Commander of the Canadian Army
Chief of the Army Staff
Commandant de l'Armée canadienne
Chef d'état-major de l'Armée
Incumbent
Lieutenant-General Jocelyn Paul
since 16 June 2022
 Canadian Army
TypeArmy commander
AbbreviationCCA
Member ofArmed Forces Council
Army Staff
Reports toChief of the Defence Staff
Term lengthAt His Majesty's pleasure
PrecursorChief of the Land Staff
Formation1875 (as General Officer Commanding the Militia)
2011 (as Commander of the Army)
First holderSir E.S. Smyth (as General Officer Commanding the Militia)
Peter Devlin (as Commander of the Army)
DeputyDeputy Commander of the Canadian Army
WebsiteOfficial website

The Commander of the Canadian Army (French: commandant de l'Armée canadienne) is the institutional head of the Canadian Army. This appointment also includes the title Chief of the Army Staff (French: chef de l'état-major de l'Armée) and is based at National Defence Headquarters in Ottawa, Ontario.

History of the position

Prior to 1904, militia forces in Canada were commanded by senior British Army officers appointed as General Officer Commanding the Canadian Militia.[1] British regular forces in the Dominion had their own commander until the withdrawal of the last British garrison in 1906. From 1903 to 1904, the Canadian Militia embarked on a new period of modernization that included the creation of a new office of Chief of the General Staff. Between 1904 and 1964, eighteen officers held the position of Chief of the General Staff, with the last of these, Lieutenant General Geoffrey Walsh, having officially stood down the appointment on 31 August 1964 following the official integration of the three armed services into a single Canadian Armed Forces.[2]

Following the unification of Canada's military forces[3] in February 1968, the majority of Canada's land element was assigned to the newly created Force Mobile Command and the senior Canadian army officer was then known as Commander of Mobile Command from 1965 to 1993. The command was renamed Land Force Command, and its senior officer was known as Chief of the Land Staff from 1993 to 2011.[4] Land Force Command was officially re-designated as the Canadian Army in 2011, at which time the appointment was also renamed Commander of the Canadian Army to reflect this.[5]

Appointees

Flag of the Chief of the General Staff

The following table lists all those who have held the post of Commander of the Canadian Army or its preceding positions. Ranks and honours are as at the completion of their tenure:[6]

No. Portrait NameTook officeLeft officeTime in office
General Officer Commanding the Canadian Militia
1
Sir Edward Selby Smyth
Smyth, E.Lieutenant-General
Sir Edward Selby Smyth
(1819–1896)		187518804–5 years
2
Richard Luard
Luard, R.Major-General
Richard Luard
(1827–1891)		188018843–4 years
3
Sir Frederick Dobson Middleton
Middleton, F.Major-General
Sir Frederick Dobson Middleton
(1825–1898)		188418905–6 years
4
Ivor Herbert
Treowen, I.Major-General
Ivor Herbert
(1851–1933)		189018954–5 years
5
Sir William Gascoigne
Gascoigne, W.Major-General
Sir William Gascoigne
(1844–1926)		189518982–3 years
6
Sir Edward Hutton
Hutton, E.Major-General
Sir Edward Hutton
(1848–1923)		189819001–2 years
7
Richard O'Grady Haly
Haly, R.Major-General
Richard O'Grady Haly
(1841–1911)		190019021–2 years
8
The Rt Hon. Earl of Dundonald
Dundonald, D.Major-General
The Rt Hon. Earl of Dundonald
(1852–1935)		190219041–2 years
Chief of the General Staff
1
Sir Percy Lake
Lake, P.H.N.Major-General
Sir Percy Lake
(1855–1940)		190419083–4 years
2
Sir William Otter
Otter, W.D.Major-General
Sir William Otter
(1843–1929)		190819101–2 years
3
Sir Colin Mackenzie
Mackenzie, C. J.Major-General
Sir Colin Mackenzie
(1861–1956)		191019132–3 years
4
Sir Willoughby Gwatkin
Gwatkin, W.G.Major-General
Sir Willoughby Gwatkin
(1859–1925)		191319205–6 years
5
Sir James MacBrien
MacBrien, J. H.Major-General
Sir James MacBrien
(1878–1938)		192019276–7 years
6
Herbert Cyril Thacker
Thacker, H. C.Major-General
Herbert Cyril Thacker
(1870–1953)		192719291–2 years
7
Andrew McNaughton
McNaughton, A. G. L.Major-General
Andrew McNaughton
(1887–1966)		192919355–6 years
8
Ernest Charles Ashton
Ashton, E. C.Major-General
Ernest Charles Ashton
(1873–1957)		193519382–3 years
9
Thomas Victor Anderson
Anderson, T. V.Major-General
Thomas Victor Anderson
(1881–1972)		193819401–2 years
10
Harry Crerar
Crerar, H. D. G.Major-General
Harry Crerar
(1888–1965)		194019410–1 years
11
Kenneth Stuart
Stuart, K.Lieutenant-General
Kenneth Stuart
(1891–1945)		194119431–2 years
12
John Carl Murchie
Murchie, J. C.Lieutenant-General
John Carl Murchie
(1895–1966)		194419450–1 years
13
Charles Foulkes
Foulkes, C.Lieutenant-General
Charles Foulkes
(1903–1969)		194519515–6 years
14
Guy Simonds
Simonds, G. G.Lieutenant-General
Guy Simonds
(1903–1974)		195119553–4 years
15
Howard Graham
Graham, H. D.Lieutenant-General
Howard Graham
(1898–1986)		195519582–3 years
16
Samuel Findlay Clark
Clark, S. F.Lieutenant-General
Samuel Findlay Clark
(1909–1998)		195819612–3 years
17
Geoffrey Walsh
Walsh, G.Lieutenant-General
Geoffrey Walsh
(1909–1999)		196119642–3 years
Commander of Mobile Command
1
Jean Victor Allard
Allard, J. V.Lieutenant-General
Jean Victor Allard
(1913–1996)		196519660–1 years
2
William Anderson
Anderson, W.Lieutenant-General
William Anderson
(1915–2000)		196619692–3 years
3
Gilles Turcot
Turcot, G.Lieutenant-General
Gilles Turcot
(1917–2010)		196919722–3 years
4
William A. Milroy
Milroy, W.Lieutenant-General
William A. Milroy
(1920–2006)		197219730–1 years
5
Stanley Waters
Waters, S.Lieutenant-General
Stanley Waters
(1920–1991)		197319751–2 years
6
Jacques Chouinard
Chouinard, J.Lieutenant-General
Jacques Chouinard
(1922–2008)		197519771–2 years
7
Jean Jacques Paradis
Paradis, J. J.Lieutenant-General
Jean Jacques Paradis
(1928–2007)		197719813–4 years
8
Charles H. Belzile
Belzile, C. H.Lieutenant-General
Charles H. Belzile
(1933–2016)		198119864–5 years
9
Jim Fox
Fox, J.Lieutenant-General
Jim Fox		198619892–3 years
10
Kent Foster
Foster, K.Lieutenant-General
Kent Foster
(born 1938)		198919911–2 years
11
Jim Gervais
Gervais, J.Lieutenant-General
Jim Gervais
(born 1938)		199119931–2 years
Chief of the Land Staff
1
Gord Reay
Reay, G.Lieutenant-General
Gord Reay
(1943–2000)		1993September 19962–3 years
2
Maurice Baril
Baril, M.Lieutenant-General
Maurice Baril
(born 1943)		September 1996September 19971 year
3
William Leach
Leach, W.Lieutenant-General
William Leach
(1942–2015)		September 1997August 20002 years, 11 months
4
Mike Jeffery
Jeffery, M.Lieutenant-General
Mike Jeffery		August 2000May 20032 years, 9 months
5
Rick Hillier
Hillier, R.Lieutenant-General
Rick Hillier
(born 1955)		May 20034 February 20051 year, 9 months
6
Marc Caron
Caron, M.Lieutenant-General
Marc Caron
(born 1954)		4 February 2005June 20061 year, 3 months
7
Andrew Leslie
Leslie, A.Lieutenant-General
Andrew Leslie
(born 1957)		June 2006June 20104 years
8
Peter Devlin
Devlin, P.Lieutenant-General
Peter Devlin		June 201021 July 20111 year, 1 month
Commander of the Canadian Army and Chief of the Army Staff
1
Peter Devlin
Devlin, P.Lieutenant-General
Peter Devlin		21 July 2011July 20131 year, 11 months
2
Marquis Hainse
Hainse, M.Lieutenant-General
Marquis Hainse
(born 1964)		July 2013January 20162 years, 6 months
3
Paul Wynnyk
Wynnyk, P.Lieutenant-General
Paul Wynnyk
(born 1964)		January 201616 July 20182 years, 6 months
4
Jean-Marc Lanthier
Lanthier, J.Lieutenant-General
Jean-Marc Lanthier		16 July 201820 August 20191 year, 1 month
5
Wayne Eyre
Eyre, W.General
Wayne Eyre		20 August 201916 June 20222 years, 9 months
6
Jocelyn Paul
Paul, J.Lieutenant-General
Jocelyn Paul		16 June 2022Incumbent1 year, 6 months

See also

References

  1. ↑ British Strategic Withdrawal from the Western Hemisphere, 1904–1906 Archived 2012-07-20 at archive.today University of Toronto Press
  2. ↑ "Lieutenant-General Geoffrey Walsh". Army cadet history. Retrieved 31 January 2019.
  3. ↑ Integration and Unification of the Canadian Forces Archived January 15, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  4. ↑ Chasing the Silver Bullet: the Evolution of Capability Development in the Canadian Army by Major Andrew B. Godefroy CD, Page 59
  5. ↑ Canadian Navy, Air Force 'Royal' Again With Official Name Change Huffington Post, 15 August 2011
  6. ↑ "List of commanders of the Army". Government of Canada. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.