My latest Portrait commission from the British Army took place with General Sir Mark Carleton-Smith, KCB, CBE Chief of the General Staff.

The General was in need of a portrait to be placed in the gallery of former Chiefs of the General Staff and for his official Role as Regimental Lieutenant Colonel of The Irish Guards. Leaving the Chiefs office it is the tradition of the incumbent to hang a signed portrait. The sitting was indeed very historical and constitutes my 2nd portrait on the wall. The final image will be viewed by the General’s successors for many years to come.

Upon examination of the wall, legends such as Field Marshal Sir Bernard Montgomery and even Field Marshal The Lord Guthrie who I captured in 2017 are amongst those who have occupied the Office.

Carleton-Smith was commissioned into the Irish Guards on 3 September 1982. He then spent three years studying at university. He was promoted to lieutenant on 6 September 1985, with seniority from 9 April 1985, to captain on 9 April 1989 and to major on 30 September 1995. After operational service in Northern Ireland during the Troubles, he was deployed to the Gulf War in spring 1991 and then saw active service as an SAS squadron commander in Bosnia later in the 1990s.

Carleton-Smith became Chief of Staff of 19 Mechanized Brigade in 1999 and served as Chief of Staff HQ Multi-National Brigade Centre during the Kosovo War later that year. In recognition of his service in Kosovo, he was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire in the 2000 New Year Honours and was awarded the Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service on 3 November 2000.

Promoted to lieutenant colonel on 30 June 2001, Carleton-Smith became Military Assistant to the Commander-in-Chief, Land Forces at that time. He became Commanding Officer of 22 Special Air Service Regiment in 2002 and in that role saw service during the 2003 invasion of Iraq and also during operations in Afghanistan. He was advanced to Officer of the Order of the British Empire in recognition of his services during the 2003 invasion of Iraq on 23 April 2004. Promoted to colonel on 30 June 2005, he became Deputy Director Policy Planning at the Ministry of Defence at that time.

Promoted to brigadier on 31 December 2006 with seniority from 30 June 2006, Carleton-Smith became Commander of 16 Air Assault Brigade that year and was deployed to Afghanistan as Commander of Task Force Helmand and Commander of British Forces there in April 2008. In August 2008 he led Operation Eagle's Summit which involved a daring foray into Taliban territory. He was advanced to Commander of the Order of the British Empire for his services in Afghanistan on 6 March 2009.

Carleton-Smith became Director of Army Plans and Resources at the Ministry of Defence in January 2009 and, following promotion to major-general on 20 February 2012, he became Director Special Forces in February 2012 and Director of Strategy at the Army Headquarters in March 2015. He became Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff (Military Strategy and Operations) with effect from 18 April 2016 and was promoted to lieutenant-general with effect from that same date On 11 June 2018 he was promoted to general and succeeded General Sir Nick Carter as Chief of the General Staff. He was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in the 2019 New Year Honours. Carleton-Smith was succeeded as Chief of the General Staff by General Sir Patrick Sanders in June 2022.

Carleton-Smith also became Regimental Lieutenant Colonel of the Irish Guards on 18 March 2012 and Honorary Colonel of Oxford University Officers Training Corps on 18 February 2017.