The Chief of the General Staff (CGS) has been the title of the professional head of the British Army since 1964. The CGS is a member of both the Chiefs of Staff Committee and the Army Board; he is also the Chair of the Executive Committee of the Army Board. Prior to 1964, the title was Chief of the Imperial General Staff (CIGS). Since 1959, the post has been immediately subordinate to the Chief of the Defence Staff, the post held by the professional head of the British Armed Forces.
The Chief of the General Staff (CGS) is the professional head of the Army, with responsibility for developing and generating military capability from an integrated Army (Regular and Reserve) and for maintaining the fighting effectiveness, efficiency and morale of the Service. The CGS reports to the Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS) and, as a Service COS, has a right of direct access to the Secretary of State and the Prime Minister. The CGS is a member of the Defence Council and the Army Board, the Armed Forces Committee, the Chiefs of Staff Committee and the Senior Appointments Committee. Responsibile for:
Maintains the institutional health of the Army by exercising Full Command responsibility for all Army personnel
Ensures the efficient and effective governance of the service
Chairs the Executive Committee of the Army Board and the Army Command Group
Contributes to the conduct of defence higher level business, with a particular responsibility for providing specialist advice on Army matters
Develops future Army capability within the context of Defence strategic direction and resource allocation
Leads the senior management team of the British Army[2]
Backgroundedit
The title was also used for five years between the demise of the Commander-in-Chief of the Forces in 1904 and the introduction of Chief of the Imperial General Staff in 1909. The post was then held by General Sir Neville Lyttelton and, briefly, by Field Marshal Sir William Nicholson.
Throughout the existence of the post the Chief of the General Staff has been the First Military Member of the Army Board.[3]
Professional heads of the English/British Armed Forces
Chief of the General Staff (1964–present)
Roles
edit
The Chief was responsible for commanding the entire British Army. During the Second World War, General Brooke focused on grand strategy, and his relationships, through the Combined Chiefs of Staff with his American counterparts. He was also responsible for the appointment and evaluation of senior commanders, allocation of manpower and equipment, and the organisation of tactical air forces in support of land operations of field commanders; he also had primary responsibility for supervising the military operations of the Free French, Polish, Dutch, Belgian, and Czech units reporting to their governments in exile in London. Brooke vigorously allocated responsibilities to his deputies, and despite the traditional historical distrust that had existed between the military and the political side of the War Office, he got along quite well with his counterpart, the Secretary of State for War, first David Margesson and later, Sir James Grigg. [4]
Appointeesedit
The following table lists all those who have held the post of Chief of the General Staff or its preceding positions. Ranks and honours are as at the completion of their tenure:
^Harnden, Toby (28 August 2023). "'As a soldier, he's beyond compare': The ex-SAS war hero intent on change for the British Army". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 30 October 2023.
^"No. 28125". The London Gazette. 3 April 1908. p. 2567.
^"No. 28311". The London Gazette. 23 November 1909. p. 8662.
^"John French, 1st Earl of Ypres". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/33272. Retrieved 5 February 2012. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
^"No. 28819". The London Gazette. 7 April 1914. p. 3002.
^"Sir James Wolfe-Murray". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. 2004. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/35164. Retrieved 29 January 2012. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
^"No. 29353". The London Gazette. 5 November 1915. p. 10912.
^"No. 29426". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 1915. p. 120.
^"No. 30559". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 March 1918. p. 2867.
^"No. 32615". The London Gazette (Supplement). 20 February 1922. p. 1489.
^"No. 33134". The London Gazette. 19 February 1926. p. 1242.
^Harris, J.P. (2004). "Oxford Dictionary of National Biography". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/35082. Retrieved 13 January 2012. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
^Heathcote, T. A. (1999). The British Field Marshals 1736–1997. Barnsley: Leo Cooper. p. 102. ISBN 0-85052-696-5.
^"No. 34464". The London Gazette. 17 December 1937. p. 7917.
^Cairns, John C. (2004). "Edmund Ironside, 1st Baron Ironside". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/34113. Retrieved 19 February 2012. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
^"No. 34858". The London Gazette (Supplement). 24 May 1940. p. 3175.
^"William Slim, 1st Viscount Slim". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. 2004. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/36120. Retrieved 19 February 2012. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
^"No. 39689". The London Gazette (Supplement). 4 November 1952. p. 5863.
^"No. 40598". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 September 1955. p. 5555.
^"No. 41508". The London Gazette (Supplement). 26 September 1958. p. 5954.
^"No. 42503". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 October 1961. p. 7925.
^ ab"No. 43569". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 February 1965. p. 1361.
^"No. 43712". The London Gazette (Supplement). 13 July 1965. p. 6717.
^"No. 44539". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 March 1968. p. 2655.
^ ab"No. 45337". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 April 1971. p. 3336.
^"Constable of the Tower of London". Parliament of the United Kingdom. Archived from the original on 24 April 2010. Retrieved 12 March 2011.
^"No. 46109". The London Gazette (Supplement). 23 October 1973. p. 12551.
^"No. 46046". The London Gazette (Supplement). 7 August 1973. p. 9395.
^ abc"General Sir Richard Dannatt announced as new Constable of the Tower". Historic Royal Palaces. 5 February 2009. Archived from the original on 1 January 2011. Retrieved 12 March 2011.
^"Field Marshal Sir Roland Gibbs". The Daily Telegraph. 2 November 2004. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 12 March 2011.
^"No. 46965". The London Gazette (Supplement). 19 July 1976. p. 9899.
^"Lord Bramall". Parliament of the United Kingdom. Archived from the original on 27 December 2010. Retrieved 12 March 2011.
^"No. 49142". The London Gazette (Supplement). 18 October 1982. p. 13571.
^"No. 47916". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 July 1979. p. 9695.
^"Field Marshal Sir John Stanie". The Times. 13 November 2007. Retrieved 12 March 2011.
^"No. 49069". The London Gazette (Supplement). 2 August 1982. p. 10134.
^"No. 50226". The London Gazette (Supplement). 12 August 1985. p. 11147.
^"No. 51467". The London Gazette (Supplement). 12 September 1988. p. 10255.
^"No. 52838". The London Gazette (Supplement). 17 February 1992. p. 2789.
^ ab"No. 53645". The London Gazette (Supplement). 18 April 1994. p. 5799.
^"No. 54726". The London Gazette (Supplement). 7 April 1997. p. 4170.
^"No. 54668". The London Gazette (Supplement). 3 February 1997. p. 1419.
^"No. 56294". The London Gazette. 6 August 2001. p. 1001.
^"No. 55823". The London Gazette (Supplement). 18 April 2000. p. 4372.
^"No. 56992". The London Gazette (Supplement). 8 July 2003. p. 8463.
^"2014 Birthday Honours for service personnel and defence civilians". Ministry of Defence. 13 June 2014. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
^"No. 56837". The London Gazette (Supplement). 3 February 2003. p. 1389.
^"No. 58081". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 August 2006. p. 11754.
^"No. 59144". The London Gazette. 31 July 2009. p. 13209.
^"No. 59177". The London Gazette (Supplement). 8 September 2009. p. 15384.
^"No. 59593". The London Gazette (Supplement). 2 November 2010. p. 21039.
^"No. 59550". The London Gazette (Supplement). 21 September 2010. p. 18235.
^"No. 60984". The London Gazette (Supplement). 9 September 2014. p. 2.
^"Lieutenant General Mark Carleton-Smith appointed new Chief of the General Staff". gov.uk. 5 May 2018. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
^"General Patrick Sanders to be appointed new Chief of the General Staff". BFBS Forces News. 27 February 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2022.
Bibliographyedit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Chiefs of the General Staff (United Kingdom).
Fraser, David (1997). Alanbrooke. HarperCollins. ISBN 9780006388630.
Hamilton, Nigel (1986). Monty: Final Years of the Field Marshal 1944–1976. McGraw-Hill. ISBN 9780070258075.