National Defence Headquarters
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National Defence Headquarters (NDHQ) ( French: ''Quartiers généraux de la Défense nationale'' (''QGDN'')) was created through the integration of the
Canadian Armed Forces The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...
Headquarters (CAF HQ) with the civilian Department of National Defence (DND) staff in October of 1972. NDHQ is not a specific location, but is instead housed throughout a collection of offices in buildings across the National Capital Region, although it is most commonly identified with the Major-General George R. Pearkes Building on
Colonel By Drive Colonel By Drive () is an long scenic parkway in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Route description The parkway runs along the Rideau Canal from the end of Sussex Drive (Ottawa), Sussex Drive at Rideau Street (Ottawa), Rideau Street. It then continu ...
in
Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...
. From 2017, various locations have been consolidating at National Defence Headquarters, Carling Campus on Carling Avenue.


History

During the
Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
, the threat of nuclear attack on the National Capital Region saw an
Emergency Government Headquarters Emergency Government Headquarters is the name given for a system of nuclear fallout shelters built by the Government of Canada in the 1950s and 1960s as part of continuity of government planning at the height of the Cold War. Situated at stra ...
constructed 30 km west of Ottawa at CFS Carp; this facility was to house a scaled-down NDHQ, along with the federal cabinet and other political, military and government leaders. Completed in 1974, the George R Pearkes Building was originally built for
Transport Canada Transport Canada () is the Ministry (government department), department within the Government of Canada responsible for developing regulations, Policy, policies and Public services, services of road, rail, marine and air Transport in Canada, tra ...
, until a plan for a new NDHQ in LeBreton Flats was cancelled. Transport Canada instead moved to the newly completed Place de Ville Tower C (1972). Carling Campus was originally
Nortel Nortel Networks Corporation (Nortel), formerly Northern Telecom Limited, was a Canadian Multinational corporation, multinational telecommunications and data networking equipment manufacturer headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario. It was founded in ...
's research and development site, until it was purchased by the Federal Government in 2010.


Structure

Falling under the Minister of National Defence, NDHQ includes the office of the Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS), who is the senior military commander within the Canadian Armed Forces; and the
Deputy Minister Deputy minister is a title borne by politicians or officials in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. A deputy minister is positioned in some way "under" a minister, who is a full member of Cabinet, in charge of a particular sta ...
, who is the senior civil servant in charge of the Department of National Defence. Also reporting directly to the Minister are the Associate Minister of National Defence, the Judge Advocate General, and several other organizations which are considered part of the Defence Portfolio. *Reporting to the CDS are the headquarters of all Canadian Armed Forces commands: **
Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; , ''MRC'') is the Navy, naval force of Canada. The navy is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of February 2024, the RCN operates 12 s, 12 s, 4 s, 4 s, 8 s, and several auxiliary ...
**
Canadian Army The Canadian Army () is the command (military formation), command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also re ...
**
Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; ) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Can ...
** Military Personnel Command ** Canadian Special Operations Forces Command **
Canadian Joint Operations Command The Canadian Joint Operations Command (CJOC; ) is one of the two unified commands of the Canadian Armed Forces, the other one being the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command. CJOC was announced in May 2012 as the result of the cost-cuttin ...
**
Canadian Forces Intelligence Command Canadian Forces Intelligence Command (CFINTCOM; ) is the organization that centralizes all intelligence collection and assessment capabilities of the Canadian Armed Forces. History CFINTCOM was formed in 2013 by bringing the head of defence intel ...
** Strategic Joint Staff **
North American Aerospace Defense Command North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD ; , CDAAN), known until March 1981 as the North American Air Defense Command, is a Combined operations, combined organization of the United States and Canada that provides aerospace warning, air ...
(NORAD) *Reporting to the DM are an Associate Deputy Minister and several Assistant Deputy Ministers (ADM): ** Associate Deputy Minister ** ADM (Policy) ** ADM (Finance) ** ADM (Materiel) ** ADM (Infrastructure & Environment) ** ADM (Human Resources - Civilian) *Reporting to both the DM and the CDS are the following offices: ** Vice Chief of the Defence Staff ** ADM (Public Affairs) ** ADM (Defence Research and Development Canada) ** ADM (Information Management) ** ADM (Review Services) ** ADM (Data, Innovation and Analytics)


References


External links

Department of National Defence (Canada) Joint military headquarters {{Canada-mil-stub