Inspector General of the Bundeswehr
The Inspector General of the (), is the highest-ranking military position held by a commissioned officer on active duty in the , the present-day armed forces of Germany. All Inspectors General have been of the rank of a (four-star) general or admiral, and they head the , the German Defence Staff within the Federal Ministry of Defence, and is the direct military advisor to the Federal Minister of Defence who, in peacetime according to the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany, is the default holder of the supreme command authority () to ensure civilian  control of the military. The Inspector General is responsible for the overall military defense concept of the , including the overall planning, preparation, as well as assessment of the whole operations. Subordinate to the Inspector General are the commanders of the branches of the , the Inspector of the Army, Inspector of the Air Force, and Inspector of the Navy, and the commanders of the Joint Support Service and Joint Medical Service. Title and translations. While official translations of the position is "Chief of Defence", the German term "" – "Inspector General" – was specifically created to avoid the term of "" ("Chief of General Staff ) deemed historically compromised. When the was created in 1955, many traditional military terms were considered inappropriate after the German 's conduct in World War II. Therefore, the has no General Staff", but the "Army Command" ("").