The Ministry of Defence said defence expenditure was increasing faster than inflation and was the second highest in the world after the United States.
TALK SHOWS
But despite the fightback, the ex-chiefs took the criticism to the morning talk shows on Friday.
"The money that defence is given for its budget is not sufficient to meet the level of activities we are currently required to engage in," Boyce told BBC's breakfast television.
Because soldiers do not have resources for training, "the first time they see some of their equipment is when they actually go out on their very first operational patrol".
He attacked Brown personally for giving the defence secretary a second job running Scotland.
"I feel that he has let the armed forces down by not appointing a secretary of state who is full time. When you've got people who are getting killed and maimed in the service of their government, and you put at the head of the shop someone who is part-time, that sends a very bad message."
"And that is the message I get back from our soldiers and our sailors and our airmen. They feel insulted. They feel he is treating them with contempt."
Britain has about 13,000 troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, and thousands more on deployments or training from the Balkans to Belize.
The attacks will hurt Brown, whose popularity has plunged to the lowest level since he took over from Tony Blair in June. In recent weeks he has suffered the failure of bank Northern Rock, and news this week that officials lost a computer disc with personal bank account details of millions of people.
