National Defence Headquarters (NDHQ) ( French: ''Quartiers généraux de la Défense nationale'' (''QGDN'')) was created through the integration of Canadian Armed Forces Headquarters (CAF HQ) with the civilian Department of National Defence (DND) staff in October of 1972. NDHQ is not a specific location, but is instead housed throughout a collection of offices in buildings across the

National Capital Region A capital region, also called a capital district or capital territory, is a region or district surrounding a capital city. It is not always the official term for the region, but may sometimes be used as an informal synonym. Capital regions can exis ...

, although it is most commonly identified with the

Major-General George R Pearkes Building The Major-General George R. Pearkes Building (often abbreviated as just Pearkes and referred to as '101 Col By') is the principal location of Canada's National Defence Headquarters (NDHQ) and is located in downtown Ottawa, Ontario. NDHQ actually ...

on Colonel By Drive in Ottawa. From 2017, various locations have been consolidating at National Defence Headquarters, Carling Campus on

Carling Avenue Carling Avenue is a major east–west arterial road in the west end of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It runs from March Road in Kanata to Bronson Avenue in the Glebe. The road is named for John Carling, founder of Carling Brewery and Conservative ...

History

During the Cold War, the threat of nuclear attack on the National Capital Region saw an

Emergency Government Headquarters Emergency Government Headquarters is the name given for a system of nuclear fallout shelters built by the Government of Canada in the 1950s and 1960s as part of continuity of government planning at the height of the Cold War. Situated at stra ...

constructed 30 km west of Ottawa at CFS Carp; this facility was to house a scaled-down NDHQ, along with the federal cabinet and other political, military and government leaders. Completed in 1974, the George R Pearkes Building was originally built for

Transport Canada Transport Canada (french: Transports Canada) is the department within the Government of Canada responsible for developing regulations, policies and services of road, rail, marine and air transportation in Canada. It is part of the Transporta ...

until a plan for a new NDHQ in LeBreton Flats was cancelled. Transport Canada instead moved to the newly completed

Place de Ville Place de Ville is a complex of office towers in downtown Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It consists of four office buildings: Place de Ville A, B, and C; and the 'Podium' building, which houses a shuttered "piggy-back" cinema enveloped with function ...

Tower C (1972). Carling Campus was originally

Nortel Nortel Networks Corporation (Nortel), formerly Northern Telecom Limited, was a Canadian multinational telecommunications and data networking equipment manufacturer headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It was founded in Montreal, Quebec, ...

's research and development site until it was purchased by the Federal Government in 2010.

Structure

Falling under the Minister of National Defence, NDHQ includes the office of the Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS), who is the senior military commander within the Canadian Armed Forces; and the Deputy Minister, who as the senior civil servant is in charge of the Department of National Defence. Also reporting directly to the Minister are the

Associate Minister of National Defence The associate minister of national defence () is a member of the Canadian cabinet who is responsible for various files within the defence department as assigned by the prime minister or defence minister. The position was created in 1940 during ...

, the Judge Advocate General and several other organizations which are considered part of the Defence Portfolio. *Reporting to the CDS are the headquarters of all Canadian Armed Forces commands: **

Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; french: Marine royale canadienne, ''MRC'') is the naval force of Canada. The RCN is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2021, the RCN operates 12 frigates, four attack submar ...

Canadian Army The Canadian Army (french: Armée canadienne) is the command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also res ...

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...

** Military Personnel Command **

Canadian Special Operations Forces Command Canadian Special Operations Forces Command (CANSOFCOM; french: links=no, Commandement des Forces d'opérations spéciales du Canada; COMFOSCAN) is a command of the Canadian Armed Forces. It is responsible for all special forces operations that ar ...

** Canadian Joint Operations Command **

Canadian Forces Intelligence Command , colors = , colors_label = , march = , mascot = , equipment = , equipment_label = , battles ...

** Strategic Joint Staff **

North American Aerospace Defense Command North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD ), known until March 1981 as the North American Air Defense Command, is a combined organization of the United States and Canada that provides aerospace warning, air sovereignty, and protection ...

(NORAD) *Reporting to the DM are an Associate Deputy Minister and several Assistant Deputy Ministers (ADM): ** Associate Deputy Minister ** ADM (Policy) ** ADM (Finance) ** ADM (Materiel) ** ADM (Infrastructure & Environment) ** ADM (Human Resources - Civilian) *Reporting to both the DM and the CDS are the following offices: ** Vice Chief of the Defence Staff ** ADM (Public Affairs) ** ADM (Defence Research and Development Canada) ** ADM (Information Management) ** ADM (Review Services) ** ADM (Data, Innovation and Analytics)

References

External links

Department of National Defence (Canada)

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

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