- Please see "major general" for other countries which use this rank
Major general (Maj Gen) is a 2 star rank in the British Army[1] and Royal Marines. The rank was used by the Royal Air Force from 1918 to 1919. In the British Army, a division is commanded by a major general. In the Royal Marines the Commandant General holds the rank of major general.
A major general is superior to a brigadier but subordinate to lieutenant general. The rank has a NATO rank code of OF-7, equivalent to a rear admiral in the Royal Navy or an air vice-marshal in the Royal Air Force or the air forces of many Commonwealth countries.
The rank insignia is a pip over a crossed sword and baton.
British Army usage[]
In the British Army, a division is commanded by a major general. However, many other appointments exist for major generals. The most senior officer of the Royal Army Chaplains Department, the chaplain-general, holds the rank of major general.
Royal Marines usage[]
The Commandant General Royal Marines has held the rank of major general since 1996 when the post was downgraded from lieutenant general. As in the British Army, a Royal Marines major general ranks below lieutenant general and above brigadier and is thus the lowest of the general officer ranks.
Royal Air Force usage[]
From the foundation of the Royal Air Force on 1 April 1918 to 31 July 1919, the RAF maintained a rank of major general. The rank insignia was derived from that of a Royal Navy rear admiral and featured a broad gold stripe on the cuff below one narrow gold stripe. The two stripes were surmounted by an eagle (volant and affronty) under a king's crown. The RAF replaced its rank of major general with the rank of air vice-marshal on the 1 August 1919. The following officers held the rank of major general in the RAF:
- Edward Ashmore
- Sefton Brancker
- George Cayley[2]
- Edward Ellington
- Philip Game
- The Honorable Sir Frederick Gordon[3]
- Frederick Heath-Caldwell[4]
- John Higgins
- Mark Kerr
- Charles Lambe
- Charles Longcroft
- Godfrey Paine
- Geoffrey Salmond
- John Salmond
- Ernest Swinton[5]
- Frederick Sykes
- Hugh Trenchard
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NATO rank code | Student Officer | OF-1 | OF-2 | OF-3 | OF-4 | OF-5 | OF-6 * |
OF-7 ** |
OF-8 *** |
OF-9 **** |
OF-10 ***** | ||
| Royal Navy | O Cdt | Mid | SLt | Lt | Lt Cdr | Cdr | Capt | Cdre | RAdm (list) |
VAdm (list) |
Adm (list) |
Adm of the Fleet | |
| Royal Marines | 2Lt | Lt | Capt | Maj | Lt Col | Col | Brig | Maj-Gen | Lt-Gen | Gen (list) | |||
| Army | O Cdt | 2Lt | Lt | Capt | Maj | Lt Col | Col | Brig | Maj-Gen |
Lt-Gen |
Gen (list) |
FM | |
| Royal Air Force | OC / SO | APO / Plt Off | Fg Off | Flt Lt | Sqn Ldr | Wg Cdr | Gp Capt | Air Cdre | AVM | Air Mshl | Air Chf Mshl (list) |
MRAF | |
External links[]
References[]
The original article can be found at Major-general (United Kingdom) and the edit history here.