A donatary captain was a Portuguese colonial official to whom the Crown granted jurisdiction, rights, and revenues over some colonial territory. The recipients of these grants were called donatários (donataries), because they had been given the grant as a doação (donation) by the king, often as a reward for service.
19-556: The term also applied as the rank title of the field officer that was in charge of a captaincy (group of companies) of the Ordenanças , the Portuguese territorial militia that existed from the 16th to the 19th centuries. Due to the impossibility of exercising direct control and sovereignty over overseas territories, the captain-major was the channel by which the monarch could delegate his powers, with certain restrictions, under
38-604: A regiment or battalion 's field officers made up its command element. In the Canadian Armed Forces , the term "senior officer" ( French : officier supérieur ) is used in all three services. It includes the army and air force ranks of major , lieutenant-colonel , and colonel , and the naval ranks of lieutenant-commander , commander , and captain . In the French Armed Forces , senior officers are called officiers supérieurs . They include
57-554: A company or equivalent ( cavalry squadron / troop and artillery battery ). In many armed forces, a junior officer is specifically a commissioned officer holding rank equivalent to a naval lieutenant , an army captain or a flight lieutenant or below. In the United States Armed Forces , the term junior officer is used by the Navy , Coast Guard , Public Health Service , and NOAA Corps for officers in
76-590: Is used for the ranks of lieutenant commander , commander , captain and commodore in the Royal Navy , and squadron leader , wing commander and group captain in the Royal Air Force . An RAF air commodore , however, is considered to be an air officer . A number of other armed forces in the Commonwealth , including Australia and New Zealand, also follow this pattern. This officer group in
95-488: The Donatário 's control over the officials, resulting in a disparity between actual and perceived function. Some were either incompetent in their roles, power-hungry or just absent. In some cases the inhabitants of certain possessions were often subject to irregularities resulting from judicial or fiscal issues. Some captains appointed overseers, ouvidores ( auditors ) to represent them who were unqualified to respond to
114-673: The German Navy are traditionally known as Stabsoffiziere (English: staff officers ). Shtabofitser ( Russian : Штаб-офицер ), derived from the German stabsoffizier , was the designation of the following officers of the Russian Imperial Army and Navy until 1917. The British Army and Royal Marines use the terms "officers of field rank" or "field officers" to refer to the ranks of major , lieutenant colonel , colonel and brigadier . The term "senior officer"
133-533: The Salic Laws ( Portuguese : Leis Sálicas ) of the time; these laws regulated all aspects of life, including crime, taxation, indemnity, and female inheritance. The Captains were less restricted to these conditions. Yet, many of these captains were selected as part of a consolidation of relationships between the Donatários and their vassals. This subjective process usually involved close associations with
152-512: The United States Armed Forces has two different names depending on the branch. In the Army , Marine Corps , Air Force , and Space Force the rank group is called field grade and consists of Major , Lieutenant Colonel , and Colonel . In the Navy and Coast Guard the rank group is called senior officers and consists of Commander and Captain . Junior officer Junior officer , company officer or company grade officer refers to
171-402: The ranks of lieutenant commander / major / squadron leader , commander / lieutenant colonel / wing commander and naval captain / colonel / group captain , or their equivalents. In some countries, it also includes brigadiers and commodores . Sometimes, particularly in the army, this grade is referred to as field-grade officers , field officers or officers of field rank . Historically,
190-599: The Crown, to a lifetime title that was passed down by the "legitimate male heirs". As administrators, the Captains enjoyed various judicial and economic privileges that provided an incentive to settle and develop their captaincies. They had the authority to administer sentences, with the exception of those involving penalties of death or mutilation. Economically, they had the exclusive authority to mill, bake bread and sell salt, in addition to their entitlement to receive rent paid to
209-524: The King for lands, fees and taxes due. In addition, they could receive a tithe (the tenth portion) paid to the captaincy directly. In addition to the regalia of office, the captains-major would hold title to the best parcels of lands and be able to contract renters to the donatárias (lands of the Donatários), in the name of the crown. Many of the donatários were hereditary, with a few exceptions, referred in
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#1732790257629228-536: The army and air force ranks of commandant , lieutenant-colonel and colonel , and the naval ranks of capitaine de corvette , capitaine de frégate and capitaine de vaisseau . In the German Bundeswehr , officers of the rank of Major , Oberstleutnant and Oberst in the Heer (army) and Luftwaffe (air force), and Korvettenkapitän , Fregattenkapitän and Kapitän zur See in
247-674: The island of São Miguel when it was discovered. This captaincy, which lasted from 1439 to 1461, was described in 1460 by Henry the Navigator in a letter to Cabral as Capitão por mim em minhas ilhas de Santa Maria e São Miguel dos Açores ( Captain for Me in My Islands of Santa Maria and São Miguel in the Azores ). The progressive discovery of the islands of the archipelago resulted in new captaincies; in total, there have been thirteen unique captaincies in Azores since their discovery: Such
266-420: The issues of their masters. The following is an incomplete list of some of the captaincies and their first Donatary-Captains: There were three captaincies in the archipelago of Madeira , associated with the three principal discoverers of the islands: Following their discovery, Gonçalo Velho Cabral became the first Donatary-Captain of the islands, beginning with the island of Santa Maria, but later including
285-433: The laws of male inheritance in favor of a daughter, for example (as with the case of the daughter of Jácome de Bruges ). Yet, most had to prove themselves, as was the case with Álvaro de Ornelas (captain of Pico), who lost his captaincy due to "inefficiency" in its settlement. The captaincy system was built on confidence and good faith between the captain and donatário , owing to the distance between each. This weakened
304-464: The lowest operational commissioned officer category of ranks in a military or paramilitary organization, ranking above non-commissioned officers and below senior officers . The terms company officer or company-grade officer are used more in the Army, Air Force, or Marine Corps as the ranks of captain , lieutenant grades and other subaltern ranks originated from the officers in command of
323-473: The responsibility of peoples he felt he could confide. The Donatário could administer, in the sovereign's name, the lands for which he was assigned, with all the regalia, rights, and obligations, with the exception of certain limits, including military authority over soldiers and detachments of the crown, or the administration of justice. The Captains were agents named by the Donatário, and after 1495, by
342-521: The royal family or confidants of the Crown: a feudal meritocracy of vassals. This could result from rendering service during the overseas expansion or resulting from some heroism that may have been rewarded with a title. The monarch surrounded himself with "trustworthy" men who were existed within a web of relationships, forming a restricted circle of individuals. In some cases precedents were superseded in favor of people they could trust, including setting aside
361-501: Was the case in the following places: ( see also above for those who later got captains-majors ): Field officer A senior officer is an officer of a more senior grade in military or other uniformed services. In military organisations, the term may refer to any officer above junior officer rank, but usually specifically refers to the middle-ranking group of commissioned officers above junior officer ranks but below flag , general or air rank . In most countries, this includes
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