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 ...

Mark Evans, (born 24 April 1953) is a retired senior officer in the

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia. It is a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF), along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army ...

. He was chief of joint operations from July 2008 until his retirement in May 2011.

Early years

Evans was born in

Kluang Kluang, formerly Keluang, is a town in Kluang District, Johor, Malaysia. Kluang was founded in 1915 as the administrative capital of central Johor by the British. It is located in the centre of the state and is within 90 minutes of all major ...

, Malaya, on 24 April 1953 to William Eric and Valerie Doreen Evans, and was educated in the United Kingdom.

Military career

British Army

He was a cadet in the Worcestershire Army Cadet Force (ACF), in Droitwich Troop, a detachment affiliated to the

Queen's Own Hussars The Queen's Own Hussars (QOH), was a cavalry regiment of the British Army, formed from the amalgamation of the 3rd The King's Own Hussars and the 7th Queen's Own Hussars at Candahar Barracks, Tidworth in 1958. The regiment served in Aden and ...

. He achieved the rare appointment of cadet under officer before leaving the ACF for the Regular Army. Evans spent five years in 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 ...

, which included officer training at the

Royal Military Academy Sandhurst The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS or RMA Sandhurst), commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is one of several military academy, military academies of the United Kingdom and is the British Army's initial Commissioned officer, officer train ...

and regimental duties with the

Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment The Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment (29th/45th Foot) (abbreviated as ''WFR'') was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Prince of Wales' Division. The regiment served as the county regiment for Derbyshire, Nottingha ...

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. During this time, he was involved in counter insurgency operations in

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 ...

. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant on 9 March 1973, and promoted to

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

on 8 September 1974. Evans resigned his British commission on 13 April 1976.

Australian Army

Evans resigned his British commission on 13 April 1976 and joined the

, where he was first posted to the

6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (6 RAR) is a mechanised infantry battalion of the Australian Army. It was originally raised in Brisbane, Queensland, on 6 June 1965 and has since then served in a number of overseas deployments and confl ...

(6 RAR). In 1979–80, he held the position (as a

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 ...

) of officer commanding C Company at the

Australian Army Apprentice School Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...

at Balcombe, Victoria. In 1985, he served with the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

in the Middle East. In 1989, he was appointed as

brigade major A brigade major was the chief of staff of a brigade in the British Army. They most commonly held the rank of major, although the appointment was also held by captains, and was head of the brigade's "G - Operations and Intelligence" section direct ...

of 3rd Brigade and, in 1991, promoted to lieutenant colonel at Australian Defence Force Headquarters. Between 1992 and 1993, he commanded 6 RAR, for which he was appointed a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

. In December 1994, Evans was promoted 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 ...

, and in 1998 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 ...

commanding the 3rd Brigade. During this time he commanded the brigade on operations in

East Timor Timor-Leste, also known as East Timor, officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the coastal exclave of Oecusse in the island's northwest, and ...

, during Operation Warden, for which he was awarded the

Distinguished Service Cross The Distinguished Service Cross (D.S.C.) is a military decoration for courage. Different versions exist for different countries. *Distinguished Service Cross (Australia) *Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) *Distinguished Service Cross (U ...

. In July 2002, he was promoted to major general and assumed command of the 1st Division at

Gallipoli Barracks Enoggera Barracks (also known as Gallipoli Barracks) is an Australian Army base in the northwestern Brisbane suburb of Enoggera in Queensland, Australia. It was officially established in the early 20th century when the area was used for fiel ...

. On 13 April 2004, he assumed the new position of deputy chief of joint operations at Headquarters Joint Operations Command in Sydney. In July 2005, he was appointed as head Defence Personnel Executive in Canberra and, in June 2007, awarded an

Officer of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

. On 17 June 2007, Evans assumed command of Joint Task Force 633, Australia's contribution in the

Middle East Area of Operations The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.United Nations Group o ...

to the Global War on Terror. During that time, he was responsible for

Australian Defence Force The Australian Defence Force (ADF) is the Armed forces, military organisation responsible for the defence of Australia and its national interests. It consists of three branches: the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), Australian Army and the Royal Aus ...

operations in Iraq, Afghanistan and the North Persian Gulf. He was succeeded in that position by Major General Mike Hindmarsh in an official ceremony on 1 March 2008. On 20 March 2008, it was announced that he was to be promoted to the rank of

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 ...

and would assume the position of chief of joint operations from 4 July 2008. Evans retired from the Australian Army on 19 May 2011.

Personal life

Evans married Veronica Ann Higley on 9 September 1974. They have an adult son and daughter. Evans has a wide variety of interests that include military history, reading, walking and watching Veronica gardening.

Honours and awards

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Mark 1953 births 20th-century British Army personnel Australian generals Australian military personnel of the International Force for East Timor Australian military personnel of the Iraq War Australian military personnel of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) British military personnel of The Troubles (Northern Ireland) Chiefs of Joint Operations (Australia) Graduates of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst Living people Officers of the Order of Australia Recipients of the Decoration of Merit Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (Australia) Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment officers British emigrants to Australia People from Droitwich Spa