Clinton Matthew Langston, (born 1962) is a British

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

priest and

military chaplain A military chaplain ministers to military personnel and, in most cases, their families and civilians working for the military. In some cases, they will also work with local civilians within a military area of operations. Although the term ''cha ...

. He served as Chaplain General of the

Royal Army Chaplains' Department The Royal Army Chaplains' Department (RAChD) is an all-officer department that provides ordained clergy to minister to the British Army. History The Army Chaplains' Department (AChD) was formed by Royal Warrant of 23 September 1796; until the ...

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 ...

between 2018 and 2022, and as Archdeacon for the Army in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

between 2017 and 2022. He was previously Deputy Chaplain General from 2017 to 2018.

Early life and education

Langston was born in 1962. He studied at the Derby College of Education, graduating with a Bachelor of Combined Studies (BCombStuds) in 1986. In 1987, he

matriculated Matriculation is the formal process of entering a university, or of becoming eligible to enter by fulfilling certain academic requirements such as a matriculation examination. Australia In Australia, the term ''matriculation'' is seldom used now ...

into

Queen's College, Birmingham Queen's College was a medical school in central Birmingham, England, and a predecessor college of the University of Birmingham. It was founded by surgeon William Sands Cox in 1825 as The Birmingham Medical School, a residential college for med ...

, an

ecumenical Ecumenism ( ; alternatively spelled oecumenism)also called interdenominationalism, or ecumenicalismis the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships ...

theological college A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and Christian theology, theology, generally to prepare them for ordinatio ...

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

to train for

ordained ministry Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform vari ...

and to study

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

Ordained ministry

Langston was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

in the

as a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian denominations, such as the Cathol ...

in 1990 and as a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

in 1991. From 1990 to 1994, he served his

curacy A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' () of souls of a parish. In this sense, ''curate'' means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy who are ass ...

at St James the Great, Shirley in the Diocese of Birmingham.

Military service

On 20 June 1994, Langston was commissioned into the

(RAChD) as a Chaplain to the Forces 4th Class (equivalent in rank to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

). From 1994, he was based in Germany as chaplain to the

Light Dragoons The Light Dragoons (LD) is a cavalry regiment in the British Army. The regiment has a light cavalry role and specialises in mounted and dismounted reconnaissance. The Light Dragoons recruit mainly in Northern England, from County Durham, Northu ...

. He was deployed to Bosnia in 1996 with 7 Signal Regiment, and to Northern Ireland for a two year tour from 1998 to 2000. On 20 June 1999, he moved from a Short Service Commission (limiting his service years) to a Regular Commission (allowing him to serve until retirement). He was promoted to Chaplain to the Forces 3rd Class (equivalent to

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

) on 2 June 2000. From 2000 to 2003, he served as chaplain to Army Training Regiment, Lichfield, based at

Whittington Barracks DMS Whittington, otherwise known as Defence Medical Services Whittington (formerly Whittington Barracks), is a military base in Whittington, Staffordshire, near Lichfield in England. It is home to the Staffordshire Regiment Museum, the Headquart ...

. He then returned to Germany, where he was senior chaplain of the 4th Infantry Brigade. During this time, he served a six month tour in Iraq as Joint Force Senior Chaplain. He was promoted to Chaplain to the Forces 2nd Class (equivalent to lieutenant colonel) on 30 June 2006. He then returned to the UK, where he had been appointed senior chaplain to 15 (North East) Brigade. From 2008 to 2010, he was Staff Chaplain at

Permanent Joint Headquarters The Permanent Joint Headquarters (PJHQ) is the British tri-service headquarters from where all overseas military operations are planned and controlled. It is situated at Northwood Headquarters in Northwood, London. The Permanent Joint Headqua ...

, a tri-service appointment with responsibility for chaplaincy delivery on

Operation Herrick Operation Herrick was the codename under which all British operations in the War in Afghanistan were conducted from 2002 to the end of combat operations in 2014. It consisted of the British contribution to the NATO-led International Security Assi ...

and

Operation Telic Operation Telic (Op TELIC) was the codename under which all of the United Kingdom's military operations in Iraq were conducted between the start of the invasion of Iraq on 19 March 2003 and the withdrawal of the last remaining British forces on ...

, and other overseas and seaborne operations. From 2010 to 2012, he was senior chaplain to the

Household Division The Household Division forms a part of the British Army's London District (British Army), London District and is made up of five regiments of foot guards#United Kingdom, foot guards and two Household Cavalry regiments. The division is responsible f ...

and chaplain of the Guards' Chapel. From 2012 to 2014, he was senior chaplain to Army Recruitment and Training Division (North). He was promoted to Chaplain to the Forces 1st Class (equivalent to

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

) on 30 June 2014. From 2014 to 2015, he was based at HQ Army Recruitment and Training Division as assistant chaplain general. Then, from July 2015 to May 2017, he was attached to

3rd (United Kingdom) Division The 3rd (United Kingdom) Division, also known as The Iron Division, is a regular army division of the British Army. It was created in 1809 by Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, as part of the Anglo-Portuguese Army, for service in the P ...

. On 15 May 2017, Langston took up the appointment of Deputy Chaplain General, the second most senior chaplain in the RAChD. He was promoted to the rank of deputy chaplain general (equivalent to

brigadier Brigadier ( ) is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore (rank), commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several t ...

) on 30 June 2017. On 14 July 2017, he was licensed and collated as the Archdeacon for the Army: as such, he is a member of the

General Synod of the Church of England The General Synod is the tricameral deliberative and legislative organ of the Church of England. The synod was instituted in 1970, replacing the Church Assembly, and is the culmination of a process of rediscovering self-government for the Church ...

. He was made a non-residentiary canon of

Salisbury Cathedral Salisbury Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is an Church of England, Anglican cathedral in the city of Salisbury, England. The cathedral is regarded as one of the leading examples of Early English architecture, ...

in October 2018. On 14 December 2018, Langston was appointed Chaplain-General to Her Majesty's Land Forces: the Chaplain General is equivalent in rank to a major general. He stepped down in May 2022, and retired from the army in July 2023. In addition to seeing service across the United Kingdom, Langston has been posted to Germany, Bosnia, and Iraq.

Honours

UK Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal ribbon

UK Queen EII Platinum Jubilee Medal ribbon

UK King Charles III Coronation Medal BAR

Accumulated Campaign Service Medal 2011 BAR

Langston has been awarded a number of campaign medals: the NATO Medal for the former Republic of Yugoslavia, the General Service Medal with Northern Ireland clasp, and the Iraq Medal. He has also been awarded the

Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal () or the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2002 to mark the 50th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession in 1952. The Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal was ...

, the

Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal () or The Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2012 to mark the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession in 1952. There are four versions of the medal: one iss ...

, the

Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal () or the Queen's Platinum Jubilee Medal is a commemorative medal created in 2022 to mark the 70th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession in 1952. The medal was awarded in the United Kingdom ...

, the

King Charles III Coronation Medal The King Charles III Coronation Medal () is a commemorative medal created to mark the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla, which took place on 6 May 2023. The UK issued more than 400,000 coronation medals, awarded to individuals who ...

, and the

Accumulated Campaign Service Medal The Accumulated Campaign Service Medal and the Accumulated Campaign Service Medal 2011 are medals awarded by King Charles III to members of his Armed Forces to recognise long campaign service. The original Accumulated Campaign Service Medal, inst ...

. On 10 February 2017, Langston was appointed an

Honorary Chaplain to The Queen An Honorary Chaplain to the King is a member of the clergy within the United Kingdom who, through long and distinguished service, is appointed to minister to the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, monarch of the United Kingdom. When the reigning mona ...

(QHC). Langston was appointed

Companion of the Order of the Bath Companion may refer to: Relationships Currently * Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance * A domestic partner, akin to a spouse * Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach * Companion (caregiving), a caregi ...

(CB) in the

2020 Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours for 2020 are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Langston, Clinton Matthew 1962 births Alumni of the Queen's Foundation Church of England archdeacons (military) Companions of the Order of the Bath Honorary chaplains to the King Living people Royal Army Chaplains' Department officers Members of the General Synod of the Church of England