Pierre Victor, baron de Besenval de Brunstatt, Pierre Victor, Baron de Besenval de Brunstatt, a Swiss military officer in French service. He was promoted to Lieutenant-Général in 1762. Lieutenant-Général () in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, was a title and rank across various military and security institutions with history dating back well beyond the 18th century. The official historic succession of the "Lieutenant-Général of France" corresponded to

Général de division Divisional general is a general officer rank who commands an army division. The rank originates from the French Revolutionary System, and is used by a number of countries. The rank is above a brigade general, and normally below an army corps ...

for the

French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (, , ), is the principal Army, land warfare force of France, and the largest component of the French Armed Forces; it is responsible to the Government of France, alongside the French Navy, Fren ...

, and Vice-Amiral (Vice-Admiral) for the

French Navy The French Navy (, , ), informally (, ), is the Navy, maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the four military service branches of History of France, France. It is among the largest and most powerful List of navies, naval forces i ...

. While the French Navy's equivalent of a

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 ...

is a

Vice-Admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of vic ...

, the equivalent of today's Lieutenant-Général in the

French Armed Forces The French Armed Forces (, ) are the military forces of France. They consist of four military branches – the Army, the Navy, the Air and Space Force, and the National Gendarmerie. The National Guard serves as the French Armed Forces' milita ...

would be partially that of Général de corps d'armée (), such was due to the fact that the concept of an Army Corps () wasn't adopted first until 19 November 1873, by a Presidential Decree, and the actual rank of

Général de corps d'armée An army corps general or corps general is a rank held by a general officer who commands an army corps. The rank originates from the General officer#French Revolutionary system, French Revolutionary System, and is used by a number of countries. Nor ...

was not officially formed until a Law Decree on 6 June 1939. For the

and

during the

Ancien Régime ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for " ancient, old" ** Société des anciens textes français * the French for "former, senior" ** Virelai ancien ** Ancien Régime ** Ancien Régime in France {{disambig ...

, the rank corresponded to Lieutenant Général des armées ("Lieutenant-General of the Armies") for land forces, and to Lieutenant général des Armées navales ("Lieutenant-General of the Naval Armies") for the

Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

. Originally, two positions were created, one for the Levant Fleet in 1652 and one for the Flotte du Ponant in 1654.

History of the rank in France

, under the

, the Restoration () and

July Monarchy The July Monarchy (), officially the ''Kingdom of France'' (), was a liberalism, liberal constitutional monarchy in France under , starting on 9 August 1830, after the revolutionary victory of the July Revolution of 1830, and ending 26 Februar ...

, several officers carried the title of Lieutenant-General (). Within a general context, the title designated the individual who was delegated all the powers of authority on behalf of the person who he was supposed to replace.

Province Lieutenant-General

The Province Lieutenant-General () was a personage, often issued from high aristocracy, and who represented the King in the provinces of the Kingdom. His role was theoretically resumed to the assurance locum status of the

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

. Accordingly, the Kings would hope that their influence would get neutralized simultaneously, preventing any sort of tentative revolt. The charge function of the lieutenant-general became in the 17th century and specially in the 18th century, purely an honorific title: The individual bearing this title would reside in the ''Cour de France'' () and would contempt to earn income without actual real work. In addition, the Kings had the tendency to nominate the sons which were heir to their fathers, a hereditary system which made the offices of the lieutenant-general strictly part of the patrimony of aristocratic families. One should not mix the office of the lieutenant-general with that of the Lieutenant of the King (). The Lieutenant of the King was subordinated to the Lieutenant-General and his role (within a similar framework: represented the King in the provinces) was only upheld with very limited functions.

Lieutenant-General Bailliage

The Lieutenant-General Baillage (''Baillage'' () or ''Sénéchaussée'' () - ''Bailliage'' : designated both a territorial entity (administrative, financial or legal circumscription) and the charge officer of that function, designated as ''Bailli'') was the name which referred to the Grand-Judge (), charged with replacing temporarily the ''Bailli'' () and ''Sénéchal'' () in relation to legal cases.

Lieutenant-General of the Police

The title of Lieutenant-General of the Police () under the

was established in 1667, at

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, to assure and maintain order. As of 1699, other Police Lieutenant-Generals were established in other grand cities in France.

Lieutenant-General of the Kingdom

The title of Lieutenant-General of the Kingdom referred to a temporary function which the Kings, in circumstances of crises, invested all their power in them to exercise their will or part of their royal authority. Charged with this function were: *

Charles V of France Charles V (21 January 1338 – 16 September 1380), called the Wise (; ), was King of France from 1364 to his death in 1380. His reign marked an early high point for France during the Hundred Years' War as his armies recovered much of the terri ...

, from 1356 to 1358 during the captivity of his father

John II of France John II (; 26 April 1319 – 8 April 1364), called John the Good (French: ''Jean le Bon''), was King of France from 1350 until his death in 1364. When he came to power, France faced several disasters: the Black Death, which killed between a thir ...

in England, *

Charles VII of France Charles VII (22 February 1403 – 22 July 1461), called the Victorious () or the Well-Served (), was King of France from 1422 to his death in 1461. His reign saw the end of the Hundred Years' War and a ''de facto'' end of the English claims to ...

, in 1417 was nominated to Lieutenant-General of the Kingdom at age 14, to replace his father King

Charles VI of France Charles VI (3 December 136821 October 1422), nicknamed the Beloved () and in the 19th century, the Mad ( or ''le Fou''), was King of France from 1380 until his death in 1422. He is known for his mental illness and psychosis, psychotic episodes t ...

who became Mad, * Charles de Melun, Grand Master of France who filled the function of the

Constable of France The Constable of France (, from Latin for 'count of the stables') was lieutenant to the King of France, the first of the original five Great Officers of the Crown (along with seneschal, chamberlain, butler, and chancellor) and the commander-in ...

, decapitated on the place of Marché in Petit-Andely on 20 August 1468, * Francis, Duke of Guise from 1558 to 1560, *

Henry III of France Henry III (; ; ; 19 September 1551 – 2 August 1589) was King of France from 1574 until his assassination in 1589, as well as King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1573 to 1575. As the fourth son of King Henry II of France, he ...

in 1567, *

Charles, Duke of Mayenne Charles de Lorraine, duc de Mayenne (26 March 1554 –3 October 1611) was a French noble, governor, military commander and rebel during the latter French Wars of Religion. Born in 1554, the second son of François, Duke of Guise, François d ...

in 1589, *

Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal most commonly refers to * Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of three species in the family Cardinalidae ***Northern cardinal, ''Cardinalis cardinalis'', the common cardinal of ...

Armand Jean du Plessis, Duke of Richelieu and Fronsac in 1629, *

Joseph Bonaparte Joseph Bonaparte (born Giuseppe di Buonaparte, ; ; ; 7 January 176828 July 1844) was a French statesman, lawyer, diplomat and older brother of Napoleon Bonaparte. During the Napoleonic Wars, the latter made him King of Naples (1806–1808), an ...

, Lieutenant-General of the Empire in 1814, * The Count of Artois in 1814, * The Duke of Orléans on 31 July 1830, who assured the régence to count from 2 August, before being proclaimed King of the French under the name of Louis Philippe I on 9 August 1830.

Lieutenant-General of the Armies

The rank of Lieutenant-General of the Armies for the Army, and Lieutenant-General of the Naval Armies for the

, was an elevated rank in the military hierarchy of the

, inaccessible to a commoner. It was junior only to the

Marshals of France Marshal of France (, plural ') is a French military distinction, rather than a military rank, that is awarded to generals for exceptional achievements. The title has been awarded since 1185, though briefly abolished (1793–1804) and for a period ...

() and Colonel-Generals of France (), The Duke of Orleans was the Colonel-General of the

Hussar A hussar, ; ; ; ; . was a member of a class of light cavalry, originally from the Kingdom of Hungary during the 15th and 16th centuries. The title and distinctive dress of these horsemen were subsequently widely adopted by light cavalry ...

s in 1817. for the

, and the Admirals of France () and Vice-Admirals of France (), for the

, not titles of

military rank Military ranks is a system of hierarchy, hierarchical relationships within armed forces, police, Intelligence agency, intelligence agencies, paramilitary groups, and other institutions organized along military organisation , military lines, such ...

(), but

Great Officers of the Crown of France The Great Officers of the Crown of France () were the most important officers of state in the French royal court during the ''Ancien Régime'' and Bourbon Restoration. They were appointed by the King of France, with all but the Keeper of the S ...

(), a dignity both honorific and lucrative. The rank of Lieutenant-General of France was the succeeding equivalent rank of a

général de division Divisional general is a general officer rank who commands an army division. The rank originates from the French Revolutionary System, and is used by a number of countries. The rank is above a brigade general, and normally below an army corps ...

and the Lieutenant-General of the Naval Armies the succeeding equivalent of a

of the actual époque. The ranks of Lieutenant-General of the Armies were renamed as ''

Général de Division Divisional general is a general officer rank who commands an army division. The rank originates from the French Revolutionary System, and is used by a number of countries. The rank is above a brigade general, and normally below an army corps ...

'' and '' Vice-Amiral'' (

) in 1791. In 1814, the rank of

was renamed as ''Lieutenant-General of the Armies'', before definitely being referred to as

Général is the French word for general. There are two main categories of generals: the general officers (), which are the highest-ranking commanding officers in the armed forces, and the specialist officers with flag rank (), which are high-level offic ...

officer corps in 1848. The rank of

wasn't officially adopted until 1939, along with 5 other

ranks which included 1

Général d'armée is the French word for general. There are two main categories of generals: the general officers (), which are the highest-ranking commanding officers in the armed forces, and the specialist officers with flag rank (), which are high-level offic ...

rank, 2 Aerial general officer ranks of the

French Air Force The French Air and Space Force (, , ) is the air force, air and space force of the French Armed Forces. Formed in 1909 as the ("Aeronautical Service"), a service arm of the French Army, it became an independent military branch in 1934 as the Fr ...

and 2 Admiral ranks of the

Sources and references

Notes Citations References *Jean-Luc Messager, ''La Légion étrangère 175 ans d'histoire'' (The French Foreign Legion 175 years of History), édition EPA Hachette livre, 2007 * {{cite book, last=Vergé-Franceschi, first=Michel, authorlink=Michel Vergé-Franceschi, year=2002 , title=Dictionnaire d'Histoire maritime , publisher=Robert Laffont , location=Paris, isbn=2-221-08751-8 Military ranks of France