Hi
Different websites give different accounts as to when George Washington was promoted to Lieutenant General. Was it during his Presidency, after his Presidency or after his death?
I look forward to your feedback.
According to thishe was promoted in 1798. Why do you doubt it’s accuracy?
Ok. Thanks dolphinboy.
GEORGE WASHINGTON’S RANK appears to have a good explanation of any confusion around his being a lieutenant general. The bottom line is that he indeed was named that by John Adams in 1798 and not during the Revolutionary War.
Another similar page, Clarifying Washington’s Rank comes to the same conclusion.
Here is the actual document signed by Adams, dated July 2, 1798.
Here’s a transcript of the letter Washington sent in return, dated July 13, 1798
I couldn’t find any hits that *didn’t *give 1798. Where are you finding them? What about them seemed credible?
The top military ranks in the US pre-Civil War were a bit of a mess, and especially so in the Continental Army as would be in any revolutionary army. Add to it that in that day and age it would not be abnormal to have someone directly appointed to a high rank right off the street, as it were.
The early US did not promote to regular ranks above Major General. In the Revolution Washington was “General and Commander in Chief” and outranked everyone else, none of whom was higher than MG, but that was a direct appointment by the Continental Congress. Though during his first presidential term he did actually lead troops in the field in his role as President and Commander-in-Chief, he did not hold a position in the US Army as organized post-constitution until recalled during the Adams administration, thenofficially made Lieutenant General retaining his seniority and higher rank over all the other officers then serving.
In 1976 he was promoted to General Of The Armies Of The United States retroactively to 4 July 1776 so that on the books he may have ceremonial precedence of seniority over every other officer.
Thank you all. Very helpful.
So if he was promoted to General of the Armies in 1776, his appointment to the rank of Lieutenant General in 1798 was technically a demotion.
- The paperwork got held up.
I think what confused me is that most websites refer to Washington as General whereas other like the one below refer to him as Major General (2 stars) during the Revolutionary War , making his later title of Lt. General (3 stars) a promotion. Wikipedia refers to him as General, not Major General.
“As Major General and Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army, George Washington won the military struggle for American Independence. Remarkably, however, Washington’s army won only three of the nine major battles that he oversaw and was often retreating. Even some of the victories were more strategic than measurable in military terms.”
From my first link:
So that is because of some historical weirdness.
The Continental Army’s highest “real rank” was Major General, two stars. There were a long list of men who held this rank (in no order): Henry Knox, Arthur St. Clair, Horatio Gates, Benedict Arnold, Nathanael Greene, Marquis de Lafayette (yes, he had a Continental Army commission), Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben, Israel Putnam…and probably a handful more I’ve not remembered.
George Washington throughout his career in the Continental Army always wore two stars, and essentially was a Major General. But, he had a specific “command” (trying to translate pre-modern, revolutionary Army concepts to modern ones) as “General and Command-in-Chief of the Continental Army.” He was the supreme military leader of the Continental Army, and all other major generals reported to him, he was their commanding officer.
During the Adams Presidency Washington was, on paper, called back into service and promoted to Lieutenant General, this time in the U.S. Army (he had not served in it previously, after the war he left the military entirely until 1798.)
Actually what I just said was incorrect, based on this, Washington’s actual Revolutionary War rank was “General”, not major general. I was confused because in most paintings he was shown to wear three stars, and maybe that’s where the confusion comes about.
While a modern Maj. General would wear three stars the Continental Army, as Exapno said, didn’t have as formalized uniform system. Washington wore three stars but was a “General”, and Commander in Chief, his highest ranked subordinates were all Major Generals, but he actually nominated a few for Lieutenant General rank, the Congress just never approved them (and obviously it’s unlikely he’d have nominated someone to a rank higher than his own.)
And here’s a copy of the paperwork in case anyone’s interested.
This wiki post must be wrong. It should be two right?
“While serving as a General, Washington wore three six-pointed stars (three five-pointed stars are now used as the insignia of a lieutenant general).[137]”
This is correct
“The British Army, which served as the model for the Continental Army, adopted epaulettes as officers’ rank insignia in 1768. Continental Army regulations for the use of epaulettes were first published in the General Orders dated 18 June 1780. According to these orders, Major Generals were to wear an epaulette on each shoulder with two stars on each epaulette.”