Chief of the Defence Staff (France)

The French Republic
Chief of the Defence Staff
Chef d'État-Major des Armées

E.M.A Insignia
Insigne de l'État-Major des armées

Incumbent
General Pierre de Villiers

since 15 February 2014
Ministry of Defence
Member of Chiefs of Staff Committee
Reports to Minister of Defence
Seat Paris, France
Nominator Minister of Defence
Appointer President of the Republic
Require Prime Minister's countersignature
Term length No fixed term
Formation 25th Chief since April 28, 1948
First holder Jean-Louis Borel (1874-1875)
Website http://www.defense.gouv.fr

The Chief of the Defence Staff (French: Chef d'État-Major des Armées) (acronym: C.E.M.A) is the chief of defence of the French military.

C.E.M.A is currently held by Général Pierre de Villiers.

Functions

The Chef d'État-Major des Armées (English: Chief of the Defense Staff; French: CEMA) is, in virtue of decree dispositions of July 15, 2009, under the authority of the President of France and the French government, responsible for the use of forces and assuming the command of all military operations. CEMA is the military counselar of the government. CEMA has authority over the:

CEMA responsibilities consist of:

Responsibilities and authorities

The Chief of the Defence Staff (C.E.M.A) of the armed forces assumed two principal functions:

C.E.M.A is responsible for :

Directly under the CEMA authority are :

Chefs d'État-Major des armées

Chef d'État-Major général de l'Armée (1874-1914)

Commandant en chef des armées françaises (1915-1918)

While non official, the term Generalissimo or « French: Généralissime » was employed since 1914 to designate the individual who in reality was « Commandant en Chef des Armées du Nord et du Nord-Est » (English: Commander-in-Chief of the armies of the North and North-East). The term would be made official in 1915 when Joffre was also given command over the Salonika front (a degree of authority not enjoyed by his successors). The rank and post was successively occupied by three generals during World War I: Joseph Joffre, who occupied the rank and functions from August 1914 without bearing the official title, then Robert Nivelle and Philippe Pétain.

Général Ferdinand Foch was the Assistant Commander-in-Chief of the Northern Zone under Joseph Joffre in autumn 1914; this role later crystallised into command of French Army Group North, a position which Foch held until December 1916. Subsequently, Foch became Supreme Allied Commander on the Western Front with the title Généralissime in 1918 then was designated as « Commandant en Chef des Armées Alliées » (English:Commander-in-Chief of Allied Forces) starting May 14, 1918.[1] Foch was promoted to Marshal of France prior the planning of the offensive that led to the Armistice of 11 November 1918. Following the armistice, Marshal Ferdinand Foch was elevated to the diginity of the Marshal of Great Britain and Poland.

N# Portrait Rank Name Service Branch Command Tenure Minister of War President of France
Tenure From Tenure Until Duration of Teunure
17. Generalissimo
Général de division[2]

(elevated to the diginity of
Maréchal de France)
Joseph Joffre French Army December 2, 1915 December 17, 1916 1 year, 15 days Joseph Gallieni
Pierre Roques
Louis Lyautey
Raymond Poincaré
18. Général de division Robert Nivelle French Army December 17, 1916 May 15, 1917 149 days Louis Lyautey
Lucien Lacaze
Paul Painlevé
Raymond Poincaré
19. Général de division
(elevated to the dignity of
Maréchal de France)
Philippe Pétain French Army May 17, 1917 March 28, 1918 315 days Paul Painlevé
Georges Clemenceau
Raymond Poincaré

Commandant en chef des Armées alliées (1918-1920)

N# Portrait Rank Name Service Branch Command Tenure Minister of War President of France
Tenure From Tenure Until Duration of Teunure
20. Marshal of
France

Supreme Allied Commander on the Western Front with title bearing Généralissime
(British Field Marshal
22nd Royal First Honorary Colonel
Marshal of Poland following the war)
Ferdinand Foch French Army March 28, 1918 January 10, 1920 1 year, 288days Georges Clemenceau Raymond Poincaré

Chef d'État-Major général des armées françaises (1920-1940)

N# Portrait Rank Name Service Branch Command Tenure Prime Minister President of France
Tenure From Tenure Until Duration of Teunure
21. Général d'armée Edmond Buat French Army June 24, 1920 December 30, 1923 3 years, 189 days Alexandre Millerand
Georges Leygues
Aristide Briand
Raymond Poincaré
Paul Deschanel
Alexandre Millerand
22. Generalissimo Marie-Eugène Debeney French Army January 1, 1924 1930 6 years Raymond Poincaré
Frédéric François-Marsal
Édouard Herriot
Paul Painlevé
Aristide Briand
André Tardieu
Alexandre Millerand
Gaston Doumergue
23. Général d'armée Maxime Weygand French Army 1930 1935 5 years Camille Chautemps
André Tardieu
Théodore Steeg
Pierre Laval
Gaston Doumergue
24. Général d'armée Maurice Gamelin French Army 1935 1940 5 years Pierre Laval
Albert Sarraut
Léon Blum
Camille Chautemps
Édouard Daladier
Paul Reynaud
Gaston Doumergue
Paul Doumer
Albert Lebrun

Chef d'État-Major général des forces armées (1948-1950)

N# Portrait Rank Name Service Branch Command Tenure Prime Minister President of France
Tenure From Tenure Until Duration of Teunure
25.
Général de division Henri Zeller French Army April 28, 1948 March 31, 1950 1 year, 337 days Robert Schuman
André Marie
Henri Queuille
Georges Bidault
Vincent Auriol

Chef d'État-Major combiné des forces armées (1950-1953)

N# Portrait Rank Name Service Branch Command Tenure Prime Minister President of France
Tenure From Tenure Until Duration of Teunure
26.
Général de division Henri Zeller French Army April 1, 1950 August 20, 1951 1 year, 144 days Henri Queuille
René Pleven
Vincent Auriol
27.
Air Force General
1st Air Force General
in this post
Charles Léchères French Air Force August 20, 1951 August 20, 1952 1 year, 0 days Henri Queuille
René Pleven
Edgar Faure
Antoine Pinay
Vincent Auriol
28. Général d'armée
(elevated to the dignity of Maréchal de France)
Alphonse Juin French Army August 20, 1952 August 17, 1953 362 days Antoine Pinay
René Mayer
Joseph Laniel
Vincent Auriol

Chef d'État-Major des forces armées (1953-1958)

N# Portrait Rank Name Service Branch Command Tenure Prime Minister President of France
Tenure From Tenure Until Duration of Teunure
29.
Général d'armée Paul Ély French Army August 18, 1953 June 3, 1954 289 days Joseph Laniel Vincent Auriol
René Coty
30.
Général d'armée Augustin Guillaume French Army June 4, 1954 February 28, 1956 1 year, 269 days Joseph Laniel
Pierre Mendès France
Edgar Faure
Guy Mollet
René Coty
31.
Général d'armée Paul Ély French Army March 2, 1956 May 16, 1958 2 years, 75 days Guy Mollet
Maurice Bourgès-Maunoury
Félix Gaillard
Pierre Pflimlin
René Coty

Chef d'État-Major général des armées (1958-1961)

N# Portrait Rank Name Service Branch Command Tenure Prime Minister President of France
Tenure From Tenure Until Duration of Teunure
32.
Général d'armée Henri Lorillot French Army May 17, 1958 June 8, 1958 22 days Pierre Pflimlin
Charles de Gaulle
René Coty
33.
Général d'armée Paul Ély French Army June 9, 1958 February 11, 1959 247 days Charles de Gaulle
Michel Debré
René Coty
Charles de Gaulle
34.
Général d'armée Gaston Lavaud French Army February 25, 1959 April 10, 1961 2 years, 44 days Michel Debré Charles de Gaulle

Chef d'État-Major interarmées (1961-1962)

N# Portrait Rank Name Service Branch Command Tenure Prime Minister President of France
Tenure From Tenure Until Duration of Teunure
35
Air Force General
2nd Air Force General
in this post
André Martin French Air Force April 11, 1961 July 15, 1962 1 year, 95 days Michel Debré
Georges Pompidou
Charles de Gaulle

Chef d'État-Major des armées (1962-Present)

N# Portrait Rank Name Service Branch Command Tenure Minister of War President of France
Tenure From Tenure Until Duration of Teunure
36.
Général d'armée Charles Ailleret French Army July 16, 1962 March 9, 1968 5 years, 237 days Georges Pompidou Charles de Gaulle
37.
Air Force General Michel Fourquet French Air Force April 1, 1968 June 8, 1971 3 years, 68 days Georges Pompidou
Maurice Couve de Murville
Jacques Chaban-Delmas
Charles de Gaulle
Georges Pompidou
38.
Air Force General François Maurin French Air Force June 9, 1971 June 30, 1975 4 years, 21 days Jacques Chaban-Delmas
Pierre Messmer
Jacques Chirac
Georges Pompidou
Valéry Giscard d'Estaing
39.
Général d'armée Guy Méry French Army July 1, 1975 July 19, 1980 5 years, 18 days Jacques Chirac
Raymond Barre
Valéry Giscard d'Estaing
40.
Général d'armée Claude Vanbremeersch French Army July 20, 1980 January 31, 1981 195 days Raymond Barre Valéry Giscard d'Estaing
41.
Général d'armée Jeannou Lacaze French Army February 1, 1981 July 31, 1985 4 years, 180 days Raymond Barre
Pierre Mauroy
Laurent Fabius
Valéry Giscard d'Estaing
François Mitterrand
42.
Air Force General Jean Saulnier French Air Force August 1, 1985 November 13, 1987 2 years, 104 days Laurent Fabius
Jacques Chirac
François Mitterrand
43.
Général d'armée Maurice Schmitt French Army November 14, 1987 April 23, 1991 3 years, 221 days Jacques Chirac
Michel Rocard
François Mitterrand
44.
Amiral
1st Admiral
in this post
Jacques Lanxade French Navy April 24, 1991 September 8, 1995 4 years, 137 days Michel Rocard
Édith Cresson
Pierre Bérégovoy
Édouard Balladur
Alain Juppé
François Mitterrand
Jacques Chirac
45.
Air Force General Jean-Philippe Douin French Air Force September 9, 1995 April 7, 1998 2 years, 210 days Alain Juppé
Lionel Jospin
Jacques Chirac
46.
Général d'armée Jean-Pierre Kelche French Army April 9, 1998 October 29, 2002 4 years, 203 days Lionel Jospin
Jean-Pierre Raffarin
Jacques Chirac
47.
Général d'armée Henri Bentégeat French Army October 30, 2002 October 3, 2006 3 years, 338 days Jean-Pierre Raffarin
Dominique de Villepin
Jacques Chirac
48. Général d'armée Jean-Louis Georgelin[3] French Army October 4, 2006 February 24, 2010 3 years, 143 days Dominique de Villepin
François Fillon
Jacques Chirac
Nicolas Sarkozy
49. Amiral
2nd Admiral
in this post
Édouard Guillaud[4] French Navy February 25, 2010 February 14, 2014 3 years, 354 days François Fillon
Jean-Marc Ayrault
Nicolas Sarkozy
François Hollande
50. Général d'armée Pierre de Villiers[5] French Army February 15, 2014 Present
Jean-Marc Ayrault
Manuel Valls
François Hollande

See also

References

Sources

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