Colonel Bob Stephen was educated at Eton and Cambridge, was the son of the late Brigadier R. C. Stephen, CB, who was himself a 14th Hussar and commanded the Regiment from 1911 to 1915.

Following in his father’s footsteps, Colonel Bob Stephen was commissioned into the Regiment at Aldershot in 1929 and served with it continuously for the next 17 years, in the UK, Egypt and India, during the war in Persia / Iraq, the Middle East and Italy; and after the war in Germany, before proceeding on his one and only tour of extra-regimental duty in 1946.

Colonel Bob Stephen was appointed Second in Command in India in 1940 at a very early age and held the appointment under Lt. Col. Groves and Lt. Col. Tilney for most of the war. However, he succeeded to command the Regiment during the final stages of the campaign in Italy, when Lt. Col. Tilney had to hand over due to ill health after the highly successful Battle of Medicina.

He remained in Command of the 14th/20th King’s Hussars until Lt. Col. Tilney returned to the regiment in Germany in 1946. Colonel Bob Stephen was then selected to attend the Staff College, and after a short spell as a Brigade Major. He returned to succeeded Lt. Col. Tilney at Catterick in 1948 as the Commanding Officer.

In 1951, Colonel Bob Stephen’s Command came to an end after 22 years’ service with the Regiment where he retired from the army to live on Jersey.

In 1957 he was invited to succeed General Sir Richard McCreery as Colonel of the Regiment. He was ideally suited to the appointment and held it for nine years, before handing over to Col Woodd in 1966.

Sadly, Colonel R. J. Stephen, MBE passed away of the 14th August 1975.

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