Chief of the Naval Staff (Sweden)

The Chief of the Naval Staff post was created in 1907 after the Chief of the Fleet Staff was eliminated. The Chief of the Naval Staff was from 1936 to 1994 the second most senior member of the Swedish Navy after the Chief of the Navy and headed the Naval Staff. The position was initially held alternately by a rear admiral or a captain until 1964. In 1964, a change was made from which branch the Chief of the Naval Staff was selected. As a rule, the Chief of the Naval Staff was an officer of the Swedish Coastal Artillery, if the Chief of the Navy was an officer of the Swedish Fleet (Flottan), and a naval officer if the coastal artillery officer was Chief of the Navy.^[2] The Chief of the Navy was always a naval officer and thus the Chief of the Naval Staff remained a coastal artillery officer until the Naval Staff was disbanded in 1994 and the office was eliminated. In 2019, the Naval Staff was re-established and a Chief of the Naval Staff was appointed again, this time held by a captain.

In 1941, through changes in the naval organization, a vice chief was appointed who was to be an active-duty regimental officer from the Swedish Coastal Artillery. This officer was to assist the Chief of the Naval Staff in the performance of their duties, and the Chief of the Naval Staff had the authority to assign specific responsibilities to this officer, particularly in matters concerning coastal artillery and coastal defence.^[3]