Sir James Hockenhull
Born (1964-07-27) 27 July 1964 (age 59)
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Service/branchBritish Army
Years of service1986–present
RankGeneral
UnitIntelligence Corps
Commands heldUnited Kingdom Strategic Command
Chief of Defence Intelligence
Battles/warsOperation Banner
Iraq War
War in Afghanistan
AwardsKnight Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service
Officer of the Legion of Merit (United States)
Bronze Star Medal (United States)

General Sir James Richard Hockenhull, KBE, ADC Gen (born 27 July 1964) is a senior British Army officer who has served as Commander Strategic Command since May 2022.

Early life and education

Hockenhull was born on 27 July 1964 in Havant, Hampshire, England.[1] He was educated at the Royal Hospital School, Ipswich, and the University of York.[2]

Military career

Hockenhull was commissioned into the Intelligence Corps in 1986.[2] He deployed to Northern Ireland multiple times during his early career, for which he was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) on 22 November 1994,[3] awarded a Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service "in recognition of gallant and distinguished services" in 1999,[4] and appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) on 30 September 2003.[5]

Hockenhull became an instructor at the United States Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, in 2003 before being deployed as Chief, Campaign Plans at Headquarters Multi-National Force – Iraq in December 2005,[2] for which he was awarded the United States Bronze Star Medal in 2006.[1] He went on to be Deputy Director Force Development in August 2006, Chief, Plans at Headquarters Allied Rapid Reaction Corps in Afghanistan in 2008 and Director ISTAR at Headquarters Land Forces in 2008.[2] After that he became Head Military Strategic Planning at the Ministry of Defence in September 2011, Director of the Ministry of Defence Advisory Group in Kabul in June 2012,[6] and Director Cyber, Intelligence and Information Integration in March 2015.[2] He was awarded the United States Officer of the Legion of Merit in 2017.[1] The following year, Hockenhull was appointed Chief of Defence Intelligence and promoted to lieutenant general.[7][8] He was advanced to Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) in the 2021 New Year Honours.[9]

General Sir James Hockenhull in Washington, D.C. in 2023

In April 2022, it was announced that Hockenhull would be promoted to general and succeed General Sir Patrick Sanders as the commander of United Kingdom Strategic Command.[10] He took office in May 2022.[11]

On 13 August 2022, in an interview with the BBC, Hockenhull said: "Russia nor Ukraine is likely to achieve any decisive military action in Ukraine this year". He has defended the decision to publish the intelligence about the Russian invasion of Ukraine, saying "It's important to get the truth out before the lies come." UK intelligence is watching the prospect of tactical nuclear weapons being used in Ukraine "very closely"; he however considers their usage "very unlikely". He said of China: "incredible military modernisation with a country determined to resolve a political issue".[12]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Hockenhull, Lt Gen. James Richard". Who's Who 2020. Oxford University Press. 1 December 2019. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U258714. ISBN 978-0-19-954088-4. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Major-General James Hockenhull" (PDF). CEMA. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 October 2018. Retrieved 30 October 2018.
  3. ^ "No. 53855". The London Gazette (Supplement). 21 November 1994. p. 16321.
  4. ^ "No. 55819". The London Gazette (Supplement). 14 April 2000. p. 4252.
  5. ^ "No. 57070". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 September 2003. p. 12063.
  6. ^ "ISAF officers meet for key leader engagement at Camp Ghazi". DVIDS. Retrieved 30 October 2018.
  7. ^ Lieutenant-General James Hockenhull, Defence Geospatial Intelligence, 2018
  8. ^ "No. 62486". The London Gazette (Supplement). 4 December 2018. p. 21992.
  9. ^ "No. 63218". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 2020. p. N6.
  10. ^ "Lieutenant General Sir James Hockenhull appointed new Commander United Kingdom Strategic Command". Ministry of Defence. UK Strategic Command. 29 April 2022. Retrieved 9 May 2022.
  11. ^ "Chief of Defence Intelligence and Commander of Strategic Command". Ministry of Defence. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
  12. ^ Jonathan Beale (13 August 2022). "Ukraine war: Predicting Russia's next step in Ukraine". BBC.com. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
Military offices Preceded byPhilip Osborn Chief of Defence Intelligence 2018–2022 Succeeded byAdrian Bird Preceded bySir Patrick Sanders Commander Strategic Command 2022–present Incumbent
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