Michael Carver

Richard Michael Power Carver, Baron Carver GCB CBE DSO & clasp MC (* 24. April 1915 in Bletchingley , Surrey ; † 9. December 2001 in Fareham , Hampshire ) was a British field marshal and finally Chief of Defense Staff ( Chief of the Defense Staff ) of the United Kingdom Armed Forces , who later became a staunch critic of nuclear weapons and NATO .

Life

Promotion to Chief of Defense Staff

Carver began his military service in the Royal Tank Corps in 1935 and found employment there as an officer over the next few years.

During the Second World War he was first used in North Africa . In 1943 he became the commander of the 1st Royal Tank Regiment, and later a brigade of the 7th Panzer Division . With these units Carver was first used in Italy and later in the context of Operation Overlord in Normandy .

In 1954 he became chief of staff in the British army units stationed in Kenya . However, the Mau Mau War that was taking place at the time ultimately resulted in Kenya receiving its sovereignty from the United Kingdom in 1963 . In 1964 he became commander of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus , but later criticized it as an obstacle to progress towards a political solution. In 1966 he was made Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath and from then on carried the title of Sir Sir .

He was then from 1966 to 1967 commander of the land forces in the Far East Command in Singapore , before he was then from February 1967 to March 1969 Commander in Chief of the Far East Command. This was followed from 1969 to 1971 as a lieutenant general and commanding general of the southern command of the British Army in Wilton (Wiltshire) . In 1970 he was raised to the Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath.

In 1971 he was appointed Chief of the General Staff of the British Army, before becoming Chief of Defense Staff of the United Kingdom on October 22, 1973 as the successor to Admiral Sir Peter Hill-Norton . He held this position for three years and was replaced by Sir Andrew Humphrey on October 24, 1976 .

Shortly thereafter, he was Resident commission ( Resident Commissioner ) of the United Kingdom in Rhodesia and held this office from 1977 to 1978.

Member of the House of Lords and a critic of nuclear weapons and NATO

After retiring from active military service, he was raised to Life Peer in 1977 with the title Baron Carver , of Shackleford in the County of Surrey, and was a member of the House of Lords until his death .

Baron Carver was later a staunch opponent of nuclear weapons and a member of the Government of Australia established the Canberra Commission on the elimination of nuclear weapons ( Canberra Commission on the Elimination of Nuclear Weapons in 1996 a report on the plan for nuclear) disarmament published. To this end he stated:

“The destructive effect of nuclear weapons is so great and their use so catastrophic that they have no military use against a comparably equipped opponent, other than the belief that they prevent such an opponent from failing to use his nuclear weapons. Therefore, removing it would remove that justification for keeping it. Their use against an opponent who is not equipped with nuclear weapons is politically and morally untenable, as history has shown. "

('The destructiveness of nuclear weapons is so great, and their use so catastrophic, that they have no military utility against a comparably equipped opponent other than the belief that they deter such an opponent from using his nuclear weapons. Therefore, their elimination would remove that justification for their retention. Their use against a non-nuclear opponent is politically and morally indefensible, as history has shown. ')

As a member of the Upper House he rejected the decision submarines of the Trident to acquire class, a class of ballistic intercontinental ballistic missiles , the submarine fired and the type submarine-launched ballistic missile belong (SBLM). In a debate in the House of Lords on the UK's nuclear weapons in 1997, he attacked the government, saying:

"Who should be deterred by a deterrent to which they are referring, and why should they do so?"

('Who is supposed to be deterred by the deterrent to which she referred, and from doing what?')

After all, he was also critical of NATO. In another House of Lords debate, he called for the abolition of the NATO High Command, arguing that it existed only to deceive the fact that the United States was in fact commanding the Allied forces.

Publications

• Was in Italy, 1943-1945 , Pan Macmillan, 2004, ISBN 0-283-07294-6 .

Web links

• rulers.org

predecessor	Office	successor
Peter Hill-Norton, Baron Hill-Norton	Chief of the Defense Staff 1973-1976	Sir Andrew Humphrey