Royal College of Defence Studies

The Royal College of Defence Studies is part of the UK Defence Academy. It was founded in 1927 as the Imperial Defence College and was chiefly concerned with defending the British Empire. Today it defines its mission as to

"Develop leaders and international strategists" and to

"To prepare senior officers and officials of the United Kingdom and other countries and future leaders from the private and public sectors for high responsibilities in their respective organisations, by developing their analytical powers, knowledge of defence and international security, and strategic vision".

The College runs one course a year, from January to December. Each course is attended by a maximum of 88 Members, around one-third from UK and two-thirds from overseas. Seventy-five per cent are military officers and the remaining 25 per cent are civil servants, diplomats, police officers and representatives from the private sector.

History

• 1922 Winston Churchill, Secretary of State for the colonies, presides over a cabinet committe who recommend the creation of the college
• 1927 College is founded as the Imperial Defence College, chiefly concerned with defence of the Empire, with 25 Members drawn from the UK, Australia, Canada and New Zealand.
• 1946 College reopened at Seaford House, Members from the United States attended the course for the first time.
• 1970 Renamed The Royal College of Defence Studies in 1970. The Course composition has been progressively widened to include Members from all parts of the world, over 40 different countries each year, including in recent years China, Ukraine, India, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, Poland, Pakistan and Afganistan.

People

Tim Garden, former Commander | Robert Moss, Visiting Lecturer 1971-80 |