Military rank
Military rank, or simply rank, refers to a system of grading seniority and command within military organizations. A separate set of ranks was also used within the feudal system, as discussed in feudal rank.
Roman Ranks
The use of formalized ranks came into widespread use with the Roman Legions, after the introduction of reforms by the consul Gaius Marius which were completed around 60 CE. In the new system a legion would be commanded by a legatus, typically a senator given a three-year term. Immediately under the legatus were six tribunes, five senior officers and one nobleman who was headed for the Senate.
The fighting men in the legion were formed into ranks, rows of men who fought as a unit. In the new system these were divided into groups of ten cohorts, each consisting of six centuries of 100 men. Each century was led by a centurion, and there were additional centurions who served as scribes and other duties. Centuries were further broken into ten contubernia, of eight soldiers each. Individual soldiers were referred to as miles or legionarius.
Modern Ranks
In modern terms, the legion represents a battlefield organization about the size of a regiment. As the size and organizational details of the armed forces have grown, additional ranks have been added in order to fill in slots in the organizations. Today the role of the legatus corresponds roughly to General, and a regiment is considered to be one of the smaller organizations within the Army Group he commands, being led by a Colonel. During most of the time since the fall of the Roman Empire the head of the military forces has been the King (often in person), but this role has since been passed on to dedicated military officers known either as General of the Army, or Field Marshal.
Divisions of the forces has since grown considerably with much larger armies being fielded, which considerably more secondary support roles. A modern army is typically organized in this fashion:
| a | is led by | consists of |
|---|---|---|
| Army Group | General or Field Marshal | several Armies |
| Army | General | several Corps |
| Corps | Lieutenant General | several Divisions |
| Division | Major General | several Regiments or Brigades (basic army unit) |
| Brigade | Brigadier General | several Regiments |
| Regiment | Colonel | several Battalions |
| Lieutenant Colonel | second in command to a Colonel | |
| Battalion | Major | second in command to a Companies (huh?) |
| Company | Captain | several Platoons |
| Platoon | First Lieutenant | basic fighting unit |
| Second Lieutenant | First Lieutenant in training |
Many of these ranks are recent additions. The basic unit of an army up to about the 16th century was the Company, which was also known as a Troop in the cavalry and Battery in the artillery. By the 18th century and into the 19th century, the Regiment formed the basic army unit, broken into companies sometimes arranged as Batalions. Brigades and Divisions are more recent additions, with the Brigade replacing the Regiment outright in the Royal Army.
Commissioned ranks are grouped into three categories:
- Junior Officers -- the three or four lowest ranks of officers -- command units not expected to operate independently for any significant length of time. In the US Army, these are captains and lower and lead companies and smaller units; in the US Navy, these are lieutenants and ensigns and typically command divisions on larger ships.
- Senior Officers -- those between junior officers and flag officers (below) -- command units that can be expected to operate independently for short periods of time (battalions and regiments, large warships).
- Flag Officers -- Commodores, Admirals, Generals, and Marshals -- command units that are expected to operated independently for extended periods of time (brigades and larger, fleets of ships).
See also
External links: