Obituary - Colonel The Rt Hon Sir Geoffrey Pattie PC 1936 - 2024

With the death on 8th October of Colonel The Rt. Hon. Sir Geoffrey Pattie the Regiment and, in particular, its Reserve and Volunteer component, has lost a stalwart and effective supporter.  His work as Honorary Colonel of the 4th (Volunteer) Battalion, and then as Deputy Commandant of the Regiment at a critical point in its development, has resulted in the present-day success of The Rifles and its Reserves.

Obituaries of a public figure such as Geoffrey in the national press leave the reader the chance to gain a wider picture of his distinguished political career.  This obituary concentrates on his service to the Regiment.  In brief, however, his was a political and business career which took him to ministerial appointments in the Ministry of Defence as the last single service Minister for the RAF and first Defence Procurement Minister, and in the Department of Trade and Industry as Aerospace Minister serving in Mrs. Thatcher’s government between 1983 and 1987.    He was appointed a Privy Councillor and knight bachelor.  

His public service and business life continued as a backbench MP until 1997.  He was Vice-Chairman (International) of the Conservative party.  He was closely involved with andsupported the emergence of democratic government in Central and Eastern Europe after 1989.  In business, he was joint chairman of GEC- Marconi and marketing and communications director of GEC.  He was a member of the General Synod of the Church of England.  He co-founded Terrington Management LLP, a Westminster based defence and security consultancy and continued actively in business until the age of 80.  He was a great supporter of local charities and local politics in West Sussex. In all this time, he continued toserve the Regiment: active in big issues such as re-roling and reorganisation, as well as in the convivial side of Regimental life.

Geoffrey Pattie was born on Teesside in 1936. He attended Durham School and then went to St Catharine’s College Cambridge to read Law.   Whilst at Cambridge he was granted a TA Commission in the UOTC, and also joined the Footlights.   On going to work in London, he joined the Queen Victoria Rifles (KRRC) in Davies Steet as a 2nd Lieutenant in December 1959.  Interest in the night life of the West End at that period of their lives as against serious soldiering must have been a temptation for many of the 60th ex National Service subalterns at Davies Steet; not, however, for Geoffrey, who took his Territorial soldiering seriously. Later, as Honorary Colonel the 4th Battalion The Royal Green Jackets, long after he had left Davies St as a captain in 1966 to start a political career, he still knew his way around a night-time defensive position on Stanford Training Area.

He was Honorary Colonel of 4 RGJ from January 1996 to 1999 and then served as DeputyColonel Commandant The Royal Green Jackets from 1999-2007.   It was a long period of duty in a role that the regular officer sometimes finds hard to grasp.  It involves, of course, helping to see that the Volunteer Battalion is operationally efficient; but the foundations of operational efficiency depend on the Battalion’s own recruiting success, its contacts with employers and local opinion formers, on public relations and networking well beyond the reach of the chain of command.  Geoffrey not only understood this very well, as a politician and a PR expert would; he also gave readily and fully to using these rare, high-level talents for the benefit of the Battalion and the Regiment.  He was a great believer in the Reserves.  

His belief and confidence that, given the right conditions, preparation and support, Reservesub-units composed of volunteers and commanded by volunteer officers could take part in all types of operations in Afghanistan, alongside regulars, was in fact realised, and largely through his efforts.  It was well in advance of the policy that later emerged.  It was achieved by a composite company, Somme Company of The London Regiment, with a strong component of F and G (Rifles) Companies of that Regiment, including its OC, Major (as he was then) Milan Torbica RGJ.  Within the regimental hierarchy, Geoffrey took the most active role.  He pushed for early changes in the legislation that freed up volunteers to mobilise early enough with enough man training days to achieve the rigorous professional standards needed.  He visited the training to see for himself what was being done.  He hassled the Staff for equipment and got it.  He worked on details which few non-TA senior officers at that time would have grasped the value of, such as welfare funding and administrative workarounds.  Above all he gave much time and energy giving moral support to the leaders.  Milan speaks warmly of this, recalling Geoffrey’s personal engagement.

Successive Commanding Officers (your obituarist was one of them) recall his calm, level-headed and authoritative comment and advice.  He listened well and spoke in a way that encouraged and convinced officers and soldiers alike.  As a long-time and close colleague said of him: he took the Regiment and much else more seriously than he took himself, a characteristic that won him respect and affection from all sides.

Geoffrey was a committed Member of the Green Jacket family for over 65 years.   A distinguished Member of Parliament, HMG Government Minister, a successful businessman and patron of numerous causes.   He was a wise counsel and generous friend to many.

He leaves a widow Tuema and one son.  His daughter pre-deceased him. He was a great-grandfather.

Letters of condolence should be addressed to:

Lady Pattie (Tuema)

The Manor House

Duncton

Petworth

Sussex

GU28 0JV

The funeral service is to be at Holy Trinity, Duncton, GU28 0JZ, at 2 pm on 8 November

TRH-B with thanks to Brig Anthony Berry, Mrs Caroline Flynn-MacLeod, Col James Cunliffe, Lt Col Milan Torbica.