- Please see “rear admiral” for other nations which use this rank.
Rear admiral (RAdm) is a flag officer rank of the British Royal Navy. It is immediately superior to commodore and is subordinate to vice admiral. It is a two-star rank and has a NATO ranking code of OF-7.
The rank originated in the days of naval sailing squadrons and each naval squadron would be assigned an admiral as its head. He would command from the centre vessel and direct the activities of the squadron. The admiral would in turn be assisted by a vice admiral, who commanded the lead ships which would bear the brunt of a naval battle. In the rear of the naval squadron, a third admiral would command the remaining ships and, as this section of the squadron was considered to be in the least danger, the admiral in command of the rear would typically be the most junior of the squadron admirals. This has survived into the modern age, with the rank of rear admiral the most-junior of the admiralty ranks of many navies.
The Royal Navy rank of rear admiral should be distinguished from the office of Rear-Admiral of the United Kingdom, which is an Admiralty position usually held by a senior (and possibly retired) "full" admiral.
Rank insignia and personal flag[]
![Royal Navy rear admiral shoulder board[1]](/wiki/File:UK-Navy-OF7-shoulder.svg "UK-Navy-OF7-shoulder.svg (213 KB)")
![Royal Navy rear admiral shoulder board prior to 2001[2]](/wiki/File:UK-Navy-OF7-shoulder_(former).svg "UK-Navy-OF7-shoulder (former).svg (203 KB)")
References[]
- ↑ http://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/server/show/ConWebDoc.6020/changeNav/3533
- ↑ Refer UK DCI (Joint Service) 125/2001
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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 | |
The original article can be found at Rear admiral (Royal Navy) and the edit history here.