Commander-in-Chief
A commander-in-chief is the commander of a nation's military forces. Some country's commander-in-chief does not need to have been a soldier or involved in the military. The term was first used by King Charles I of England in 1639.
Commanders-in-Chief is sometimes referred to as Supreme Commander, which is sometimes used as a specific term.[1]
Australia
The role of command in chief is done by the Governor-General of Australia as the King’s representative.[2]
United Kingdom
The title Commander-in-Chief is rarely used by the King or Queen of England, but usually refers to local commanders-in-chief.
India
After independence from Britain on August 15, 1947, each Service was given its own Chief Commander (navy, army, airforce).
Iran
Before 1979, the Shah was the commander-in-chief in Iran. After the creation 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.
Pakistan
In Pakistan, the President is by law the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, however the elected Prime Minister has the real power.
Hong Kong
When Hong Kong was a British colony the Governor was also the Commander-in-Chief of Hong Kong.
United States of America
Commander-in-chief is one of the many roles given to the president of the United States
Commander-in-Chief Media
Argentine president Carlos Menem presiding over an Argentine Air Force ceremony for the Falklands War in May 1997.
Governor General of Australia The Lord Gowrie (right) signing the declaration of war against Japan with Prime Minister John Curtin (left) looking on. (8 December 1941)
President Alexander Lukashenko wearing the official uniform of the commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Belarus.
Chairman of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina Alija Izetbegović (right) meeting with US president Bill Clinton (left) in 1997 in Tuzla.
King George VI inspects a Royal Canadian Navy guard of honour during the 1939 royal tour of Canada.
King Christian IV on board his flagship during the 1644 Battle of Colberger Heide, by Wilhelm Marstrand. The king's personal commitment during the battle, are memorialized in first lines of the Danish royal anthem.
C. G. E. Mannerheim, the Marshal of Finland, as the commander-in-chief in 1941 during the Continuation War
The ceremony of passing the Cheget (i.e. the nuclear briefcase) from Dmitry Medvedev's military aide to Vladimir Putin's military aide during the 2012 presidential inauguration.
References
- ↑ Dupuy, Trevor N., Curt Johnson, and Grace P. Hayes. "Supreme Commander." Dictionary of Military Terms. New York: The H.W. Wilson Company, 1986.
- ↑ Address by HE the Rt Hon. Sir Ninian Stephen, Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia, on the occasion of the graduation of course no. 27/83 of the Joint Services Staff College, Canberra, on Tuesday, 12 June 1983: The Governor-General as Commander-in-Chief[dead link]