Military organization

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"Formation (military)" redirects here. For other uses, see Tactical formation and Military parade.

Military organization is the structuring of the armed forces of a state so as to offer military capability required by the national defence policy. In some countries paramilitary forces are included in a nation's armed forces, though not considered military. Armed forces which are not a part of military or paramilitary organisations, such as insurgent forces, often mimic military organizations, or use ad hoc structures.

Military organisation is hierarchical. The use of formalised ranks in a hierarchical structure came into widespread use with the Roman Army. In modern times, executive control, management and administration of military organisations is typically undertaken by the government through a government department within the structure of public administration, often known as a Ministry of Defence, Department of Defence, or Department of War. These in turn manage Armed Services that themselves command combat, combat support and service support formations and units.

Executive control, management and administration[edit]


Then there are the heads of specific departmental agencies responsible for the provision and management of specific skill- and knowledge-based service such as Strategy advice, Capability Development assessment, or Defence Science provision of research, and design and development of technologies. Within each departmental agency will be found administrative branches responsible for further agency business specialization work.

Armed services[edit]


In most countries the armed forces are divided into three or four Armed Services (also called branches): an army, a navy, and an air force.

Many countries have a variation on the standard model of three or four basic Armed Services. Some nations also organize their marines, special forces or strategic missile forces as independent armed services. A nation's coast guard may also be an independent military branch of its military, although in many nations the coast guard is a law enforcement or civil agency. A number of countries have no navy, for geographical reasons. Some other variations include:




Internal security forces[edit]

Gendarmeries including equivalents such as Internal Troops, Paramilitary Forces and similar are an internal security service common in most of the world, but uncommon in Anglo-Saxon countries where civil police are employed to enforce the law, and there are tight restrictions on how the armed forces may be used to assist.[1]

Commands, formations, and units[edit]

In Japan, Lieutenant General J. Northcott CB MVO, Commander In Chief, British Commonwealth Occupation Force (BCOF), inspects the guard of honour at HQ 9th New Zealand Infantry Brigade ; April 17th 1946.



A formation is a composite military organization that includes a mixture of integrated and operationally attached sub-units, and is usually combat-capable. A formation is defined by the US Department of Defense as "two or more aircraft, ships, or units proceeding together under a commander".[2] Example of formations include: divisions, brigades, battalions, wings, etc. Formation may also refer to tactical formation, the physical arrangement or disposition of troops and weapons.[3] Examples of formation in such usage include: pakfront, panzerkeil, testudo formation, etc.

A typical unit is a homogeneous military organization (either combat, combat-support or non-combat in capability) that includes service personnel predominantly from a single arm of service, or a branch of service, and its administrative and command functions are self-contained. Any unit subordinate to another unit is considered its sub-unit or minor unit. It is not uncommon for unit and formation to be used synonymously, although formation is rarely used for small units like platoon or company. Other examples of units are: divisions, brigades, battalions, etc.


Table of organization and equipment[edit]

A table of organization and equipment (TOE or TO&E) is a document published by the U.S. Army Force Management Support Agency which prescribes the organization, manning, and equipage of units from divisional size and down, but also including the headquarters of Corps and Armies.


Modern hierarchy[edit]



For example, Corps were first introduced in France in the 18th century, but have become integrated into the organization of most armies around the world. Readers interested in the detailed specifics of a national army (including the British and American) should consult the relevant entry for that country.

APP-6A Symbol Name Nature Strength Constituent units Commander or leader
XXXXXX region, theater Command 1,000,000–10,000,000 4+ army groups general, army general, five-star general or field marshal
XXXXX army group, front Command 400,000–1,000,000 2+ armies general, army general, five-star general or field marshal
XXXX army Command 100,000–200,000 2–4 corps general, army general, four-star general or colonel general
XXX corps Formation 40,000–80,000 2+ divisions lieutenant general, corps general or three-star general
XX division Formation 10,000–30,000 2–4 brigades or regiments major general, divisional general or two-star general
X brigade Formation 3,000–5,000 2+ regiments, 3–6 battalions or Commonwealth regiments brigadier general, brigade general, or one-star general (sometimes colonel)
III regiment or group Formation 1,500–3,000 2+ battalions or U.S. Cavalry squadrons colonel
II infantry battalion, U.S. Cavalry squadron, Commonwealth armoured regiment or Argentine Army regiment/artillery group/battalion Unit 300–1,300 2–6 companies, batteries, U.S. Cavalry troops, or Commonwealth squadrons, Argentine squadrons/companies lieutenant colonel
I infantry company, artillery battery, U.S. Cavalry troop, or Commonwealth armour or combat engineering squadron Sub Unit 80–225 2–8 platoons or Commonwealth troops chief warrant officer, captain or major
••• platoon or Commonwealth troop Sub-sub Unit 26–55 2+ squads, sections, or vehicles warrant officer, first or second lieutenant
•• section or patrol - 8–13 2+ fireteams corporal to sergeant
squad or crew - 8–13 2+ fireteams or 1+ cell corporal to staff sergeant
Ø fireteam - 4 n/a lance corporal to sergeant
Ø fire and manoeuvre team - 2 n/a any/private first class



During World War II the Red Army used the same basic organizational structure. However, in the beginning many units were greatly underpowered and their size was actually one level below on the ladder than usually used elsewhere; for example, a division in the early-WWII Red Army would have been about the size of most nations' regiments or brigades.[4][5] At the top of the ladder, what other nations would call an army group, the Red Army called a front. By contrast, during the same period the German Wehrmacht Army Groups, particularly on the Eastern Front, such as Army Group Centre significantly exceeded the above numbers, and were more cognate with the Soviet Strategic Directions.


Naval organization at the flotilla level and higher is less commonly abided by, as ships operate in smaller or larger groups in various situations that may change at a moment's notice. However there is some common terminology used throughout navies to communicate the general concept of how many vessels might be in a unit.


Unit Name Vessel types No. of Vessels Officer in command
Fleet All vessels in an ocean or general region 2+ Battle Fleets or Task Forces Admiral or Vice Admiral
Battle Fleet or Task Force A large number of vessels of all types 2+ Task Groups Vice Admiral
Task Group[6] A collection of complementary vessels 2+ Task Units or Squadrons Rear Admiral (upper half) or Rear Admiral
Squadron (naval) or Task Unit Usually capital ships A small number of vessels Rear Admiral (lower half), Commodore, or Flotilla Admiral
Flotilla or Task Unit Usually not capital ships A small number of vessels, usually of the same or similar types Rear Admiral (lower half), Commodore, or Flotilla Admiral
Task Element A single vessel One Captain or Commander

The five-star ranks of Admiral of the Fleet and Fleet Admiral have largely been out of use since the 1990s, with the exception of ceremonial or honorary appointments. Currently, all major navies are commanded by an admiral (four-star rank) or vice-admiral (three-star rank) depending on relative size. Smaller naval forces, such as the RNZN, or those navies that are effectively coastguards, are commanded by a rear-admiral, commodore or even a captain.

Aircraft carriers are typically commanded by a captain. Submarines and destroyers are typically commanded by a captain or commander. Some destroyers, particularly smaller destroyers such as frigates (formerly known as destroyer escorts) are usually commanded by officers with the rank of commander. Auxiliary ships, including corvettes, gunboats, minesweepers, patrol boats, military riverine craft, tenders and torpedo boats are usually commanded by lieutenant-commanders or lieutenants. Usually, the smaller the vessel, the lower the rank of the ship's commander. For example, patrol boats are often commanded by ensigns, while frigates are rarely commanded by an officer below the rank of commander.


The modern U.S. Navy is primarily based on a number of standard groupings of vessels, including the Carrier Strike Group and the Expeditionary Strike Group.[7]


Air forces[edit]


XXXXX Major Command / Command or Tactical Air Force / Russian Air army[8] Varies Varies By Region or Duty (subordinate units varies) Gen / Air Chf Mshl or Air Mshl
X Wing / Group (inc. EAGs) / Russian aviation brigade 1,000–5000 48–100 2+ Groups / Wings Brig-Gen / AVM or Air Cdre
•• Element or Section 5–20 n/a n/a Junior Officer or Senior NCO
Detail 2–4 n/a n/a Junior NCO

Task Force[edit]



See also[edit]


  2. ^ United States Department of Defense, DOD Dictionary
  3. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary
  4. ^ "Доклад НКО август 1939. doklad-nko-8-39.shtml". Retrieved 2013-11-20. 
  5. ^ "Центральный государственный архив Советской армии (с июня 1992 г. Российский государственный военный архив). В двух томах. Том 2. Путеводитель. 1993" (in Russian). Retrieved 2013-11-20. 
  6. ^ Group. Retrieved 2009-08-30.
  7. ^ US Navy. Retrieved 2009-08-30.
  8. ^ Red Army VVS Organisation(rus)