Sharon Nesmith

Major General Sharon Patricia Nesmith (née Moffat; born 1970) is a senior British Army officer. In 2014, she became the first woman to command a British Army brigade.

Sharon Nesmith
Brigadier Nesmith in 2014
Birth nameSharon Patricia Moffat
Born1970 (age 50–51)
Northumberland, England
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Service/branchBritish Army
Years of service1988–present
RankMajor General
Commands held1st Signal Brigade
Battles/warsIraq War

Personal life

Nesmith is from Northumberland.[1] Her father was an officer in the Royal Naval Reserve, and her brother served in the British Army for 16 years.[1] She studied biological sciences at the University of Edinburgh.[1] She was sponsored through university by the British Army, having been awarded a university cadetship.[2]

Nesmith's husband Walker works as a tree surgeon,[1][3] and she has two sons.[1]

Military career

Nesmith was commissioned in the British Army on 4 September 1988 as a second lieutenant (on probation) as part of her university cadetship.[2] Following university and Sandhurst,[1] she joined the Royal Corps of Signals in 1992.[4] She has served in the Balkans, Iraq and Latvia.[1]

In August 2014, Nesmith became the first woman to command a British Army brigade when she was chosen to command the 1st Signal Brigade.[4] Her role was formally announced by Secretary of State for Defence Michael Fallon in September 2015, almost a year after she started in the role.[1][3] The brigade consists of between 1,500[1] and 5000[4] troops. This was the highest role ever taken by a woman in the British Army.[4][5]

On 8 March 2019, The Times reported that Nesmith was to be appointed as Director (Personnel) at Army Headquarters and will sit on the Army Board.[6] She assumed the appointment on 14 March 2019 and was promoted to major general.[7] On 15 March, she was appointed to the honorary position of Assistant Colonel Commandant of the Adjutant General's Corps.[8] She was appointed Master of Signals on 2 October 2020, succeeding General Sir Nick Pope KCB, CBE.[9] She became General Officer Commanding the Army Recruiting and Initial Training Command in January 2021.[10]

Nesmith is a vice-president of the Army Football Association.[11]

References
  1. "The most powerful woman in the British Army: I've spent my entire career avoiding the 'female' tag". The Daily Telegraph. 30 November 2015. Retrieved 5 January 2019.
  2. "No. 51510". The London Gazette (Supplement). 24 October 1988. p. 11916.
  3. Haynes, Deborah (2 July 2015). "Army puts first woman in charge of a brigade". The Times. Retrieved 5 January 2019.
  4. Grant, Katie (2015). "Meet the first woman in charge of a brigade in the British army". The Independent. Retrieved 5 January 2019.
  5. "No. 61280". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 June 2015. p. 11900.
  6. "Major-General Sharon Nesmith: Men used to run the army ... now I give the orders". The Times. 8 March 2019. Retrieved 8 March 2019.
  7. "No. 62610". The London Gazette (Supplement). 9 April 2019. p. 6432.
  8. "No. 62635". The London Gazette (Supplement). 7 May 2019. p. 8122.
  9. @R_Signals (1 October 2020). "We are excited to confirm that we have a new Master of Signals! General Sharon Nesmith formally took over today from General Pope. Although without ceremony due to #COVID19 restrictions we would like to wish her all the very best as our new Master of Signals. Certa Cito" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  10. "First Female Army Officer To Command At Two-Star Level Appointed". Forces.net. 6 January 2021. Retrieved 7 January 2021.
  11. "Board and Staff". Army Football Association. Retrieved 5 January 2019.
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