This article is about the former British War Office. For use of this term in the United States, see United States Department of War.
War Office
Royal Coat of Arms as used by His Majesty's Government
Department overview
Formed
1857; 167 years ago (1857)
Preceding Department
various
Dissolved
1964; 60 years ago (1964)
Superseding agency
Ministry of Defence (MoD)
Jurisdiction
Government of the United Kingdom
Headquarters
War Office building Whitehall London 51°30′20″N0°07′33″W / 51.50556°N 0.12583°W / 51.50556; -0.12583 (Old War Office building of the United Kingdom, 1857–1964)
Department executive
Secretary of State for War
Parent Department
HM Government
The War Office has referred to several British government organisations in history, all relating to the army. It was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD).[1] It was at that time, equivalent to the Admiralty, responsible for the Royal Navy (RN), and (much later) the Air Ministry, which oversaw the Royal Air Force (RAF). The name 'War Office' is also given to the former home of the department, located at the junction of Horse Guards Avenue and Whitehall in central London. The landmark building was sold on 1 March 2016 by HM Government for more than £350 million, on a 250 year lease for conversion into a luxury hotel and residential apartments.
Prior to 1855, 'War Office' signified the office of the Secretary at War. In the 17th and 18th centuries, a number of independent offices and individuals were responsible for various aspects of Army administration. The most important were the Commander-in-Chief of the Forces, the Secretary at War, and the twin Secretaries of State; most of whose military responsibilities were passed to a new Secretary of State for War in 1794. Others who performed specialist functions were the controller of army accounts, the Army Medical Board, the Commissariat Department, the Board of General Officers, the Judge Advocate General of the Armed Forces, the Commissary General of Muster, the Paymaster General of the forces, and (particularly with regard to the Militia) the Home Office.[1]
The term War Department was initially used for the separate office of the Secretary of State for War; in 1855, the offices of Secretary at War and Secretary of State for War were amalgamated, and thereafter the terms War Office and War Department were used somewhat interchangeably.[2]
The WarOffice has referred to several British government organisations in history, all relating to the army. It was a department of the British Government...
The United States Department of War, also called the War Department (and occasionally WarOffice in the early years), was the United States Cabinet department...
The Office of War Mobilization (OWM) was an independent agency of the United States government formed during World War II to coordinate all government...
Zealand war dead. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission figure for New Zealand war dead is 18,060. The report of the UK WarOffice listed 16,711 army war dead...
P92 WarOffice Statistics 2006, p. 354. Urlanis 2003, p. 64. Urlanis 2003, p. 46–57. Urlanis 2003, p. 62–64. WarOffice Statistics 2006, p. 339. War Office...
new Home Office in 1782. In 1801, colonial affairs were transferred to the WarOffice in the lead up to the Napoleonic Wars, which became the War and Colonial...
The United States Office of War Information (OWI) was a United States government agency created during World War II. The OWI operated from June 1942 until...
The European WarOffice (Spanish: Oficina de la Guerra Europea or Oficina Pro Cautivos) was a humanitarian office created by King Alfonso XIII of Spain...
responsibility for this office was reduced to the affairs of the United States Army. From 1886 onward, the secretary of war was in the line of succession...
Eisenhower Executive Office Building (EEOB), formerly known as the Old Executive Office Building (OEOB), and originally known as the State, War, and Navy Building...
org. Retrieved 23 September 2013. WarOffice Papers, Manuscripts in the Public Record Office, 1:992–1008, passim War Officer Papers, 4:275, Jenkinson to...
Lancelot De Mole, of South Australia, submitted a proposal to the British WarOffice for a "chain-rail vehicle which could be easily steered and carry heavy...
WarOffice Selection Boards, or WOSBs, (pronounced Wosbees) were a scheme devised by British Army psychiatrists during World War II to select potential...
the United States Department of the Army (formerly, of the War Department). The "WarOffice Seal" was created in 1778 and the Emblem was developed out...
produced by the WarOffice to circulate to officers, with short pieces on tactics, administration and training. In the first year of the war ATM appeared...
(Post Office Rifles). The Post Office Rifles served with distinction in the Great War. They arrived in France on 18 March 1915. By the end of the war, 1...
A war correspondent is a journalist who covers stories first-hand from a war zone. War correspondence stands as one of journalism's most important and...
The WarOffice Act 1870 (33 & 34 Vict. c. 17) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. One of the Cardwell Reforms, it was passed to allow the...
The Home Office (HO), also known (especially in official papers and when referred to in Parliament) as the Home Department, is a ministerial department...
funds for the war effort during both world wars. During World War II a War Savings Campaign was set up by the WarOffice to support the war effort. Local...
Global Information
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