The Italian Armed Forces encompass the Italian Army, the Italian Navy and the Italian Air Force. A fourth branch of the armed forces, known as the Carabinieri, take on the role as the nation's military police and are also involved in missions and operations abroad as a combat force. Despite not being a branch of the armed forces, the Guardia di Finanza is organized along military lines. These five forces comprise a total of 340,885 men and women with the official status of active military personnel, of which 167,057 are in the Army, Navy and Air Force. The President of the Italian Republic heads the armed forces as the President of the High Council of Defence established by article 87 of the Constitution of Italy. According to article 78, the Parliament has the authority to declare a state of war and vest the powers to lead the war in the Government.
The Canadian Armed Forces are the unified military forces of Canada, including land, sea, and air commands referred to as the Canadian Army, Royal Canadian Navy, and the Royal Canadian Air Force. The CAF also operates several other commands, including the Canadian Forces Intelligence Command, the Canadian Joint Operations Command, and the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command. Personnel may belong to either the Regular Force or the Reserve Force, which has four sub-components: the Primary Reserve, Supplementary Reserve, Cadet Organizations Administration and Training Service, and the Canadian Rangers. Under the National Defence Act, the Canadian Armed Forces are an entity separate and distinct from the Department of National Defence, which also exists as the civilian support system for the forces.
The Canadian Army is the command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also responsible for the Army Reserve, the largest component of the Primary Reserve. The Army is headed by the Commander of the Canadian Army and Chief of the Army Staff, who is subordinate to the Chief of the Defence Staff. The Army is also supported by 3,000 civilian employees from the public service.
A gendarmerie is a military force with law enforcement duties among the civilian population. The term gendarme is derived from the medieval French expression gens d'armes, which translates to "men-at-arms". In France and some Francophone nations, the gendarmerie is a branch of the armed forces that is responsible for internal security in parts of the territory, with additional duties as military police for the armed forces. It was introduced to several other Western European countries during the Napoleonic conquests. In the mid-twentieth century, a number of former French mandates and colonial possessions adopted a gendarmerie after independence.
This is a table of the ranks and insignia of the Canadian Armed Forces. As the Canadian Armed Forces is officially bilingual, the French language ranks are presented following the English.
The chief of the Defence Staff is the professional head of the Canadian Armed Forces. As the senior military position, the chief of the Defence Staff advises the Cabinet, particularly the minister of national defence and the prime minister. The role is a Crown-in-Council appointment made by the King or the viceroy on the advice of the prime minister.
In military organizations, the practice of carrying colours, standards, flags, or guidons, both to act as a rallying point for troops and to mark the location of the commander, is thought to have originated in Ancient Egypt some 5,000 years ago. The Roman Empire also made battle standards reading SPQR a part of their vast armies. It was formalized in the armies of Europe in the High Middle Ages, with standards being emblazoned with the commander's coat of arms.
Master corporal (MCpl) is a military rank used by a number of countries including the Canadian Armed Forces.
Canadian Forces Station Alert, often shortened to CFS Alert, is a signals intelligence intercept facility of the Canadian Armed Forces at Alert, in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada.
The Commander of the Canadian Army is the institutional head of the Canadian Army. This appointment also includes the title Chief of the Army Staff and is based at National Defence Headquarters in Ottawa, Ontario.
The commander-in-chief of the Canadian Armed Forces exercises supreme command and control over Canada's military, the Canadian Armed Forces. Constitutionally, command-in-chief is vested in the Canadian monarch, presently King Charles III. Since the Letters Patent, 1947, were signed by King George VI, the governor general of Canada—presently Mary Simon—executes most of the duties of the sovereign, including in his role as commander-in-chief. Consequently, the governor general also uses the title Commander-in-Chief of the Canadian Forces. By protocol, the title used within international contexts is Commander-in-Chief of Canada.
Before Unification as the Canadian Armed Forces in 1968, the Canadian military had three distinct services: the Royal Canadian Navy, the Royal Canadian Air Force, and the Canadian Army. All three services had a Regular (full-time) component and a reserve (part-time) component. The rank structure for these services were based on the services of the British military, the Royal Navy, the Royal Air Force, and the British Army. The change to a "Canadian" rank structure meant that many of the traditional (British) rank titles and insignia were removed or changed.
The Canadian Forces provost marshal is an advisor to the chief of the defence staff on policing matters. He or she is an active member of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police. The CFPM also is the commander of the Canadian Forces Military Police. The organization includes the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service, the investigation arm of the Canadian Forces Military Police, the Canadian Forces Service Prison and Detention Barracks, the Military Police Security Service and the Canadian Forces Military Police Academy.
The uniforms of the Canadian Armed Forces are the official dress worn by members of Canada's military while on duty.
Personnel branches, in the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), are groupings of related military occupations. Personnel branches were officially established at unification in 1968 to amalgamate the old Canadian Army corps and similar occupational groupings in the Royal Canadian Navy and Royal Canadian Air Force.
Military organization (AE) or military organisation (BE) is the structuring of the armed forces of a state so as to offer such military capability as a national defense policy may require. Formal military organization tends to use hierarchical forms.
The unification of the Canadian Armed Forces took place on 1 February 1968, when the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and Royal Canadian Air Force were merged to form the Canadian Armed Forces.
The Central Band of the Canadian Armed Forces is one of six full-time Regular Force military bands in the Canadian Armed Forces. It is also the seniormost military band in the CAF. The band provides professional musical support for the representative institutions of the Canadian Forces, supporting the Department of National Defence and the Government of Canada, in events throughout the National Capital Region.
The Canadian Forces School of Music, CFSM was an educational institution that supported the music branch and all Canadian military bands in the Canadian Forces. It was created in 1954 in Esquimalt, British Columbia for musicians of the Royal Canadian Navy, with the school being the Canadian equivalent of the United States Armed Forces School of Music and the Royal Military School of Music. In 1961, the school was expanded and rebranded to include musicians from the Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force, and by the time of the Unification of the Canadian Armed Forces in February 1968, the school had officially been renamed to the CFSM. For its entire existence, the CFSM was located at CFB Borden in Ontario and offered enrolled students with a two-year educational program until it was disestablished in 1991. Enrollment varied with the requirement for musicians. The school also gave a one-year program to CF musicians with experience in the music branch who wish to serve in leadership positions in CF bands. Personnel of the Regular Force who wish to be qualified to as a pipe major have to attend a year long course at the CFSM in order be appointed to the post.
The Band of the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals was a regimental military band in Canada based out of Canadian Forces Base Kingston in Ontario. It is a voluntary band, which means that its band members are not composed of full-time professional musicians. The band provided musical support for the community in the Kingston, Ontario metropolitan area as well as Ottawa–Gatineau.
