Joint Chiefs of Staff

Joint Chiefs of Staff, panel of high-ranking U.S. military officers who advise the president of the United States and other civilian leaders on military issues. As an advisory body, the Joint Chiefs of Staff does not lead combat forces and has no executive or command authority over troops in its services.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff comprises the Chief of Staff of the Army, the Chief of Naval Operations, the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, the Commandant of the Marine Corps, the Chief of the National Guard Bureau, and the Chief of Space Operations, or the Space Force. The body is led by the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who serves as the chief military adviser to the president, the secretary of defense, and the National Security Council. A vice chairman assists the chairman and performs the latter’s duties in his absence. A group of staff officers, called the Joint Staff, also assists the chairman and the other members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff with their primary duties. The Joint Staff is composed of approximately equal numbers of officers from the Army; the Navy and Marine Corp; and the Air Force and Space Force.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff originated in World War II, when U.S. military leaders recognized the need for an overall command to coordinate the efforts of the various services. A unified high-command structure was adopted in 1942 and maintained on an informal basis throughout the war. The Joint Chiefs of Staff was formally established as an advisory body by the National Security Act of 1947, and a 1953 amendment to that act prohibited the body from exercising command authority.

The table provides a list of chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.