Secretary of State for War
British cabinet-level position
The Secretary of State for War, commonly called the War Secretary, was a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom. The position existed from 1794 to 1801 and again from 1854 to 1964. The Secretary of State for War headed the War Office and was assisted by an under-secretary, a parliamentary private secretary who was also a member of parliament (MP), and a military secretary, who was a general.
History
The position of Secretary of State for War was first held by Henry Dundas who was appointed in 1794. In 1801, the post became that of Secretary of State for War and the Colonies. The post was re-instated in 1854 when the Secretary of State for the Colonies was created as a separate position.
In the 19th century, the post was twice held by future prime minister Henry Campbell-Bannerman. At the outset of the First World War, prime minister H. H. Asquith was filling the role, but he quickly appointed Lord Kitchener, who became famous while in this position for the "Kitchener Wants You" posters. He was replaced by David Lloyd George, who went on to become prime minister. Between the World Wars, the post was held by future prime minister Winston Churchill for two years.
“Secretary of State for War” enters the record as british cabinet-level position. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Secretary, State and British can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Secretary of State for War” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Secretary, State and British provides the most credible route into that argument.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 7, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q622568. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1794, 1801, 1854 and 1964.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Secretary of State for War”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Secretary of State for War primary sources, Secretary of State for War archive and Secretary research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Secretary of State for War”?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Secretary of State for War” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.