General of The Armies - Creation and Early Usage

Creation and Early Usage

The rank of General of the Armies of the United States has a history spanning over two centuries and, during the course of the rank's existence, the rank has held different authority, seniority, and perceptions by both the American public and the military establishment. In all, there have been six versions of the rank General of the Armies, of which only three were ever formally bestowed:

1. A rank created in 1799 (but never bestowed) to replace the rank of lieutenant general.
2. A version revived for Ulysses S. Grant after the American Civil War, named "General of the Army of the United States."
3. A version revived in 1919 for John J. Pershing for services rendered during World War I.
4. A proposed rank during World War II (never approved), which would have been an actual six-star general rank.
5. A further proposal in 1955, also seen as a six-star rank and also never approved.
6. A final version in 1976, which ensures that no officer of the United States Armed Forces will ever outrank Lieutenant General George Washington.

The first mention of the rank "General of the Armies" was in an Act of the United States Congress on March 3, 1799. Congress provided:

That a Commander of the United States shall be appointed and commissioned by the style of General of the Armies of the United States and the present office and title of Lieutenant General shall thereafter be abolished.

The rank of General of the Armies was created to be bestowed upon George Washington, who had held the generic rank of general during the American Revolutionary War and, as of 1782, was listed as a lieutenant general on the rolls of the United States Army. Washington's rank was as the result of his having been regarded as a "three-star general" during the revolution, and the United States military using European style general ranks which incorporated a three-star rank of lieutenant general. The United States at this point had no four-star general rank (in Europe, the rank was known as captain general until the early 19th century and then simply as general). The rank of General of the Armies, however, was never bestowed on Washington, and, upon his death, the United States Army's highest general rank was that of major general.