Patrick Sanders (British Army officer)

General  Sir Patrick Nicholas Yardley Monrad Sanders, (born 6 April 1966) is a senior British Army officer who served as Chief of the General Staff from 13 June 2022 until 15 June 2024.

Early life and education
Born on 6 April 1966 at Tidworth, Wiltshire, he is the son of Lieutenant Colonel John Sanders. He was educated at Worth School, then an all-boys private boarding school attached to the eponymous Benedictine Abbey. After leaving school, he studied at the University of Exeter, having been awarded a British Army undergraduate cadetship. He left before taking his degree. He later pursed further studies at Cranfield University, graduating with a Master of Arts (MA) degree in defence technology.

Early military career
Sanders was commissioned into the Royal Green Jackets, British Army, on 23 September 1984, as a second lieutenant (on probation) as part of his undergraduate cadetship. He left university without completing his degree, and his commission was terminated on 27 July 1985. He then attended the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, and was once more commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Royal Green Jackets on 12 April 1986.

He served as a subaltern in Northern Ireland during the Troubles and then undertook tours in Kosovo in 1999 and Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2001. He became Chief of Staff of 1st Mechanised Brigade in 2002 and then Commanding Officer of 2nd Battalion the Royal Green Jackets in 2005. In the latter role he managed the transition of his battalion to become 4th Battalion The Rifles, then seeing action at the siege of UK bases in Basra in 2007 during the Iraq War. On 25 July 2008, he was appointed a Companion of the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) "in recognition of gallant and distinguished services in Iraq during the period 1st October 2007 to 31st March 2008".

Sanders became Commander of 20th Armoured Brigade in August 2009, deployed under Task Force Helmand to Afghanistan in October 2011. On 28 September 2012, he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) "in recognition of gallant and distinguished services in Afghanistan during the period 1 October 2011 to 31 March 2012". He served as Chief of the Defence Staff's Liaison Officer to the United States Joint Chiefs of Staff in 2012 and Assistant Chief of the Defence Staff (Operations) in March 2013. In 2014, he attended the Prime Minister's COBRA meetings on the floods crisis.

General officer
Sanders took command of the 3rd (United Kingdom) Division in April 2015. Then in December 2016, he was appointed Commander Field Army and promoted lieutenant general. Sanders was promoted general on 6 May 2019 and appointed as Commander Joint Forces Command; Joint Forces Command was renamed as Strategic Command on 9 December 2019.

Sanders was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB) in the 2020 New Year Honours. He was the preferred candidate of the Ministry of Defence to succeed General Sir Nick Carter as Chief of the Defence Staff in 2021, due to his expertise in cyber capability, but Prime Minister Boris Johnson picked Admiral Sir Tony Radakin instead. Announced in February 2022, Sanders became Chief of the General Staff in June 2022.

Chief of the General Staff
On 7 June 2022, Sanders took the decision to cancel an overseas deployment by the 3rd Battalion, Parachute Regiment after a number of incidents which demonstrated a poor standard of discipline in the unit. Armed Forces Minister James Heappey was said to be "sorry and embarrassed" by the "disgraceful" behaviour.

On 16 June 2022, Sanders told British soldiers they are the generation that must prepare "to fight in Europe once again" as the conflict in Ukraine escalated, stating "There is now a burning imperative to forge an Army capable of fighting alongside our allies and defeating Russia in battle."

The Guardian reported in June 2023 that following concerns in the Ministry of Defence that Sanders might resign over spending cuts in the Army, interviews had already taken place to find Sanders' successor.

Speaking at the Defence iQ International Armoured Vehicles conference in January 2024, Sanders described the British people as part of a "prewar generation" who may have to prepare themselves to fight in a war against Russia. Sanders said the UK needed to take "preparatory steps to enable placing our societies on a war footing", such as a form of national service. Such action was "not merely desirable, but essential", he added. The Guardian later reported that Sanders received a dressing down after this speech, which was not agreed by either 10 Downing Street or the Ministry of Defence. He was succeeded as Chief of the General Staff by General Sir Roland Walker on 15 June 2024.

Honorary appointments
Sanders was Colonel Commandant of The Rifles (2019–2023), and Colonel Commandant of the Honourable Artillery Company from 31 January 2019 to 30 May 2024.

A Freeman of the City of London, he is also a Liveryman of the Blacksmiths' Company.

In May 2023, Sanders carried the Queen's Sceptre in the Royal Procession at the Coronation of Charles III and Camilla.