Commander of the Canadian Army
Commander of the Canadian Army Chief of the Army Staff | |
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Commandant de l'Armée canadienne Chef d'état-major de l'Armée | |
![]() Lieutenant General Wayne Eyre since 20 August 2019 Major General Michel-Henri St-Louis (Acting) since 19 April 2021 | |
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Type | Army commader |
Abbreviation | CCA |
Member of | Armed Forces Council Army Staff |
Reports to | Chief of the Defence Staff |
Term length | At Her Majesty's pleasure |
Precursor | Chief of the Land Staff |
Formation | 1875 (as General Officer Commanding the Militia) 2011 (as Commander of the Army) |
First holder | Sir E.S. Smyth (as General Officer Commanding the Militia) Peter Devlin (as Commander of the Army) |
Deputy | Deputy Commander of the Canadian Army |
Website | Official 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 Army 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 the senior Canadian army 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[]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c2/Flag_of_the_Chief_of_the_General_Staff_%28Canada%29.svg/220px-Flag_of_the_Chief_of_the_General_Staff_%28Canada%29.svg.png)
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 | Name | Took office | Left office | Time in office |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
General Officer Commanding the Canadian Militia | |||||
1 | Lieutenant-General Sir E.S. Smyth (1819–1896) | 1875 | 1880 | 4–5 years | |
2 | Major-General R.G.A. Luard (1827–1891) | 1880 | 1884 | 3–4 years | |
3 | Sir F.D. Middleton (1825–1898) | Major-General1884 | 1890 | 5–6 years | |
4 | The Rt Hon Lord Treowen (1851–1933) | Major-General1890 | 1895 | 4–5 years | |
5 | Sir W.J. Gascoigne (1844–1926) | Major-General1895 | 1898 | 2–3 years | |
6 | Sir E.T.H. Hutton (1848–1923) | Major-General1898 | 1900 | 1–2 years | |
7 | R.H.O. Haly (1841–1911) | Major-General1900 | 1902 | 1–2 years | |
8 | The Rt Hon Earl of Dundonald (1852–1935) | Major-General1902 | 1904 | 1–2 years | |
Chief of the General Staff | |||||
1 | Sir P.H.N. Lake (1855–1940) | Major-General1904 | 1908 | 3–4 years | |
2 | Sir W.D. Otter (1843–1929) | Major-General1908 | 1910 | 1–2 years | |
3 | Sir C.J. Mackenzie (1861–1956) | Major-General1910 | 1913 | 2–3 years | |
4 | Sir W.G. Gwatkin (1859–1925) | Major-General1913 | 1919 | 5–6 years | |
5 | Sir A.W. Currie (1875–1933) ("Inspector-General and Military Counsellor") | Major-General1919 | 1920 | 0–1 years | |
6 | Sir J.H. MacBrien (1878–1938) | Major-General1920 | 1927 | 6–7 years | |
7 | H.C. Thacker (1870–1953) | Major-General1927 | 1929 | 1–2 years | |
8 | A.G.L. McNaughton (1887–1966) | Major-General1929 | 1935 | 5–6 years | |
9 | E.C. Ashton (1873–1957) | Major-General1935 | 1938 | 2–3 years | |
10 | T.V. Anderson (1881–1972) | Major-General1938 | 1940 | 1–2 years | |
11 | H.D.G. Crerar (1888–1965) | Major-General1940 | 1941 | 0–1 years | |
12 | K. Stuart (1891–1945) | Lieutenant-General1941 | 1943 | 1–2 years | |
13 | J.C. Murchie (1895–1966) | Lieutenant-General1944 | 1945 | 0–1 years | |
14 | C. Foulkes (1903–1969) | Lieutenant-General1945 | 1951 | 5–6 years | |
15 | G.G. Simonds (1903–1974) | Lieutenant-General1951 | 1955 | 3–4 years | |
16 | H.D. Graham (1898–1986) | Lieutenant-General1955 | 1958 | 2–3 years | |
17 | S.F. Clark (1909–1998) | Lieutenant-General1958 | 1961 | 2–3 years | |
18 | G. Walsh (1909–1999) | Lieutenant-General1961 | 1964 | 2–3 years | |
Commander of Mobile Command | |||||
1 | J.V. Allard (1913–1996) | Lieutenant-General1965 | 1966 | 0–1 years | |
2 | W. Anderson (1915–2000) | Lieutenant-General1966 | 1969 | 2–3 years | |
3 | G. Turcot (1917–2010) | Lieutenant-General1969 | 1972 | 2–3 years | |
4 | W. Milroy (1920–2006) | Lieutenant-General1972 | 1973 | 0–1 years | |
5 | S. Waters (1920–1991) | Lieutenant-General1973 | 1975 | 1–2 years | |
6 | J. Chouinard (1922–2008) | Lieutenant-General1975 | 1977 | 1–2 years | |
7 | J.J. Paradis (1928–2007) | Lieutenant-General1977 | 1981 | 3–4 years | |
8 | C.H. Belzile (1933–2016) | Lieutenant-General1981 | 1986 | 4–5 years | |
9 | J. Fox | Lieutenant-General1986 | 1989 | 2–3 years | |
10 | K. Foster (born 1938) | Lieutenant-General1989 | 1991 | 1–2 years | |
11 | J. Gervais (born 1938) | Lieutenant-General1991 | 1993 | 1–2 years | |
Chief of the Land Staff | |||||
1 | G. Reay (1943–2000) | Lieutenant-General1993 | September 1996 | 2–3 years | |
2 | M. Baril (born 1943) | Lieutenant-GeneralSeptember 1996 | September 1997 | 1 year | |
3 | W. Leach (1942–2015) | Lieutenant-GeneralSeptember 1997 | August 2000 | 2 years, 11 months | |
4 | M. Jeffery | Lieutenant-GeneralAugust 2000 | May 2003 | 2 years, 9 months | |
5 | R. Hillier (born 1955) | Lieutenant-GeneralMay 2003 | 4 February 2005 | 1 year, 9 months | |
6 | M. Caron (born 1954) | Lieutenant-General4 February 2005 | June 2006 | 1 year, 3 months | |
7 | A. Leslie (born 1957) | Lieutenant-GeneralJune 2006 | June 2010 | 4 years | |
8 | P. Devlin | Lieutenant-GeneralJune 2010 | 21 July 2011 | 1 year, 1 month | |
Commander of the Canadian Army and Chief of the Army Staff | |||||
1 | P. Devlin | Lieutenant-General21 July 2011 | July 2013 | 1 year, 11 months | |
2 | M. Hainse (born 1964) | Lieutenant-GeneralJuly 2013 | January 2016 | 2 years, 6 months | |
3 | P.F. Wynnyk (born 1964) | Lieutenant-GeneralJanuary 2016 | 16 July 2018 | 2 years, 6 months | |
4 | J. Lanthier | Lieutenant-General16 July 2018 | 20 August 2019 | 1 year, 1 month | |
5 | W. Eyre | Lieutenant-General20 August 2019 | Incumbent | 2 years, 1 month |
See also[]
- Chief of the Defence Staff, the second most senior member of the Canadian Armed Forces after the Commander-in-Chief
- Commander of the Royal Canadian Navy, institutional head of the Royal Canadian Navy
- Commander of the Royal Canadian Air Force, institutional head of the Royal Canadian Air Force
References[]
- ^ British Strategic Withdrawal from the Western Hemisphere, 1904–1906 Archived 2012-07-20 at archive.today University of Toronto Press
- ^ "Lieutenant-General Geoffrey Walsh". Army cadet history. Retrieved 31 January 2019.
- ^ Integration and Unification of the Canadian Forces Archived January 15, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Chasing the Silver Bullet: the Evolution of Capability Development in the Canadian Army by Major Andrew B. Godefroy CD, Page 59
- ^ Canadian Navy, Air Force 'Royal' Again With Official Name Change Huffington Post, 15 August 2011
- ^ "List of commanders of the Army". Government of Canada. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
External links[]
- Canadian Armed Forces
- Military appointments of Canada
- Military of Canada
- Army chiefs of staff