Until the Cromwellian period, England did not have a standing army, relying on the militia (descended from the feudal levy) supplemented by mercenaries where necessary. From its very origins, the army was regarded with suspicion, and the administration was set up so that no king or government official controlled enough of it to stage a coup d'etat. As a result it was almost impossible to control it effectively enough to fight and win a war.
| Officer of State | Department | Involvement | Responsibilities | |
| Secretary of State FOR War (coordinating) (from 1794) |
Foreign Secretary | Foreign Office | Foreign relations | Operations: Policy and Direction (Who, why, when and where) |
| Colonial Secretary | Colonial Office | Colonial garrisons & resources (eg Gibraltar) | ||
| Home Secretary | Home Office | Defence, troops on British soil, Militia, recruitment | ||
| Lord Lt of Ireland | Irish Office | Irish garrison (largest single British force) | ||
| Secretary AT War | War Office | Parliamentary appropriation (the money to run the army) | Numbers and money (size of the standing army and pay scales) | |
| Commander in Chief (the King or his appointee) |
Horse Guards | In charge of the infantry and cavalry. Adjutant General, Quartermaster General, Military Secretary |
Tactics, drill, discipline, promotions and appointments in the infantry and cavalry | |
| Master General of the Ordnance | Board of Ordnance | Weapons (army and navy) Corps of Artillery Corps of Engineers Corps of Artillery drivers Woolwich Military Academy |
Testing, selection and supply of weapons. Training and provision of artillery and engineer corps | |
| Chancellor of the Exchequer | Treasury | Commissary General's Office | Purchase and supply (including delivery) of food, forage and transport | |
There were also a number of minor offices handling other details of army administration.
| Office | Answers to | Subsidiary officers | Responsibilities |
| Medical Board | War Office, Horse Guards | Physician General, Surgeon General, Apothecary General | Army hospitals, doctors and surgeons (NOT medical supplies) |
| Purveyor General | ?Treasury | Hospital supplies | |
| Apothecary General | ?Treasury | supply of medicines | |
| Paymaster General | War Office, Treasury | Paying the army | |
| Judge Advocate General | ?Chief Justice | Military Justice, Courts Martial |
The above nightmare explains some of the peculiarities in Wellington's reporting during the Peninsular War. Each "department" under Wellington had it's own commander, who took orders from Wellington, but reported directly to their department in London. The commanders of the artillery and engineering reported to the Ordnance Board, The Commissary General reported to the Commissary General's Office in the Treasury and so on. Wellington himself reported to the Secretary At War on the military and political situation and to the Horse Guards on the numerical and disciplinary situation of the infantry and cavalry. Wellington could make recommendations to the Horse Guards about promotions in the infantry and cavalry, but since he didn't report to the Ordnance Board, it wasn't easy for him to make recommendations as to promotion in the other departments. This problem was exacerbated by interdepartmental jealousy, which meant that a recommendation from Wellington for promotion of an Engineer (say) was likely to cripple that Engineer's prospects for good.
This is one of the reasons why Wellington didn't say much about such groups as the artillery or the doctors: their chiefs were reporting independently. However, the only reports which made it through to the newspapers were Wellingtons. For this reason he would, on occasion and at the request of one of the heads, mention the performance of these departments in his report.
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