The Adjutant General of Connecticut is the highest-ranking military officer in the Armed Forces of the State of Connecticut which includes the

Connecticut National Guard The Connecticut Military Department is a state agency of the government of Connecticut. Its primary components are the Connecticut Army National Guard, the Connecticut Air National Guard, and four companies of the state militia. The Military De ...

, the four units of the Governor's Guards, the

Connecticut State Guard The Governor's Guards of Connecticut are four distinct units of the Connecticut State Guard, a part of the organized militia under the Connecticut State Militia. There are two foot guard units and two horse guard units. All four units are formed ...

, the Connecticut State Guard Reserve and the Connecticut Naval Militia. The current Adjutant General is

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

Francis J. Evon, Jr. He was appointed to a four-year term effective July 1, 2018.

Appointment

The Governor of the State of

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the ...

appoints the Adjutant General to a four-year term beginning on July 1 in the same year of the state's gubernatorial election. The Adjutant General is required to have a minimum of fifteen years of commissioned service in the Armed Forces of the United States and have obtained the rank of

Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colon ...

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

. The Adjutant General can have served in any branch of the United States military and there is no requirement that they must have served in the National Guard. The Adjutant General can not be appointed or continue to serve once they have reached the age of sixty-four.

History

On May 11, 1637, the General Courts of the

Connecticut Colony The ''Connecticut Colony'' or ''Colony of Connecticut'', originally known as the Connecticut River Colony or simply the River Colony, was an English colony in New England which later became Connecticut. It was organized on March 3, 1636 as a settl ...

established a military arm of the government. This organization was the forerunner to the

Connecticut Military Department The Connecticut Military Department is a state agency of the government of Connecticut. Its primary components are the Connecticut Army National Guard, the Connecticut Air National Guard, and four companies of the state militia. The Military Dep ...

in which its head is the Adjutant General. The position of Adjutant General was first officially established within Connecticut Law in 1784. "And be it further enacted that there shall be from Time to Time appointed, as may be necessary, by Warrant one Adjutant General over the whole Militia of this State.' Originally there was no requirement of prior military service. In 1796, the Connecticut Acts & Laws were further update in accordance with national law in which the duties of the Adjutant General were defined to be to distribute all orders from the Commander-in-Chief of the state to the several Corps and to attend all public reviews where the Commander-in-Chief of the state will review the militia. In 1939, the Military Department was established in order to consolidate all armed forces of the state under the Adjutant General. This included the units of the Governor's Guards and Naval Militia as well as the National Guard. The Connecticut Office of Civil Defense was established in 1959 and became a subordinate agency of the Connecticut Military Department under the authority of the Adjutant General to respond to natural disasters, civil disturbances and other events. The office was renamed in 1973 to the Office of Civil Preparedness and in 1979, both organizations became subordniate to the Department of Public Safety, the agency which also included the State Police. The Adjutant General regained authority of the Office of Civil Preparedness in 1999, which was renamed the Office of Emergency Management in 1988. This was short-lived as in 2004 the Adjutant General once again lost authority over he Office of Emergency Management which was merged into a new state agency, the Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security.Public Act 04-219 The Adjutant General still maintains responsibility for readying the National Guard to respond to domestic issues as required by the Governor, but works in coordination with the now Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection, which has primary responsibility for planning and responding to natural disasters and other domestic responses.

List of Adjutants General of the State of Connecticut

Appointment

History

List of Adjutants General of the State of Connecticut

References

See also