Not at all boring but fascinating. The initial interest was most likely, “Who is this tall, dark, handsome Equerry in that incredibly detailed and beautiful RRoS uniform” but for so many of us in this forum, it has evolved into something much more … An opportunity to share excitement about the King’s events and watching Jonny work alongside him; seeing what Jonny does at work and how he goes about it. We are also learning bits and pieces about the inner workings of the Royal Household, equerries and the military.
Each member of the RF has carved out their own unique niche along with a core of loyal followers. Jonny has, knowingly or not, carved out his own unique niche along with his own core of loyal followers. He has been embraced by the public who see him as playing a role of high value within the inner workings of the Royal Family. The trick is to honour his off-duty privacy and focus on his Royal public duties; to continue to learn more about the entire process of Monarchy-Military-Equerry of which he is now an integral part both behind the scenes and in the public eye. That he has attracted and continues to hold the public’s attention speaks volumes about him in the most positive of ways (that I have mentioned in earlier posts) … Military officer, demonstrated strong core values, immaculate appearance, perfect deportment and pleasant facial expressions all within the mysterious settings of the Monarchy.
You have kindly shared a few “behind the public curtain” tidbits with us and we enjoy them all and would love to hear more as you permit and feel are appropriate. Yes, no one likes to think of their chosen favorite as imperfect but realistically we understand there is also a private side to Jonny’s life that we, while curious, have no need to know unless permitted.
For those interested in Jonny’s military background, and consequently his rise to his current position, I’ll give you a bit of background. Those not interested, either prepare to be bored or scroll on by!
Anything here IS in the public domain, if you know where to look, so I am not giving away secrets, but some of it is a bit obscure so might be new-ish formation.
I think everyone knows he went to Aberystwyth Uni, and what he studied ther? Worth remembering Aberystwyth was also attended by HM the King. During this time he served in the University Army Officer Training Corps.
Shortly after graduating Jonny entered the RMA Sandhurst to join the commissioning course for Officers.
Gaining entry to Sandhurst is (for 99.9%) a gruelling procedure. If you are interested I can post you some information about it, or … you can took it up for yourselves!
Jonny commissioned in 2006 (alongside a rather notorious member of a rather well known family).
He did not join the RRS imediately after commissioning from Sandhurst but served very briefly in another Corps. Why he changed is not generally ‘out there’ so not my story to tell, sorry.
Any infantry soldier or officer does a basic Infantry course at the Infantry Training Centre at Catterick before joining their regiment, and Jonny would have done the same.
By December of that year - 2006, he had moved to 4 SCOTS and was promoted to Lieutenant.
Towards the end of 2008, he was promoted again to Captain.
While the speed of his promotion was not unprecedented, it was more rapid than the average, which should indicate his aptitude for leadership.
For those interested in leadership, how Sandhurst develops and trains Officers, and Army education, I’ll digress for a moment as it speaks to Jonny’s character, experiences and training.
There is a 3 part documentary on Sandhurst - each part looking at one of the 3 terms of each commissioning course. For those who really want to understand more about what shaped Jonny, I recommend watching. They are from 2010, so slightly later than Jonny’s era, but the course would have been very similar and they are informative. They will also while away a couple of hours if you are twiddling your thumbs!!!
Part 1 -
Part 2 -
Part 3 -
being YouTube, I think these should be available in all areas.
Worth remembering the motto of Sandhurst is ‘Serve To Lead’.
When talking about leadership in the British Army, Lt. General Sir Nick Borton - Formerly of the Royal Highland Fusilers and 3rd Uk Division (3UK Div), currently Commander of the Allied Rapid Reaction Corps, one of NATO’s most senior military leaders- said
“…why leadership is so important -
The role and responsibilities that are placed upon us is to legally take life in the defence of our nation. And that is a higher calling than the people who make crisps for a living, so it demands we hold ourselves to the highest professional and moral standard, and part of that is giving our people the leadership they deserve."
Gen Sir Patrick Sanders, Chief of the General Staff said -
“Leadership - It’s commanding men and women to do things that are often against their nature. It is inspiring men and women to be their very best. At its most extreme, it’s about individuals taking personal risk for the sake of people around them, or the sake of the mission.”
I think it would not be foolish to think that both Jonny’s upbringing, and his subsequent training have instilled, and improved upon what was probably always a genetic predisposition to leadership. The nurturing and education have brought about the behaviour we so often see exhibited.
OK, back to Jonny’s career….
He served with 4 Scots through his deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, seeing major action during Operation Herrick. A hugely worrying time for his family, and all of those related to anyone serving at that time.
Following his return from Afghanistan he spent some time with 3UK Div, in Salisbury, was promoted to Major in 2015, and returned to the RRS.
I think that is enough for now. I‘ll continue and add more later if anyone wants to know and is not too bored.
(Excuse the spelling, it was before I joined this forum and learnt!)
