Clinton Matthew Langston, (born 1962) is a British Anglican 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 '' ...

. 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 then ...

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gur ...

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

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

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, an

ecumenical Ecumenism (), also spelled oecumenism, is the concept and principle that Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The wo ...

theological college A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clerg ...

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...

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 vario ...

and to study

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing th ...

Ordained ministry

Langston was

ordained 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 var ...

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 churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...

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 deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

in 1991. From 1990 to 1994, he served his

curacy A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''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 w ...

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 of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

). 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 the counties of 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) 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 Headquarte ...

. 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 Headquart ...

, 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 A ...

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 Household Division is a term used principally in the Commonwealth of Nations to describe a country's most elite or historically senior military units, or those military units that provide ceremonial or protective functions associated directly with ...

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 rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...

) 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 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 Peninsular War, and was known as th ...

. 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, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. In ...

) 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 Anglican cathedral in Salisbury, England. The cathedral is the mother church of the Diocese of Salisbury and is the seat of the Bishop of Salisbury. The buil ...

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 Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

. 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

Accumulated Campaign Service Medal 2011 BAR

Ribbon - Medal for Long Service and Good Conduct (Military)

Langston has been awarded a number of

campaign medals A campaign medal is a military decoration which is awarded to a member of an armed force who serves in a designated military operation or performs duty in a geographical theater. Campaign medals are very similar to service medals but carry a high ...

: the NATO Medal for the former Republic of Yugoslavia, the General Service Medal with Northern Ireland

clasp Clasp, clasper or CLASP may refer to: * Wrist clasp, a dressing accessory * Folding clasp, a device used to close a watch strap * Medal bar, an element in military decoration * Fastener, a hardware device that mechanically joins objects together * ...

, and the Iraq Medal. He has also been awarded the

Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal (french: link=no, Médaille du jubilé d'or de la Reine Elizabeth II) or the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2002 to mark the 50th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's ...

, the

Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (french: Médaille du jubilé de diamant de la reine Elizabeth II) or The Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2012 to mark the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's ...

, the

Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal (french: Médaille du jubilé de platine de la reine Elizabeth II) or The Queen's Platinum Jubilee Medal is a commemorative medal created to mark the Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II, 70th anniversar ...

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 (KHC) is a member of the clergy within the United Kingdom who, through long and distinguished service, is appointed to minister to the monarch of the United Kingdom. When the reigning monarch is female, Honorary Ch ...

(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 care ...

(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 Queen Living people Royal Army Chaplains' Department officers Members of the General Synod of the Church of England