Command (military formation)

Organisational unit for which a military commander is responsible

Not to be confused with military order (instruction).

Part of a series on

War
(outline)

History

* Prehistoric
* Ancient
* Post-classical
* castles
* Early modern
* military revolution
* pike and shot
* napoleonic warfare
* Late modern
* industrial warfare
* fourth-gen warfare

Military

* Organization
* Command and control
* Defense ministry
* Army
* Navy
* Air force
* Marines
* Coast guard
* Space force
* Reserves
* Regular / Irregular
* Ranks
* Standing army / Militia

* * *

* Specialties:
* Rifleman
* Staff
* Engineers
* Intel
* Recon
* Medical
* Police
* Diving
* Comms
* Pilot
* Commissar

* * *

* Land units:
* Infantry
* Mechanized
* Armor
* Cavalry
* Artillery
* Special forces
* Signal corps

* * *

* Naval units:
* Frogman
* Warships
* Submarines
* Aircraft carriers
* Landing craft
* Auxiliary ships

* * *

* Air units:
* Fighters
* Bombers
* Command
* Close air support
* Electronic-warfare
* Reconnaissance

* * *

* Combat systems:
* Fire-control system
* Fire-control radar
* Director (military)
* Combat information center
* Sonar
* Radar

* * *

* Historical:
* Ship gun fire-control
* Gun data computer
* Torpedo data computer

* * *

* Development:
* Basic training
* Military manoeuvrers
* Combat training

Battlespace

* Aerospace
* Aerial
* Airborne
* Space

* * *

* Land
* Cold-region
* Desert
* Fortification
* Jungle
* Mountain
* Urban
* Subterranean
* Tunnel

* * *

* Sea
* Amphibious
* Blue
* Brown
* Green
* Surface
* Underwater
* Seabed

* * *

* Cyber
* Information

Weapons

* Air defence
* Armor
* Artillery
* Barrage
* Biological
* Camouflage
* Cavalry
* Horses
* Air cavalry
* Chemical
* Combined arms
* Conventional
* Cyber
* Denial
* Disinformation
* Drone / Robot
* Electromagnetic
* Infantry
* Loitering
* Missile
* Music
* Nuclear
* Psychological
* Radiological
* Submarine
* Unconventional

Tactics

List of military tactics

* Aerial
* Airlift
* Air assault
* Airbridge
* Airdrop
* Anti-aircraft
* Anti-sub
* Anti-tank
* Battle
* Cavalry
* Charge
* Counterattack
* Counterinsurgency
* Convoy
* Defeat in detail
* Foxhole
* Drone
* Envelopment
* Formation
* Guerrilla
* Naval
* Rapid dominance
* Encirclement
* Investment
* Siege
* Swarm
* Screen
* Tactical objective
* Target saturation
* Trench
* Withdrawal

Operational

* Military operation
* Special
* Operations research
* Blitzkrieg
* Expeditionary
* Deep operation
* Maneuver
* Operational manoeuvre group
* Raid
* Covert

Strategy

List of military strategies and concepts

* Military campaign
* Anti-access
* Attrition
* Commerce raiding
* Counter-offensive
* Culminating
* Defence in depth
* Fabian
* Empty fort
* Mosaic
* Deception
* Defensive
* Depth
* Goal
* Nuclear
* Naval
* Offensive
* Scorched earth

Grand strategy

* Asymmetric
* Blockade
* Broken-backed
* Class
* Cold war
* Colonial
* Conquest
* Containment
* Divide and conquer
* Economic
* Endemic
* Fleet in being
* Irregular
* Liberation
* Limited
* Network-centric
* New generation
* Perpetual
* Political
* Princely
* Proxy
* Religious
* Resource
* Strategic
* Succession
* Technology
* Theater
* Total war
* World war

Administrative

* Branch
* Policy
* Staff
* Training
* Service
* Sociology

Organization

* Area of responsibility
* Chain of command
* Command and control
* Doctrine
* Principles of war
* Economy of force
* Medicine
* Engineers
* Intelligence
* Ranks
* Technology and equipment

Personnel

* Recruitment
* counter
* Conscription
* Mobilization
* Training
* Specialism
* Morale
* Women
* Children
* Transgender
* Harassment
* Conscientious objector
* Volunteer
* foreign
* Mercenary
* Soldier / Warrior

Logistics

* History
* War economy
* Military–industrial complex
* Arms industry
* Materiel
* Supply-chain management
* Base
* MOB
* FOB
* Outpost

Science

* Power projection
* Loss-of-strength gradient
* Lanchester's laws
* Force multiplication

Law

* Occupation
* Armistice
* Ceasefire
* Conscription / Volunteer
* Court-martial
* Desertion
* Geneva Conventions
* Geneva Protocol
* Islamic rules
* Justice
* Lawful / Unlawful combatant
* Letter of marque
* Perfidy
* Private military
* Foreign expatriate
* Mercenary
* Privateer
* Jewish laws on war
* Right of conquest
* Rules of engagement
* Martial law
* War crime
* Penal military unit

Theory

* Air supremacy
* Appeasement
* Command of the sea
* Deterrence theory
* Full-spectrum dominance
* Overmatch
* Unrestricted Warfare
* Just war theory
* Principles of war
* Philosophy of war
* Security dilemma
* Tripwire force
* Wargaming
* Simulation
* Exercises

Non-warfare

* Arms control
* Counter-insurgency
* deterrence
* Disaster response
* Grey-zone
* Gunboat diplomacy
* Humanitarian aid
* Law enforcement
* Low-intensity conflict
* Military engineering
* Multilateralism
* Peacekeeping
* Peacebuilding
* Peace through strength
* Show of force

Culture

* Awards and decorations
* Battle cry
* Warrior caste
* War film
* Military science fiction
* War novel
* Anti-war movement
* Foot drill
* War song
* Uniform
* Wargame

Related

* Women in war
* War resister
* War studies
* Horses in warfare
* Wartime sexual violence
* Fifth column

Lists

* Battles
* Military occupations
* Military terms
* Operations
* Sieges
* War crimes
* Wars
* Weapons
* Writers

* v
* t
* e

A command in military terminology is an organisational unit for which a military commander is responsible. Commands, sometimes called units or formations, form the building blocks of a military. A commander is normally specifically appointed to the role in order to provide a legal framework for the authority bestowed. Naval and military officers have legal authority by virtue of their officer's commission, but the specific responsibilities and privileges of command are derived from the publication of appointment.

The relevant definition of "command" according to the United States Department of Defense is as follows:[1]

> (DOD) 3. A unit or units, an organization, or an area under the command of one individual. Also called CMD. See also area command; combatant command; combatant command (command authority).

## Major Command

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Major Command or Major Commands are large formations of the United States Armed Forces. Historically, a Major Command is the highest level of command. Within the United States Army, the acronym MACOM is used for Major Command.[2] Within the United States Air Force, the acronym MAJCOM is used.[3][4]

There are several types of Major Commands in the United States Armed Forces:

* List of major commands of the United States Air Force
* List of major commands of the United States Army
* Naval Education and Training Command of the United States Navy

## See also

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* Arctic Command
* Chain of command
* Command and control
* Military organization
* Tactical formation
* Unit cohesion

## Notes

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1. ^ United States Department of Defense, Department of Defense Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms, [1] Archived 2016-10-10 at the Wayback Machine
2. ^ "Department of Defense Acronyms". NHHC. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
3. ^ "Major Commands". www.afhra.af.mil. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
4. ^ "Part 5302 - Definitions of Words and Terms | Acquisition.GOV". www.acquisition.gov. Retrieved 2022-06-03.

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