| Royal Navy | British Army | Royal Air Force | Combined | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1645 | N/A | Commander-in-Chief of the Forces (1645/60–1904, intermittently) | N/A. The RAF was formed in 1918 | |
| 1689 | Senior Naval Lord (1689–1771) | |||
| 1771 | First Naval Lord (1771–1904) | |||
| 1904 | First Sea Lord (1904–1917) | Chief of the General Staff (1904–1909) | Inter-service co-ordination was carried out from 1904 by the Committee of Imperial Defence under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister | |
| 1909 | Chief of the Imperial General Staff (1909–1964) | |||
| 1917 | First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff (1917–present) | |||
| 1918 | Chief of the Air Staff (1918–present) | |||
| 1923 | Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee (1923–1959, held by one of the service heads until 1956) | |||
| 1959 | Chief of the Defence Staff (1959–present) | |||
| 1964 | Chief of the General Staff (1964–present) |
