Supreme Allied Commander - wikipedia Supreme Allied Commander This article is about Supreme Allied Commander. For Commanders of Military Forces, see Commander - in - chief. Supreme Allied Commander is the title held by the most senior commander within certain multinational military alliances. It originated as a term used by the Western Allies during World War II, and is currently used only within NATO. The current NATO Supreme Allied Commander is U.S. General Curtis M. Scaparrotti. Contents 1 World War II 2 NATO 3 See also 4 References 5 External links World war II This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( June 2016 ) During World War II, the Allied leaders appointed Supreme Allied Commanders to manage the multi-nation, multi-discipline fighting forces for a particular theatre of war. These Supreme Allied Commanders were given operational control over all air, land, and sea units in that theatre. In other cases, senior commanders were given the title Commander - in - Chief. These Supreme Allied Commanders -- were drawn from the most senior leaders in the British Armed Forces and United States Armed Forces. These commanders reported to the British / American Combined Chiefs of Staff, although in the case of the Pacific and South East Asia, the relevant national command authorities of the American Joint Chiefs of Staff or the British Chiefs of Staff Committee had responsibility for the main conduct of the war in the theatre, depending on the Supreme Commander 's nationality. General of the Army Dwight D. Eisenhower served in successive Supreme Allied Commander roles. Eisenhower was the Commander - in - Chief, Allied Force for the Mediterranean theatre. Eisenhower then served as Supreme Commander Allied Expeditionary Force ( SCAEF ) in the European theatre, starting in December 1943 with the creation of the command to execute Operation Overlord and ending in July 1945 shortly after the End of World War II in Europe. In 1951, Eisenhower would again be a Supreme Allied Commander, the first to hold the post for NATO ( see next section ). Field Marshal Henry Maitland Wilson succeeded Eisenhower in the Mediterranean theatre, given the title Supreme Allied Commander Mediterranean. Wilson was succeeded by Field Marshal Harold Alexander, who continued in charge of those Allied forces until the end of the war. Admiral of the Fleet Lord Louis Mountbatten was Supreme Allied Commander South East Asia ( SACSEA ) throughout most of its existence. He replaced General Archibald Wavell. General of the Army Douglas MacArthur was appointed Supreme Allied Commander, South West Pacific Area ( SWPA ) on 18 June 1942. However, he preferred to use the title Commander - in - Chief. During the Allied occupation of Japan following the war, MacArthur held the title of Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers ( SCAP ). NATO The term came into use again with the formation of NATO in 1949. In 1952, Allied Command Europe was established, led by Eisenhower. He became the Supreme Allied Commander Europe ( SACEUR ). Soon afterwards, Allied Command Atlantic was established, at Norfolk, Virginia, under Lynde McCormick, a U.S. Navy admiral. His title was Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic ( SACLANT ), and the entire command was usually known as SACLANT. Both Supreme Commander have, until 2009, been American, with a deputy commander from another NATO member, though only British and Germans have held the post. In June 2003, the commands were reshuffled. One command was given responsibility for operations, and one for transforming the military components of the alliance to meet new challenges. In Europe, Allied Command Operations was established from the former Allied Command Europe, and given responsibility for all NATO military operations worldwide. However, for legal reasons, SACEUR retained the traditional title including Europe. In the United States, SACLANT was decommissioned and Allied Command Transformation established. The headquarters of ACT is at the former SACLANT headquarters in Norfolk, Virginia, USA. Each has a Supreme Allied Commander as its commander. Allied Command Operations ( ACO ) has its headquarters at Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe ( SHAPE ), at Mons, Belgium. It is headed by the Supreme Allied Commander, Europe ( SACEUR ), a U.S. four - star general or admiral also heading U.S. European Command. The current ( since 2016 ) Commander is General Curtis Scaparrotti ( Army ), who succeeded General Philip M. Breedlove ( Air Force ). Allied Command Transformation ( ACT ) is located in Norfolk, Virginia, USA. It is headed by the Supreme Allied Commander Transformation ( SACT ), a four - star general or admiral. General Stéphane Abrial, the commander from 2009 until 2012, was the first non-American to hold a supreme commander role within NATO. Since then this position has been held by a French Air Force officer. The commander of the organization is currently General Denis Mercier. See also Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe References Jump up ^ Milner, Samuel ( 1957 ). Victory in Papua ( PDF ). Washington, D.C. : United States Army Center of Military History. p. 22. LCCN 56 - 60004. OCLC 220484034. Retrieved 9 July 2012. Jump up ^ Pedlow, Evolution of NATO 's Command Structure 1951 - 2009. Jump up ^ http://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/who_is_who.htm External links ACO / SHAPE homepage ACT homepage Highest military ranks General officer Flag officer Air officer Imperator Marshal of Italy Generalissimo Generalissimus of the Soviet Union Supreme Allied Commander Admiral of the Navy General of the Armies General of the Air Force Generalfeldmarschall Mareşal Marshal of the air force Marshal of the Soviet Union Marshal of the Russian Federation Mushir Magister militum Spahbed Ispahsalar Beylerbey Bojni Vojvoda Chom Thap Thai Constable of France Domestic of the Schools Grand Domestic Shogun Dux bellorum Grand marshal Hetman Jenderal besar Polemarch Reichsmarschall Federal General of Switzerland Sardar Serasker Autokrator First marshal of the empire Da yuan shuai Dai - gensui Taewonsu Yuan shuai Wonsu Marshal of Yugoslavia Star officer grades General officer Flag officer Air officer By star ranks Six - star rank ( proposed ) Five - star rank Four - star rank Three - star rank Two - star rank One - star rank By titles Generalissimo Generalissimus of the Soviet Union Supreme Allied Commander Admiral of the Navy General of the Armies Generalfeldmarschall Field marshal Mareşal Marshal of the air force Marshal of the Russian Federation Marshal of the Soviet Union Mushir Caudillo Magister militum Spahbed Ispahsalar Beylerbey Constable of France Grand Domestic Dux bellorum Grand marshal Hetman Jenderal besar Reichsmarschall Sardar Serasker Strategos autokrator First marshal of the empire Dai - gensui Taewonsu Voivoda Wonsu Yuan Shuai Da yuan shuai Marshal of Yugoslavia Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Supreme_Allied_Commander&oldid=803569249 '' Categories : Allied commands of World War II Positions of authority NATO Supreme Allied Commanders Hidden categories : Articles needing additional references from June 2016 All articles needing additional references Wikipedia articles needing clarification from October 2017 Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2016 All articles containing potentially dated statements Talk Contents About Wikipedia Bahasa Melayu 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 3 October 2017, at 08 : 42. 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Question: who was the supreme commander of the western allied forces in europe
Answer: Dwight D. Eisenhower