The Chief of Staff of the Army

The Chief of Staff of the Army Amador Enseñat y Berea was born in A Coruña on October 25, 1960. In July 1983, he was promoted to the rank of Artillery Lieutenant, finishing 1st both in the General Military Academy’s 38th Class and in the Artillery Academy’s 271st Class. Since 1996, he has been a Staff College Graduate of the Spanish Army, finishing 1st in his Class. In addition, he has completed the Advanced Command and Staff Course in the United Kingdom.  

On October 5, 2021, he was appointed Chief of Staff of the Army and promoted to the rank of General. Previously, he had been Director of the Technical Cabinet of the Minister of Defense, serving in this role since January 17, 2020. Throughout his military career, he has alternated command of operational units of the Army—the most important being the 71st Antiaircraft Artillery Regiment in Madrid (2010-2012) and the SAM Hawk II/74 Antiaircraft Missile Battalion in Seville (2005-2008)—with General Staff assignments, such as the Spanish Verification Unit (1992-1994), the Headquarters of the Infantry Airborne Brigade (1996-1998), the Operations Division of the Defense General Staff, and Command Post of the Chief of the Defense Staff (1998-2000), the Planning Division of the Army General Staff (2001-2005), and the Division of Strategic Affairs and Security of the General Secretariat for Defense Policy of the Ministry (2009-2010). He has been Secretary-General of the Army Training and Doctrine Command (2013-2016) and Director of Teaching, Instruction, Training and Evaluation of the Army (2016-2020), both in Granada.

He has served in NATO, European Union and United Nations operations, participating in two missions in Bosnia-Herzegovina (1997 and 2004/2005) and in Lebanon (2013), where he was Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations at the United Nations International Headquarters in Naqoura.

He possesses numerous decorations and awards, both civil and military, Spanish and foreign, including the “Legion of Merit” of the United States in the rank of Commander, the Grand Cross of Military Merit of the Portuguese Republic and the Legion of Honor and the National Order of Merit of the French Republic, both in the rank of Officer.

He is named adoptive son of the city of Granada, “Galician of the year 2023” by the Club of Galician journalists in Madrid and “Honorary Knight of María Pita 2024” by the Royal Order of Knights of María Pita of A Coruña.  

He has a degree in Political Science and Sociology from the Complutense University of Madrid, a Master’s degree in International Relations from the “Ortega y Gasset” University Institute (with a grade of ‘excellent’), a Master’s degree in Security and Defense from the Complutense University of Madrid and a Diploma in Advanced International Studies from the International Studies Society.

He is a full member of the Royal Academy of Moral and Political Sciences, since February 2024, after reading his reception speech entitled “The Transformation of the Spanish Armed Forces: Modernity and Tradition”.

He has published several works, articles and analyses on security and defense issues, and has been a lecturer at a large number of universities and educational and research centers, both civil and military.

April 2025