Oliver Lee | |
---|---|
Born | Birmingham, England |
Allegiance | United Kingdom |
Service/ | Royal Marines |
Years of service | 1996–2014 |
Rank | Colonel |
Commands held | 45 Commando |
Battles/wars | The Troubles Bosnian War Iraq War War in Afghanistan |
Awards | Officer of the Order of the British Empire Member of the Order of the British Empire Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service |
Alma mater | Cambridge University |
Colonel Oliver Andrew Lee, OBE is a former senior Royal Marines officer and subsequently chief executive.
The eldest child of six children, Lee was brought up in Birmingham. [1] [2] He was educated at King Edward's School, Birmingham, [3] [4] and Jesus College, Cambridge. [2]
Lee undertook Royal Marines officer training in 1996, winning the sword of honour and commando medal. [2] He subsequently served in Bosnia, Northern Ireland, Iraq and Afghanistan. [2] [5] He also worked in the private office staff of the Chief of the Defence Staff, Admiral Sir Michael Boyce, from 2000 to 2002 and defence minister Bob Ainsworth from 2007 to 2009. [2] He commanded 45 Commando [6] on Operation Herrick 14 in Afghanistan in 2011, [2] [7] [8] [9] during which he was promoted to full colonel, the youngest since the Second World War. [2] [3] [10]
In 2013 Lee resigned from the Royal Marines on principle over the Sergeant Blackman (Marine A) Helmand Province Killing. [2] [11] [12] [10] [13] Lee believed that Blackman had been inadequately led. He gave evidence at the Royal Courts of Justice in 2017, where Blackman's original conviction of murder was reduced to manslaughter on grounds of diminished responsibility. [2] [14] [10] [15]
Lee has since spoken strongly against any form of immorality on military operations, battlefield atrocities in particular. [16] [17] Concurrently, he has been a powerful advocate for Afghan people who supported the coalition forces in the country. In 2021, following the fall of Kabul to the Taleban, he was reunited after ten years with his interpreter who had fled to the United Kingdom from Afghanistan with his family. [18]
On leaving the Royal Marines, Lee became chief executive of The Challenge, a large social enterprise delivering residential courses for teenagers to improve their understanding of others and their preparedness for adult life. [2] [19] [20]
In 2022 Lee became chief executive of Places Leisure, a 6000-plus people, non-dividend company, dedicated to enabling health and fitness in more active communities. [21]
In July 2023, Lee delivered a tribute in Westminster Abbey at the Memorial Service for Admiral of the Fleet Lord Boyce. [22]
In 2024, Lee was appointed chief executive of the West Midlands Fire Service, a 1900 person organisation and the second largest in the country, dedicated to creating a safer, stronger and healthier community. [23]
Lee was awarded the Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service in Iraq in 2003. [5] He was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire in 2007, [24] and then advanced to Officer of the Order of the British Empire. [25] [26] These two awards were for operational leadership and service in Afghanistan.
Lee's father, His Honour Judge Malcolm Lee QC, died of a heart attack in 1999 whilst serving as the Birmingham Mercantile Judge. [1] His brother, Adrian, died of suicide in 2003. [27]
Lee is married with two children. [2]
The Special Air Service (SAS) is a special forces unit of the British Army. It was founded as a regiment in 1941 by David Stirling, and in 1950 it was reconstituted as a corps. The unit specialises in a number of roles including counter-terrorism, hostage rescue, direct action and special reconnaissance. Much of the information about the SAS is highly classified, and the unit is not commented on by either the British government or the Ministry of Defence due to the secrecy and sensitivity of its operations.
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Admiral of the Fleet Michael Cecil Boyce, Baron Boyce, was a British Royal Navy officer who also sat as a crossbench member of the House of Lords until his death in November 2022.
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General Sir Mark Alexander Popham Carleton-Smith, is a senior British Army officer who served as Chief of the General Staff from June 2018 to June 2022. He previously served as Director Special Forces and commanded 22 Special Air Service Regiment.
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The following lists events from 2014 in Afghanistan.
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Major General Matthew John Holmes, was a British senior Royal Marines officer who served for more than three decades in the armed forces. After studying economics at the University of Exeter, he joined the Royal Marines and undertook early tours of duty to Norway, the Far East, Northern Ireland and Zimbabwe. After being deployed to Kosovo and Afghanistan, he commanded 42 Commando Royal Marines from 2006 to 2008 and was awarded a Distinguished Service Order for his leadership in Afghanistan, as well as the United States Legion of Merit for his exceptionally meritorious service. Holmes served as Commandant General Royal Marines from 2019 to 2021.
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