Editing Portuguese Armed Forces (section)

===Establishment of the unified Armed Forces===
Lessons learned from World War II, the start of the [[Cold War]] and the creation of [[NATO]] (which Portugal integrated as a founding member<ref>{{cite web|title=MILESTONES: 1945–1952|url=https://history.state.gov/milestones/1945-1952/nato|website=history.state.gov|publisher=United States Department of State|access-date=6 January 2015}}</ref>) partially ended the objections for the creation of a joint command for the military forces. In 1950, the roles of Minister of National Defense and of [[General Staff of the Armed Forces of Portugal#The Chief of the General Staff|Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces]] (CEMGFA) are created.<ref>{{cite web|title=Historial – O pós guerra|url=http://www.exercito.pt/EP/Paginas/historial/22.aspx|website=exercito.pt|publisher=Exército Português|access-date=6 January 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150107141450/http://www.exercito.pt/EP/Paginas/historial/22.aspx|archive-date=7 January 2015|df=dmy-all}}</ref> To the CEMGFA were given almost all the responsibilities until then assigned to the majors-generals of the Navy and of the Army (service branches military commanders), whose roles were at the same time extinct.<ref>{{cite web|title=Decreto-lei 37909|url=https://dre.pt/application/file/481065|access-date=13 April 2016}}</ref> This can be considered the beginning of the existence of the Portuguese Armed Forces as an unified organization.
[[File:Fap-instrucao-pilotos-north-american-t-6-texan.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Training of pilots of the Portuguese Armed Forces in the early 1960s, in [[North American T-6 Texan|T-6 aircraft]]]]
However, opposition from both of the then existing military branches prevented the formation of a single ministry for the military. The political solution for this was to keep the existing Navy and Army ministries and to create the role of Minister of National Defense but without its own ministry, instead integrating the [[Cabinet of Portugal|Government's Presidency Office]]. The Minister of National Defense directed an [[umbrella organization]], named the National Defense Department which included the CEMGFA, the General Secretariat of National Defense (SGDN, ''Secretariado-Geral da Defesa Nacional'') and the Under-Secretariat of State of the Aeronautics (''Subsecretariado de Estado da Aeronáutica''). As the Navy and Army ministers continued to exist and to administer their own branches, the Minister of Defense had merely coordinating roles regarding the Navy and the Army. The SGDN served as the Defense staff support organization, being headed by the CEMGFA. It was foreseen to be remodeled in order to be transformed in the general staff and joint management body of the Armed Forces, but this transformation would only occur in 1974, when the SGDN became the General Staff of the Armed Forces (EMGFA).

Despite all the challenges, the operational integration of the Armed Forces rapidly progressed in the 1950s. As part of this integration, the role of [[commander-in-chief]] was established in each of the Overseas territories, as a permanent unified commander of the local forces of the three branches. Mainly during the Overseas War, these commanders-in-chief would assume increasing responsibilities, until achieving full operational command of all forces assigned to their [[Theater (warfare)|theater of operations]], leaving the territorial service branch leadership with mere logistical responsibilities.
 
The Military Aeronautics (Army aviation branch) – which already had a high degree of autonomy since 1937 – becomes an entirely separate branch of service of the Armed Forces in 1952, at the same time starting to control the [[Portuguese Naval Aviation]] (Navy aviation service). This third branch of the Armed Forces would soon become officially designated "Portuguese Air Force" (''Força Aérea Portuguesa''), with the fully integration of the previous Naval Aviation becoming complete in 1958. Unlike the other services which had their own separate ministries, the Air Force was under the fully dependency of the Minister of National Defense via the Under-Secretariat of State of the Aeronautics. In 1961, the status of this department would be upgraded, it becoming the Secretariat of State of the Aeronautics.

In 1953, the [[National Republican Guard (Portugal)|National Republican Guard]] ceased policing the military, with the establishment of the [[Army Police (Portugal)|Military Police]] by the Army.<ref>{{cite web|title=Regimento de Lanceiros Nº2 – Historial|url=http://www.exercito.pt/sites/RL2/Historial/Paginas/default.aspx|website=exercito.pt|publisher=Exército Português|access-date=26 February 2015}}</ref> Later, the other service branches would create their respective [[military police]] type forces: the [[Polícia Aérea|Air Police]] for the Air Force and the Naval Police for the Navy.