Robert Cawthome ( ur, ) was the co-founder of the

Inter-Services Intelligence The Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI; ur, , bayn khadamatiy mukhabarati) is the premier intelligence agency of Pakistan. It is responsible for gathering, processing, and analyzing any information from around the world that is deemed relevant ...

and founder of

Pakistan Army Corps of Signals The Corps of Signals (Urdu: ﺁرمى سگنل كور; ''Army Signal Corps'', is an administrative corps and a major intelligence, science and technology formation of the Pakistan Army. The core objectives include research and development, te ...

. He served as two star

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 the

Pakistan army The Pakistan Army (, ) is the Army, land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the partition of India, Partition of British India, wh ...

and set up the

ISI ISI or Isi may refer to: Organizations * Intercollegiate Studies Institute, a classical conservative organization focusing on college students * Ice Skating Institute, a trade association for ice rinks * Indian Standards Institute, former name of ...

to become its second

Director General A director general or director-general (plural: ''directors general'', ''directors-general'', ''director generals'' or ''director-generals'' ) or general director is a senior executive officer, often the chief executive officer, within a governmen ...

Career

Robert Bill Cawthome was born in Australia and was a major general in the British Indian Army in the

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

. After independence of Pakistan and India, he moved to Pakistan and joined the newly formed

. He formed

and served as the Deputy Chief of Staff in the army. Cawthome founded the

in 1948 along with Syed Shahid Hamid and some others after the

Indo-Pakistani War of 1947–1948 The Indo-Pakistani War of 1947–1948, or the First Kashmir War, was a war fought between India and Pakistan over the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir from 1947 to 1948. It was the first of four Indo-Pakistani wars that was fought between ...

, which exposed weaknesses in intelligence gathering between the

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ) is the Army, land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the partition of India, Partition of British India, wh ...

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ar ...

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It include ...

, Intelligence Bureau and

Military Intelligence Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist commanders in their decisions. This aim is achieved by providing an assessment of data from ...

. The policies of the agency were his brain-child. He was promoted to two star

in the army. In 1950 he became Director-General of Inter-Services Intelligence succeeding Syed Shahid Hamid. He was succeeded by Riaz Hussain in 1959. After his retirement, Cawthome moved back to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and lived there till his death.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cawthorne, Robert British Indian Army officers Pakistani generals Pakistani spies Directors General of Inter-Services Intelligence Australian emigrants to Pakistan Year of birth missing Year of death missing