Commander-in-chief - Sweden

Sweden

In Sweden – under the Instrument of Government of 1809, and until the 1 January 1975 adoption of the current Instrument of Government of 1974 – the Monarch was the Commander-in-Chief of the Swedish Armed Forces (Swedish: Krigsmaktens högste befälhavare).

At present, the Government (Swedish: Regeringen) as a collective body, chaired and formed by the Prime Minister of Sweden, holds the highest Executive Authority, subject to the will of the Riksdag, is thus the present day equivalent of a commander-in-chief. Some Government decisions regarding the Armed Forces (Swedish: Särskilda regeringsbeslut) may be delegated to the Minister for Defence, under the supervision of the Prime Minister and to the extent laid down in law.

To add to some confusion to the above, the title of the agency head of the Swedish Armed Forces and highest ranked commissioned officer on active duty, is actually Supreme Commander of the Swedish Armed Forces (Swedish: Överbefälhavaren).

However, the Monarch of Sweden (as of present King Carl XVI Gustaf), is still a four-star general and admiral à la suite in the Swedish Army, Navy and Air Force and is by unwritten convention regarded as the foremost representative of the Swedish Armed Forces. The King has, as part of his court, a military staff. The military staff is headed by a senior officer (usually a General or Admiral, retired from active service) and is composed of active duty military officers serving as aides to the King and his family.