Richard Vincent, Baron Vincent of Coleshill


The Lord Vincent of Coleshill

Vincent in 2008
Birth nameRichard Frederick Vincent
Born(1931-08-23)23 August 1931
Died8 September 2018(2018-09-08) (aged 87)
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
BranchBritish Army
Service years1951–1996
RankField Marshal
Service number417555
UnitRoyal Artillery
CommandsChief of the Defence Staff (1991–1992)
Vice-Chief of the Defence Staff (1988–91)
Royal Military College of Science (1980−1983)
19th Airportable Brigade (1975–1977)
12th Light Air Defence Regiment (1970–1972)
ConflictsIndonesia–Malaysia confrontation
Operation Banner
AwardsKnight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire
Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
Companion of the Distinguished Service Order
Commander of the Legion of Merit (United States)
Other work
Member of the House of Lords
Life peerage
3 September 1996 – 9 March 2016
Personal details
PartyCrossbencher
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Field Marshal Richard Frederick Vincent, Baron Vincent of Coleshill, GBE, KCB, DSO (23 August 1931 – 8 September 2018) was a British Army officer. After serving with British Army of the Rhine he served with the Commonwealth Brigade in Malaysia during the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation. He commanded the 12th Light Air Defence Regiment in Northern Ireland during the Troubles, for which he was appointed a Companion of the Distinguished Service Order, and later commanded the 19th Airportable Brigade. Although he never served as one of the individual service heads, he went on to be Vice-Chief of the Defence Staff in the late 1980s and then Chief of the Defence Staff in the aftermath of the Gulf War. He subsequently became Chair of the Military Committee of NATO in the mid-1990s.