Colonel Dan Rex MVO - Commander British Gurkhas Nepal / Defence Attaché / Director Gurkha Welfare Trust (Nepal)

Colonel Dan Rex was commissioned into the 10th Princess Mary’s Own Gurkha Rifles in 1993 having studied Ancient History and Archaeology at the University of Birmingham. Early regimental duty began in Hong Kong and was interspersed with operational tours of Bosnia, Kosovo and Sierra Leone, secondment to the Gurkha Welfare Trust in Nepal, SO3 G3 Ops in Belfast, and SO2 G7 Pre-Deployment Training in the Land Warfare Centre.

He commanded D (Tamandu) Company, The Second Battalion, The Royal Gurkha Rifles, in Southern Helmand during Operation HERRICK 4 and was then posted to Defence Intelligence as a Military Intelligence Liaison Officer (MILO), with multiple deployments to South-East Asia, Central Africa, and the Middle East and as the UK’s Defence Attaché to Somalia as a new Defence Section was established. During his time as a MILO, he qualified as a National Hostage and Crisis Negotiator.

In 2010 he was selected to be Equerry to Her Majesty The Queen and had the privilege to serve Her Majesty throughout the Diamond Jubilee. He was made a Member of the Victorian Order in 2012 on completion of this appointment.

Following a short posting to the Headquarters Brigade of Gurkhas, he took post as Station Commander at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in 2013, followed by an operational tour in 2016 in Somalia as the Chief Operations and Plans Officer within the European Training Mission in Mogadishu.

On return from Mogadishu he assumed the post of SO1 Defence Engagement based on the 4th Floor of the MOD, developing the Army’s approach to Persistent Engagement and Capacity Building with Partner Nations across the UK’s aligned regions of the globe.

In March 2018 he took post as Commander British Forces (Land) in Iraq, on promotion to Colonel, followed by a posting to the Directorate of Defence Communications as the Assistant Head of Strategy (Army).

In 2021 he was seconded to lead an environmental project, The Queen’s Green Canopy, in celebration of the life of Her Late Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. The project inspired the planting of over 3 million trees across the United Kingdom, with a focus on areas of urban deprivation, trained over 70 young people and published a book highlighting the importance of the United Kingdom’s ancient trees and forests.

Colonel Dan Rex enjoys most sports, travelling and reading, particularly history and is also a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.  He is the Chairman of the Royal Gurkha Rifles Regimental Association and a Trustee Director of the Gurkha Welfare Trust.