Jim Johnson (British Army officer)

This article is about British Army officer. For people named Jim Johnson, see Jim Johnson (disambiguation).

Henry James Johnson

Nickname(s)| Jim
Born| (1924-12-21)21 December 1924
Died| 20 July 2008(2008-07-20) (aged 83)
Allegiance|  United Kingdom
Branch| Special Air Service, British Army
Years of service| 1939–1963
Rank| Colonel
Service number| 300853 (Officer)
22222514 (Trooper)
Battles / wars| Second World War
Awards| Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE)

Henry James Johnson OBE, TD (1924–2008) was a Colonel in the British Army. He commanded the 21 SAS (TA), after which he led Britain's clandestine war against Egyptian forces in Yemen during the mid-1960s. After that he set up Britain's first post-war private military company.

## Early life

[edit]

Johnson was born 21 December 1924 then educated at Westminster School and was there at the same time as Tony Benn.

## Military career

[edit]

He joined the British Army and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Welsh Guards on 21 November 1943.[1]

Johnson relinquished his military commission on 8 June 1948 to join the Territorial Army SAS as a trooper.[2] He was then promoted back to lieutenant on 19 October 1948, with seniority from 21 December 1947.[3] He was made an acting captain on 1 June 1950,[4] which was confirmed on 21 December 1951, with seniority from 1 June 1950.[5] He was made an acting major on 15 March 1953,[6] and reverted to the rank of captain on 15 June 1954.[7] He then received a series of promotions, which eventually led to the rank of Colonel.[8][9][10][11] He was appointed as Aide-de-Camp to Queen Elizabeth II on 18 October 1969,[12] which he held until 18 October 1974.[13]

Johnson died 20 July 2008.

## Awards and decorations

[edit]

Johnson was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire on [14] for his services to the TA.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "No. 36298". The London Gazette (Supplement). 21 December 1943. p. 5583.
2. ^ "No. 38372". The London Gazette. 3 August 1948. p. 4382.
3. ^ "No. 38510". The London Gazette (Supplement). 11 January 1949. p. 200.
4. ^ "No. 39034". The London Gazette (Supplement). 6 October 1950. p. 4963.
5. ^ "No. 39413". The London Gazette (Supplement). 18 December 1951. p. 6645.
6. ^ "No. 39907". The London Gazette (Supplement). 7 July 1953. p. 3789.
7. ^ "No. 40259". The London Gazette (Supplement). 20 August 1954. p. 4875.
8. ^ "No. 40506". The London Gazette (Supplement). 7 June 1955. p. 3379.
9. ^ "No. 41931". The London Gazette (Supplement). 15 January 1960. p. 542.
10. ^ "No. 42959". The London Gazette (Supplement). 2 April 1963. p. 3027.
11. ^ "No. 43043". The London Gazette (Supplement). 28 June 1966. p. 5633.
12. ^ "No. 44966". The London Gazette (Supplement). 14 November 1969. p. 11042.
13. ^ "No. 46455". The London Gazette (Supplement). 7 January 1975. p. 206.
14. ^ "No. 42870". The London Gazette (Supplement). 28 December 1962. p. 6.

## External links

[edit]

* Telegraph obituary of Colonel Jim Johnson