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The chain of command leads from the president (as commander-in-chief) through the secretary of defense down to the newest recruits. [2] [3] The United States Armed Forces are organized through the United States Department of Defense, which oversees a complex structure of joint command and control functions with many units reporting to various commanding officers.
The President of the United States is, according to the Constitution, the Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Armed Forces and Chief Executive of the Federal Government. The Secretary of Defense is the "Principal Assistant to the President in all matters relating to the Department of Defense", and is vested with statutory authority (10 U.S.C. § 113) to lead the Department and all of its component ...
In a military context, the chain of command is the line of authority and responsibility along which orders are passed within a military unit and between different units. In simpler terms, the chain of command is the succession of leaders through which command is exercised and executed.
Beginning late on January 1, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was hospitalized and in an intensive care unit, yet no one in the military chain of command seemed to know about it until January 5.
The Unified Command Plan (UCP) establishes the missions, command responsibilities, and geographic areas of responsibility of the combatant commands. [a] Each time the Unified Command Plan is updated, the organization of the combatant commands is reviewed for military efficiency and efficacy, as well as alignment with national policy. [4] [5]
As the U.S. military grew in size following the American Civil War, joint military action between the Army and Navy became increasingly difficult. The Army and Navy were unsupportive of each other at either the planning or operational level and were constrained by disagreements during the Spanish–American War in the Caribbean campaigns.
The use of formalized ranks in a hierarchical structure came into widespread use with the Roman Army. [citation needed]In modern times, executive control, management and administration of military organization is typically undertaken by governments through a government department within the structure of public administration, often known as a ministry of defence or department of defense.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff, although outside the operational chain of command, is the senior-most military body in the United States Armed Forces. It is led by the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff , who is the military head of the armed forces and principal advisor to the president and secretary of defense on military matters.