Commander-in-chief

A commander-in-chief is the commander of a nation's military forces or significant element of those forces. In the latter case, the force element may be defined as those forces within a particular region or those forces which are associated by function. As a practical term it refers to the military competencies that reside in a nation-state's executive, head of state or government. Often, a given country's commander-in-chief need not be or have been a commissioned officer or even a veteran, and it is by this legal statute that civilian control of the military is realized in states where it is constitutionally required.

The term "commander-in-chief" derives from the Latin imperator. Imperatores (commanders-in-chief) of the Roman Republic and Roman Empire possessed imperium (command) powers. In its modern usage, the term was first used by King Charles of England in 1639. A nation's head of state usually holds the position of national commander-in-chief, even if effective executive power is held by a separate head of government. Colonial governors are also often appointed commander-in-chief of the military forces in their colonies. Examples are Commander-in-Chief Allied Forces North, or Commander-in-Chief East Atlantic.

Commander-in-Chief is sometimes referred to as Supreme Commander, which is sometimes used as a specific term. The term is also used for military officers who hold such power and authority, not always through dictatorship, and as a subordinate (usually) to a head of state. The term is also used for officers that hold authority over individual branches or within a theatre of operations^[1]

Within NATO and the European Union, the term Chief of Defence (CHOD) is usually used as a generic term for the highest military commanders of the NATO and EU member states, irrespective of their actual title.

Australia

Under chapter II of section 68 titled 'Command of the naval and military forces,' the Constitution of Australia states that: "The command in chief of the naval and military forces of the Commonwealth is vested in the Governor General as the Queen's representative."

The current Queen of Australia is HM Elizabeth II and the current Governor General is Quentin Bryce.

Brazil

The 142nd article of the Brazilian Constitution of 1988 states that the supreme commander of the Armed Forces is the President of the Republic. That office is currently occupied by Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Brunei

Currently His Majesty Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah is the Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces.

Canada

Queen Elizabeth II of Canada in her role as Commander-in-Chief of the Canadian Militia, Naval, and Air Forces, pictured with the crew of HMCS St. Laurent in Stockholm, Sweden, 11 June 1956.

The current Commander-in-Chief of the Canadian Forces (in French: Commandant en chef des Forces canadiennes) is Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada. The powers of this position are constitutionally vested in the Canadian sovereign and are delegated by him or her to the Governor General of Canada, who may also use the title Commander-in-Chief. Government ministers may sometimes exercise the powers of command; however, it is ultimately the monarch who has constitutional power over the armed forces and in whose name it is exercised. The sovereign may also stop any attempts to use the Canadian Forces unconstitutionally.

Croatia

According to the Croatian constitution, the President of Croatia is the Commander-in-Chief of Armed Forces of the Republic of Croatia. In peace, the Commander-in-Chief exercises his command through the Minister of Defense. In war and in cases where the Minister of Defense is not fulfilling orders, the Commander-in-Chief exercises his command directly through the chief of General Staff.

Egypt

In Egypt the President of the Republic holds the ceremonial title of Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces while a member of the Government holds the position Commander-in-Chief. This person tends to be the Minister for Defence. The President still remains the only individual capable of declaring war. So far all Egyptian presidents have been former military officers, and during the Yom Kippur War the President played a major role at all levels of the planning of the war, and was in a literal sense Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces giving direct orders to the commanders from the headquarters during the war as field marshal of the army, colonel general of the air force and air defence forces and admiral of the navy. Anwar el-Sadat often wore his military uniform, while Hosni Mubarak has abandoned this tradition. However Hosni Mubarak holds the same ranks during war time.

Finland

According to the Finnish constitution, the President of Finland is the Commander-in-Chief of all Finnish military forces. In practice, the everyday command and control is in the hands of Chief of Defence and the Commander of the Finnish Border Guard. The economic administration of the Finnish Defence Force is the responsibility of Ministry of Defence. Since the constitutional reform of 2000, the minister of defence has the right to be present while the president uses her command powers, unless the matter is of immediate concern. In questions of strategic importance, the prime minister has the same right.

The President commissions officers and decides on the mobilisation of the Defence Forces. If Parliament is not in session when a decision to mobilise is taken, it must be immediately convened. A declaration of war is made by a presidential decree, which must be afterwards accepted by the parliament.

France

In France, the President of the Republic, currently Nicolas Sarkozky holds the title of "Chef des Armées" ("Chief of the Armies"). He is the supreme authority for military affairs, and is the only competent authority for the use of nuclear weapons.

Since the reign of Louis XIV France has been strongly centralized. After crushing local nobles engaged in warlordism, the Kings of France retained all authority with the help of able yet discreet Prime ministers (Mazarin, Richelieu).

The 1789 Revolution transferred the supreme authority to the King (in the context of the short-lived constitutional Monarchy), then to the multi-member Comité de Salut Public during the Convention, and later to the Directoire, before being regained in the hands of Consul Napoléon Bonaparte, later Emperor Napoléon I, alone.

The Restoration restored authority of the King, in an absolute, then constitutional way before being overthrown by the Second Empire. The following Third Republic was a parliamentary system, where the military authority was held by the President of the Council (Prime Minister).

During World War II, Maréchal Philippe Pétain assumed power and held the supreme authority in Vichy France, while Général Charles De Gaulle, acting on behalf of the previous regime, founded the Free French Forces, upon which he held supreme authority all through the war.

The following and short-lived Fourth Republic was a parliamentary system, which was replaced by the present Fifth Republic, a semi-presidential system.

Germany

Pre-1945

During the German Empire, Weimar Republic and the Nazi era, whoever was head of state---the Kaiser to 1918, the Reichspräsident to 1934 and Adolf Hitler from 1934---was Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces. Each branch had its own commander-in-chief, holding the highest rank---in the case of the Reichsheer, a Generaloberst; in the Reichsmarine, an Admiral.

When Adolf Hitler assumed power, he granted his war minister, Werner von Blomberg, the title of Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. However, in 1938, Hitler took the title of Commander-in-Chief himself and assumed personal command of the Armed Forces.

West Germany (later united Germany)

Upon the remilitarization of West Germany in 1955, when it joined NATO, the Grundgesetz was amended to include constitutional provisions for command of the armed forces. In peacetime, the Federal Minister of Defence (Bundesminister der Verteidigung) is the commander-in-chief of the Bundeswehr. If the Bundestag (parliament) declares a "state of defence" (Verteidigungsfall), the Federal Chancellor (Bundeskanzler) assumes command of the German armed forces. As of 2010^[update], this has never happened.

East Germany

The parliament of the German Democratic Republic (GDR), the Volkskammer, enacted on 13 February 1960 the "Law on the Formation of the National Defense Council of the GDR", which established a council consisting of a chairman and at least 12 members. This was later incorporated into the GDR Constitution in April 1968. The National Defense Council held the supreme command of the GDR's armed forces (including the internal security forces), and the Council's chairman (usually the General Secretary of the ruling Socialist Unity Party) was considered the GDR's commander-in-chief. The GDR joined with the Federal Republic of Germany on 3 October 1990, upon which the GDR's constitution and armed forces were abolished.

European Union

The High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, Lady Ashton, is the Commander-in-Chief of the EUFOR (European Union Armed Forces).

Hong Kong

When Hong Kong was a British colony the Governor was ex officio Commander-in-Chief of British Forces Overseas Hong Kong. (After the transfer of sovereignty the commander of the People's Liberation Army Hong Kong Garrison are PLA personnel from the mainland China.)

India

The Supreme Command of the Armed Forces vests in the President, although effective executive power and responsibility for national defence resides with the Cabinet headed by the Prime Minister. This is discharged through the Ministry of Defence headed by Defence Minister, which provides the policy framework and resources to the Armed Forces to discharge their responsibilities in the context of the defence of the country.

On August 15, 1947, each Service was placed under its own Chief Commander. In 1955, the three Service Chiefs were redesignated as the Chief of the Army Staff (General), the Chief of the Naval Staff (Admiral) and the Chief of the Air Staff (Air Chief Marshal) with President of India as supreme commander.

• Chief of the Army Staff: General Vijay Kumar Singh
• Chief of the Naval Staff: Admiral Nirmal Kumar Verma
• Chief of the Air Staff: Air Chief Marshal Pradeep Vasant Naik
• Commander-in-Chief, Strategic Forces Command: Vice-Admiral Vijay Shankar
• Chief of Integrated Defence Staff: Vice-Admiral Raman Puri

Iran

Before 1979, the Shah was the commander-in-chief in Iran. After the inception of the Islamic Republic, the Supreme Leader of Iran has taken on the role.

Ireland

In Ireland, the commander-in-chief of the army is the President. Though this is just a title, the minister of defence holds the power over the military to the General.

Italy

The Constitution of Italy, article 87, states that the President of the Republic is the commander of the armed forces and chairman of the supreme defense council constituted by law; he declares war according to the decision of the parliament; however, since the president has no direct executive power, the Prime Minister and the Minister of Defence have the actual control of the armed forces, while the president retains a supervision role.

Mauritius

In the Republic of Mauritius, the President it is the Head of state and therefore the commander-in-chief.

Pre-1968

Before gaining independence in 1968, it was the monarch (Queen Elizabeth II at the time) who was the head of state and therefore commander-in-chief.

1968–1992

After obtaining independence in 1968, Mauritius continued to recognize the Queen as Head of State and commander-in-chief, who was represented by a Governor-General.

After 1992

After the country was proclaimed Commonwealth Republic, the new constitution stipulated that a President would assume the position of the Head of State and hence commander-in-chief.

Pakistan

In the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, before the 1973 Constitution, the head of the Army, i.e., the Chief of the Army Staff, was referred as Commander-in-Chief. The term was replaced by Army Chief per recommendation of the Hamoodur Rehman Commission's report. The report also recommended that the President, being the head of state, be referred to as Supreme Commander. (The role of President is only a ceremonial position since the real power rests with the elected Prime Minister, who is the Chief Executive of the state.) Since 1973 these roles have been changed. Today, the President of the Federation holds the real power since most of the Presidents (especially Dictators and Army Rulers) have played a more significant role.

People's Republic of China

Article 93 of the Constitution of the People's Republic of China places the authority to direct the armed forces of the PRC in the Central Military Commission. However, Article 80 gives the President of the People's Republic of China the power to proclaim martial law, proclaim a state of war, and issue mobilization orders upon the decision of National People's Congress, the highest state body. Since the mid-1990s, it has been standard practice to have the President, the CMC Chairman, and the General Secretary of the Communist Party of China be the same person although the differences in the start of terms means that there is some overlap between an occupant and his predecessor.

Republic of China

As stipulated in the national constitution of the Republic of China (commonly known as "Taiwan" since the 1970s), the President of the Republic of China is also the Commander-in-Chief of the ROC's Navy, Army, Air Force, Marines, Special Forces, and Space program.

Poland

In Poland, President is the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces. However, the art. 134 ust. 4 of the constitution states: The President of the Republic, for a period of war, shall appoint the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces on request of the Prime Minister. He may dismiss the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces in accordance with the same procedure. The authority of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, as well as the principle of his subordination to the constitutional organs of the Republic of Poland, shall be specified by statute.

During the interwar period, the General Inspector of the Armed Forces was appointed the commander-in-chief for the time of war (Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces). However, after the war this function ceased to exist thus it is expected that in case of formal participation in war by Poland, Chief of the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces will be appointed Supreme Commander.

Portugal

In Portugal the President of the Republic holds the title of Commander-in-Chief, but he delegates it in the Chief of Defence Staff (Portugal).

Russia

According to the Constitution of Russia, the President of Russia is the supreme commander in chief of the Armed Forces. He approves the military doctrine and appoints the defense minister and the chief of the general staff.

Slovenia

In Slovenia, the commander-in-chief is formally the President of Slovenia, although he or she doesn't exercise this position in peacetime. Instead, this role is usually assumed by the Minister of Defence.

Spain

The King of Spain (as of present Juan Carlos I of Spain) is the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Spanish Armed Forces.

Sri Lanka

As head of state, the President of Sri Lanka, is nominally the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. The National Security Council, chaired by the President is the authority charged with formulating and executing defence policy for the nation. The highest level of military headquarters is the Ministry of Defence, since 1978 except for a few rare occasions the President retained the portfolio defence, thus being the Minister of Defence. The ministry and the armed forces have been controlled by the during these periods by either a Minister of State, Deputy Minister for defence, and of recently the Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Defence. Prior to 1978 the Prime Minister held the portfolio of Minister of Defence and External Affairs, and was supported by a Parliamentary Secretary for Defence and External Affairs.

Responsibility for the management of the forces is Ministry of Defence, while the planning and execution of combined operations is the responsibility of the Joint Operations Command (JOC). The JOC is headed by the Chief of the Defence Staff who is the most senior officer in the Armed Forces and is an appointment that can be held by an Air Chief Marshal, Admiral, or General. The three services have their own respective professional chiefs: the Commander of the Army, the Commander of the Navy and the Commander of the Air Force, who have much autonomy.

Suriname

In Suriname, the constitution gives the president "supreme authority over the armed forces".^[2]

Sweden

In Sweden – under the Instrument of Government (1809), and until the adoption of the constitution of 1975 – the Monarch was the Commander-in-Chief of all Swedish Armed Forces (Swedish: Krigsmaktens högste befälhavare).

After the new constitution came into effect: the Cabinet, which in turn is led by the Prime Minister of Sweden, holds the highest Executive Authority and is thus the Swedish Commander-in-Chief. Some Government decisions regarding the Armed Forces may be delegated to the Minister for Defence, under the supervision of the Prime Minister and to the extent laid down in law.

However, the Monarch of Sweden (as of present King Carl XVI Gustaf), is still a four star General and Admiral à la suite in the Swedish Army, Navy and Air Force and is by convention the foremost representative of the Swedish Armed Forces. The King has, as part of his Royal Court, a Military Staff. The Staff is headed by a senior officer (usually a General or Admiral, retired from active service) and is manned by military officers serving as aides to the King and his family.

To add to some confusion, the title of the commanding officer of the Armed Forces is actually Supreme Commander of the Swedish Armed Forces (Swedish: Överbefälhavaren).

Switzerland

In peacetime, the Armed Forces are led by the Chief of the Armed Forces who has the rank of "Corps commander" (Korpskommandant or Commandant de corps. Ranking OF-8 in NATO equivalence). In a time of declared war or national emergency however, the Federal Assembly appoints a General (OF-9 by NATO) as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. The General acts as the highest military authority, but is subordinate to the Federal Council, which holds the supreme authority.

Four generals were appointed in Swiss history, General Henri Dufour during the Swiss Civil War, General Hans Herzog during the Franco-Prussian War, General Ulrich Wille during the First World War, and General Henri Guisan during the Second World War ("la Mob", "the Mobilisation"). Although Switzerland remained neutral during the latter three conflicts, the threat of having its territory used as a battlefield by the much bigger war parties of Germany and France required mobilization of the army.

Turkey

President of the Republic of Turkey has the constitutional right to represent the Supreme Military Command of the Turkish Armed Forces, on behalf of the Turkish Grand National Assembly, and to decide on the mobilization of the Turkish Armed Forces, to appoint the Chief of the General Staff, to call the National Security Council to meet, to preside over the National Security Council, to proclaim martial law or state of emergency, and to issue decrees having the force of law, upon a decision of the Council of Ministers meeting under his/her chairmanship. With all these issues above written in the Constitution of Turkey, the executive rights are given to the President of the Republic of Turkey to be represented as the Commander-in-Chief of the nation.

United Kingdom

Then Chief of the Defence Staff General The Lord Walker (centre) presenting new colours to the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, 2005.

As head of state, the British monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, is nominally the Head of the Armed Forces.^[3] Longstanding constitutional convention, however, has vested de facto executive authority in the office of Prime Minister and the Cabinet.^[4] The Queen remains the "ultimate authority" of the military and retains the power to prevent its unconstitutional use.^[5] The Ministry of Defence is the Government department and highest level of military headquarters charged with formulating and executing defence policy for the Armed Forces; it employed 103,930 civilians in 2006^[6][7] The department is controlled by the Secretary of State for Defence and contains three deputy appointments: Minister of State for the Armed Forces, Minister for Defence Procurement, and Minister for Veterans' Affairs.

Responsibility for the management of the forces is delegated to a number of committees: the Defence Council, Chiefs of Staff Committee, Defence Management Board, and three single-service boards. The Defence Council, composed of senior representatives of the services and the Ministry of Defence, provides the "formal legal basis for the conduct of defence".^[7][8] The three constituent single-service committees (Admiralty Board, Army Board, and Air Force Board) are chaired by the Secretary of State for Defence.

The Chief of the Defence Staff is the professional head of the Armed Forces and is an appointment that can be held by an Admiral, Air Chief Marshal, or General. Before the practice was discontinued in the 1990s, those who were appointed to the position of CDS had been elevated to the most senior rank in their respective service (a 5-star rank).^[9] The CDS, along with the Permanent Under Secretary, are the principal advisers to the departmental minister. The three services have their own respective professional chiefs: the First Sea Lord, the Chief of the General Staff and the Chief of the Air Staff.

Each of the three services also has one or more Commands with a Commander-in-Chief in charge of operations. These are currently Commander-in-Chief Fleet (CINCFLEET - sharing a Command HQ with Commander-in-Chief Naval Home Command (CINCNAVHOME)), Commander-in-Chief, Land Forces (CINCLAND) and Commander-in-Chief Air (CINCAIR). Previously, there were also territorial Commands, e.g. Commander-in-Chief Far East.

United States

The Commander in Chief of the United States armed forces is the U.S. President. This is pursuant to Article II, Section 2, Clause I of the United States Constitution which states that the President:

...shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States.

See the 1941 Declarations of War [1] against Japan and Germany for how this call is made.

The term "commander in chief" refers to a specific subset of the President's duties though it is often used as a synonym for "President."

The John Warner Defense Authorization Act of 2007, a federal law, briefly established the governor of a state was no longer the sole commander-in-chief of the National Guard during emergencies within the state, providing that the President would then be able to take control of a state's National Guard units without the governor's consent.^[10] In a letter to Congress, all 50 governors opposed this change.^[11] These changes were repealed in 2008, restoring full command within a state to that state's governor. This restoration of gubernatorial authority occurred by repealing the 2006 amendments to the Insurrection Act.

The title commander-in-chief has been used from time to time to refer to powerful regional U.S. military leaders (such as CENTCOM); in 2002 these regional CINCs were redesignated "combatant commanders". The National Security Act of 1947 made the President, as a consequence of the creation of the United States Air Force, also the Commander-in-Chief of that branch of the armed forces.

Although the United States presidency was partially modeled upon the monarch of Great Britain, and the title of Commander-in-Chief was unlikely to have been understood to confer upon the President any powers additional to those inherently held by a Sovereign, the title has increasingly come to be perceived as being a peculiarly military position. This has led to a blurring of the distinction between the President's civil and military responsibilities. It was, for instance, the basis for the trial by military commission of Dr. Samuel Mudd.

In the United States, the Goldwater-Nichols Defense Reorganization Act of 1986 added a new level of commanders-in-chief (CINCs). Under Goldwater-Nichols, regional CINCs were created to bring a local supreme commander to a conflict. The best known of these were Generals Norman Schwarzkopf, who was CINCCENT during Operation Desert Storm, and Wesley K. Clark, who was CINCEU and SACEUR during the Kosovo War.

On October 24, 2002, Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld announced that the title of "Commander-in-Chief" would thereafter be reserved for the President, consistent with the terms of Article II of the United States Constitution. Armed forces CINCs in specified regions would thereafter be known as "combatant commanders," heading the Unified Combatant Commands.

In 2008, there are ten Unified Combatant Commands. Six have regional responsibilities, and four have functional responsibilities. The chain of command runs from the President to the United States Secretary of Defense to the combatant commanders of the Unified Combatant Commands. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff may transmit communications to the Commanders of the Unified Combatant Commands from the President and Secretary of Defense, but does not exercise military command over any combatant forces.

Authority as Commander-in-Chief on the battlefield

As Commander-in-Chief, the President outranks any military officer and so has the inherent right to assume command on the battlefield. It should be noted that only one man has ever been Commander in Chief of the United States Armed Forces without being President: It was George Washington, appointed Commander in Chief by the Continental Congress. However, because presidents are rarely present in war zones, and often have less military experience than the military commanders, only two presidents, George Washington and James Madison, have so far done so. Washington personally led a federalized militia force of approximately 15,000 troops to quell the Whiskey Rebellion during his second term, although he was not present during any of the skirmishing in the relatively bloodless conflict.

During the War of 1812, President Madison was under enemy fire on August 24, 1814, when American forces were routed by British troops in Bladensburg, Maryland. Madison, incensed by the American commanding general's incompetence, was on the scene and personally assumed command of the only remaining American force, a naval battery commanded by Commodore Joshua Barney. He did so to stall the British invasion of the American capital, but his efforts were unsuccessful, and the British burned Washington over the next two days.

During the American Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln considered personally assuming battlefield command of the Union Army, and studied military texts when he became frustrated by the incompetence and lethargy of his generals. He actually came under enemy fire in 1864 during the Confederate attack on Fort Stevens in the District of Columbia, but did not exercise battlefield authority as commander-in-chief at any time.

In modern times it is rare for a U.S. president to be present in war torn areas because of the mayhem it could cause at home and around the world. Over the course of United States history there have been four successful assassination attempts of US presidents, twenty known attempts overall, and one fairly recent near miss with Ronald Reagan. The fame and power a U.S. president holds in the 21st century turns him into a highly desirable target for enemies and thus often a strange paradox is created as the Commander-In-Chief usually must take direction from officers whom he outranks, especially in a crisis situation. Nevertheless, over the past ten years presidents have been involved in covert operations to and from the front lines in Iraq and Afghanistan to review the situation in both theaters and to boost troop morale.

See also

• Command responsibility
• International law
• Jus ad bellum
• Jus in bello
• Military law
• Imperial Presidency

References