Lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

Jan Renger (Jan) Swillens (20 August 1967) is a

Royal Netherlands Army The Royal Netherlands Army (, KL) is the Ground warfare, land branch of the Netherlands Armed Forces. Though the Royal Netherlands Army was raised on 9 January 1814, its origins date back to 1572, when the was raised making the Dutch standing a ...

officer and Commander of the Royal Netherlands Army since 2024.

Military career

Swillens started his military career in 1985 as a infantry cadet at the

Koninklijke Militaire Academie The Royal Military Academy ( or ''KMA'') is the service academy for the Dutch Army, the Dutch Air Force and the Royal Marechaussee. Located in Breda, Southern Netherlands, the KMA has trained future officers since 1828. Description The KMA o ...

(KMA), after graduating from the KMA, Swillens enlisted in the Korps Commandotroepen (KCT), after earning his green baret, Swillens was appointed as peletoncommandant at the KCT. in 2012 Swillens was appointed Commandant of the Korps Commandotroepen (KCT), focusing on improving relations of the commandos in the media. in 2016 Swillens was appointed Commandant of the 43rd Mechanized Brigade in 2019 Swillens was appointed Director of the

Dutch Military Intelligence and Security Service The Military Intelligence and Security Service ( Dutch: ''Militaire Inlichtingen- en Veiligheidsdienst'') is the military intelligence service of the Netherlands, which operates under the Ministry of Defence. (online pdf here: https://www.docdro ...

and subsequently promoted to Major general in 2024 Swillens succeeded Martin Wijnen as Commander of the Royal Netherlands Army

References

1967 births Living people Dutch military commanders {{Netherlands-mil-bio-stub