I had the privilege of meeting this impressive man when he was promoting his book to the trade and I was completely captivated. His book is quite something. A strong, outspoken account of life lived through war and conflict. From the Arctic to the jungle, his career spans some 45 years but it is his time in the recent conflicts that really hold one’s attention. Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq … a man at the helm, a man forced to make decisions, a man to be reckoned with … an impressive man. This is history in the making, an autobiography that demands to be read.
General Sir Mike Jackson's illustrious career in the British Army has spanned almost 45 years and all that time he has shown loyalty, courage and commitment to the British army whilst also being an undeniable media attraction.
A man of substance where foreign policy is concerned, he has served in theatres from the Artic to the jungle but is perhaps best known for his role in charge of the British troops to end ethnic cleansing in Kosovo, for assembling the British ground component of the coalition that toppled the Taliban, for equipping and organising the army we dispatched to defeat in Iraq and for re-organising the British army with aplomb. His drive, enthusiasm and dominating personality were always popular with his soldiers and drove him right to the top of his profession. He may have been a general but he never stopped caring about the men and women in his charge, despite the politics.
Soldier: The Autobiography exhibits all the qualities for which Jackson is admired; his professionalism, his honesty, his directness, his exuberance and his sense of humour. Most of all it gives a vivid sense of what modern soldiering entails.
General Sir Mike Jackson is the best known British General of modern times. He retired in the autumn of 2006 after almost 45 years of service in the British army finishing as its head as Chief of the General Staff.
