Denis Cleary, Academy Sergeant-Major who upheld the highest standards at Sandhurst

Denis Cleary, who has died aged 88, was one of the most prominent senior non-commissioned officers in the Army; in 1980, he became the Academy Sergeant Major of RMA Sandhurst, a post he held for seven years and filled with great distinction.

As the senior regimental sergeant-major, Cleary personified all that is best in the warrant officers and sergeants of the British Army to the many thousands of staff, students and visitors who passed through Sandhurst during his service there.

Denis Patrick Cleary was born in Dublin on July 17 1937; he had nine sisters and one brother. His father, James, had served with the Royal Irish Rifles in the First World War and worked for a construction company.

Young Denis was educated at St James’s National School, Dublin, where he excelled at football and athletics. He left school aged 14 and worked as an errand boy at the new Dublin bus depot before leaving Ireland in 1954.

Aged 18, he enlisted in the Irish Guards (IG), nicknamed “The Micks”, and joined the 1st Battalion in the Suez Canal Zone. He subsequently served with the British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) at Dusseldorf and Münster, in Hong Kong and in two tours to British Honduras (now Belize).

A posting to Sandhurst as a company sergeant major was followed by a return to BAOR before returning to London for ceremonial duties. A legendary drill instructor, he insisted on the very highest standards of discipline and nothing less than perfection on the parade ground.

He had a voice which carried, and he took the traditional swig of port to “oil the larynx” before a big parade, but he rarely shouted. His instructors would snap crisply into action at the merest tilt of his head. Allied to his formidable presence was a steely commitment tempered by a gentle Irishness. “Pride, gentlemen, pride,” was his exhortation as his cadets stepped on to the square.

There was humour as well. Among his many contacts was Bruce Forsyth, host of The Generation Game. The show was famous for putting family members in ridiculous situations by challenging them to perform an intricate task, having watched a demonstration by experts.

RSM Cleary and the Micks took part in a hilarious send-up of guard duty at Buckingham Palace. The “mother” had her bearskin back-to-front and was unable to do up the buttons. Afterwards, the officer in charge received a reprimand for bringing the uniform into disrepute. The Major General, however, gracefully retracted this after the director of public relations at the MoD wrote a letter congratulating them on a most effective piece of free PR.

Cleary enjoyed his beer but he kept fit. He played football for the Army and was the inspiration behind 1st IG’s regular successes across a wide range of sports. A vigorous player himself, he was known for his lunging tackles as well as his brisk, no-nonsense attitude to injuries sustained on the pitch. A cadet who had hurt his foot and was laid up in the sanatorium was surprised by a visit from Cleary, who arrived not with a cheering word of sympathy and a bunch of grapes but with a pair of drill boots for him “to work on” as he recovered.

Cleary did not have a Long Service or Good Conduct Medal – he used to joke that nobody who had one could be an RSM of 1st IG.

He had a stint at the Military Corrective Training Centre (MCTC) in Colchester for prolonged absence without leave. He was working under an assumed name on a building site on the Isle of Grain, Kent, when he met Jacqui Jones at a dance; he had to tell her his real name before they got married. He then rejoined the Micks and did his stretch at the MCTC.

Always a source of sound advice and guidance, from the youngest guardsman to any officer who had the good sense to ask for it, he was appointed MBE in 1987 on his retirement from the Army. He worked for the Royal British Legion in Kent, and for several years lived in Spain before returning to England and settling in Herne Bay, Kent. He enjoyed watching football and was a lifelong supporter of Tottenham Hotspur.

Denis Cleary is survived by his wife, Jacqui and their son and daughter.

Academy Sergeant Major Denis Cleary, born July 17 1937, died May 18 2026

[Source: Daily Telegraph]