Three soldiers on the same base switching from male to female
TWO EXTRAORDINARY STORIES THAT REFLECT HOW QUICKLY THE ARMY IS CHANGING
THREE soldiers from the same Army base who were born male have changed their gender, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.
They were given full backing from commanders after declaring they want to live as women. At least one plans to undergo reassignment surgery.
It is understood they have been given separate sleeping quarters and washing facilities at their barracks in Germany.
Two of the three, Tom Marshall – now Katie Tom Rodriguez-Marshall – and Paul Jones – now Catherine Jones – serve with a regiment named after Princess Diana.
Senior officers in the Princess of Wales’s Royal Regiment – also known as the Tigers – are now receiving refresher training to ensure they have a close knowledge of the strict guidelines surrounding transgender troops.
The motto on the regiment’s badge translates as: ‘Shame on him who thinks ill of it.’
Pictures of both Katie, a lance corporal, and Catherine dressed as women have been posted on open Facebook pages, with Katie, who married in 2016, candidly responding to friends’ comments.
Asked by one if she would just be dressing as a woman or becoming one, she replied: ‘Getting a sex change.’
The third soldier, whose identity is not known, serves with the Adjutant General’s Corps. All are based at Paderborn in Germany. The news has surprised top brass as official figures show there are only up to ten other troops changing gender across the whole of the British Army.
Under military regulations, the trio must identify as women for a full 12 months before transitioning. The first step involves hormone therapy, which can lead to the development of breasts, and later reassignment surgery.
Katie, from Kent, posted a picture of herself in a floral dress on Facebook which prompted a friend to respond: ‘Seriously? Dude? Fancy dress competition?’
Katie replied: ‘No permanently changing.’ Then the friend comments: ‘That’s a good one mate.’ Katie responds: ‘Really? Thanks.’ Elsewhere she writes: ‘Yeah I’m gonna be a woman from now on.’
Her Facebook page from just a few years earlier features a picture of a gadget-laden sofa, which Katie – then Tom – described as: ‘Man’s best friend.’
In 2016, she shared a picture of his fiancee’s hand after her marriage proposal, captioned: ‘Yes she said yes. I love you princess!’
After getting married, she joked about having to take all her heavy metal posters down.
In other images seen by the MoS, Catherine, wears what appears to be a long blonde wig and in another picture is seen in full uniform on a parade ground. Last night she was on leave with family in Portsmouth.
Transgender personnel now serve in the Royal Navy, Army and RAF
Officers given extra transgender training
at many levels. The Army’s first female combat soldier, Guardsman Chloe Allen of the Scots Guards, was born a boy.
When her decision to change gender was revealed two years ago, General Sir James Everard, Commander of the Field Army, said the Army, which has had an employment policy for transgender servicemen and women since 1999, ‘is proving itself as an inclusive organisation where everyone can thrive’.
And in an encouraging message to others in similar positions, Chloe said: ‘The military has every walk of life, especially the Army. You just need to go out and ask for advice and go down that route.’
However, it was revealed last week that Army chiefs had confused soldiers by issuing contradictory guidelines on gender. The eight-page Gender Identity Guide for Army Personnel aims to inform troops of the right terms to use with LGBT comrades.
On one page it says gender identity is ‘self determined’. But on the next it tries to answers the question, ‘So, it’s a social choice?’ by stating :‘ Quite the opposite. One does not choose their gender.’ The guidelines are now being updated.
Last year it emerged that 34 troops across the Armed Forces are having medical treatment to change gender.
That figure is now likely to be higher. The treatment is available on the NHS and may be limited to hormone therapy for some patients, while others will undergo surgery costing at least £20,000 in each case.
It is not known whether the troops are being treated at public expense or from their own pockets. In 2015, Captain Hannah Winterbourne became the Army’s most highly ranked transgender soldier and the first officer to transition. Captain Winterbourne, who had previously completed an tour of Afghanistan as a man, serves with the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers. She has said: ‘In Afghanistan, I was acting for everyone around me. I was sharing a tent with seven men and I realised I could not go on as things were.’ The number of troops who have already completed transgender treatment – before or after joining up – has not been revealed. Last year, Donald Trump banned transgender soldiers serving in the US military ‘in any capacity’. The US President said that he made the decision to keep troops ‘focused on... victory’ and to avoid ‘medical costs’. British transgender people are protected by law to serve in the military under the Equality Act 2010 and some of the UK’s most senior officers criticised President’s Trump’s ban.
Rear Admiral Alex Burton said: ‘As a Royal Navy LGBT champion and senior warfighter I am so glad we are not going this way.’
And Second Sea Lord Vice Admiral Jonathan Woodcock tweeted: ‘ So proud of our transgender personnel... I will always support their desire to serve their country.’
The Army’s LGBT champion, Lieutenant-General Patrick Sanders, said: ‘Only if individuals are free to be themselves can we release the genie of their potential.’
On its diversity pages, the Army website states that transgender soldiers ‘ serve throughout the Army playing their part in the country’s security’.
It adds: ‘The Army welcomes transgender personnel and ensures all who apply are considered for service subject to meeting the same mental and physical entry standard as any other candidate.’