Chief of the General Staff (United Kingdom)

Not to be confused with Chief of the Defence Staff (United Kingdom).

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.

Chief of the General Staff
Flag of the Chief of the General Staff
Incumbent General Sir Roland Walker since 15 June 2024
Ministry of Defence British Army
Abbreviation	CGS
Member of	Defence Council Army Board Chiefs of Staff Committee
Reports to	Chief of the Defence Staff
Nominator	Secretary of State for Defence
Appointer	The Monarch On the advice of the Prime Minister, subject to formal approval by the King-in-Council
Term length	No fixed length
Precursor	Commander-in-Chief of the Forces
Formation	1904, 1964
First holder	Sir Neville Lyttelton
Deputy	Deputy Chief of the General Staff

The current Chief of the General Staff is General Sir Roland Walker, who succeeded General Sir Patrick Sanders in the role on 15 June 2024.^[1]

Responsibilities

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]

Background

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

• v
• t
• e

	Royal Navy	British Army	Royal Air Force	Combined
1645	N/A	Commander-in-Chief of the Forces (1645/60–1904, intermittently)	N/A. The RAF was formed in 1918
1689	Senior Naval Lord (1689–1771)
1771	First Naval Lord (1771–1904)
1904	First Sea Lord (1904–1917)	Chief of the General Staff (1904–1909)		Inter-service co-ordination was carried out from 1904 by the Committee of Imperial Defence under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister
1909		Chief of the Imperial General Staff (1909–1964)
1917	First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff (1917–present)
1918			Chief of the Air Staff (1918–present)
1923				Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee (1923–1959, held by one of the service heads until 1956)
1959				Chief of the Defence Staff (1959–present)
1964		Chief of the General Staff (1964–present)

Roles

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]

Appointees

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:

No.	Portrait	Name	Took office	Left office	Time in office	Ref.
Chiefs of the General Staff
1		Lyttelton, NevilleGeneral Sir Neville Lyttelton (1845–1931)	12 February 1904	2 April 1908	4 years, 50 days	[5]
2		Nicholson, WilliamField Marshal Sir William Nicholson (1845–1918)	2 April 1908	22 November 1909	1 year, 234 days	[6]
Chiefs of the Imperial General Staff
2		Nicholson, WilliamField Marshal Sir William Nicholson (1845–1918)	22 November 1909	15 March 1912	2 years, 114 days	[7]
3		French, JohnField Marshal Sir John French (1852–1925)	15 March 1912	6 April 1914	2 years, 22 days	[8]
4		French, JohnGeneral Sir Charles Douglas (1850–1914)	6 April 1914	25 October 1914 †	202 days	[9]
5		Murray, JamesLieutenant-General Sir James Wolfe Murray (1853–1919)	25 October 1914	26 September 1915	1 year, 154 days	[10]
6		Murray, ArchibaldLieutenant-General Sir Archibald Murray (1860–1945)	26 September 1915	23 December 1915	88 days	[11]
7		Robertson, WilliamGeneral Sir William Robertson (1860–1933)	23 December 1915	19 February 1918	2 years, 58 days	[12]
8		Wilson, HenryField Marshal Sir Henry Wilson (1864–1922)	19 February 1918	19 February 1922	4 years	[13]
9		Lambart, RudolphField Marshal Rudolph Lambart, 10th Earl of Cavan (1865–1946)	19 February 1922	19 February 1926	4 years	[14]
10		Milne, GeorgeField Marshal Sir George Milne (1866–1948)	19 February 1926	19 February 1933	7 years	[15]
11		Montgomery, ArchibaldField Marshal Sir Archibald Montgomery-Massingberd (1871–1947)	19 February 1933	15 May 1936	3 years, 86 days	[16]
12		Deverell, CyrilField Marshal Sir Cyril Deverell (1874–1947)	15 May 1936	6 December 1937	1 year, 205 days	[17]
13		Vereker, JohnGeneral John Vereker, 6th Viscount Gort (1886–1946)	6 December 1937	3 September 1939	1 year, 271 days	[18]
14		Ironside, EdmundGeneral Sir Edmund Ironside (1880–1959)	4 September 1939	26 May 1940	266 days	[19]
15		Dill, JohnField Marshal Sir John Dill (1881–1944)	26 May 1940	25 December 1941	1 year, 213 days	[20]
16		Brooke, AlanField Marshal Alan Brooke, 1st Viscount Alanbrooke (1883–1963)	25 December 1941	25 June 1946	4 years, 182 days	[21]
17		Montgomery, BernardField Marshal Bernard Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein (1887–1976)	26 June 1946	1 November 1948	2 years, 129 days	[21][22]
18		Slim, WilliamField Marshal Sir William Slim (1891–1970)	1 November 1948	1 November 1952	4 years	[23]
19		Harding, JohnField Marshal Sir John Harding (1896–1989)	1 November 1952	29 September 1955	2 years, 332 days	[24]
20		Templer, GeraldField Marshal Sir Gerald Templer (1898–1979)	29 September 1955	29 September 1958	3 years	[25]
21		Festing, FrancisField Marshal Sir Francis Festing (1902–1976)	29 September 1958	1 November 1961	3 years, 33 days	[26]
22		Hull, RichardGeneral Sir Richard Hull (1902–1989)	1 November 1961	April 1964	2 years, 5 months	[27][28][29]
Chiefs of the General Staff
22		Hull, RichardField Marshal Sir Richard Hull (1902–1989) [lower-alpha 1]	April 1964	8 February 1965	10 months	-
23		Cassels, JamesGeneral Sir James Cassels (1907–1996)	8 February 1965	1 March 1968	3 years, 22 days	[28]
24		Baker, GeoffreyGeneral Sir Geoffrey Baker (1912–1980) [lower-alpha 2]	1 March 1968	1 April 1971	3 years, 31 days	[30][31][32]
25		Carver, MichaelField Marshal Sir Michael Carver (1915–2001) [lower-alpha 1]	1 April 1971	19 July 1973	2 years, 109 days	[33][31]
26		Hunt, PeterGeneral Sir Peter Hunt (1916–1988) [lower-alpha 2]	19 July 1973	15 July 1976	2 years, 362 days	[34][35]
27		Gibbs, RolandGeneral Sir Roland Gibbs (1921–2004) [lower-alpha 2]	15 July 1976	14 July 1979	2 years, 364 days	[36][37]
28		Bramall, EdwinField Marshal Sir Edwin Bramall (1923–2019) [lower-alpha 1]	14 July 1979	1 August 1982	3 years, 18 days	[38][39][40]
29		Stanier, JohnGeneral Sir John Stanier (1925–2007) [lower-alpha 2]	1 August 1982	28 July 1985	2 years, 361 days	[35][41][42]
30		Bagnall, NigelGeneral Sir Nigel Bagnall (1927–2002)	28 July 1985	10 September 1988	3 years, 44 days	[43]
31		Chapple, JohnGeneral Sir John Chapple (1931–2022)	10 September 1988	14 February 1992	3 years, 157 days	[44]
32		Inge, PeterGeneral Sir Peter Inge (1935–2022) [lower-alpha 1][lower-alpha 2]	14 February 1992	15 March 1994	2 years, 29 days	[35][45][46]
33		Guthrie, CharlesGeneral Sir Charles Guthrie (born 1938) [lower-alpha 1]	15 March 1994	3 February 1997	2 years, 325 days	[46][47]
34		Wheeler, RogerGeneral Sir Roger Wheeler (born 1941) [lower-alpha 2]	3 February 1997	17 April 2000	3 years, 74 days	[48][49]
35		Walker, MichaelGeneral Sir Michael Walker (born 1944) [lower-alpha 1]	17 April 2000	1 February 2003	2 years, 290 days	[50][51][52]
36		Jackson, MikeGeneral Sir Mike Jackson (1944–2024)	1 February 2003	29 August 2006	3 years, 209 days	[53]
37		Dannatt, RichardGeneral Sir Richard Dannatt (born 1950) [lower-alpha 2]	29 August 2006	28 August 2009	2 years, 364 days	[54][55]
38		Richards, DavidGeneral Sir David Richards (born 1952) [lower-alpha 1]	28 August 2009	15 September 2010	1 year, 18 days	[56][57]
39		Wall, PeterGeneral Sir Peter Wall (born 1955)	15 September 2010	5 September 2014	3 years, 355 days	[58]
40		Carter, NickGeneral Sir Nick Carter (born 1959) [lower-alpha 1]	5 September 2014	11 June 2018	3 years, 279 days	[59]
41		Carleton, MarkGeneral Sir Mark Carleton-Smith (born 1964)	11 June 2018	13 June 2022	4 years, 2 days	[60]
42		Sanders, PatrickGeneral Sir Patrick Sanders (born 1966)	13 June 2022	15 June 2024	2 years, 147 days	[61]
43		Walker, RolandGeneral Sir Roland Walker (born 1970)	15 June 2024		145 days	[1]

See also

• Chief of the Defence Staff
• First Sea Lord / Chief of the Naval Staff
• Chief of the Air Staff
• Deputy Chief of the General Staff

Notes

1. Later served as Chief of the Defence Staff.
2. Later made Constable of the Tower of London.

References

1. "General Sir Roly Walker KCB DSO". GOV.UK. Retrieved 17 June 2024.
2. "General Sir Patrick Sanders KCB CBE DSO ADC Gen". GOV.UK. Retrieved 29 June 2023. Text was copied from this source, which is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0. © Crown copyright.
3. Arnold-Foster, Hugh Oakeley (1906). The Army in 1906: a Policy and a Vindication. London: John Murray. p. 481.
4. Roberts, Andrew (2010). Masters and Commanders: How Four Titans Won the War in the West, 1941–1945. HarperCollins. pp. 61–62. ISBN 9780061228582.
5. "No. 27645". The London Gazette. 12 February 1904. p. 939.
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7. "No. 28311". The London Gazette. 23 November 1909. p. 8662.
8. "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.)
9. "No. 28819". The London Gazette. 7 April 1914. p. 3002.
10. "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.)
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12. "No. 29426". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 1915. p. 120.
13. "No. 30559". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 March 1918. p. 2867.
14. "No. 32615". The London Gazette (Supplement). 20 February 1922. p. 1489.
15. "No. 33134". The London Gazette. 19 February 1926. p. 1242.
16. 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.)
17. Heathcote, T. A. (1999). The British Field Marshals 1736–1997. Barnsley: Leo Cooper. p. 102. ISBN 0-85052-696-5.
18. "No. 34464". The London Gazette. 17 December 1937. p. 7917.
19. 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.)
20. "No. 34858". The London Gazette (Supplement). 24 May 1940. p. 3175.
21. Fraser (1997), pp. 174, 485
22. Hamilton (1986), pp. 621, 725
23. "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.)
24. "No. 39689". The London Gazette (Supplement). 4 November 1952. p. 5863.
25. "No. 40598". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 September 1955. p. 5555.
26. "No. 41508". The London Gazette (Supplement). 26 September 1958. p. 5954.
27. "No. 42503". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 October 1961. p. 7925.
28. "No. 43569". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 February 1965. p. 1361.
29. "No. 43712". The London Gazette (Supplement). 13 July 1965. p. 6717.
30. "No. 44539". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 March 1968. p. 2655.
31. "No. 45337". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 April 1971. p. 3336.
32. "Constable of the Tower of London". Parliament of the United Kingdom. Archived from the original on 24 April 2010. Retrieved 12 March 2011.
33. "No. 46109". The London Gazette (Supplement). 23 October 1973. p. 12551.
34. "No. 46046". The London Gazette (Supplement). 7 August 1973. p. 9395.
35. "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.
36. "Field Marshal Sir Roland Gibbs". The Daily Telegraph. 2 November 2004. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 12 March 2011.
37. "No. 46965". The London Gazette (Supplement). 19 July 1976. p. 9899.
38. "Lord Bramall". Parliament of the United Kingdom. Archived from the original on 27 December 2010. Retrieved 12 March 2011.
39. "No. 49142". The London Gazette (Supplement). 18 October 1982. p. 13571.
40. "No. 47916". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 July 1979. p. 9695.
41. "Field Marshal Sir John Stanie". The Times. 13 November 2007. Archived from the original on 8 July 2008. Retrieved 12 March 2011.
42. "No. 49069". The London Gazette (Supplement). 2 August 1982. p. 10134.
43. "No. 50226". The London Gazette (Supplement). 12 August 1985. p. 11147.
44. "No. 51467". The London Gazette (Supplement). 12 September 1988. p. 10255.
45. "No. 52838". The London Gazette (Supplement). 17 February 1992. p. 2789.
46. "No. 53645". The London Gazette (Supplement). 18 April 1994. p. 5799.
47. "No. 54726". The London Gazette (Supplement). 7 April 1997. p. 4170.
48. "No. 54668". The London Gazette (Supplement). 3 February 1997. p. 1419.
49. "No. 56294". The London Gazette. 6 August 2001. p. 1001.
50. "No. 55823". The London Gazette (Supplement). 18 April 2000. p. 4372.
51. "No. 56992". The London Gazette (Supplement). 8 July 2003. p. 8463.
52. "2014 Birthday Honours for service personnel and defence civilians". Ministry of Defence. 13 June 2014. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
53. "No. 56837". The London Gazette (Supplement). 3 February 2003. p. 1389.
54. "No. 58081". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 August 2006. p. 11754.
55. "No. 59144". The London Gazette. 31 July 2009. p. 13209.
56. "No. 59177". The London Gazette (Supplement). 8 September 2009. p. 15384.
57. "No. 59593". The London Gazette (Supplement). 2 November 2010. p. 21039.
58. "No. 59550". The London Gazette (Supplement). 21 September 2010. p. 18235.
59. "No. 60984". The London Gazette (Supplement). 9 September 2014. p. 2.
60. "Lieutenant General Mark Carleton-Smith appointed new Chief of the General Staff". gov.uk. 5 May 2018. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
61. "General Patrick Sanders to be appointed new Chief of the General Staff". BFBS Forces News. 27 February 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2022.

Bibliography

• Fraser, David (1997). Alanbrooke. HarperCollins. ISBN 9780006388630.
• Hamilton, Nigel (1986). Monty: Final Years of the Field Marshal 1944–1976. McGraw-Hill. ISBN 9780070258075.