The British Armed Forces, also known as Her Majesty's Armed Forces, are the military services responsible for the defence of the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and the Crown dependencies. They also promote the UK's wider interests, support international peacekeeping efforts and provide humanitarian aid.
The Ministry of Defence is the British government department responsible for implementing the defence policy set by Her Majesty's Government, and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces.
A commander-in-chief or supreme commander is the person who exercises supreme command and control over armed forces or a military branch. As a technical term, it refers to military competencies that reside in a country's executive leadership, a head of state or a head of government.
Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) is the headquarters of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's Allied Command Operations (ACO). Since 1967 it has been located in Casteau, north of the Belgian city of Mons, but it had previously been located, from 1953, at Rocquencourt, next to Versailles, France. From 1951 to 2003, SHAPE was the headquarters of Allied Command Europe (ACE). Since 2003 it has been the headquarters of Allied Command Operations, controlling all NATO operations worldwide.
The Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC) is a North Atlantic Treaty Organization High Readiness Force (Land) Headquarters ready for deployment worldwide.
Middle East Command, later Middle East Land Forces, was a British Army Command established prior to the Second World War in Egypt. Its primary role was to command British land forces and co-ordinate with the relevant naval and air commands to defend British interests in the Middle East and eastern Mediterranean region.
Commander United Kingdom Strike Force and Rear Admiral Surface Ships (RASS) is a senior post in the Royal Navy.
Home Command, previously Personnel and Support Command, is a personnel support and UK operations command of the British Army. The post of Commander PSC previously replaced that of Adjutant-General to the Forces, and then had British Isles responsibilities, including Support Command and civil contingencies tasks, added to it.
Major General Michael Simon Hindmarsh is an Australian military officer, who holds a senior position within the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces, commanding its elite force known as the Presidential Guard. A retired senior officer of the Australian Army, he spent over 30 years with the Australian Defence Force, during which time he served as Special Operations Commander Australia from 2004 to 2008, and as Commander of Joint Task Force 633 in the Middle East Area of Operations from March 2008 to January 2009. He retired from the Australian Army in mid-2009, and joined the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces as a special advisor and later, a commander of the UAE Presidential Guard, which is a UAE Armed Forces formation that includes both conventional and special forces units.
United Kingdom Land Forces was a command of the British Army responsible for generating and preparing forces for current and contingency operations. The commander of the forces was known as Commander-in-Chief, United Kingdom Land Forces, who in turn reported to the Chief of the General Staff.
General Sir James Rupert Everard, is a retired senior British Army officer who served as NATO's Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe.
The Deputy Commander Field Army is a senior British Army officer who serves as deputy to the Commander Field Army. It currently is held by an Army Reserve officer.
The Commander Regional Forces (CRF) was a senior British Army officer who had command over the Regenerative Divisions of the British Army i.e. those divisions that are not on full strength and would only be mobilised in a national emergency. The post was held by a lieutenant general and was based at HQ Land Forces. The post holder was also Inspector-General of the Territorial Army.
Land Command was a military command and part of the structure of the British Army from 1995 to 2008. Its headquarters was at Erskine Barracks, at Fugglestone St Peter, some four kilometres northwest of Salisbury in Wiltshire.
The Structure of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation is complex and multi-faceted. The decision-making body is the North Atlantic Council (NAC), and the member state representatives also sit on the Defence Policy and Planning Committee (DPPC) and the Nuclear Planning Group (NPG). Below that the Secretary General of NATO directs the civilian International Staff, that is divided into administrative divisions, offices and other organizations. Also responsible to the NAC, DPPC, and NPG are a host of committees that supervise the various NATO logistics and standardisation agencies.
The Head of the British Armed Forces, also known as Commander-in-Chief of the British Armed Forces, refers to the supreme command authority of the British Armed Forces, a military role vested in the monarch of the United Kingdom, currently Queen Elizabeth II. Under British constitutional law the command and government of the British armed forces is vested in the Queen and as such she holds the highest office in the military chain of command. The authority to issue orders and give commands to military personnel is delegated by the Queen to her commanders in the Field; however, she does retain the right to issue orders personally.
The Flag Officer Scotland and Northern Ireland (FOSNI) was a senior post in the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom. It was based at HM Naval Base Clyde, and the holder of the post was the Royal Navy’s senior officer in Scotland. The post of FOSNI, dating from 1946, was re-scoped and re-named in 1994 to Flag Officer Scotland, Northern England & Northern Ireland (FOSNNI), then named back in 2015, before being dis-established in 2020.
Army Headquarters is a British Army organisation based at Marlborough Lines, Hampshire. The equivalent in the Royal Navy is Navy Command Headquarters at Portsmouth, and the equivalent in the Royal Air Force is Headquarters Air Command at High Wycombe.
The Adjutant-General to the Forces, commonly just referred to as the Adjutant-General (AG), was for just over 250 years one of the most senior officers in the British Army. The AG was latterly responsible for developing the Army's personnel policies and supporting its people. The Adjutant-General usually held the rank of general or lieutenant general. Despite his administrative role, the Adjutant-General, like most officers above the rank of major general, was invariably drawn from one of the combat arms, not from the support corps.
The Field Army is a command of the British Army responsible for generating and preparing forces for current and contingency operations. Commander Field Army reports to the Chief of the General Staff.
