Edwin Beckett

Major General Edwin Horace Alexander Beckett CB, MBE (16 May 1937 – 15 November 2018) was a British Army officer who became Head of the British Defence Staff in Washington, D.C.

Edwin Beckett
Born	16 May 1937
Died	15 November 2018 (aged 81)
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army
Rank	Major-General
Commands held	1st Bn Prince of Wales's Own Regiment of Yorkshire 1st Infantry Brigade
Battles/wars	Aden Emergency
Awards	Companion of the Order of the Bath Member of the Order of the British Empire

Military career

Educated at the Henry Fanshawe School and the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, Beckett was commissioned into the West Yorkshire Regiment in 1957.[1] As a junior officer he saw active service during the Aden Emergency.[1] He became commanding officer of 1st Battalion Prince of Wales's Own Regiment of Yorkshire in 1976, a member of the directing staff at the Staff College, Camberley in 1979 and Commander of 1st Infantry Brigade in 1982.[1] He went on to be Chief of Staff at Headquarters British Army of the Rhine in 1985 and Head of the British Defence Staff and Defence Attaché in Washington, D.C. in 1988 before retiring in 1991.[2]

After retiring from the Army, Beckett was Chairman of the British Brands Group.[3]

He died on 15 November 2018 at the age of 81.[4]

References

1. Who's Who 2010, A & C Black, 2010, ISBN 978-1-4081-1414-8
2. "Ministry of Defence and Senior Tri-Service Appointments" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 November 2015. Retrieved 7 June 2015.
3. "Speaking out for 20 years" (PDF). British Brands Group. Retrieved 7 June 2015.
4. "Beckett". The Telegraph. 22 November 2018. Retrieved 22 November 2018.