The Vice-Chief of the Defence Staff (VCDS) is the deputy to the Chief of the Defence Staff, the professional head of the British Armed Forces.
 The position was titled Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff before 1964.
 From 1966 to 1978 the post was occupied by a 3 star officer.
 From 1978 onwards the post has been held by a 4 star officer.
The Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS) is the professional head of the British Armed Forces and the most senior uniformed military adviser to the Secretary of State for Defence and the Prime Minister.
 The Chief of the Defence Staff is based at the Ministry of Defence and works alongside the Permanent Under Secretary, the Ministry's senior civil servant.
 The Chief of the Defence Staff is the British equivalent position of what in NATO and the European Union is known as the "Chief of Defence".
General Sir John Nicholas Reynolds "Nick" Houghton, {'1': ", '2': ", '3': ", '4': "} (born 18 October 1954) is a retired senior British Army officer and former Chief of the Defence Staff of the British Armed Forces.
 He was appointed in 2013, following the retirement of General Sir David Richards.
 He served as Commanding Officer of 1st Battalion, the Green Howards in Northern Ireland during The Troubles and later became Commander of 39 Infantry Brigade in Northern Ireland.
 He was deployed as Senior British Military Representative and Deputy Commanding General, Multi-National Force – Iraq during the Iraq War.
 Later, he became Chief of Joint Operations at Permanent Joint Headquarters and served as Vice-Chief of the Defence Staff until assuming his current position.
 In January 2016, the government announced that Houghton would be replaced by Sir Stuart Peach as Chief of the Defence Staff in the summer of 2016.
 Houghton handed over to Peach on 14 July 2016.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen John Hillier, {'1': ", '2': ", '3': ", '4': "} is a senior Royal Air Force officer, who served as Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff (Capability).
 He won the Distinguished Flying Cross for actions in the Gulf in 1999 and was awarded the US Bronze Star Medal for service in the Iraq War.
 He went on to be Air Officer Commanding, No. 2 Group, Director Information Superiority at the Ministry of Defence and then Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff (Capability).
 Hillier succeeded Air Chief Marshal Andrew Pulford as Chief of the Air Staff on 12 July 2016.
General Sir Gordon Kenneth Messenger, (born 15 April 1962) is a senior Royal Marines officer and Vice Chief of the Defence Staff with effect from May 2016, in succession to Air Chief Marshal Stuart Peach.
 As a colonel he commanded 40 Commando during the Iraq War, and led the Commando in the assault on the Al-Faw Peninsula.
 He served as British Commander of Task Force Helmand, during the 3 Commando Brigade deployment to Helmand Province, Afghanistan on Operation Herrick IX from 2008 to 2009.
Marshal of the Royal Air Force (MRAF) is the highest rank in the British Royal Air Force (RAF).
 In peacetime it was granted to RAF officers in the appointment of Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS), and to retired Chiefs of the Air Staff (CAS), who were promoted to it on their last day of service.
 While surviving marshals of the RAF retain the rank for life, the highest rank to which officers on active service are promoted is now air chief marshal.
 Although general promotions to Marshal of the Royal Air Force have been discontinued since the British defence cuts of the 1990s, further promotions to the rank may still be made in wartime, for members of the Royal Family and certain very senior RAF air officers in peacetime at the discretion of the monarch; all such promotions in peacetime are only honorary, however.
 In 2012, Charles, Prince of Wales was promoted to the rank while in 2014 Lord Stirrup, who had served as Chief of the Air Staff and Chief of the Defence Staff for over seven years, was also promoted.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Stuart William Peach, {'1': ", '2': ", '3': ", '4': "} (born 22 February 1956) is a senior Royal Air Force officer.
 After training as a navigator, Peach commanded IX (Bomber) Squadron and then became Deputy Station Commander RAF Bruggen.
 He was deployed as NATO Air Commander (Forward) in Kosovo in 2000.
 He went on to be Chief of Defence Intelligence in 2006, Chief of Joint Operations in 2009 and the first Commander of Joint Forces Command in December 2011 before being appointed Vice-Chief of the Defence Staff in May 2013.
 Peach succeeded General Sir Nick Houghton as Chief of the Defence Staff on 14 July 2016.
 s of 2017 he is scheduled to replace General Petr Pavel as Chairman of the NATO Military Committee in Summer 2018.
Masaneh Nyuku Kinteh (born 13 August 1968) is a senior Gambian Army officer who serves as Chief of the Defence Staff.
 He was the Gambian Chief of Mission in Havana, Cuba, from 2012 to 2017, and was previously Chief of the Defence Staff from 2009 to 2012.
 He had retired at the rank of lieutenant general in 2012, having previously also served as Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff in 2009.
 He was reinstated in 2017.
The Vice Chief of the Defence Staff (VCDS) (French: "Vice-Chef d'état-major de la Défense" ) is the third most senior member of the Canadian Forces, reporting to the Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS) as well as the Deputy Minister of National Defence.
 The Directorate General Executive Coordination, the Chief of Staff of the Vice Chief of the Defence Staff, the Canadian Forces Provost Marshal, the National Cadet and Junior Canadian Rangers Support Group and several other departments report to the VCDS, who is appointed by the CDS.
The Minister of National Defence (French: "Ministre de la Défense nationale" ) is a Minister of the Crown and is the Canadian politician within the Cabinet of Canada responsible for the management and direction of all matters relating to the national defence of Canada.
 The Department of National Defence is headed by the Deputy Minister of National Defence, the Department’s senior civil servant, while the Canadian Armed Forces are headed by the Chief of the Defence Staff, Canada’s senior serving military officer.
 Both are responsible to the Minister.
 The Queen of Canada (represented by the Governor General of Canada) is the Commander-in-Chief of the Canadian Armed Forces and has final authority on all orders and laws for the "defence of the realm" (see Queen-in-Council).
 The minister is responsible, through the tenets of responsible government, to Parliament for "the management and direction of the Canadian Forces".
 Any orders and instructions for the Canadian Armed Forces are issued by or through the Chief of the Defence Staff.

Question: Who did Sir Stuart Peach replace as Chief of the Defence Staff in the summer of 2016?
Answer: General Sir John Nicholas Reynolds