The Chief of Defence is a position in the military of Luxembourg

Luxembourg

Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...

 and head of the Luxembourg Army. Luxembourg's Chief of Defence

Chief of Defence

The Chief of Defence is the highest ranked commissioned officer of a nation's armed forces. The term CHOD is in common use within NATO and the European Union as a generic term for the highest national military position within the NATO and EU member states, rather than the actual term used for...

 is the professional head of the armed forces

Armed forces

The armed forces of a country are its government-sponsored defense, fighting forces, and organizations. They exist to further the foreign and domestic policies of their governing body, and to defend that body and the nation it represents from external aggressors. In some countries paramilitary...

, and in charge of the day-to-day operation. The current Chief of Defence is Gaston Reinig.

He is formally subordinate to the Grand Duke

Grand Duke of Luxembourg

The Grand Duke of Luxembourg is the sovereign monarch and head of state of Luxembourg. Luxembourg has been a grand duchy since 15 March 1815, when it was elevated from a duchy when placed in personal union with the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...

, whom the Constitution

Constitution of Luxembourg

The Constitution of Luxembourg is the supreme law of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. The modern constitution was adopted on 17 October 1868.Whilst the constitution of 1868 marked a radical change in Luxembourg's constitutional settlement, it was technically an amendment of the original constitution...

 names as the commander-in-chief

Commander-in-Chief

A commander-in-chief is the commander of a nation's military forces or significant element of those forces. In the latter case, the force element may be defined as those forces within a particular region or those forces which are associated by function. As a practical term it refers to the military...

, but answers to the Minister for Defence in the civilian government.

List of Chiefs of Defence

Chief of Defence	Rank	Start	End
Michel Mayer	Colonel Colonel Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...	15 July 1967	9 October 1972
Pierre Dauffenbach	Colonel	9 October 1972	4 February 1976
Jean Betz	Colonel	4 February 1976	9 March 1980
François Welfring	Colonel	9 March 1980	13 May 1984
Nicolas Ley	Colonel	13 May 1984	21 February 1988
Armand Bruck	Colonel	21 February 1988	4 November 1994
Michel Gretsch	Colonel	4 November 1994	2 July 1998
Guy Lenz	Colonel	2 July 1998	28 January 2002
Nico Ries Nico Ries Colonel Nico Ries is a Luxembourgian soldier and former Chief of Defence of the Luxembourg Army. He served as Chief of Defence from 2002 to 2008, having previously been Assistant Chief of Defence....	Colonel	28 January 2002	15 January 2008
Gaston Reinig	General	15 January 2008	Incumbent
Source: Army of Luxembourg