Lord Ramsbotham was commissioned into the Regular Army in 1957, on coming down from Cambridge where he read History.

Between then and when he retired in 1993, in the rank of General, he served in Germany; Kenya; Hong Kong; Borneo; Gibraltar and Northern Ireland, as well as England. In his final job as Adjutant General (Personnel Director) he was also an ADC (General) to HM Queen.

Between then and 1995 he was Director of International Affairs of Defence Systems Limited, working on post-conflict reconstruction including demining, and chaired Hillingdon NHS Hospital Trust.

From 1995 to 2001 he was HM Chief Inspector of Prisons for England and Wales, in which capacity he inspected and/or visited every prison, as well as others in America; Canada; Germany and the Overseas Territories.

He was appointed an independent crossbench member of the House of Lords in 2005, where he concentrates on all aspects of penal reform and defence.