Head of the Armed Forces

Head of the Armed Forces is the position of the sovereign of the United Kingdom as commander-in-chief of the British Armed Forces. However, supreme military authority has been delegated by the monarch to the Defence Council of the United Kingdom, a body officially charged with the direction and administration of the Armed Forces.

As the Council and other military bodies all are a part of the Defence Ministry, which itself is a part of the Government of the United Kingdom, the prime minister makes the key decisions on the use of the Armed Forces, while the secretary of state for defence assists the prime minister and administers the day-to-day military operations.