The post was held by the Prime Minister of the day until Clement Attlee's government introduced the Ministry of Defence Act of 1946. Winston Churchill, on forming his government in 1940, created the office of Minister of Defence to exercise ministerial control over the Chiefs of Staff Committee and to co-ordinate defence matters. Lord Chatfield held the post until the fall of Neville Chamberlain's government in 1940 his success was limited by his lack of control over the existing Service departments and his limited political influence. As rearmament became a concern during the 1930s, Stanley Baldwin created the position of Minister for Co-ordination of Defence.
The formation of a united ministry of defence was rejected by David Lloyd George's coalition government in 1921 but the Chiefs of Staff Committee was formed in 1923, for the purposes of inter-service co-ordination.
