The title used varies by country and language. Generally, English-speaking countries favor "commander-in-chief", while French-speaking countries favor "chief of armies" (French: chef des armées). Most continental European countries use the term "supreme commander", while the Soviet Union, and consequently the post-soviet states, use "supreme commander-in-chief" (Russian: Верховный главнокомандующий).
Definition
In English use, the term "commander in chief" was first used during the English Civil War. A nation's head of state (monarchical or republican) often holds the position of commander-in-chief, even if effective executive power is held by a separate head of government. In a parliamentary system, the executive branch is ultimately dependent upon the will of the legislature; although the legislature does not issue orders directly to the armed forces and therefore does not control the military in any operational sense.
The title may also be bestowed on an officer in command of a large military or naval force, and governors-general and colonial governors are also often appointed commander-in-chief of the forces within their territory.
A 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 (see Generalissimo). The term is also used for officers who hold authority over an individual military branch, special branch or within a theatre of operations.
Title by country
Albania
According to the Constitution of Albania, the president of the Republic of Albania is the commander-in-chief of Albanian Armed Forces.
Argentina
Under part II, chapter III, article 99, subsections 12, 13, 14 and 15, the Constitution of Argentina states that the president of the Argentine Nation is the "Commander-in-chief of all the armed forces of the Nation". It also states that the president is entitled to provide military posts in the granting of the jobs or grades of senior officers of the armed forces, and by itself on the battlefield; runs with its organization and distribution according to needs of the Nation and declares war and orders reprisals with the consent and approval of the Argentine National Congress.
The Ministry of Defense is the government department that assists and serves the president in the management of the armed forces (Army, Navy and Air Force).
Armenia
The prime minister of Armenia holds the title of Supreme Commander in Chief of the Armenian Armed Forces (Armenian: Հայաստանի Զինված ուժերի գերագույն հրամանատար). The hereditary title and rank of Sparapet' (Armenian: սպարապետ) was used to describe the supreme commander of the military forces of ancient and medieval Armenia.
Since its introduction in the 2nd century BC, it is often used today to describe famous and high-ranking military officials. Notable Armenians to have held the title include Garegin Nzhdeh, the supreme commander of the Republic of Mountainous Armenia. and Vazgen Sargsyan, the two-time defence minister of Armenia and prime minister in the 1990s.
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.
In practice, however, the governor-general does not play an active part in the Australian Defence Force's command structure, and the democratically accountable Australian Cabinet (chaired by the prime minister) de facto controls the ADF. The minister for defence and several subordinate ministers exercise this control through the Australian Defence Organisation. Section 8 of the Defence Act 1903 states:
The minister shall have the general control and administration of the Defence Force, and the powers vested in the chief of the defence force, the chief of Navy, the chief of Army and the chief of Air Force by virtue of section 9, and the powers vested jointly in the secretary and the chief of the defence force by virtue of section 9A, shall be exercised subject to and in accordance with any directions of the Minister.
Austria
Article 80 of the Constitution of Austria stipulates that the president of Austria is the commander-in-chief of the Austrian Armed Forces. The same article designates the minister of defence as being in command of the army.
Azerbaijan
The Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces is the President of Azerbaijan.
Barbados
According to the Constitution of Barbados, the president of Barbados is the commander-in-chief of Barbados Defence Force. Between 1966 and 2021, prior to the transition to a republican system, the monarch of Barbados, Queen Elizabeth II, was head of the Defence Force, with the governor-general of Barbados as her viceroy. The president adopted these powers.
Bangladesh
First President Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was the supreme commander of all the armed forces of the republic. In absence of him, then vice president Syed Nazrul Islam was acting president and acting supreme commander of all the armed forces of the republic.
The commander-in-chief of Bangladesh Armed Forces is the president, although executive power and responsibility for national defence resides with the prime minister. This is discharged through the Ministry of Defence, headed by the minister of defence, which provides the policy framework and resources to the Armed Forces to discharge their responsibilities in the context of the defence of the country.
The first commander-in-chief, General M. A. G. Osmani, during Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971, who was commander of Muktibahini/Bangladesh Forces, reinstated to active duty by official BD government order, which after independence was gazetted in 1972. He retired on 7 April 1972 and relinquished all authority and duties to the president of Bangladesh.
Belarus
The president of Belarus is the commander-in-chief of the Belarusian Armed Forces (Belarusian: Галоўнакамандуючы Узброенымі Сіламі Рэспублікі Беларусь). The Belarusian commander in chief has an official uniform and insignia befitting of the rank, which the president wears on official occasion and ceremonies in relation to the military.
The role of commander in chief is laid out in Article 28 of the Constitution of Belarus, which states that he/she has the authority to "appoint and dismiss the high command of the Armed Forces".
Belgium
Article 167 of the Constitution of Belgium designates the king as the commander-in-chief. In practice, the chief of defence is the head and commander of the Belgian Armed Forces. He reports directly to the minister of defence and is responsible for advising the minister, for the implementation of defence policy and for the administration of the department.
Bosnia and Herzegovina
According to the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the collective presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina is the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In peace, the commander-in-chief exercises his command through the minister of defence. In war and in cases where the minister of defence is not fulfilling orders, the commander-in-chief exercises his command directly through the chief of Joint Staff.
Brazil
Article 142 of the Brazilian Constitution of 1988 states that the Brazilian Armed Forces is under the supreme command of the president of the Republic.
Brunei
The sultan of Brunei is the commander-in-chief of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces.
Canada
The powers of command-in-chief over the Canadian Armed Forces are vested in the Canadian monarch, and are delegated to the governor general of Canada, who also uses the title Commander-in-Chief. In this capacity, the governor general is entitled to the uniform of a general/flag officer, with the crest of the office and special cuff braid serving as rank insignia.
By constitutional convention, the Crown's prerogative powers over the armed forces and constitutional powers as commander-in-chief are exercised on the advice of the prime minister and the rest of Cabinet, the governing ministry that commands the confidence of the House of Commons. According to the National Defence Act, the minister of national defence is responsible and accountable to the Parliament of Canada for all matters related to national defence and the Canadian Armed Forces.
China
In China, supreme command of the armed forces is exercised by the Central Military Commission (CMC) of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). A parallel state CMC (PRC CMC) exists. Legally the two CMCs have separate responsibilities, but the distinction is practically irrelevant because the bodies typically have the same members.
Since 1989, the CCP general secretary chairs the CMC, and represents the armed forces in the CCP Politburo Standing Committee, the country's ruling body. Per the chairman responsibility system, the chairman exercises absolute control over the CMC and is the commander-in-chief of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), the People's Armed Police (PAP) and the Militia.
Article 93 of the Constitution of China states the authority to direct the armed forces is invested to the Central Military Commission of the People's Republic of China. The same article also states that the chairman of the Central Military Commission assumes overall responsibility for the work of the Central Military Commission and that it is responsible to the National People's Congress and its Standing Committee.
There is also the Central Military Commission of the Chinese Communist Party under the authority of the Party Central Committee. In practice, both commissions have identitical membership, except for a brief period between the Party Congress and the National People's Congress, and are practically the same institutution under the system of "one institution, two names".
Furthermore, Article 80 gives the National People's Congress and its Standing Committee the power to proclaim martial law, proclaim a state of war, and to issue mobilisation orders.
The state president and the CMC chairman are distinctly separate state offices and they have not always been held by the same persons. However, beginning in 1993, during the tenure of Jiang Zemin as General Secretary of the Communist Party and CMC chairman, it has been standard practice to have the offices of the CCP general secretary, president, and the CMC chairman to be normally held by the same person; although the slight differences in the start and end of terms for those respective offices means that there is some overlap between an occupant and his predecessor.
Hong Kong
When Hong Kong was under British authority, the civilian governor was the ex officio commander-in-chief of the British Forces Overseas Hong Kong. After the territory's handover to the People's Republic of China in 1997, the commanders of the People's Liberation Army Hong Kong Garrison are PLA personnel from mainland China and commanded by the CMC.
Croatia
According to the Croatian constitution, the president of Croatia is the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Croatia. There was originally a rank insignia and name for the position, known as "Vrhovnik". This was held by former President Franjo Tudjman and was abolished after his death. In peace, the commander-in-chief exercises his command through the minister of defence.
In war and in cases where the minister of defence is not fulfilling orders, the commander-in-chief exercises his command directly through the chief of General Staff.
Czechia
According to the 1992 constitution, the president of the Czech Republic is the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces according to Article 63(1)(c), and appoints and promotes generals under Article 63(1)(f). The president needs the countersignature of the prime minister for decisions concerning the above-mentioned provisions as per Articles 63(3–4), or otherwise, they are not valid.
The prime minister may delegate to other ministers the right to countersign these decisions of the president. The political responsibility for the Armed Forces is borne by the Government, which in Article 67 is defined as the "supreme body of executive power". According to Articles 39 & 43, the Parliament must give consent to the dispatch of Czech military forces outside the territory of the Czech Republic.
The Ministry of Defence is the central authority of the state administration for the control of the Armed Forces. The actual day-to-day management is vested in the chief of the general staff, the Czech chief of defence equivalent.
Denmark
The position of the Danish monarch as the head of the military is deeply rooted in tradition. While the 1953 constitution does not explicitly designate the monarch as commander-in-chief; it is implicit, given the general provision in article 12 and the more specific wording of article 19 (2): "Except for purposes of defence against an armed attack upon the Realm or Danish forces, the King shall not use military force against any foreign state without the consent of the Folketing.
Any measure which the King may take in pursuance of this provision shall forthwith be submitted to the Folketing".
However, when reading the Danish Constitution, it is important to bear in mind that the king in this context is understood by Danish jurists to be read as the government (consisting of the prime minister and other ministers). This is a logical consequence of articles 12, 13 and 14, all of which in essence stipulates that the powers vested in the monarch can only be exercised through ministers, who are responsible for all acts. Thus, the Government, in effect, holds the supreme command authority implied in articles 12 and 19(2).
The Danish Defence Law (Danish: Forsvarsloven) designates in article 9 the minister of defence as the supreme authority in Defence (Danish: højeste ansvarlige myndighed for forsvaret). Under the minister is the chief of defence, the senior-ranking professional military officer heading the Defence Command, who commands the Army, the Navy, the Air Force and other units not reporting directly to the Ministry of Defence.
Dominican Republic
According to the Constitution, Article 128, Section II, Title IV, the president is the head of foreign policy, the civil administration and the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces, the National Police and all other state's security agencies.
Egypt
In Egypt, the president of the Republic holds the ceremonial title of Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces. A member of the government, usually defence minister, is commander-in-chief of the Egyptian Armed Forces. The president is the only individual capable of declaring war. With the exception of Mohamed Morsi, who briefly served as president from 2012 to 2013, all Egyptian presidents have been former military officers.
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, marshal of the air force and air defence forces and admiral of the navy.
Eswatini
The king of Eswatini is the commander in chief of the Umbutfo Eswatini Defence Force.
Ethiopia
The 1995 Constitution designates the prime minister of Ethiopia as "Commander-in-Chief of the national armed forces" in Article 74(1).
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 the 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. The duty of the president is to decide upon
- main principles of the military defence of the realm
- principles of the execution of the military defence
- other military command matters with wide-ranging importance to the military activity or the military establishment
- any other military command issue that he wishes to decide upon
Since the constitutional reform of 2000, the minister of defence has the right to be present when the president uses his command powers, unless the matter is of immediate concern. In questions of strategic importance, the prime minister has the same right.
The president commissions and promotes officers and decides on activating reservists for extraordinary service and 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. Declarations of a state of emergency (Finnish: valmiustila, literally, "state of preparedness") and state of war (Finnish: puolustustila, lit. "state of defence") are declared by a presidential decree, given after a motion by the government, which is then submitted to the Parliament for ratification.
The president has, in a state of emergency, the right to transfer the position of the commander-in-chief to another Finnish citizen.
