Major-General Walter Reynell Taylor CB (5 April 1928 – 22 January 1996) was a British Army officer who became commander of British Forces Cyprus.
Early life
Taylor was born on 5 April 1928 the son of Colonel Richard Reynell Taylor. He was educated at Wellington College before moving on to Sandhurst.
Military career
Taylor was commissioned into the 4th/7th Royal Dragoon Guards in December 1948, who were based at Sabratha in Libya. In 1957 he joined the Staff College at Camberley followed by a two-year exchange appointment in Canada. On return from Canada he returned to the staff college as an instructor. On promotion to lieutenant-colonel in 1967 he joined the Defence Planning Staff in Singapore. In 1967 he moved to Germany to command his regiment; two years later, now a full colonel, he returned to the Staff College.
Taylor was promoted to brigadier and became commander of 12th Armoured Brigade in September 1972 at Osnabruck. In 1975 he attended the Royal College of Defence Studies in London before becoming deputy director of military operations at the Ministry of Defence in January 1976 and commander of British Forces Cyprus and Administrator of the Sovereign Base Areas in May 1978. He went on to be Chief of Staff for British Army of the Rhine in December 1980 before retiring in January 1984.
