Colin Weir

Weir was born on 2 March 1971 in Portadown, Northern Ireland.^[1] He was educated at Portadown College, and graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a Bachelor of Arts degree in History.^[2]

Weir was commissioned into the Royal Irish Rangers on 26 May 1991.^[3] He was appointed commanding officer of the 1st Battalion of the Royal Irish Regiment in March 2010 and was deployed in that role to Afghanistan.^[2] He went on to be chief of staff for 1st (United Kingdom) Division in December 2012, commander of 16 Air Assault Brigade in July 2015,^[4] and Assistant Chief of Staff (Operations) at Permanent Joint Headquarters in May 2017 before becoming General Officer Commanding 1st (United Kingdom) Division in November 2018.^[5] Weir was appointed chief of staff to the Field Army in 2020, and stepped down in July 2023.^[6]

Weir was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2010 New Year Honours,^[7] awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) on 30 September 2011 for service in Afghanistan,^[8] and appointed Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) in the 2023 Birthday Honours.^[9]