Ministry of Defense (Caphiria)
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 The Arcivalium, the headquarters of the Ministry of Defense, viewed from the coast. | |
| Imperial Ministry overview | |
|---|---|
| Type | Imperial Ministry |
| Headquarters | The Arcivalium |
| Employees | ~20 million |
| Annual budget |  $5.05 trillion |
| Minister responsible |
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The Ministry of Defense is the cabinet-level executive department of the Office of the Imperium responsible for coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the Caphirian government directly related to national security and the Imperial Armed Forces of Caphiria. The Ministry of Defense is the largest employer in the world, with over 5 million active-duty service members, including soldiers, marines, sailors, airmen, and guardians. The Ministry of Defense also maintains over 10 million reservists and over 1.5 million paramilitary personnel, bringing the total to over 20 million. The Ministry of Defense is headquartered at the Arcivalium on Sentinel Island, an artificial island off the coast of Venceia.
The Ministry of Defense is divided into two departments - the Department of Military Defense (DMD) and Department of Civilian Defense (DCD). The DMD has statutory authority to conduct all the affairs of the uniformed services - the Imperial Legion, the Imperial Naval Fleet, and the Imperial Air Force. The Department of Civilian Defense serves as the administrative and civilian backbone of the Caphirian military-industrial complex, overseeing the policies of defense, military alliances, the conduct of war, and the budget of the military. The DCD is also responsible for maintaining the static defenses of the Imperium, and both the Urban Cohort and National Guard fall under its jurisdiction, giving it authority over Caphiria's paramilitary forces.
While the Imperator of Caphiria possesses ultimate authority and control over the military, they are unable to hold any rank and maintain a civilian status. The Ministry of Defense is led by the Minister of Defense (MD), who reports directly to the Imperator. Underneath the Minister of Defense are the Legates of each department and subdepartment. In addition, the Ministry of Defense oversees the Office of Veteran Affairs, the Office of Advanced Research and Development, and is part of the Caphirian Intelligence Community.
History
Organizational structure
The Minister of Defense is appointed by the Imperator and has "authority, direction, and control over the affairs of the Ministry of Defense as it pertains to national security". Because the Constitution of Caphiria vests all military authority in the Imperator, the statutory authority of the Minister of Defense is derived from their constitutional authority.'
The Ministry of Defense is divided into two departments - the Department of Military Defense (DMD), which contains the military, and the Department of Civilian Defense (DCD), which maintains the static defenses of the Imperium, initiates new defensive installations on land, and organizes the peacetime distribution of national guard units across all castra (military bases).
Department of Military Defense
The DMD has statutory authority to conduct all the affairs of the uniformed services and consists of the three subordinate military departments: the Department of the Legion, the Department of the Navy, and the Department of the Air Force. The Office of Military Defense organizes the peacetime distribution of soldiers throughout the Imperium, sets military wages, communicates military policy to the public, and mediates requests for broad military policy from the Senate with the strategy of the Legion high command.
The head of the DMD is the Legate of Military Defense, who has unique access to the Imperium's satellite defense network and shares access codes for other weapons of mass destruction (e.g. particle bomb) with the Marshal General of the IAF. As a way of coordinating national policy with military strategy, the Legate of Military Defense attends every meeting of the Caetus Legati where both global strategy and local tactics are designed.
Department of Civilian Defense
The Department of Civilian Defense maintains the static defenses of the Imperium, initiates new defensive installations on land, and organizes the peacetime distribution of national guard units across all castra (military bases). The DCD is responsible for ordering, coordinating and carrying out the general guidelines of the Government about the defense policy. It determines and oversees: the policies of defense, military alliances, the conduct of war, and most importantly the expenses and budget of the military.
The DCD is composed of the Department of Static Defenses, Office of Defense Logistics, Office of Defense Contract Logistics & Auditing, Office of Emergency Management, and Office of Peacetime Distribution. The Department of Civilian Defense also contains the Office of Advanced Research and Development (O-ARD), which is responsible for the development of emerging technologies for use by the military. The DCD also contains the Urban Cohort - Caphiria's principal law enforcement agency and domestic security service, and the National Guard.
The DCD is led by the Legate of Civilian Defense - who despite having civilian status, is the most influential civilian within the military of Caphiria. The Legate of Civilian Defense is also a component of the Caetus Legati, representing the administrative and civilian backbone of the Caphiria's military-industrial complex.