A general officer is an

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

of high rank in the

armies An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

, and in some nations'

air An atmosphere () is a layer of gases that envelop an astronomical object, held in place by the gravity of the object. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A stellar atmosph ...

and

space force A space force is a military branch of a nation's armed forces that conducts military operations in outer space and space warfare. The world's first space force was the Russian Space Forces, established in 1992 as an independent military service. ...

marines Marines (or naval infantry) are military personnel generally trained to operate on both land and sea, with a particular focus on amphibious warfare. Historically, the main tasks undertaken by marines have included Raid (military), raiding ashor ...

naval infantry Marines (or naval infantry) are military personnel generally trained to operate on both land and sea, with a particular focus on amphibious warfare. Historically, the main tasks undertaken by marines have included raiding ashore (often in supp ...

. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

."general, adj. and n.". OED Online. March 2021. Oxford University Press. https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/77489?rskey=dCKrg4&result=1 (accessed May 11, 2021) The adjective ''general'' had been affixed to officer designations since the late medieval period to indicate relative superiority or an extended jurisdiction.

French Revolutionary system

Arab system

Other variations

Other nomenclatures for general officers include the titles and ranks: * Adjutant general *

Commandant-general Commandant-general is a military rank in several countries and is generally equivalent to that of major-general. Argentina Commandant general is the highest rank in the Argentine National Gendarmerie, and is held by the national director of the ...

* Inspector general *

General-in-chief General-in-chief has been a military rank or title in various armed forces around the world. France In France, general-in-chief () was first an informal title for the lieutenant-general commanding over other lieutenant-generals, or even for some ...

General of the Air Force General of the Air Force (GAF) is a five-star general officer rank and is the highest possible rank in the United States Air Force. General of the Air Force ranks immediately above a general and is equivalent to General of the Army in the Unit ...

(USAF only) *

General of the Armies of the United States General of the Armies of the United States, more commonly referred to as General of the Armies, is the highest military rank in the United States. The rank has been conferred three times: to John J. Pershing in 1919, as a personal accolade fo ...

(of America), a title created for General

John J. Pershing General of the Armies John Joseph Pershing (September 13, 1860 – July 15, 1948), nicknamed "Black Jack", was an American army general, educator, and founder of the Pershing Rifles. He served as the commander of the American Expeditionary For ...

, and subsequently granted posthumously to

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

and

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was the 18th president of the United States, serving from 1869 to 1877. In 1865, as Commanding General of the United States Army, commanding general, Grant led the Uni ...

* (" general admiral") (German Navy) * Air general and aviation general * Wing general and group general * (, a Serb/Slovenian/Macedonian rank immediately inferior to colonel general, and roughly equivalent to Commonwealth/US major general) * Director general (a common administrative term sometimes used as an appointment in military services) * Director general of national defence (most senior rank in the Mexican Armed Forces) * Controller general (general officer rank in the

French National Police The National Police (, ), formerly known as the , is one of two national police forces of France, the other being the National Gendarmerie. The National Police is the country's main civil law enforcement agency, with primary jurisdiction in cit ...

) * Prefect general (the most senior rank of the

Argentine Naval Prefecture The Argentine Naval Prefecture ( or PNA) is a service of Argentina's Security Ministry charged with protecting the country's rivers and maritime territory. It therefore fulfills the functions of other countries' coast guards, and furthermore acts ...

) *

Master-General of the Ordnance The Master-General of the Ordnance (MGO) was a very senior British military position from 1415 to 2013 (except 1855–1895 and 1939–1958) with some changes to the name, usually held by a serving general. The Master-General of the Ordnance was ...

(very senior British military position) * Police General (most senior rank in some national police) * Commissioner (highest rank of the Bureau of Immigration) In addition to militarily educated generals, there are also generals in medicine and engineering. The rank of the most senior chaplain, (chaplain general), is also usually considered to be a general officer rank.

Specific rank of general

In the old European system, a general, without prefix or suffix (and sometimes referred to informally as a "full general"), is usually the most senior type of general, above

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

and directly below

field marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army (in countries without the rank of Generalissimo), and as such, few persons a ...

as a

four-star rank Military star ranking is military terminology, used in mainly English speaking countries, to describe general and flag officers. Within NATO's armed forces, the stars are equal to OF-6–10. Star ranking One-star A one-star rank is usual ...

(NATO OF-9). Usually it is the most senior peacetime rank, with more senior ranks (for example, field marshal, marshal of the air force, fleet admiral) being used only in wartime or as honorary titles. In some armies, however, the rank of captain general,

army general Army general or General of the army is the highest ranked general officer in many countries that use the French Revolutionary System. Army general is normally the highest rank used in peacetime. In countries that adopt the general officer fou ...

colonel general Colonel general is a military rank used in some armies. It is particularly associated with Germany, where historically General officer#Old European system, general officer ranks were one grade lower than in the Commonwealth and the United States, ...

occupied or occupies this position. Depending on circumstances and the army in question, these ranks may be considered to be equivalent to a "full" general or to a field marshal

five-star rank A five-star rank is the highest military rank in many countries.Oxford English Dictionary (OED), 2nd Edition, 1989. "five" ... "five-star adj., ... (b) U.S., applied to a general or admiral whose badge of rank includes five stars;" The rank is th ...

(NATO OF-10). The rank of general came about as a "captain-general", the captain of an army in general (i.e., the whole army). The rank of captain-general began appearing around the time of the organisation of professional armies in the 17th century. In most countries "captain-general" contracted to just "general".

General ranks by country

The following articles deal with the rank of general, or its equivalent, as it is or was employed in the militaries of those countries: *

General (Australia) General (abbreviated GEN) is the second-highest rank, and the highest active rank, of the Australian Army and was created as a direct equivalent of the General (United Kingdom), British military rank of general; it is also considered a four-star ...

General (Bangladesh) General () is a Four-star rank, four star general officer rank in the Bangladesh Army. It is the highest achieved rank in the Bangladesh Army. General ranks above the Three-star rank, three star rank of Lieutenant general (Bangladesh), Lieutenant ...

General (Canada) General (Gen; ) is a military rank used by the Canadian Army and Royal Canadian Air Force typically held by the officer who is serving as the Chief of the Defence Staff (Canada), chief of the Defence Staff – the senior uniformed officer of the ...

* (China) – People's Republic of China (PRC) and Republic of China (ROC/Taiwan) *

General (Denmark) ''General'' () is the highest rank of the Royal Danish Army and Royal Danish Air Force. As a four-star rank it is the equivalent to the rank of admiral in the Royal Danish Navy. The rank is rated OF-9 within NATO. It has the grade of M406 w ...

, *

General (Estonia) ''Kindral'' is the Estonian word for General which is also the highest military position in the Republic of Estonia. Both Ground Force and Air Force superior officers ranks share the same names which have been combined with the military rank ...

, * General (Finland), *

General (Germany) ''General'' () is the highest rank of the German Army and German Air Force. As a four-star rank it is the equivalent to the rank of admiral in the German Navy. The rank is rated Ranks and insignia of NATO armies officers, OF-9 in NATO. It is gra ...

, * (Greece) *

General (India) General is a Four-star rank, four-star general officer rank in the Indian Army. It is the highest active rank in the Indian Army. General ranks above the three-star rank of Lieutenant General (India), lieutenant general and below the five-star ran ...

* (North and South Korea) * *

General (Nigeria) General (or full general to distinguish it from the lower general officer ranks) is the highest rank achievable by serving officers of the Nigerian Army. It ranks above Lieutenant-general (Nigeria), lieutenant-general and is subordinate to the ...

General (Pakistan) General ; ; abbreviated as GEN) is a Four-star rank, four-star general officer military rank, rank of the Pakistan Army, officially used by the government of Pakistan to denote a supreme leader of the army. It is given to an army general officer ...

General (Poland) Generał (pronounced ) is the generic Polish language term for the rank of general. In narrow sense it is used to denote the rank of a four-star general introduced on August 15, 2002 (formerly ''generał armii'' - general of the army). The highest ...

, *

General (Sri Lanka) General (abbreviated as Gen.) is the highest attainable and full general rank of the Sri Lankan Army and was created as a direct equivalent of the British military rank of general; it is also considered a four-star rank. The rank of full gene ...

General (Sweden) General (Gen; ) is a Four-star rank, four-star commissioned Officer (armed forces), officer rank in the Swedish Army, Swedish Air Force and Swedish Amphibious Corps. General ranks immediately above Generallöjtnant, lieutenant general and is equi ...

, *

General (Switzerland) The General (, , , ) is an office and rank in the armed forces of Switzerland. It is held by the commander-in-chief of the Army in time of war only. Under the Swiss Constitution, he must be elected by the Federal Assembly, assembled as th ...

General (United Kingdom) General (or full general to distinguish it from the lower general officer ranks) is the highest rank achievable by serving officers of the British Army and the Royal Marines. The rank can also be held by Royal Marines officers in tri-service p ...

General (United States) In the United States military, a general is the most senior general-grade officer; it is the highest achievable commissioned officer rank (or echelon) that may be attained in the United States Armed Forces, with exception of the Navy and Coast G ...

General (Yugoslav People's Army) General (YPA) or General (JNA) ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, General Jugoslovenske narodne armije, Генерал Југословенске народне армије, ) was the highest rank of Yugoslav People's Army (in theory the second highest, after Ma ...

Army generals' insignia

File:13.PNA-BG.svg,

(

Algerian People's National Army The People's National Army (PNA) () is the military of the Algerian republic. It is the direct successor of the National Liberation Army (ALN), the armed wing of the nationalist National Liberation Front, which fought French colonial rule d ...

) File:Angola-Army-OF-9.svg,
(

Angolan Army The Angolan Army () is the land component of the Angolan Armed Forces (FAA). History On August 1, 1974, a few months after a military coup d'état had overthrown the Lisbon regime and proclaimed its intention of granting independence to Angola, ...

) File:Australian Army OF-9.svg,

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

(

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia. It is a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF), along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army ...

) File:Bundesheer - Rank insignia - General.png,
( Austrian Army) File:Bangladesh-army-OF-9.svg,
General
(

Bangladesh Army The Bangladesh Army () is the land warfare branch, and the largest component of the Bangladesh Armed Forces. The primary mission of the Army is to defend the land of Bangladesh from any external attack. Control of personnel and operations is ad ...

) File:Belgium-Army-OF-9.svg,
(

Belgian Land Component The Land Component (, ), historically and commonly still referred to as the Belgian Army (, ), is the land branch of the Belgian Armed Forces. The King of the Belgians is the commander in chief. The current chief of staff of the Land Component i ...

) File:16.Bhutan Army-GEN.svg, General
(

Royal Bhutan Army The Royal Bhutan Army (RBA; ) is a branch of the armed forces of the Kingdom of Bhutan responsible for maintaining the country's territorial integrity and sovereignty against security threats. The King of Bhutan is the Supreme Commander in Chie ...

) File:19.RBrLF-GEN.svg,
(

Royal Brunei Land Force The Royal Brunei Land Force (RBLF), natively known as (TDDB) is the land component of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces (RBAF) or (ABDB). The RBLF has responsibility for maintaining the territorial defence of Brunei Darussalam, both from attack ...

) File:Rank insignia of Генерал of the Bulgarian Army.png,

(

Bulgarian Army The Bulgarian Army (), also called Bulgarian Armed Forces, is the military of Bulgaria. The commander-in-chief is the president of Bulgaria. The Ministry of Defense is responsible for political leadership, while overall military command is in ...

) File:Canadian Army OF-9.svg,

(

Canadian Army The Canadian Army () is the command (military formation), command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also re ...

) File:Colombia-Army-OF-9.svg,
(

Colombian Army The National Army of Colombia () is the land warfare service branch of the Military Forces of Colombia. With over 361,420 active personnel as of 2020, it is the largest and oldest service branch in Colombia, and is the second largest army in the ...

) File:Denmark-Army-OF-9-M69-service.svg,
(

Royal Danish Army The Royal Danish Army (; ; ) is the land-based branch of the Danish Armed Forces, together with the Danish Home Guard. For the last decade, the Royal Danish Army has undergone a massive transformation of structures, equipment and training methods ...

) File:Timor-Leste-Army-OF-9.svg,
( Timor-Leste Army) File:Estonia-Army-OF-9.svg,
(

Estonian Land Forces The Estonian Land Forces (), unofficially referred to as the Estonian Army, is the name of the unified ground forces among the Estonian Defense Forces where it has an offensive military formation role. The Estonian Land Forces is currently the ...

) File:Ethiopia-Army-OF-9 (2022).svg,

(

Ethiopian Ground Forces The Ethiopian Army () is the land service branch of the Ethiopian National Defense Force. It is the senior of the two uniformed military branches. The force engages in land warfare and combined arms operations, including armored and mechanize ...

) File:Kenraali M05.svg,
(

Finnish Army The Finnish Army ( , ) is the army, land forces branch of the Finnish Defence Forces. The Finnish Army is divided into six branches: infantry (which includes armoured units), field artillery, anti-aircraft artillery, Combat engineering, engineer ...

) File:16.Gambian Army-GEN.svg, General
( Gambian National Army) File:Georgia-Army-OF-9.svg,

(

Georgian Land Forces The Georgian Land Forces ( ka, საქართველოს სახმელეთო ძალები) are the land force component of the Defense Forces of Georgia. They are the largest branch of the military and constitute the bulk o ...

) File:HD H 64 General.svg,
(

German Army The German Army (, 'army') is the land component of the armed forces of Federal Republic of Germany, Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German together with the German Navy, ''Marine'' (G ...

) File:16-Ghana Army-GEN.svg, General
(

Ghana Army The Ghana Army is the principal land warfare force of Ghana. In 1959, two years after the Gold Coast (British colony), Gold Coast became independent from the British Empire, the Ghana Regiment, Gold Coast Regiment was withdrawn from the Royal West ...

) File:15. Guinea-Bissau GEN.svg,
( Army of Guinea-Bissau) File:Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Minister of Defence rank insignia.svg, General
( Guyana Army) File:General of the Indian Army.svg,

(

Indian Army The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head ...

) File:22-TNI Army-GEN.svg,
(Indonesian Army) File:Rank insignia of generale of the Army of Italy (1973).svg,
(Italian Army) File:16. Kenyan Army GEN.svg, General
(Kenya Army) File:Luxembourg-Army-OF-6.svg,
(Luxembourg Army) File:North-Macedonia-Army-OF-9.svg,

(Army of North Macedonia) File:16. Malawi Army - GEN.svg, General
(Malawian Defence Force, Malawian Army) File:Malaysia-army-OF-9.svg,
(Malaysian Army) File:Mexico army OF9.svg,
(Mexican Army) File:Mongolian Army-GEN-service.svg,

(Mongolian Ground Force) File:Namibia-army-OF-9.svg, General
(Namibian Army) File:22.Nepalese Army-FM.svg, General
(Nepal Army) File:Netherlands-Army-OF-9.svg,
(Royal Netherlands Army) File:Nigeria-Army-OF-9.svg, General
(Nigerian Army) File:Norway-army-OF-9.svg,
(Norwegian Army) File:OF-9 Pakistan Army.svg,
General (Pakistan), General
(Pakistan Army) File:PA General.png,
(Philippine Army) File:Army-POL-OF-09.svg,
(Polish Army) File:Portugal-Army-OF-9.svg,
(Portuguese Army) File:Romania-Army-OF-9.svg,
(Romanian Land Forces) File:16-Rwanda Army-GEN.svg, General
(Rwandan Defence Forces) File:18-Serbian Army-GEN.svg,

(Serbian Army) File:Army-SVK-OF-09.svg,
(Ground Forces of the Slovak Republic) File:SAA-OF-9.svg, General
(South African Army) File:Sri Lanka-army-OF-9.svg, General (Sri Lanka), General
(Sri Lanka Army) File:Sweden-Army-OF-9 (M1987).svg,
(Swedish Army) File:CHE OF9 General.svg,
(Military of Switzerland, Swiss Land Forces) File:17-Tanzania Army-GEN.svg,
(Tanzanian Army) File:Uganda-Army-OF-9 (2019).svg, General
(Uganda People's Defence Force, Ugandan Land Forces) File:Погон генерала ЗСУ (2020).svg,

(Ukrainian Ground Forces) File:British Army OF-9.svg, General (United Kingdom), General
(British Army) File:US Army O10 (Army greens).svg, General (United States), General
(United States Army, U.S. Army) File:Zimbabwe-Army-OF-9.svg, General
(Zimbabwe National Army)

Air force generals' insignia

File:16.ANAF-GEN.svg,
(National Air Force of Angola) File:BE-Air Force-OF9.svg,
(Belgian Air Component) File:19.RBrAF-GEN.svg,
(Royal Brunei Air Force) File:Rank insignia of Генерал of the Bulgarian Air forces.png,

(Bulgarian Air Force) File:Canada-Air force-OF-9-collected.svg, General
(Royal Canadian Air Force) File:General del Aire FACH.png,
(Chilean Air Force) File:Colombia-AirForce-OF-9.svg,
(Colombian Air Force) File:RDAF-OF-9 Sleeve.svg,
(Royal Danish Air Force) File:17.Ecuadorian Air Force-GEN.svg,
(Ecuadorian Air Force) File:Estonia-AirForce-OF-9.svg,
(Estonian Air Force) File:Finland-AirForce-OF-9.svg,
(Finnish Air Force) File:Georgia Air Force OF-10.png,

(Georgian Air Force) File:LD B 64 General.svg,
(German Air Force) File:16. Kenyan Air Force GEN.svg, General
(Kenya Air Force) File:Malaysia-Air Force-OF-9.svg,
(Royal Malaysian Air Force) File:Mongolian Army-GEN-service.svg,

(Mongolian Air Force) File:Netherlands-AirForce-OF-9.svg,
(Royal Netherlands Air Force) File:Norway-air force-OF-9.svg,
(Royal Norwegian Air Force) File:Peru-AirForce-OF-9.svg,
(Peruvian Air Force) File:PAF GEN Svc.svg,
(Philippine Air Force) File:Rank insignia of generał of the Air Force of Poland.svg,
(Polish Air Force) File:Portugal-AirForce-OF-9.svg,
(Portuguese Air Force) File:Romania-AirForce-OF-9.svg,
(Romanian Air Force) File:16-Rwanda Air Force-GEN.svg, General
(Rwandan Air Force) File:18-Serbian Air Force-GEN.svg,

(Serbian Air Force and Air Defence) File:SVK-Air Force-OF-09.svg,
(Slovak Air Force) File:SAAF-OF-9.svg, General
(South African Air Force) File:SP-09 General del Aire.svg,
(Spanish Air and Space Force) File:Sweden-AirForce-OF-9.svg,
(Swedish Air Force) File:17-Tanzania Air Force-GEN.svg, General
(Tanzania Air Force Command) File:Turkey-air-force-OF-9a.svg,
(Turkish Air Force) File:Uganda-AirForce-OF-9.svg, General
(Ugandan Air Force) File:Ukraine-AirForce-OF-9 (2020).svg,

(Ukrainian Air Force) File:US Air Force O10 shoulderboard.svg, General (United States), General
(United States Air Force, US Air Force) File:Uruguay-AirForce-OF-9.svg, General del aire
(Uruguayan Air Force)

Naval infantry generals' insignia

File:Generic-Navy-O12.svg,
(Colombian Naval Infantry) File:22-TNI Navy-ADM.svg,
(Indonesian Marine Corps) File:Maldives Army OF-9.svg,
General
(MNDF Marine Corps, Maldivian Marine Corps) File:Netherlands-Navy-OF-9.svg,
(Netherlands Marine Corps) File:Sweden-Navy-OF-9.svg,
(Swedish Amphibious Corps) File:British Royal Marines OF-9.svg, General (United Kingdom), General
(Royal Marines) File:US Marine 10 shoulderboard vertical.svg, General (United States), General
(United States Marine Corps, US Marine Corps)

Air force and naval equivalents

Some countries (such as the United States) use the general officer ranks for both the army and the air force, as well as their marine corps; other states only use the general officer ranks for the army, while in the air force they use air officers as the equivalent of general officers. They use the air force rank of air chief marshal as the equivalent of the specific army rank of general. This latter group includes the British Royal Air Force and many current and former Commonwealth air forces—e.g. Royal Australian Air Force, Indian Air Force, Royal New Zealand Air Force, Nigerian Air Force, Pakistan Air Force, etc. In most navy, navies, flag officers are the equivalent of general officers, and the naval rank of admiral is equivalent to the specific army rank of general. A noteworthy historical exception was the Oliver Cromwell, Cromwellian naval rank "general at sea". In recent years in the American service there is a tendency to use ''flag officer'' and ''flag rank'' to refer to generals and admirals of the services collectively.

Notes

References

External links

Generals of World War II

Schema-root.org: US Generals
News feeds for US Generals in the news
Marines.mil: General Officer Biographies
Biographies of US Marine Corps General Officers
Bios & Information on Generals of Western History
Information on 10 Generals who influenced Western History {{DEFAULTSORT:General Officer Generals, Military ranks