Noun
a person who exercises authority over civilian affairs
Source: WordNetA soldier of the civil authority must be taught not to kill men and to refuse to do so if he is commanded, and to refuse to take an oath; if he is unwilling to comply, he must be rejected. Hippolytus of Rome
The issue is whether the ultimate civil authority of the United States can tolerate actions in contempt of constitutional lines of authority. Any lessening of civil power over military power must inevitably lead away from democracy. Harold Russell
No provision in our Constitution ought to be dearer to man than that which protects the rights of conscience against the enterprises of the civil authority. Thomas Jefferson