The Ministry of Defence was a department of the

British Government ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_est ...

responsible for defence and the

British Armed Forces The British Armed Forces, also known as His Majesty's Armed Forces, are the military forces responsible for the defence of the United Kingdom, its Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies. They also promote the UK's wider interests, s ...

History

Prior to the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

defence policy was co-ordinated by the

Committee of Imperial Defence The Committee of Imperial Defence was an important ''ad hoc'' part of the Government of the United Kingdom and the British Empire from just after the Second Boer War until the start of the Second World War. It was responsible for research, and som ...

(CID). In 1936 the post of

Minister for Co-ordination of Defence The Minister for Co-ordination of Defence was a British Cabinet-level position established in 1936 to oversee and co-ordinate the rearmament of Britain's defences. It was abolished in 1940. History The position was established by Prime Minister ...

was established, though he did not have a department and the political heads of the three services—the

First Lord of the Admiralty The First Lord of the Admiralty, or formally the Office of the First Lord of the Admiralty, was the political head of the English and later British Royal Navy. He was the government's senior adviser on all naval affairs, responsible for the di ...

for the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...

, the

Secretary of State for War The Secretary of State for War, commonly called War Secretary, was a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, which existed from 1794 to 1801 and from 1854 to 1964. The Secretary of State for War headed the War Office and ...

for the

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

and the

Secretary of State for Air The Secretary of State for Air was a secretary of state position in the British government, which existed from 1919 to 1964. The person holding this position was in charge of the Air Ministry. The Secretary of State for Air was supported by ...

for the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

—continued to attend

Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filin ...

. On the outbreak of war in 1939 the CID was suspended and on 3 April 1940 the office of Minister for Co-ordination of Defence was abolished. When

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

became Prime Minister in May 1940 he personally assumed responsibility for inter-service co-ordination, with the title of

Minister of Defence A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

, and the heads of the three services were not included in the

War Cabinet A war cabinet is a committee formed by a government in a time of war to efficiently and effectively conduct that war. It is usually a subset of the full executive cabinet of ministers, although it is quite common for a war cabinet to have senio ...

. The Minister had few departments, the most famous of which was MD1 which allowed unusual ideas for weapons to be developed under the patronage of Churchill with less interference from the services and got the nickname "Churchill's Toyshop". After the end of the war in Europe in May 1945 the First Lord and the Secretaries for War and Air rejoined the Cabinet, though the Prime Minister remained Minister of Defence. The suspension of the CID was made permanent by a

White Paper A white paper is a report or guide that informs readers concisely about a complex issue and presents the issuing body's philosophy on the matter. It is meant to help readers understand an issue, solve a problem, or make a decision. A white paper ...

(Cmd. 6923) in 1946, and from 4 October that year the service chiefs were no longer in the Cabinet. The former First Lord of the Admiralty A.V. Alexander was appointed Minister of Defence on 20 December 1946Butler and Butler, p. 22 and the Ministry of Defence was formally established on 1 January 1947 by the

Ministry of Defence Act 1946 Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian mi ...

. The Ministry was responsible for liaising between the individual service ministries and co-ordinating defence policy. Under the

Defence (Transfer of Functions) Act 1964 Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense industr ...

the Ministry of Defence was merged with the

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong *Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral *Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings * Admiralty, Traf ...

, the

War Office The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD). This article contains text from ...

and the

Air Ministry The Air Ministry was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, that existed from 1918 to 1964. It was under the political authority of the Secretary of Stat ...

to form the current

Ministry of Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in state ...

on 1 April 1964; the Minister of Defence became

Secretary of State for Defence The secretary of state for defence, also referred to as the defence secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the business of the Ministry of Defence. The incumbent is a membe ...

List of Ministers of Defence, 1940–1964

Permanent Secretaries to the Ministry of Defence, 1947–1964

Parliamentary Secretaries to the Ministry of Defence, 1952–1964

* 28 February 1952:

Nigel Birch Evelyn Nigel Chetwode Birch, Baron Rhyl (18 November 1906 – 8 March 1981) was a British Conservative politician. The son of General Sir Noel Birch and his wife Florence Chetwode, Nigel Birch was educated at Eton. He was a partner in C ...

Butler and Butler, p. 24 * 18 October 1954: The Lord Carrington * 26 May 1956: The Earl of Gosford * 18 January 1957: The Lord MancroftButler and Butler, p. 27 * 11 June 1957: ''office vacant''.

References

{{reflist

Sources

* David Butler and Gareth Butler, ''Twentieth Century British Political Facts 1900–2000'', eighth edition, Macmillan, 2000 Defunct departments of the Government of the United Kingdom 1947 establishments in the United Kingdom 1964 disestablishments in the United Kingdom

History

List of Ministers of Defence, 1940–1964

Permanent Secretaries to the Ministry of Defence, 1947–1964

Parliamentary Secretaries to the Ministry of Defence, 1952–1964

See also

References

Sources