Posted on Apr 9, 2017
SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL
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HAVE YOU EVER MET A 5 STAR GENERAL/ADMIRAL BEFORE? WHAT ARE YOUR EXPERIENCES?

Five-star ranks are extremely senior—usually the highest ranks. As an active rank, the position exists only in a minority of countries and is usually held by only a very few officers during wartime. In times of peace, it is usually held only as an honorary rank.

A five-star rank is a very senior military rank, first established in the United States in 1944, with a five-star insignia,[1] and corresponding ranks in other countries. The rank is that of the most senior operational military commanders, and within NATO's "standard rank scale" it is designated by the code OF-10.

Not all armed forces have such a rank, and in those that do the actual insignia of the "five-star ranks" may not contain five stars. For example: the insignia for the French OF-10 rank maréchal de France contains 7 stars; the insignia for the Portuguese marechal contains four gold stars; and many of the insignia of the ranks in Commonwealth of Nations contain no stars at all.

Despite the rarity and seniority of five-star officers, even more senior ranks have been adopted in the United States, namely, admiral of the navy and general of the armies. Other names for highly senior ranks from the twentieth century include généralissime (France), generalisimo (Spain) and generalissimus (USSR).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five-star_rank

The following Americans have been promoted to five-star rank:
• Fleet Admiral William D. Leahy 15 December 1944
• General of the Army George Marshall 16 December 1944
• Fleet Admiral Ernest King 17 December 1944
• General of the Army Douglas MacArthur 18 December 1944
• Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz 19 December 1944
• General of the Army Dwight D. Eisenhower 20 December 1944
• General of the Army & Air Force Henry H. Arnold 21 December 1944 & 7 May 1949
• Fleet Admiral William Halsey, Jr. 11 December 1945
• General of the Army Omar Bradley 20 September 1950
• General of the Armies George Washington 4 July 1976, with an effective appointment date of 4 July 1776a

The timing of the first seven appointments was to establish both a clear order of seniority and a near-equivalence between the Army and Navy services. In 1949, Arnold was honored by being made the first, and to date only, general of the air force. He is the only American to serve in a five-star rank in two of its military services. By a Congressional Act of 24 March 1903, Admiral George Dewey's rank was established as admiral of the navy, a rank which was specified to be senior to the four-star rank of admiral and was equal to admiral of the fleet in the British Royal Navy. Admiral Dewey was the only individual ever appointed to this rank, which lapsed with his death on 16 January 1917. Admiral of the navy was considered superior to fleet admiral during World War II. On 3 September 1919, John Pershing was promoted to the rank of general of the armies (officially general of the armies of the United States) in recognition of his service during World War I. He is the only person promoted to this rank during their lifetime.
^a During the United States Bicentennial year, George Washington was posthumously appointed to the grade of General of the Armies of the United States by the congressional joint resolution Public Law 94-479 passed on 19 January 1976, with an effective appointment date of 4 July 1976 but having rank and precedence over all other grades of the Army, past or present. This restored Washington's position as the most senior US military officer. Between the joint resolution concerning Washington's rank, the fact that Omar Bradley was still alive, and thus still considered to be on active duty, and statements made and actions taken during and after World War II about the relationship between General of the Armies and General of the Army, it appears General of the Armies is superior in rank to General of the Army.

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Edited 7 y ago
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LTC Stephen F.
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Edited 7 y ago
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Well SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL I know many Generals who are currently serving: General Joe Votel [CENTCOM], General Raymond Tony Thomas [SOCOM] and General Vince Brooks [USFK] are classmates of mine from USMA class of 1980. There are other members of our class serving an 4 and 3 star generals still.
We had the honor to march in a corps-wide pass-in-review in honor of General of the Army Omar Bradley were Cadets at West Point in 1978, Bradley and Eisenhower were classmates from the USMA class of 1915.
I know many other generals who retired in the past ten years or so.
Images: General Joseph Votel; General Raymond Thomas; General Vincent Brooks; General Joseph L. Votel, left, will take the reins of Centcom, while General Tony Thomas took the reins of SOCOM
LTC Stephen C. Maj William W. 'Bill' Price Capt Christopher Mueller Capt Tom Brown Capt Seid Waddell CW5 Charlie Poulton SFC William Farrell SSG James J. Palmer IV aka "JP4" SSgt Robert Marx SSgt (Join to see) TSgt Joe C. SP5 Mark Kuzinski SGT Robert George SPC (Join to see) SrA Christopher Wright SP5 Robert Ruck SCPO Morris RamseyCPL Eric Escasio SPC Margaret Higgins
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1LT Commander
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7 y
USMA class of '80- I had the honor of meeting another well known classmate of yours last week, Sue Fulton. Not a general, but she has definitely had an influential career, especially after her retirement.
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SP5 Robert Ruck
SP5 Robert Ruck
7 y
In my short Army career I only saw two Generals. One a Brigadier from a distance. Another held an inspection while we were in the field at a place called Kleingartach. The inspection cost me two weeks extra duty because my hair touched the top of my ears. No barbers around. You'd think a General would have better things to do than rag on a Spec. 4. LOL.
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LTC Stephen F.
LTC Stephen F.
7 y
1LT (Join to see) - please send my respects to Sue next time you see her.
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1LT Commander
1LT (Join to see)
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LTC Stephen F. yes, sir I will!
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SSG Steven Borders
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Edited 7 y ago
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The highest I have ever met was a 3 Star. I got a coin from Chief Information Officer LTG Ferrell. I was chosen because of all the trips I lead as a level 1 Master Power Tech as an E4. It was quite an honor to meet him.
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MSG Andrew White
MSG Andrew White
7 y
NICE PIC!!
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SSgt Robert Marx
SSgt Robert Marx
7 y
Well done, soldier!
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SPC Margaret Higgins
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SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL:
I have met two Generals of the ARMY!
I didn't know if one was a General; so I asked him: and he WAS!
All of us sitting around at the table: LAUGHED!
Love You, My Sweet Friend-
Margaret
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SPC Margaret Higgins
SPC Margaret Higgins
7 y
SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL:
Funnily enough, I did not ask either General his name... or if I did, I don't recall what either one's name was.
I apologize, Hon.
-Your Friend, Margaret
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1LT(P) Military Police
1LT(P) (Join to see)
7 y
SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL - I think there is probably a distinction to be made here Margaret probably met Generals IN the Army not OF the Army like your original post asked about
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SPC Margaret Higgins
SPC Margaret Higgins
7 y
1LT(P) (Join to see) - I met two Generals that were retired from the Army, Sir...after I had retired as well.
Most Sincerely, Margaret
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1LT(P) Military Police
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7 y
SPC Margaret Higgins - Correct, I am not doubting your meeting them. But unless they had 5 Stars then they were not Generals OF the Army but Generals who were in the Army (and could have been 1-4 Star), the distinction is very imperative.
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