Lieutenant general ( Lt Gen , LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank originates from the Old European System . The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages , where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was normally subordinate to a captain general .
15-592: Lieutenant General Sir William Congreve, 1st Baronet (4 July 1742 – 30 April 1814) was a British military officer who improved artillery strength through gunpowder experiments. William Congreve was born in Stafford on 4 July 1742. He and his first wife, Rebecca Elmston, had four children together, two sons and two daughters. His eldest son, William Congreve , invented the Congreve Rocket . His second wife, Julia-Elizabeth Eyre, died aged 78 in 1831. Congreve
30-405: A four-star rank (NATO OF-9). Usually it is the most senior peacetime rank, with more senior ranks (for example, field marshal, marshal of the air force, fleet admiral) being used only in wartime or as honorary titles. In some armies, however, the rank of captain general , general of the army , army general or colonel general occupied or occupies this position. Depending on circumstances and
45-481: A major outranks a lieutenant ) is due to the derivation of major general from sergeant major general , which was a rank subordinate to lieutenant general (as a lieutenant outranks a sergeant major ). Several countries (e.g. Balkan states) use the rank of lieutenant colonel general instead of lieutenant general, in an attempt to solve this apparent anomaly. In contrast, in Russia and a number of other countries of
60-517: A prodigious profit allowed them" and yet the merchants left the job in the hands of "artful but ignorant Foremen, who probably made a very considerable profit by their Masters' inattention". As during the Seven Years' War England had become increasingly concerned about the low standard of their gunpowder, the government was convinced to purchase an additional set of powder mills instead of farming out production to powder merchants. The Faversham Mill
75-479: Is equivalent to the navy rank of vice admiral , and in air forces with a separate rank structure, it is equivalent to air marshal . In the United States, a lieutenant general has a three star insignia and commands an army corps , typically made up of three army divisions , and consisting of around 60,000 to 70,000 soldiers. The seeming incongruity that a lieutenant general outranks a major general (whereas
90-498: The air force rank of air chief marshal as the equivalent of the specific army rank of general. This latter group includes the British Royal Air Force and many current and former Commonwealth air forces—e.g. Royal Australian Air Force , Indian Air Force , Royal New Zealand Air Force , Nigerian Air Force , Pakistan Air Force , etc. In most navies , flag officers are the equivalent of general officers, and
105-481: The army in question, these ranks may be considered to be equivalent to a "full" general or to a field marshal five-star rank (NATO OF-10). The rank of general came about as a "captain-general", the captain of an army in general (i.e., the whole army). The rank of captain-general began appearing around the time of the organisation of professional armies in the 17th century. In most countries "captain-general" contracted to just "general". The following articles deal with
120-528: The equivalent of lieutenant general. General officer#French Revolutionary system A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies , and in some nations' air and space forces , marines or naval infantry . In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel . The adjective general had been affixed to officer designations since the late medieval period to indicate relative superiority or an extended jurisdiction. Other nomenclatures for general officers include
135-446: The former Soviet Union , lieutenant general is a rank immediately below colonel general , and above major general – in these systems there is no use of the brigadier general of many Western countries. In addition, some countries use the lieutenant general as the rank of divisional commander, and some have designated them with French revolutionary system . For example, some countries of South America use divisional general as
150-598: The perceived increase in strength may have come from better quality construction materials. Congreve oversaw the establishment of two new facilities at Portsmouth and Plymouth which were dedicated to revitalizing damp or lumpy powder, as the procedure for fixing such issues was quicker than the process for making new powder. This resulted in an improved method of extracting saltpetre and consequently higher quality gunpowder. Lieutenant General In modern armies, lieutenant general normally ranks immediately below general (or colonel general ) and above major general ; it
165-408: The production of charcoal by low-temperature distillation in closed iron cylinders, and the employment of screw presses for compacting powder into cakes." In this role he also implemented the manufacture of two different kinds of powder, one for muskets and one for canons. Congreve believed that the different powders led to an increase in ballistic force. However Steele and Doorland have suggested that
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#1732791543462180-472: The rank of general, or its equivalent, as it is or was employed in the militaries of those countries: Some countries (such as the United States) use the general officer ranks for both the army and the air force , as well as their marine corps ; other states only use the general officer ranks for the army, while in the air force they use air officers as the equivalent of general officers. They use
195-473: The titles and ranks: In addition to militarily educated generals, there are also generals in medicine and engineering. The rank of the most senior chaplain, (chaplain general), is also usually considered to be a general officer rank. In the old European system, a general, without prefix or suffix (and sometimes referred to informally as a " full general "), is usually the most senior type of general, above lieutenant general and directly below field marshal as
210-404: Was made a Baronet on 7 December 1812. He died on 30 April 1814. He was succeeded in his posts by his son. By 1778 Congreve had obtained the rank of Captain and was appointed Superintendent of Military Machines. He worked out of Woolwich where he had the resources to train artillerymen. Sir William advocated government-run gunpowder mills, arguing that the privately owned concerns "have had such
225-632: Was purchased in 1759, followed by Waltham Abbey in 1787 and Ballincollig in 1804. Sir William became the deputy comptroller of the Woolwich Royal Laboratory in 1783, with control over the Faversham and Waltham Abbey mills. In 1789, then-Major Congreve was appointed as comptroller. Author Brenda Buchanan asserts, that during his time in these positions, he oversaw three major changes in the manufacturing of gunpowder, being "the substitution of edge runner mills for stamping mills ...,
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