Armed Forces General Staff (Portugal)
Armed Forces General Staff | |
---|---|
Estado-Maior-General das Forças Armadas | |
![]() Military Standard of Portugal | |
Active | 1950–1974 (SGDN); 1974–present (EMGFA) |
Country | Portugal |
Branch | Armed forces |
Type | Military staff |
Part of | Portuguese Armed Forces |
Headquarters | Lisbon |
Motto(s) | Que quem quis sempre pôde ("Who wills aye finds a way", from The Lusiads, Canto IX, 95, v. 6) |
Engagements | Annexation of Goa Portuguese Colonial War IFOR SFOR EUFOR KFOR Afghanistan War Peacekeaping missions Angola Bosnia and Herzegovina Croatia North Macedonia Western Sahara Georgia Lebanon |
Commanders | |
Current Chief | Admiral António da Silva Ribeiro |
Insignia | |
Abbreviation | EMGFA |
The Armed Forces General Staff (Portuguese: Estado-Maior-General das Forças Armadas), or EMGFA, is the supreme military body of Portugal. It is responsible for the planning, command and control of the Portuguese Armed Forces.
EMGFA is headed by the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces (Portuguese: Chefe do Estado-Maior-General das Forças Armadas) or CEMGFA, the highest rank of general in the Portuguese Armed Forces.
History
The present Armed Forces General Staff was created in 1950, as the Secretariat-General of National Defence (Portuguese: Secretariado-Geral da Defesa Nacional) or SGDN. The SGDN was the central planning organization of the Defense, being headed by the Chief of the Armed Forces General Staff, under the dependency of the minister of National Defense (both roles also being created at the same time). Besides having the role of secretary-general of the SGDN, the CEMGFA also assumed most of the responsibilities until then assigned to the military heads of the Navy and of the Army (the then existing service branches, as the Air Force would only be created in 1952). The creation of the SGDN and of the roles of CEMGFA and minister of National Defense marked the integration of the several military service branches and so the creation of the Armed Forces of Portugal as a single organization.
In 1969, it was decreed that SGDN should be remodeled in order to be transformed into the EMGFA, as the organization for the joint administration of the Armed Forces. However, transformation of the SGDN into the EMGFA occurred only in 1974.
Organization
The Armed Forces General Staff is integrated into the Portuguese Ministry of National Defence and includes:
- The Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces (CEMGFA)
- The Joint Staff (EMC, Estado-Maior Conjunto)
- The Joint Operational Command (COC, Comando Operacional Conjunto)
- The operational commands of the Azores and Madeira
- The commanders-in-chief that can be created under the CEMGFA, in times of war
- The Military Security and Information Center (CISMIL, Centro de Informações e Segurança Militares)
- The general support organizations
Under the dependency of the CEMGFA are also:
- The Portuguese Joint Command and Staff College (IESM, Instituto de Estudos Superiores Militares)
- The Hospital of the Armed Forces (HFAR, Hospital das Forças Armadas)
The Chief of the General Staff
The Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces is the operational commander of the Portuguese Armed Forces in times of peace. In times of war, he assumes the complete command of the Armed Forces. The CEMGFA is a general officer of one of the three branches of the Armed Forces (Army, Navy and Air Force), appointed by the President of Portugal, by proposal of the Government of Portugal.
List of chiefs of the General Staff
No. | Portrait | Chief | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Defence branch |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Aníbal César Valdez de Passos e Sousa (1884–1954) | Army General5 August 1950 | 6 December 1951 | 1 year, 123 days | ![]() | |
2 | Manuel Ortins de Bettencourt (1892–1969) | Rear admiral12 December 1951 | 9 February 1955 | 3 years, 59 days | ![]() | |
3 | Júlio Botelho Moniz (1900–1979) | Army General3 March 1955 | 13 August 1958 | 3 years, 163 days | ![]() | |
4 | José António da Rocha Beleza Ferraz (1901–?) | Army General22 August 1958 | 12 April 1961 | 2 years, 233 days | ![]() | |
5 | Manuel Gomes de Araújo (1897–1982) | Army General13 April 1961 | 3 December 1962 | 1 year, 234 days | ![]() | |
6 | Venâncio Augusto Deslandes (1909–1985) | Air Force General16 August 1968 | 4 September 1972 | 4 years, 19 days | ![]() | |
7 | Francisco da Costa Gomes (1914–2001) [a] | Army General5 September 1972 | 13 March 1974 | 1 year, 189 days | ![]() | |
8 | Joaquim da Luz Cunha (1914–?) [b] | Army General19 March 1974 | 28 April 1974 | 40 days | ![]() | |
(7) | Francisco da Costa Gomes (1914–2001) [c] | Army General29 April 1974 | 13 July 1976 | 2 years, 75 days | ![]() | |
9 | António Ramalho Eanes (born 1935) [d] | Army General14 July 1976 | 16 February 1981 | 4 years, 217 days | ![]() | |
10 | Nuno Viriato Tavares de Melo Egídio (1922–2011) | Army General17 February 1981 | 18 February 1984 | 3 years, 1 day | ![]() | |
11 | José Lemos Ferreira (1929–2020) | Air Force General1 March 1984 | 8 March 1989 | 5 years, 7 days | ![]() | |
12 | António Soares Carneiro (1928–2014) | Army General29 March 1989 | 25 January 1994 | 4 years, 302 days | ![]() | |
13 | António Carlos Fuzeta da Ponte (born 1935) | Admiral21 February 1994 | 9 March 1998 | 4 years, 16 days | ![]() | |
14 | Gabriel Augusto do Espírito Santo (1936–2014) | Army General17 March 1998 | 8 August 2000 | 2 years, 144 days | ![]() | |
15 | Manuel José Alvarenga de Sousa Santos | Air Force General12 August 2000 | 23 August 2002 | 2 years, 11 days | ![]() | |
16 | José Manuel Garcia Mendes Cabeçadas | Admiral4 November 2002 | 5 December 2006 | 4 years, 31 days | ![]() | |
17 | Luís Valença Pinto (born 1946) | Army General5 December 2006 | 4 February 2011 | 4 years, 61 days | ![]() | |
18 | Luís Evangelista Esteves Araújo (born 1949) | Air Force General7 February 2011 | 7 February 2014 | 3 years, 0 days | ![]() | |
19 | Artur Neves Pina Monteiro (born 1952) | Army General7 February 2014 | 1 March 2018 | 4 years, 22 days | ![]() | |
20 | António Manuel Fernandes da Silva Ribeiro (born 1957) | Admiral1 March 2018 | Incumbent | 6 years, 174 days | ![]() |
See also
Notes
- ^ Dismissed because of refusal to swear loyalty to the Prime Minister Marcello Caetano in a public ceremony
- ^ Dismissed following the Carnation Revolution
- ^ Simultaneously served as President of the National Salvation Junta (30 September 1974 – 14 March 1975), 15th President of Portugal (30 September 1974 – 13 July 1976) and President of the Revolutionary Council (14 March 1975 – 13 July 1976)
- ^ Simultaneously served as 16th President of Portugal (14 July 1976 – 9 March 1986) and President of the Revolutionary Council (14 July 1976 – 30 September 1982)
References
- RIBEIRO, António S., Organização Superior da Defesa Nacional, Prefácio, 2004