Rear admiral is a senior naval

flag officer A flag officer is a commissioned officer in a nation's armed forces senior enough to be entitled to fly a flag to mark the position from which the officer exercises command. The term is used differently in different countries: *In many countr ...

rank, equivalent to a

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

and

air vice marshal Air vice-marshal (AVM) is a two-star air officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes u ...

and above that of a commodore and

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star " admiral" rank. It is often regarded as a two-star rank with a NATO code of OF-7. The term originated in the days of naval sailing squadrons and can trace its origins to the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by Kingdom of England, English and Kingdom of Scotland, Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were foug ...

. Each naval squadron was assigned an admiral as its head, who commanded from the centre vessel and directed the squadron's activities. The admiral would in turn be assisted by a vice admiral, who commanded the lead ships that bore the brunt of a battle. In the rear of the squadron, a third admiral commanded the remaining ships and, as this section was considered to be in the least danger, the admiral in command of it was typically the most junior. This has continued into the modern age, with rear admiral the most junior admiralty of many navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral.

Australia

The

Royal Australian Navy The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) is the principal naval force of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). The professional head of the RAN is Chief of Navy (CN) Vice Admiral Mark Hammond AM, RAN. CN is also jointly responsible to the Minister of ...

maintains a rank of rear admiral; refer to Australian Defence Force ranks and insignia. The abbreviation is RADM. Since the mid-1990s, the insignia of a Royal Australian Navy rear admiral is the Crown of St. Edward above a crossed sword and baton, above two silver stars, above the word "Australia". Like the

version, the sword is a traditional naval

cutlass A cutlass is a short, broad sabre or slashing sword, with a straight or slightly curved blade sharpened on the cutting edge, and a hilt often featuring a solid cupped or basket-shaped guard. It was a common naval weapon during the early Age ...

. The stars have eight points, unlike the four pointed

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) as ...

stars used by the army (which are often referred to as "pips"). Prior to 1995, the RAN shoulder board was identical to the

shoulder board. The Royal Navy shoulder board changed again in 2001 and the Australian and UK shoulder boards are now identical except for the word "Australia". Rear Admiral Robyn Walker became the first female admiral in the Royal Australian Navy when she was appointed Surgeon-General of the

Australian Defence Force The Australian Defence Force (ADF) is the military organisation responsible for the defence of the Commonwealth of Australia and its national interests. It consists of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), Australian Army, Royal Australian Air Fo ...

on 16 December 2011.

Canada

In the

Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; french: Marine royale canadienne, ''MRC'') is the naval force of Canada. The RCN is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2021, the RCN operates 12 frigates, four attack subma ...

, the rank of rear-admiral (RAdm) (''contre-amiral'' or ''CAm'' in

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

) is the

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It include ...

rank equivalent to major-general of the

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

and

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ar ...

. A rear-admiral is a

, the naval equivalent of a general officer. A rear-admiral is senior to a commodore and

brigadier-general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

, and junior to a vice-admiral and

lieutenant-general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) 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 ...

. The rank insignia for a rear-admiral is two silver maple leaves beneath a silver crossed sword and baton, all surmounted by St Edward's Crown, worn on gold shoulder boards on the white short-sleeved shirt or the tropical white tunic. The service dress features a wide strip of gold braid around the cuff and, since June 2010, above it a narrower strip of gold braid embellished with the executive curl. On the visor of the service cap are two rows of gold oak leaves. File:Canada-Navy-OF-7-collected.svg, Image:Navy slip-on RAdm.png, Image:Navy olive RAdm.png,

India

Pakistan

A rear admiral in the Pakistani Navy is a senior and two-star rank naval officer, appointed in higher naval commands. Like most

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with " republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from th ...

navies, the rear admiral rank is superior to commodore and captain. However, the rank is junior to the three-star rank vice-admiral and four-star rank admiral, who is generally a Chief of Naval Staff of the Navy.

Netherlands

() is a Dutch Naval rank, equivalent to rear admiral in the

US Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

and

. It is the second most junior admiral position of the Dutch Navy, ranking above ''commandeur'' (" commodore") and below a ''vice-admiraal'' (" vice admiral"). The rank of originated between the 15th and 16th century. Interpreted as "watch-at-night", the was the officer who supervised the ship when the

was asleep. In later times the was also the officer who supervised an entire naval squadron, in the absence of a senior admiral, and by the 17th century was the common rank held by the naval commander of a battle fleet's rear squadron. In the 17th century the navies of Sweden and Denmark-Norway adopted the rank as and the early

Imperial Russian Navy The Imperial Russian Navy () operated as the navy of the Russian Tsardom and later the Russian Empire from 1696 to 1917. Formally established in 1696, it lasted until dissolved in the wake of the February Revolution of 1917. It developed from ...

as шаутбенахт ("shautbenakht"). In 1724 the Russians, followed in 1771 by both the

Swedish Navy The Swedish Navy ( sv, Svenska marinen) is the naval branch of the Swedish Armed Forces. It is composed of surface and submarine naval units – the Fleet () – as well as marine units, the Amphibious Corps (). In Swedish, vessels ...

and the Dano-Norwegian Navy changed the name of the rank to the originally German counter admiral (''контр-адмирал'' in Russian, ''konteramiral'' in Swedish, in Danish and Norwegian).

New Zealand

The highest ordinary rank currently filled in the

Royal New Zealand Navy The Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN; mi, Te Taua Moana o Aotearoa, , Sea Warriors of New Zealand) is the maritime arm of the New Zealand Defence Force. The fleet currently consists of nine ships. The Navy had its origins in the Naval Defence Act ...

is rear admiral and this is the rank held by the Chief of Navy unless that person is also Chief of Defence Force.

Singapore

The Republic of Singapore Navy uses two ranks with the title of rear admiral: rear-admiral (one-star), a one-star rank; and rear-admiral (two-star), a two-star rank.

Sri Lanka

Rear admiral is a two-star rank in the Sri Lanka Navy.

Sweden

In Sweden, rear admiral is a two-star admiral rank of the

United Kingdom

The

maintains a rank of rear admiral. Note that the rank of rear admiral is quite different from the honorary office Rear-Admiral of the United Kingdom.

United States

In the United States, there have been two ranks with the title of rear admiral since 1985: rear admiral (lower half) (RDML), a one-star rank; and rear admiral (RADM), a two-star rank. Prior to that, a combination of ranks was used.10 U.S.C. 5501 Notes
/ref> Both the rear admiral (lower half) and rear admiral ranks exist in four of the

uniformed services of the United States The United States has eight federal uniformed services that commission officers as defined by Title 10 and subsequently structured and organized by Titles 10, 14, 32, 33 and 42 of the U.S. Code. Uniformed services The uniformed services ...

: the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mu ...

, United States Public Health Service (USPHS) Commissioned Corps, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps (NOAA Corps).

Admiral insignia by country

File:Australia-Navy-OF-7-collected.svg, Rear admiral
(

) File:12.BNF-VADM.svg, Rear admiral
(

Bangladesh Navy The Bangladesh Navy ( bn, বাংলাদেশ নৌবাহিনী, Bangladesh Nou Bahini) is the naval warfare branch of the Bangladesh Armed Forces, responsible for Bangladesh's of maritime territorial area, and the defence of impo ...

) File:Belize_Coast_Guard_OF-7.svg, Rear admiral
(

Belize Coast Guard The Belize Coast Guard (until 2016, the Belize National Coast Guard Service) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and the maritime and law enforcement service branch of Belize. The new service began operations with seven impounded E ...

) File:Canada-Navy-OF-7-collected.svg, Rear admiral
)
(

) File:blank.svg,

( Ethiopian Navy) File:Fiji Navy Commodore.png, Rear admiral
( Republic of Fiji Navy) File:British Royal Navy (sleeves) OF-7.svg, Rear admiral
( Gambian Navy) File:13-Ghana Navy-RADM.svg, Rear admiral
( Ghana Navy) File:Guyana Rear Admiral Insignia.svg, Rear admiral
( Guyana Coast Guard) File:12-Indian Navy-RADM.svg, Rear admiral
(

Indian Navy The Indian Navy is the maritime branch of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff, a four-star admiral, commands the navy. As a blue-water navy, it operates sig ...

) File:Generic-Navy-(star)-O9.svg, Rear admiral
)
(

Irish Naval Service The Naval Service ( ga, An tSeirbhís Chabhlaigh) is the maritime component of the Defence Forces of Ireland and is one of the three branches of the Irish Defence Forces. Its base is in Haulbowline, County Cork. Though preceded by earlier m ...

) File:British Royal Navy (sleeves) OF-7.svg, Rear admiral
( Jamaican Coast Guard) File:14-Namibia Navy-RADM.svg, Rear admiral
( Namibian Navy) File:RNZN-SHOULDER-OF07.png, Rear admiral
(

) File:Nigeria-Navy-OF-7.svg, Rear admiral
( Nigerian Navy) File:Pakistan-Navy-OF-7-collected.svg, Rear admiral
)
( Pakistan Navy) File:British Royal Navy (sleeves) OF-7.svg, Rear admiral
( Papua New Guinea Maritime Element) File:PN RADM WhtDr.svg, Rear admiral
( Philippine Navy) File:British Royal Navy (sleeves) OF-7.svg, Rear admiral
( Sierra Leone Navy) File:09-RSN-OF07.svg, Rear admiral
( Republic of Singapore Navy) File:SA-Navy-OF-7.svg, Rear admiral
( South African Navy) File:13-Sri Lanka Navy-RADM.svg, Rear admiral
( Sri Lanka Navy) File:British Royal Navy (sleeves) OF-7.svg, Rear admiral
( Tanzania Naval Command) File:Trinidad-&-Tobago-Navy-OF-7.svg, Rear admiral
( Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard) File:British Royal Navy OF-7-collected.svg, Rear admiral
(

) File:US Navy O8 insignia.svg, Rear admiral
(

) File:US CG O8 insignia.svg, Rear admiral
(

)

References and notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rear Admiral Military ranks of Canada Military insignia Military ranks of Australia Military ranks of Pakistan Naval ranks