# Chief of the General Staff (India)

The Chief of the General Staff, India was a senior military commander in the British Indian Army from 1906 to 1947, and in the independent Indian Army from 1947 until 1965.

## History

During British rule, the Chief of the General Staff, India assisted the Commander-in-Chief, India in commanding the British Indian Army. The post was largely honorary as all power resided in the hands of Commander-in-Chief, India. After Indian independence in 1947, the CGS remained a senior staff appointment. In January 1959, the appointment of Deputy Chief of the Army Staff (DCOAS) was established as the deputy commander of the Indian Army until it was superseded by the new post of Vice Chief of the Army Staff (VCOAS) In January 1965. Subsequently, the post of VCOAS replaced the CGS.

## Chief of the General Staff

Holders of the post have been:

### British Indian Army (1906–1947)

| No. | Name | Took office | Left office | Unit of commission |
| 1 | Lieutenant-General Sir Beauchamp Duff | Mar 1906 | Oct 1909 | Royal Artillery |
| 2 | Lieutenant-General Sir Douglas Haig | Oct 1909 | Feb 1912 | 7th Queen's Own Hussars |
| 3 | Lieutenant-General Sir Percy Lake | Feb 1912 | Jan 1916 | 59th (2nd Nottinghamshire) Regiment of Foot |
| 4 | Lieutenant-General Sir George Kirkpatrick | Jan 1916 | Jan 1920 | Royal Engineers |
| 5 | General Sir Claud Jacob | Jan 1920 | Nov 1924 | Worcestershire Regiment |
| 6 | General Sir Andrew Skeen | Nov 1924 | Oct 1928 | King's Own Scottish Borderers |
| 7 | General Sir Philip Chetwode | Oct 1928 | Jul 1930 | Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry |
| 8 | Lieutenant-General Sir Cyril Deverell | Jul 1930 | Mar 1931 | Prince of Wales's West Yorkshire Regiment |
| 9 | General Sir Kenneth Wigram | Mar 1931 | May 1934 | 2nd King Edward VII's Own Gurkha Rifles (The Sirmoor Rifles) |
| 10 | General Sir William Bartholomew | May 1934 | Oct 1937 | Royal Artillery |
| 11 | General Sir Ivo Vesey | Oct 1937 | Jun 1939 | Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey) |
| 12 | General Sir Eric de Burgh | Jun 1939 | May 1941 | Royal Dublin Fusiliers |
| 13 | Lieutenant-General Sir Thomas Hutton | May 1941 | Dec 1941 | Royal Artillery |
| 14 | Lieutenant-General Sir Edwin Morris | Dec 1941 | Apr 1944 | Royal Engineers |
| 15 | Lieutenant-General Sir John Swayne | Apr 1944 | Jan 1946 | Somerset Light Infantry |
| 16 | Lieutenant-General Sir Arthur Smith | Jan 1946 | Aug 1947 | Coldstream Guards |

### Indian Army (1947–1965)

| S.No | Name | Regiment of commission | Assumed office | Left office | Notes |
| 1 | Major General K. M. Cariappa OBE | Rajput Regiment | August 1947 | November 1947 | Later became first Indian Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Army. |
| | Major General Pran Nath Thapar | 1st Punjab Regiment | December 1947 | February 1948 | Officiating Chief of the General Staff. Later served as Chief of the Army Staff. |
| | Major General Jayanto Nath Chaudhuri OBE | 7th Light Cavalry | February 1948 | May 1948 | Officiating. Later served as Chief of the Army Staff. |
| 2 | Lieutenant General Kalwant Singh | 1st Punjab Regiment | May 1948 | March 1950 | Later served as General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Command. |
| 3 | Major General S. P. P. Thorat KC, DSO | 14th Punjab Regiment | 3 April 1950 | January 1953 | Later served as General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Eastern Command. |
| 4 | Major General Jayanto Nath Chaudhuri OBE | 7th Light Cavalry | 29 September 1953 | December 1955 | Later served as Chief of the Army Staff. |
| 5 | Major General Mohinder Singh Wadalia | Kumaon Regiment | December 1955 | May 1957 | |
| 6 | Lieutenant General Shiv Dev Verma | 16th Light Cavalry | May 1957 | February 1959 | |
| 7 | Lieutenant General Lionel Protip Sen DSO | Baloch Regiment | February 1959 | 8 May 1961 | Later served as General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Eastern Command. |
| 8 | Lieutenant General Brij Mohan Kaul PVSM | Rajputana Rifles | 8 May 1961 | 4 October 1962 | |
| 9 | Lieutenant General Moti Sagar | 4th Gorkha Rifles | 4 October 1962 | 15 January 1965 | |