The Defence Secretary’s First Dilemma

Posted on by Rupert Wieloch

It is almost 30 years since I introduced mixed gender training into the Royal Armoured Corps’ recruit training programme at Winchester. During that time, I had to deal with several instances of female complaints about harassment, when I needed to take decisive action against the perpetrators. Our best practice was eventually spread across the individual training system; I am therefore appalled to hear that the measures we established about core values have not been maintained at the Army Foundation College (AFC) and yet again the Army’s reputation is being tarnished by a philistine few.

The AFC was supposed to be the jewel in the crown of recruit training. It takes young teenagers with the potential to succeed in technical corps and provides education as well as military training before they join their chosen regiments. By definition, the recruits are more intelligent than those destined for the Poor Bloody Infantry (PBI). They should therefore be more receptive to instruction about the values, attitudes and behaviour expected in today’s army.

This is the first important challenge for the new Defence Secretary. He has inherited a responsibility to rebuild the Army to cope with the sort of war that we see on the front line in Ukraine; dirty, exhausting, frightening and grim. The sort of fighting that drains the colour and courage from a human body.

To succeed on the modern battlefield, you need incredible self-discipline and stamina. You only have to look at the Commonwealth Games, or elite level sports teams, to know that there are plenty of young British men and women with those attributes. So what has gone wrong at Harrogate? In a word, supervision. Thirty years ago, the Army ensured its commanding officers strictly followed the Investors in People (IiP) conventions. However, our leadership gave this up as too time-consuming and allowed subordinates more leeway in managing their soldiers.

This has now become a fundamental dilemma for the new Defence Secretary. On the one side, he has to increase numbers and instil a tough warrior ethos in the Army. On the the other hand, he has the challenge of young soldiers complaining about their hardships, encouraged by dedicated campaigners against teenage recruiting, amplified by social media outlets and roused by legal opportunists.

My advice to the new Defence Secretary is to take decisive action. Check the complaints are not by people working the system and if they are genuine, immediately replace the supervisors at Harrogate. More importantly, re-introduce the IiP principles and processes to the individual training organisation, so that instructors are themselves well-led by people who follow the rules.

A Member of the House of Commons Defence Committee Meeting Recruits

ANZAC Day – My Tribute

Posted on by Rupert Wieloch

There is still much to be said about the wars in Ukraine and Middle East as well as Britain’s Strategic Defence Review, but today is ANZAC Day and so, I wish to honour the brave soldiers, sailors and air personnel who lost their lives fighting for a free world. My father was extremely proud to serve in the Australian Army for two years during the Korean War and he would be delighted that the Royal Family participated in the commemorations in London today.

Although the Aussies claim ownership of the Gallipoli Campaign, I believe their most important contribution in the two world wars was in North Africa in April 1941. This was the defence of Tobruk by Major General Leslie Morshead’s 6th Australian Division after the British 2nd Armoured Division capitulated in the desert battle with Erwin Rommel. The first hand-to-hand combat between Australia and Germany in World War II was a victory for the Southern Hemisphere and more importantly it showed the world that Hitler’s up-to-then invincible Blitzkrieg was beatable. But it came at a cost.

Rommel had ordered his armoured troops to attack the outer perimeter at 1700 hours on Easter Sunday. After a fierce artillery exchange, a breach in the line was exploited by the Afrika Korps. Sensing this critical moment, 22 year-old Lieutenant Austin Mackell of 2/17th Australian Infantry Battalion took out a fighting patrol and stumbled on a major enemy position with six machine guns, mortars and field guns. Mackell was involved with three enemy soldiers and called for help. A giant of a man from Wagga Wagga, Corporal John Hurst Edmondson, who was wounded in the neck and stomach, came across and rescued his platoon commander. Sadly he died of his wounds, but for his conspicuous bravery and sacrifice he was awarded the first Victoria Cross to be awarded to an Australian in World War II (14 April 1941).

The siege of Tobruk continued until November, when Colonel Sydney Hartnell of 19th New Zealand Battalion, part of General Auchinleck’s relief force, symbolically shook hands with Brigadier Arthur Willison, commanding 32 Brigade. The ANZAC bravery continued in North Africa in 1942, with five of the six VCs awarded in Egypt being presented to New Zealand and Australian soldiers. The full story is in my book, Liberating Libya.

I was never fortunate enough to be sent to the Antipodes during my time in the Army, but I did have an outstanding young New Zealand artillery detachment under command in Bosnia in 1995. When we were attacked by the Bosnian Serb army, they all performed in combat in the finest traditions of their distinguished predecessors, who earned fame at Tobruk and El Alamein 50 years before.

Alamein 1942

Supporting Combat Stress

Posted on by Rupert Wieloch

Combat Stress

I was introduced to this fantastic charity through a City of London Livery Company and joined their running team in the Royal Parks Half Marathon on 11th October 2015.

From their website, they are currently supporting over 6,000 Veterans aged between 18 to 97. The charity is a vital lifeline for these men, women and their families.

Donations can be made at www.combatstress.org.uk/support-us/donate