The Imperial and Royal General Staff (German: k.u.k. Generalstab; Hungarian: Cs. es K. Vezérkar) of Austria-Hungary was part of the Ministry of War. It was headed by the Chief of the General Staff for the Whole Armed Forces (Chef des Generalstabes für die gesamte bewaffnete Macht; Az egész Fegyveres Erők Vezérkari Főnöke), who had direct access to the Emperor.
| Imperial and Royal General Staff | |
|---|---|
| k.u.k. Generalstab | |
General Staff building on Ringstraße, Vienna
| |
| Active | 1867–1918 |
| Country |  Austria-Hungary |
| Allegiance |  Armed Forces |
| Branch | Active duty |
| Type | Staff |
| Part of | Ministry of War |
| Garrison/HQ | Ringstraße, Vienna |
| Commanders | |
| First Chief | Feldmarschall-Leutant Franz von John |
| Last Chief | Generaloberst Arthur Arz von Straußenburg |
The general staff was responsible for planning and preparations, while the Armeeoberkommando (AOK) was the operational high command. In fact, since the AOK was under the direct command of the Emperor and the Chief of the General Staff was his chief adviser, in practice the AOK was under the control of the Chief of the General Staff.
† denotes people who died in office.
| No. | Portrait | Chef des k.u.k. Generalstab | Took office | Left office | Time in office |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
| von John, FranzFeldmarschall-Leutant Franz von John (1815–1876) | 20 December 1867 | 1869 | 1–2 years |
| 2 |
| von Gallina, Josef WilhelmFeldmarschall-Leutant Joseph von Gallina (1820–1883) | 1869 | 1874 | 4–5 years |
| 3 |
| von John, FranzFeldzeugmeister Franz von John (1815–1876) | 1874 | 25 May 1876 † | 1–2 years |
| 4 |
| von Schönfeld, AntonFeldmarschall-Leutant Anton von Schönfeld [de] (1827–1898) | 4 June 1876 | 1881 | 4–5 years |
| 5 |
| von Beck-Rzikowsky, FriedrichFeldzeugmeister Friedrich von Beck-Rzikowsky (1830–1920) | 1881 | 1906 | 24–25 years |
| 6 |
| von Hötzendorf, Franz ConradGeneral der Infanterie Franz Conrad von Hötzendorf (1852–1925) | 1906 | 1911 | 4–5 years |
| 7 |
| von Schemua, BlasiusGeneralmajor Blasius von Schemua (1856–1920) | 3 December 1911 | 12 December 1912 | 1 year, 9 days |
| 8 |
| von Hötzendorf, Franz ConradGeneralfeldmarschall Franz Conrad von Hötzendorf (1852–1925) | 12 December 1912 | 1 March 1917 | 4 years, 79 days |
| 9 |
| von Straußenburg, Arthur ArzGeneraloberst Arthur Arz von Straußenburg (1857–1935) | 1 March 1917 | 3 November 1918 | 1 year, 247 days |
![Anton von Schönfeld [de]](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Anton_von_Sch%C3%B6nfeld_%281827%E2%80%931898%29_um_1890.jpg)
