As of September 2018 the Chief of the SANDF is General Solly Shoke OMBG, SBS, MMS, OMS.
How many generals are there in the SANDF?
The sharp-end of the national defence force – its combat services – along with Defence Intelligence counts just 97 generals out of more than 400 in the Department of Defence (DoD)/SA National Defence Force (SANDF) structure.
Chief of the SADF
The UDF was renamed ‘South African Defence Force’ in November 1958. The Commandant General’s title was then changed to ‘Commandant General SADF’. It was changed to ‘Chief of the SADF’ in July 1973, after Admiral Hugo Biermann assumed the post the year before. After South Africa’s first democratic election, the South African Defence Force (SADF) became the South African National Defence Force (SANDF).
| No. | Chief of the SADF | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Defence branch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | General Stephen Melville SSA, OBE (1904–1977) | 1 November 1958 | 31 December 1960 | 2 years, 60 days |  South African Air Force |
| 2 | General Pieter Grobbelaar SSA, DSO (1908–1988) | 1 January 1961 | 31 December 1965 | 4 years, 364 days |  South African Army |
| 3 | General Rudolph Hiemstra SSA, SM (1912–2007) | 1 January 1966 | 31 March 1972 | 6 years, 90 days | South African Air Force |
| 4 | Admiral Hugo Biermann SSA, SD, OBE, GCIH (1916–2012) | 1 April 1972 | 31 August 1976 | 4 years, 152 days |  South African Navy |
| 5 | General Magnus Malan SSA, OMSG, SD, SM (1930–2011) | 1 September 1976 | 6 October 1980 | 4 years, 35 days |  South African Army |
| 6 | General Constand Viljoen SSA, SD, SOE, SM, MMM, ORB (1933–2020) | 7 October 1980 | 30 October 1985 | 5 years, 23 days | South African Army |
| 7 | General Johannes Geldenhuys SSAS, SD, SOE, SM, GCIH< /a>, ORB (1935–2018) | 1 November 1985 | 31 October 1990 | 4 years, 364 days | South African Army |
| 8 | General Andreas Liebenberg SSAS, SD, SOE, SM, MMM (1938–1998) | 1 November 1990 | 31 October 1993 | 2 years, 364 days | South African Army |
| 9 | General Georg Meiring SSAS, SD, SM, MMM, ORB (born 1939) | 1 November 1993 | 30 April 1994 | 180 days | South African Army |
Chief of the SANDF
The SADF amalgamated with the Azanian People’s Liberation Army (APLA), Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK), and the homeland defence forces to form the South African National Defence Force in 1994. The SANDF was based on the existing SADF structure of Army, Air Force, Navy, and Medical Service (which was renamed Military Health Service in 1998).
| No. | Chief of the SANDF | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Defence branch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | General Georg Meiring SSAS, SD, SM, MMM, ORB (born 1939) | 27 April 1994 | 31 May 1998 | 4 years, 34 days |  South African Army |
| 2 | General Siphiwe Nyanda SSA, SBS, CLS, DMG, MMS, MMM (born 1950) | 1 June 1998 | 31 May 2005 | 6 years, 364 days | South African Army |
| 3 | General Godfrey Ngwenya SBG, DMG, MMS, LOM (born 1950) | 1 June 2005 | 1 May 2011 | 5 years, 334 days | South African Army |
| 4 | General Solly Shoke OMBG, SBS, MMS, OMS (born 1956) | 2 May 2011 | 30 May 2021 | 10 years, 28 days | South African Army |
| 5 | General Rudzani Maphwanya (born 1960) | 1 June 2021 | Incumbent | 347 days | South African Army |
The Chief of the South African National Defence Force is the most senior South African military officer and the professional Head of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF). The Chief is appointed by the President of South Africa.
The SANDF was formed in 1994 following the first democratic general election in South Africa and was created by an amalgamation of the Azanian People’s Liberation Army (APLA), uMkhonto we Sizwe (MK) as well as the existing South African Defence Force (SADF) structure of Army, Air Force, Navy, and Medical Service (which was renamed Military Health Service in 1998).