchy. This is a form of government in which a state or polity is ruled or controlled by an individual who typically inherits the throne by birth and occasionally rules for life or until abdication...
of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Military career
Born the son of Major-General Kenneth CooperKenneth Cooper (British Army officer)
Major-General Kenneth Christie Cooper CB DSO OBE was a British Army officer who commanded 7th Armoured Division.-Military career:...
, 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...
DSO
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
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 educated at Winchester School and at the Royal Military College Sandhurst, Cooper was commissioned into the Life Guards
Life Guards (British Army)
The Life Guards is the senior regiment of the British Army and with the Blues and Royals, they make up the Household Cavalry.They originated in the four troops of Horse Guards raised by Charles II around the time of his restoration, plus two troops of Horse Grenadier Guards which were raised some...
in 1956.
He served in Aden
Aden
Aden is a seaport city in Yemen, located by the eastern approach to the Red Sea , some 170 kilometres east of Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000. Aden's ancient, natural harbour lies in the crater of an extinct volcano which now forms a peninsula, joined to the mainland by a...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, and in the British Army of the Rhine
British Army of the Rhine
There have been two formations named British Army of the Rhine . Both were originally occupation forces in Germany, one after the First World War, and the other after the Second World War.-1919–1929:...
from 1957 to 1963 when he became Adjutant
Adjutant
Adjutant is a military rank or appointment. In some armies, including most English-speaking ones, it is an officer who assists a more senior officer, while in other armies, especially Francophone ones, it is an NCO , normally corresponding roughly to a Staff Sergeant or Warrant Officer.An Adjutant...
of the Household Cavalry Regiment
Household Cavalry Regiment
The Household Cavalry Regiment is a cavalry regiment of the British Army, and is one of two regiments that are formed from the Household Cavalry. It was formed in 1992, under the Options for Change reforms, by the amalgamation of The Life Guards and the Blues and Royals. Both regiments were...
. He then became Aide-de-Camp
Aide-de-camp
An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state...
to the Chief of the General Staff in 1965. In 1966 and 1967 he served in Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
during the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation and Malaya
Peninsular Malaysia
Peninsular Malaysia , also known as West Malaysia , is the part of Malaysia which lies on the Malay Peninsula. Its area is . It shares a land border with Thailand in the north. To the south is the island of Singapore. Across the Strait of Malacca to the west lies the island of Sumatra...
during the Malayan Emergency
Malayan Emergency
The Malayan Emergency was a guerrilla war fought between Commonwealth armed forces and the Malayan National Liberation Army , the military arm of the Malayan Communist Party, from 1948 to 1960....
.
Cooper attended the Staff College, Camberley
Staff College, Camberley
Staff College, Camberley, Surrey, was a staff college for the British Army from 1802 to 1997, with periods of closure during major wars. In 1997 it was merged into the new Joint Services Command and Staff College.-Origins:...
in 1968, and qualified as a staff officer. From 1969 to 1975 he was in the British Army of the Rhine
British Army of the Rhine
There have been two formations named British Army of the Rhine . Both were originally occupation forces in Germany, one after the First World War, and the other after the Second World War.-1919–1929:...
, and was commanding officer of the Life Guards
Life Guards (British Army)
The Life Guards is the senior regiment of the British Army and with the Blues and Royals, they make up the Household Cavalry.They originated in the four troops of Horse Guards raised by Charles II around the time of his restoration, plus two troops of Horse Grenadier Guards which were raised some...
1974 to 1976. He then served as a General Staff Officer at the Staff College from 1976 to 1978 when he became officer commanding the Household Cavalry
Household Cavalry
The term Household Cavalry is used across the Commonwealth to describe the cavalry of the Household Divisions, a country’s most elite or historically senior military groupings or those military groupings that provide functions associated directly with the Head of state.Canada's Governor General's...
and Silver Stick to Her Majesty The Queen
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
. In 1981 and 1982 he was officer commanding the Royal Armoured Corps
Royal Armoured Corps
The Royal Armoured Corps is currently a collection of ten regular regiments, mostly converted from old horse cavalry regiments, and four Yeomanry regiments of the Territorial Army...
Centre.
In 1983 Cooper attended the Royal College of Defence Studies
Royal College of Defence Studies
The Royal College of Defence Studies is an internationally-renowned institution and component of the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom...
. He was promoted to major-general on 20 October 1983, and was Director of the Royal Armoured Corps
Royal Armoured Corps
The Royal Armoured Corps is currently a collection of ten regular regiments, mostly converted from old horse cavalry regiments, and four Yeomanry regiments of the Territorial Army...
from 1984 to 1987 when he was appointed Commandant of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. From 1989 to 1991 he was Major-General commanding the Household Division
Major-General commanding the Household Division
The Major-General commanding the Household Division commands the troops of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. He is also General Officer Commanding London District.-Recent Commanders:The holders of this office include:...
and 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...
London District
London District (British Army)
London District is the name given by the British Army to the area of operations encompassing the Greater London area. Established in 1870 as Home District, it was re-formed in 1905 as London District to be an independent district within the larger command structure of the army, and has remained so...
. He retired on 26 August 1991.
He was Master of the Household
Master of the Household
The Master of the Household is the operational head of the "below stairs" elements of the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom...
of the Royal Household
Royal Household
A Royal Household in ancient and medieval monarchies formed the basis for the general government of the country as well as providing for the needs of the sovereign and his relations....
of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom from 1992 to 2000. He was also made an Extra Equerry
Equerry
An equerry , and related to the French word "écuyer" ) is an officer of honour. Historically, it was a senior attendant with responsibilities for the horses of a person of rank. In contemporary use, it is a personal attendant, usually upon a Sovereign, a member of a Royal Family, or a national...
in 1992.
He was also made Honorary Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
of the Royal Yeomanry
Royal Yeomanry
The Royal Yeomanry is an armoured regiment of the Territorial Army consisting of five squadrons and a military band:*A Squadron *B Squadron...
(Westminster Dragoons) in 1987.
Cooper received the KCVO
Royal Victorian Order
The Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood and a house order of chivalry recognising distinguished personal service to the order's Sovereign, the reigning monarch of the Commonwealth realms, any members of her family, or any of her viceroys...
in 1991 on completion of his term commanding the Household Division, and was advanced to GCVO
Royal Victorian Order
The Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood and a house order of chivalry recognising distinguished personal service to the order's Sovereign, the reigning monarch of the Commonwealth realms, any members of her family, or any of her viceroys...
on his retirement as Master of the Household in 2000.