Brigadier Alexander Frederick Birtwistle
CBE
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
(born 1948) is a retired
British Army
The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
officer who is most well known for his role in the
2001 United Kingdom foot-and-mouth outbreak
The outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in the United Kingdom in 2001 caused a crisis in British agriculture and tourism. This epizootic saw 2,000 cases of the disease on farms across most of the British countryside. Over 6 million cows and ...
.
Alex Birtwistle was born in
Accrington
Accrington is a town in the Hyndburn borough of Lancashire, England. It lies about east of Blackburn, west of Burnley, east of Preston, north of Manchester and is situated on the culverted River Hyndburn. Commonly abbreviated by locals to ...
and attended
Lancaster Royal Grammar School
Lancaster Royal Grammar School (LRGS) is an 11–18 boys grammar school in Lancaster, England, Lancaster, Lancashire, England. Old students belong to The Old Lancastrians. The school's sixth form opened to girls in 2019. LRGS is also in the Unit ...
. He joined the Army as a university cadet at the
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...
in 1967 and was commissioned into the
Queen's Lancashire Regiment
The Queen's Lancashire Regiment (30th, 40th, 47th, 59th, 81st and 82nd Regiments of Foot) (QLR) was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the King's Division. It was formed on 25 March 1970 at Connaught Barracks, Dover, Connaught ...
following his graduation in 1970. He then saw service in Cyprus, Nigeria,
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
and Germany and as an
aide-de-camp to
Her Majesty the Queen. He was also Commander of the 1st Battalion Queen's Lancashire Regiment and was awarded an
OBE
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
in the 1992
Queen's Birthday Honours
The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the King's Official Birthday, reigning monarch's official birthday in each realm by granting various individuals appointment into Order (honour), national or Dynastic order of knighthood, dy ...
.
He was due to retire aged 53 on 2 April 2001 as the commander of the
42 (North West) Brigade based at
Fulwood Barracks
Fulwood Barracks is a military installation at Fulwood in Preston, Lancashire, England. It is set to close in 2030.
History
The barracks were built between 1842 and 1848 as a base, initially at least, for the 2nd Battalion 60th Rifles, followi ...
,
Preston when he was asked to oversee the livestock mass burial site at a disused airfield near
Great Orton
Great Orton is a village in the civil parish of Orton, in the Cumberland district of the ceremonial county of Cumbria, England. The population of the civil parish taken at the 2011 census was 453. Historically, the village is part of Cumber ...
, Cumbria. He supervised the disposal of thousands of sheep which were culled on site or brought there from
Carlisle
Carlisle ( , ; from ) is a city in the Cumberland district of Cumbria, England.
Carlisle's early history is marked by the establishment of a settlement called Luguvalium to serve forts along Hadrian's Wall in Roman Britain. Due to its pro ...
abattoir. He said at the time:
The Army is here to set up systems to deal with the problem. I hope this is going to work, because if it doesn't the consequences for this area are terrible.
He was appointed a
CBE
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
in the
2002 New Year Honours
New Years' Honours are announced on or around the date of the New Year in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. The dates vary, both from year to year and from country to country. All are published in supplements to the London G ...
for his role in the crisis.
On 6 February 2011 he appeared on television in an edition of the
BBC 1
BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and Flagship (broadcasting), flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includ ...
programme ''
Countryfile
''Countryfile'' is a British television programme which airs weekly on BBC One and reports on rural, agricultural, and environmental issues.
The programme is currently presented by John Craven, Adam Henson, Matt Baker, Tom Heap, Ellie Har ...
''. He contributed his recollections of the crisis and was seen with
John Craven
John Raymond Craven (born 16 August 1940) is an English journalist and television presenter, best known for presenting the BBC programmes '' Newsround'', '' Countryfile'' and '' Beat the Brain''.
Early life
Craven was born in Leeds, West Rid ...
and retired farmer William Littleat, planting an oak tree to mark the tenth anniversary of the crisis at the Watchtree Nature Reserve that has been created on the Great Orton airfield site.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Birtwistle, Alexander
Living people
Queen's Lancashire Regiment officers
Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
People from Accrington
1948 births
British Army brigadiers