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{{Infobox Government agency
{{Infobox Government agency
|agency_name    = Ministry of Defence
|name            = Ministry of Defence
|type            = Department
| native_name    = ''dang′-st′a-proang-gwrals-be′''
|logo            =
| native_name_a  = 尚書邦衛部
|logo_width      = 180px
|type            = Ministry
|logo            = Themi_MoD_logo.gif
|logo_width      = 220px
|logo_caption    =
|logo_caption    =
|seal            =  
|seal            =  
|seal_width      =  
|seal_width      =  
|seal_caption    =
|seal_caption    =
|formed          = December 30th, 1963
|formed          = Oct. 30, 1970
|preceding2      =  
|preceding1      = War Ministry
|preceding2      = [[Admiralty Department (Themiclesia)|Admiralty Department]]
|preceding3      = Air Ministry
|dissolved      =
|dissolved      =
|superseding    = Ministries of Army, Navy, and Air Force
|superseding    =  
|parent_department= Government of Themiclesia
|parent_department= [[Council of Correspondence|Cabinet]]
|jurisdiction    = Themiclesia
|jurisdiction    = Themiclesia
|headquarters    = [[Dormitory Building]], [[Kien-k'ang]], [[Themiclesia]]
|headquarters    = [[Kien-k'ang]], [[Themiclesia]]
|coordinates    =  
|coordinates    =  
|employees      = 56,860 civilian staff (October 2015)
|employees      = 56,860 civilian staff (October 2015)
|budget          = OSD$63 bn
|budget          = OSD$63 bn
|minister1_name  = ''tbd''
|minister1_name  = Smlem Tswats
|chief1_name    = ''tbd''
|minister1_pfo  = Secretary of State
|chief1_position = Minister of State for Defence
|chief1_name    = Marcus Lrat
|chief2_name    = ''tbd''
|chief1_position = Minister of State
|chief2_position = Permanent Secretary
|chief2_name    =  
|child1_agency  = [[Department of the Army]]
|chief2_position =  
|child2_agency  = [[Department of the Navy]]
|child1_agency  = War Department
|child3_agency  = [[Department of the Air Force]]
|child2_agency  = [[Admiralty Department (Themiclesia)|Admiralty Department]]
|child3_agency  = Air Department
|website        =  
|website        =  
|footnotes      =
|footnotes      =
|name=|chief3_name=|chief3_position=|chief4_name=|chief4_position=|chief5_name=|chief5_position=|chief6_name=|chief6_position=|chief7_name=|chief7_position=|chief8_name=|chief8_position=|chief9_name=|chief9_position=}}The '''Ministry of Defence''' (尚書國防部) of Themiclesia is the government department for implementing defence policies set by the the [[Themiclesian Ministry|Government of Themiclesia]].
|chief3_name=|chief3_position=|chief4_name=|chief4_position=|chief5_name=|chief5_position=|chief6_name=|chief6_position=|chief7_name=|chief7_position=|chief8_name=|chief8_position=|chief9_name=|chief9_position=}}The '''Ministry of Defence''' (尚書邦衛部, ''dang′-st′a-proang-gwrals-be′'') of Themiclesia is the government department for implementing defence policies set by the the [[Council of Correspondence|government of Themiclesia]].  It is currently led by Secretary of State for Defence, Geoffrey Smlem Tswats (沈最), with the assistance of four junior ministers and the Permanent Under-Secretary of State, the professional head of the Ministry.  Within it, there exist three subordinate departments that represent each of the three military services, the [[Consolidated Army|army]], [[Themiclesian Navy|navy]], and [[Themiclesian Air Force]].


The principal objectives of the Ministry of Defence are the defence of Themiclesia and her interests against foreign invasions, the discharge of Themiclesia's military obligations as required by statute and international treaties, and the general maintenance of the peace and stability in [[Septentrion]] as directed by the government.  The senior and responsible minister of the department, the Secretary of State for Defence, is the country's armed forces' commander-in-chief, though he, as a member of the Government and a cabinet minister, remains under the country's statutory and customary law, cabinet ordinances, and policies made by the government, and further is responsible politically to the country's parliament.
The principal objectives of the Ministry of Defence are the defence of Themiclesia and her interests against foreign invasions, the discharge of Themiclesia's military obligations as required by statute and international treaties, and the general maintenance of the peace and stability in [[Septentrion]] as directed by the government.  The senior and responsible minister of the department, the Secretary of State for Defence, is the ''de facto'' commander-in-chief of the armed forces, under the country's statutory and customary law, cabinet ordinances, and government policy, and further is responsible politically to the country's parliament.


==History==
==History==
===Background===
===Preceeding bodies===
The Ministry of Defence superceded the role of at least four distinct ministerial bodies, the Ministry of the Army, the Ministry of the Navy, the Ministry of the Air Force, and the Office for the Co-ordination of Defence. Possible further candidates include the Department of Civil Defence, the Office of Civil Aviation, and the Office of the Left and Right Guards.  The need to consolidate the country's defence services, historically and operationally independent, was evident from the outset of the [[Pan-Septentrion War]], though active hostilities during that conflict prevented large-scale, far-reaching reforms from being even seriously considered.  It has been fairly well-accepted academically that the country could have performed better during the war had co-ordination between the services been increased, and part of this academic opinion formed the basis of the reforms that brought the modern Ministry of Defence into existence.
The current Ministry of Defence is the result of the merger of the [[Ministry of War (Themiclesia)|Ministry of War]] (尉曹軍曹尚書部, ''′uts-dzu-prang-dzu-dang′-st′a-be′'', lit. "ministry of the secretary of state for the marshalcy department and military department"), the [[Admiralty Department (Themiclesia)|Admiralty Department]] (黃寺, ''gwrang-smle′''), and the Ministry of Air (汔行部, ''kreps-grang-be′'') in 1970.  Previous to the merger, the civilian bureaucracy that compose of their respective staff have already underwent extensive evolution, mostly under the process of centralization and simplification.  This process was independent of the evolution of ministerial portfolios, which were created and dissolved according to policy needs.  


Traditionally, the Ministry of War (renamed Ministry of the Army in 1903) was responsible for administering and leading the Army, most often against enemies that approached from [[Dzhungestan]], [[Maverica]], and occasionally from [[Nukkumaa]].  The Ministry of the Navy was responsible for all military affairs beyond the Halu'an Sea, to the west of the country, and its egress into the Meridian Ocean; somewhat untrue to the term "navy", the department's portfolio included terranean warfare beyond the seas.  Because of this acknowledged geographical delimitation of jurisdiction between the two ministries, co-operation between them had been minimal and temporary.  The Air Force, created in 1927, was headed by an independent ministry to prevent its resources being dedicated to only "one side".
The Ministry of War, whose name in [[Shinasthana]] literally means "Ministry of the Secretary of State for the Marshalcy Department and Military Department" came into existence around 1810, from the merger of several overlapping offices that superintended the pre-modern Themiclesian armies.  The Marshalcy Department and Military Department were civilian agencies of the [[Chancellor of Themiclesia|Chancery]] overseeing the recruitment of soldiers and mobilization of militias, and the appointment of military officers, respectively.  War-related production was managed under the Ministry of Works.  The central planning of warfare, an interdepartmental affair, was carried out mainly between the Emperor and his council of ministers.  There existed separate secretaries of state for domestic forces, transmarine forces (in the colonies across the Meh Sea), and other imperial advisors, but these were personal advisors not charged with any official responsibility.


===Navy Obstruction===
The Admiralty Department was split from the Sacramental Treasury early in the 9th century.  The Admiralty was led by a group of aristocrats known as the "barons of the admiralty", who functioned as a committee and was often not located in Themiclesia except for one or two "home barons" responsible for communicating the other barons' ideas to the government.
Since the Navy held jurisdictional control over terranean warfare on Hemithea west of Themiclesia's western coastline and in Meridia (theoretically in Casaterra as well), it possessed a considerable amount of infantry and other land-based forces.  Amongst them were the Maritime Corps (more famously known as [[Themiclesian Marine Corps]]), the Port Corps, and the Littoral Corps.  When the Army was overstretched for manpower in its battle against expanding Menghean forces in 1935, the Navy (along with its responsible minister) refused to send its infantry to assist the Army in what it called "the Army's region of responsibility"; modern historians have cited this as an excellent example of service sectionalism and, in addition, refusal to surrender resources for fear that the Army might eclipse the Navy's importance.  The direct result whereof is the institution of conscription in 1936.  Relations between the two services bittered, causing severe waste in duplicated establishments or units standing idle.  Inter-service co-operation ground to a halt in 1946, when the Navy asked the Army to build its own ships to ferry its troops from Menghe to Dayashina, since Dayashina was on "that side of Hemithea"; only the passage of a statute brought the Navy into line.  In reality, the heavy expected losses in ships and men in ''Operation Downfall'' could have presented itself as the primary cause of the Navy's reluctance to lend assistance.


===Precursors===
The Air Ministry was established by statute in 1919, to manage civilian aviation in Themiclesia.  At the time, several aviation clubs already existed, operating largely without oversight and regularly entering disputes with local authorities.  In 1921, it was decided that an air force would be strategically valuable in defending Themiclesia's very remote border regions and that it would be best managed together with civilian aviation; hence, the Themiclesian Air Force was created as a function of the League of Aviation Clubs in 1922 and became independent in 1923.  With war impending in 1935, civilian aviation was placed under the Ministry of Transport.
After the [[Pan-Septentrion War|PSW]], the Cabinet studied the possibility of placing the three services under a command authority other than itself.  All three defence ministers disagreed, but other ministers were generally in favour, if only for dramatically shortening cabinet agenda.  The Prime Minister, in particular, was noted to have a particular distaste for making military decisions as often as he did during the war, and often without impartial advice.  In 1951, he secretly commissioned the Dean of the Department of Arts of Pondside University to study the situation, in particular, "formation of a civilian or military authority, answerable to Cabinet, that did not belong to any of the three services".  The military option was quickly ruled out, as the Dean pointed out by letter, "all service persons retain, as second nature, a preference or disposition in favour of his native service.  Any office composed of service persons, by definition, cannot be free of sectionalism." This statement has been definitional in forming the future Ministry of Defence as a primarily civilian authority.


The general practice during the war, for inter-service communication, was for each service to station a senior officer in the imperial palace (the seat of the government) permanently, to act as a conduit between the minister and the chief of the service.  With the minister's permission, the officer could confer with his counterpart from another service, usually in the presence of both involved ministers.  Social propriety during the early stages of the war largely prevented the inclusion of more military officers in these informal meetings, as they could not be admitted to the palace, and without formal minutes, accepted conclusions often failed to receive the same support at Cabinet.  According to one such officer from the Army, he was given a thick brief every morning by his service chief and was instructed to obtain the Navy's "advised and considered assent" on hundreds of items, and the ensuing meeting could last more than 20 hours when the Navy officer's brief was also tabled.  Both officers would be speaking over telephones to their service chiefs, to relay the interlocutor's response for further consideration.  Commentators have found this to be one of the greatest absurdities in the conduct of the war, since the same task in other countries would have been done by dozens of officers, over multiple channels of communication.
===Inter-service rivalry and merger===
[[File:Themi separation.jpg|thumb|Relative jurisdictions of the Ministry of War and Ministry of Commerce before the 18th century]]
While many armed forces experienced inter-service rivalries, Themiclesia's experience was less pronounced than others during the early 20th century.  A number of factors may be cited to explain this observation.  Foremost, there was a traditional boundary between the army and navy's jurisdictions: the army focused on everything east of Themiclesia, accessible by land, while the Navy dealt with everything west and south, accessible by sea.  This would not be challenged until the PSW.   


===Formation===
Later, due to a defensive military outlook and stable diplomatic relations, there was comparatively little disagreement over upcoming military activity; however, as the government prioritized economy over defence, disputes between the services still arose, albeit for financial reasons and not strategic ones.  Also, since elected politicians ultimately represented the services to the cabinet, it was difficult for the services to induce the minister to defy government policy.  Equally, with the overwhelming importance of social status that military ranks reflected but did not confer, even senior admirals felt reluctant to challenge the government.
After extensive consultation and deliberation, the Government introduced the Ministry of Defence Act to the nation's parliament at the end of 1962.  The bill's preamble contained the somewhat contradictory language of:


{{cquote|''...under the precept of the administrative and structural independence of the army, navy, and air defence services, to provide for the integration operational matters amongst them...}}
Nevertheless, changes in perspectives still drove the two (later three) ministries towards sharing of resources, elucidating redundancies amongst them.  These were addressed in two phases.  The Secretary of State for Appropriations originally controlled two fleets and two armies.  The wars of the 1790s forced virtually all land forces to garrison and victual in Themiclesia-proper, so they were transferred to the War Secretary's portfolio for ease of administration.  Then the navy was split into its own portfolio to prevent an unnecessary combinations of very distinct policy areas.
To ensure the support of the defence ministers, the bill did ''not'' fundamentally change the structure of any of the three ministries.  Columnist Mark Leonard, writing on the ''Diplomat'', called the formation of the Ministry "essentially a matter of renaming the existing ministries and packing them into the shell of another ministry".  The new Secretary of State for Defence, upon the opening of his ministry in 1963, found that he could not control the existing defence ministers, since he had no independent source of information, and all of his decisions had to be implemented by the ministers whose places in Cabinet had been removed in his favour.  Cabinet resolutions were still the only instrument that will quell the service ministers.  Leonard was proven right when the organizational chart for the Ministry appeared in foreign media, showing that the Ministry employed more than the sum total of its three predecessors.


===Continued Reforms===
==Structure==
To facilitate communication between the three ex-ministries, the Under-Secretary of State for Co-ordination chaired the Co-ordination Committee with service ministers and their service chiefs, to ensure compliance with defence policy and co-operation between the services.  Afterwards, it was decided that the role of the Under-Secretary should be a professional one, instead of a ministerial one; briefly the Government considered placing the Permanent Secretary in that position, but the service ministers objected on the grounds of burdening the Permanent Secretary with matters outside of his professional training.
As responsible minister, the Secretary of State for Defence is ultimately answerable to the Government and Parliament for the implementation of government policy and thus holds final say over the ministry's statutory remit.  A number of junior ministers have been appointed to oversee specific policy areas; while some positions, like the Minister of State, the deputy of the Secretary of State, are statutory, others may be ''ad hoc'' appointments.


As a compromise, a board consisting of the Minister of State, the three service ministers, three service chiefs, the Permanent Secretary, and the Under-Secretary of State of Finance, totalling nine members, was created in 1970.  Joint operations were handled by this body directly, or through a sub-committee reporting to it; in every case, consensus was required for the body to make decisions.  In the event that a member disagrees, the matter would be "reserved" for the attention of the Secretary of State.  Eventually, a separate staff office also grew around this committee, filled with a complement of officers from all three services.  However, the Minister of State was not able to lead the discussion, even though he represented the Secretary of State.
The body which advises the secretary of state is called the '''Ministerial Conference''' (部議).  Statutorily, all ministers and those civil servants ranked above assistant-secretary are members of the body, whose meetings are weekly but may vary according to defence needs.  Civil servants need not be departmental heads to attend the Conference, though the majority are.  The professional heads of the forces are ''ex officio'' members.  Other officers, both civil and military, may be granted a seat by ministerial ordinance; the title of such an appointee is "Counsellor-Within", (內參議, ''nubh-s.r′um-ngjarh'').  This appointment deprecates upon the secretary of state's resignation.  Military officers attending the Ministerial Conference are sworn to the secrecy of government policies under deliberation; they may not reveal those policies even to their own subordinates.


==Current Structure==
The membership of the Conference as of early 2020 is as follows:
The Secretary of State is the leading minister of the body; a Minister of State (侍郎, in older works "attendant-officer") supports him and deputizes for him in his absence.  Under the Minister there are three Under-Secretaries of State (郎中, also "meridian-officer"), who head the three defence services.  The Minister of State and each Under-Secretary of State has an Assistant-Secretary of State (員外郎, also "supernumerary-officer") as his ministerial deputy.  There are additional Under- and Assistant-Secretaries of State overseeing finance, procurement, and (until 1970) co-ordination of the services.
*Secretary of State for Defence (邦衛尚書)
** Minister of State for Defence (尚書監)
*** Under-Secretary of State for the Army (兵曹郎)
**** Permanent Assistant-Secretary of State (兵曹從丞)
**** Chief of the Consolidated Staff (兵長史)
*** Under-Secretary of State for the Navy (航曹郎)
**** Permanent Assistant-Secretary of State (航曹從丞)
**** Chief Admiral (航中記室長史)
*** Under-Secretary of State for the Air Force (空曹郎)
**** Permanent Assistant-Secretary of State (空曹從丞)
**** Chief of the Air Staff (空長史)
*** Permanent Under-Secretary of State (尚書丞)
**** Permanent Assistant-Secretary of State (尚書從丞)
*** Under-Secretary of State for Procurement (市徵郎)
*** Under-Secretary of State for Strategic Development (虞曹郎)
*** Under-Secretary of State for Welfare and Disabilities (復曹郎)
*** Under-Secretary of State for Public Access (佈郎)
*** Under-Secretary of State for Equality and Prevention of Abuse (等禁暴郎)
*** Under-Secretary of State for Civil Defence (民衛郎)


The non-ministerial staff of the entire Ministry of Defence is under the purview of the Permanent Secretary (丞, also "secretary"), who is the professional head of the Ministry.  He ranks as an Under-Secretary of State.  Under him are Deputy Secretaries (都令史, also "chief directing administrator") leading the several civilian departments responsible for finance, procurement, technological development, recruitment, and other functions.
As of early 2019, the following individuals are Counsellors-Within:
*Under-Secretary of State for Palace Affairs (殿中郎), for his role in organizing security around the monarch, his family, and the palaces
*Minister of State for Foreign Affairs (客曹尚書監), as supervisor of diplomatic and military intelligence in the Foreign Office
*Secretary of the Right (尚書右丞), as supervisor of domestic security services
*Captain-general of Marines (冗人尉), of the naval infantry branch
*Secretary of the Gentlemen-at-Arms (郎中丞), as manager of the day-to-day affairs of the Emperor's close guard
*Secretary of Capital Defence (中尉丞), invariably a high-ranking officer of the Army, managing the defence of the Inner Region (the area around the capital city)


[[Category: Septentrion]] [[Category: Themiclesia]]
==Civilian-military relationships==
Themiclesian statute law reserves a number of military powers to the crown, such as raising of troops, their movement, and the question of war and peace.  All such decisions are made through Parliament or, in devolution, the Cabinet, which assume political responsibility.  Within the Cabinet, the secretary of state is responsible for defence matters and makes, on the Emperor's behalf and in his name, all decisions in that portfolio.  As such, the secretary of state is ''de facto'' leader of all government bodies pertaining to defence and commander-in-chief of the armed forces.
 
In the early 19th century, the armies were still a medley of standing and reserve units, regional militias, ethnic battalions, and administrative offices, all answering to the War Secretary.  By the end of the century, complexity in administration had shown a standing military leadership requisite. The Consolidated Staff therefore began to grow around the War Secretary.  Generalships then were ''ad hoc'' positions, but a 1891 statute permitted the appointment of colonels-general while not at war, and today the Chief of Consolidated Staff customarily ranks a full or lieutenant-general.<ref>Note that "colonel-general" means a senior colonel, not a general; two or more of them were "colonels-general", not "colonel-generals".</ref>  The [[Themiclesian Navy|Navy]] recognized the Board of Admirals as its representative to the Navy Secretary.
 
==See also==
*[[Themiclesia]]
*[[Board of War (Themiclesia)]]
*[[Ministry of War (Themiclesia)]]
 
==Notes==
<references />
 
[[Category:Septentrion]] [[Category:Themiclesia]]

Latest revision as of 05:21, 7 January 2022

Ministry of Defence
dang′-st′a-proang-gwrals-be′
尚書邦衛部
Themi MoD logo.gif
Ministry overview
FormedOct. 30, 1970
Preceding agencies
JurisdictionThemiclesia
HeadquartersKien-k'ang, Themiclesia
Employees56,860 civilian staff (October 2015)
Annual budgetOSD$63 bn
Minister responsible
  • Smlem Tswats, Secretary of State
Ministry executive
  • Marcus Lrat, Minister of State
Parent departmentCabinet
Child agencies

The Ministry of Defence (尚書邦衛部, dang′-st′a-proang-gwrals-be′) of Themiclesia is the government department for implementing defence policies set by the the government of Themiclesia. It is currently led by Secretary of State for Defence, Geoffrey Smlem Tswats (沈最), with the assistance of four junior ministers and the Permanent Under-Secretary of State, the professional head of the Ministry. Within it, there exist three subordinate departments that represent each of the three military services, the army, navy, and Themiclesian Air Force.

The principal objectives of the Ministry of Defence are the defence of Themiclesia and her interests against foreign invasions, the discharge of Themiclesia's military obligations as required by statute and international treaties, and the general maintenance of the peace and stability in Septentrion as directed by the government. The senior and responsible minister of the department, the Secretary of State for Defence, is the de facto commander-in-chief of the armed forces, under the country's statutory and customary law, cabinet ordinances, and government policy, and further is responsible politically to the country's parliament.

History

Preceeding bodies

The current Ministry of Defence is the result of the merger of the Ministry of War (尉曹軍曹尚書部, ′uts-dzu-prang-dzu-dang′-st′a-be′, lit. "ministry of the secretary of state for the marshalcy department and military department"), the Admiralty Department (黃寺, gwrang-smle′), and the Ministry of Air (汔行部, kreps-grang-be′) in 1970. Previous to the merger, the civilian bureaucracy that compose of their respective staff have already underwent extensive evolution, mostly under the process of centralization and simplification. This process was independent of the evolution of ministerial portfolios, which were created and dissolved according to policy needs.  

The Ministry of War, whose name in Shinasthana literally means "Ministry of the Secretary of State for the Marshalcy Department and Military Department" came into existence around 1810, from the merger of several overlapping offices that superintended the pre-modern Themiclesian armies. The Marshalcy Department and Military Department were civilian agencies of the Chancery overseeing the recruitment of soldiers and mobilization of militias, and the appointment of military officers, respectively.  War-related production was managed under the Ministry of Works. The central planning of warfare, an interdepartmental affair, was carried out mainly between the Emperor and his council of ministers. There existed separate secretaries of state for domestic forces, transmarine forces (in the colonies across the Meh Sea), and other imperial advisors, but these were personal advisors not charged with any official responsibility.

The Admiralty Department was split from the Sacramental Treasury early in the 9th century. The Admiralty was led by a group of aristocrats known as the "barons of the admiralty", who functioned as a committee and was often not located in Themiclesia except for one or two "home barons" responsible for communicating the other barons' ideas to the government.

The Air Ministry was established by statute in 1919, to manage civilian aviation in Themiclesia. At the time, several aviation clubs already existed, operating largely without oversight and regularly entering disputes with local authorities. In 1921, it was decided that an air force would be strategically valuable in defending Themiclesia's very remote border regions and that it would be best managed together with civilian aviation; hence, the Themiclesian Air Force was created as a function of the League of Aviation Clubs in 1922 and became independent in 1923. With war impending in 1935, civilian aviation was placed under the Ministry of Transport.

Inter-service rivalry and merger

Relative jurisdictions of the Ministry of War and Ministry of Commerce before the 18th century

While many armed forces experienced inter-service rivalries, Themiclesia's experience was less pronounced than others during the early 20th century. A number of factors may be cited to explain this observation. Foremost, there was a traditional boundary between the army and navy's jurisdictions: the army focused on everything east of Themiclesia, accessible by land, while the Navy dealt with everything west and south, accessible by sea. This would not be challenged until the PSW.

Later, due to a defensive military outlook and stable diplomatic relations, there was comparatively little disagreement over upcoming military activity; however, as the government prioritized economy over defence, disputes between the services still arose, albeit for financial reasons and not strategic ones. Also, since elected politicians ultimately represented the services to the cabinet, it was difficult for the services to induce the minister to defy government policy. Equally, with the overwhelming importance of social status that military ranks reflected but did not confer, even senior admirals felt reluctant to challenge the government.

Nevertheless, changes in perspectives still drove the two (later three) ministries towards sharing of resources, elucidating redundancies amongst them. These were addressed in two phases. The Secretary of State for Appropriations originally controlled two fleets and two armies. The wars of the 1790s forced virtually all land forces to garrison and victual in Themiclesia-proper, so they were transferred to the War Secretary's portfolio for ease of administration. Then the navy was split into its own portfolio to prevent an unnecessary combinations of very distinct policy areas.

Structure

As responsible minister, the Secretary of State for Defence is ultimately answerable to the Government and Parliament for the implementation of government policy and thus holds final say over the ministry's statutory remit. A number of junior ministers have been appointed to oversee specific policy areas; while some positions, like the Minister of State, the deputy of the Secretary of State, are statutory, others may be ad hoc appointments.

The body which advises the secretary of state is called the Ministerial Conference (部議). Statutorily, all ministers and those civil servants ranked above assistant-secretary are members of the body, whose meetings are weekly but may vary according to defence needs. Civil servants need not be departmental heads to attend the Conference, though the majority are. The professional heads of the forces are ex officio members. Other officers, both civil and military, may be granted a seat by ministerial ordinance; the title of such an appointee is "Counsellor-Within", (內參議, nubh-s.r′um-ngjarh). This appointment deprecates upon the secretary of state's resignation. Military officers attending the Ministerial Conference are sworn to the secrecy of government policies under deliberation; they may not reveal those policies even to their own subordinates.

The membership of the Conference as of early 2020 is as follows:

  • Secretary of State for Defence (邦衛尚書)
    • Minister of State for Defence (尚書監)
      • Under-Secretary of State for the Army (兵曹郎)
        • Permanent Assistant-Secretary of State (兵曹從丞)
        • Chief of the Consolidated Staff (兵長史)
      • Under-Secretary of State for the Navy (航曹郎)
        • Permanent Assistant-Secretary of State (航曹從丞)
        • Chief Admiral (航中記室長史)
      • Under-Secretary of State for the Air Force (空曹郎)
        • Permanent Assistant-Secretary of State (空曹從丞)
        • Chief of the Air Staff (空長史)
      • Permanent Under-Secretary of State (尚書丞)
        • Permanent Assistant-Secretary of State (尚書從丞)
      • Under-Secretary of State for Procurement (市徵郎)
      • Under-Secretary of State for Strategic Development (虞曹郎)
      • Under-Secretary of State for Welfare and Disabilities (復曹郎)
      • Under-Secretary of State for Public Access (佈郎)
      • Under-Secretary of State for Equality and Prevention of Abuse (等禁暴郎)
      • Under-Secretary of State for Civil Defence (民衛郎)

As of early 2019, the following individuals are Counsellors-Within:

  • Under-Secretary of State for Palace Affairs (殿中郎), for his role in organizing security around the monarch, his family, and the palaces
  • Minister of State for Foreign Affairs (客曹尚書監), as supervisor of diplomatic and military intelligence in the Foreign Office
  • Secretary of the Right (尚書右丞), as supervisor of domestic security services
  • Captain-general of Marines (冗人尉), of the naval infantry branch
  • Secretary of the Gentlemen-at-Arms (郎中丞), as manager of the day-to-day affairs of the Emperor's close guard
  • Secretary of Capital Defence (中尉丞), invariably a high-ranking officer of the Army, managing the defence of the Inner Region (the area around the capital city)

Civilian-military relationships

Themiclesian statute law reserves a number of military powers to the crown, such as raising of troops, their movement, and the question of war and peace. All such decisions are made through Parliament or, in devolution, the Cabinet, which assume political responsibility. Within the Cabinet, the secretary of state is responsible for defence matters and makes, on the Emperor's behalf and in his name, all decisions in that portfolio. As such, the secretary of state is de facto leader of all government bodies pertaining to defence and commander-in-chief of the armed forces.

In the early 19th century, the armies were still a medley of standing and reserve units, regional militias, ethnic battalions, and administrative offices, all answering to the War Secretary. By the end of the century, complexity in administration had shown a standing military leadership requisite. The Consolidated Staff therefore began to grow around the War Secretary. Generalships then were ad hoc positions, but a 1891 statute permitted the appointment of colonels-general while not at war, and today the Chief of Consolidated Staff customarily ranks a full or lieutenant-general.[1] The Navy recognized the Board of Admirals as its representative to the Navy Secretary.

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Note that "colonel-general" means a senior colonel, not a general; two or more of them were "colonels-general", not "colonel-generals".
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