Social:Generalissimo
Generalissimo[1] (/ˌdʒɛnərəˈlɪsɪmoʊ/ JEN-(ə-)rə-LISS-im-oh) is a military rank of the highest degree, superior to field marshal and other five-star ranks in the states where they are used.
Usage
The word generalissimo (pronounced [dʒeneraˈlissimo]), an Italian term, is the absolute superlative of generale ('general') thus meaning "the highest-ranking of all generals". The superlative suffix -issimo itself derives from Latin -issimus,[2][3][4][5][6] meaning "utmost, to the highest grade". Similar cognates in other languages include generalísimo in Spanish, generalíssimo in Portuguese, généralissime in French, and generalissimus in Latin.
Historically this rank was given to a military officer leading an entire army or the entire armed forces of a state, usually only subordinate to the sovereign.[7] The military leader Albrecht von Wallenstein in 1632 was the first imperial generalissimo (general of the generals). Other usage of the rank has been for the commander of the united armies of several allied powers and if a senior military officer becomes the head of state or head of government of a nation like Chiang Kai-Shek in China and later in Taiwan, and Francisco Franco in Spain.
The rank generalissimus of the Soviet Union would have been a generalissimo but some sources assert that Joseph Stalin refused to accept the rank.[8][9] In fact the grade was established by the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet which did not need the "approval" of Stalin.[10] The rank of generalissimo for Stalin was used also by Western diplomacy.[11]
In the 20th century, the term came to be associated with military officers who took dictatorial power in their countries, especially due to the Spanish Francisco Franco having this rank. As such, it is used in literature depicting fictional Latin American dictatorial regimes, for example Father Hilary's Holiday by Bruce Marshall.[12]
List of generalissimos
Person | Service | Country | Era | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Emilio Aguinaldo | Philippine Revolutionary Army | China ![]() |
1898–1901 | Generalissimo of the Katipunan[13] |
Charles Crown Prince Charles John | Royal Swedish Army | Sweden ![]() |
1810–1818 | Named Generalissimo of the Swedish Armed Forces on October 20, 1810, upon his arrival to Sweden. Charles John had the singular distinction of having been offered the role of Generalissimo of four different nations: Sweden (accepted), Imperial Russia, offered by Alexander during the Conference at Åbo in 1812,[14] of a restored Bourbon France in 1814 (offered by Louis XVIII's brother the Comte D'Artois),[15] and a desperate offer by Napoleon in early 1814 as an inducement for Sweden to switch its alliance to France.[16] Charles John declined the latter three.[17][18][Note 1] |
Chiang Kai-shek Chiang Kai-shek | National Revolutionary Army | China ![]() |
1926–1975 | Appointed commander in chief of the Nationalist Army for the Northern Expedition.[19] In 1935 was appointed "general special class" (特級上將 Tèjí shàng jiàng). |
Ferdinand Foch | French Army | France ![]() |
1918 | Généralissime was the title used to describe Ferdinand Foch's Allied Command, starting March 26, 1918. He actually held the rank of général de division, the dignity (rank) of Marshal of France and later the ranks of British field marshal and marshal of Poland.[20] |
Deodoro da Fonseca | Brazilian Army | Brazil ![]() |
1890 | [21] |
Francisco Franco | Spanish Armed Forces | France Template:Country data Francoist Spain | 1936–1975 | Generalísimo, was used as a combination rank as he held the highest possible rank in all three branches of service. capitán general, capitán general del Aire, capitán general de la Armada.[22] |
Frederick Prince Consort Frederick of Hesse | Royal Swedish Army | Sweden ![]() |
1716–1720 | Fredrick was named Generalissimo of the Swedish Armed Forces in 1716 by King Charles XII.[23] |
Maurice Gamelin | French Army | France ![]() |
1939 | His rank was général d'armée, but his title as commander-in-chief of the French Armed Forces was généralissime. |
Máximo Gómez | Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces | Cuba ![]() |
1895–1898 | [24] |
Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla | Revolutionary Army of Mexico | Mexico ![]() |
1810–1811 | [25] |
Hirohito Hirohito (Emperor Shōwa) | Armed Forces of the Empire of Japan | Japan ![]() |
1926–1945 | Dai-gensui, as sovereign ruler of the Empire of Japan[26] |
Agustín de Iturbide | Mexican Army | Mexico ![]() |
1821–1823 | [27] |
James James, Duke of York | Third Anglo-Dutch War | England Template:Country data Kingdom of England | 1673 | "Generalissimo and supreme commander' over forces employed against the Dutch.[28] |
Kalakaua Kalākaua | Hawaiian Army | Hawaii Template:Country data Kingdom of Hawaii | 1886–1891 | King of Hawaii, was given titles of "supreme commander and generalissimo of the Hawaiian Army".[29] |
Karl Karl Philipp, Prince of Schwarzenberg | Austrian Army | Austria ![]() |
1813–1814 | Generalissimo of the Armies of the Habsburg Empire and senior Field Marshal of the combined forces of the Sixth Coalition. He led the largest Allied field army, the Army of Bohemia, during the Battle of Leipzig in 1813 and the Invasion of France in early 1814.[30] |
Kim Il-sung Kim Il Sung | Korean People's Army | Korea, North ![]() |
1992 | Taewonsu[31][32] |
Kim Jong-il Kim Jong Il | Korean People's Army | Korea, North ![]() |
2012 | Taewonsu (posthumously awarded)[33][32] |
Mao Zedong Mao Zedong | People's Liberation Army | ![]() |
1955 | Proposed the rank of Generalissimo of the People's Republic of China (declined usage) |
Alexander Danilovich Menshikov | Russian Imperial Army | Russia ![]() |
1727–1728 | [34] |
Francisco de Miranda | Venezuelan Army | Venezuela ![]() |
1812 | |
José María Morelos | Revolutionary Army of Mexico | Mexico ![]() |
1813–1815 | [35] |
Ihsan Nuri | Ararat Forces | Ararat ![]() |
1927–1930 | [36] |
John J. Pershing | United States Army | United States ![]() |
1919 | Promoted to General of the Armies of the United States on September 3, 1919.[37] |
Alexander Suvorov | Russian Imperial Army | Russia ![]() |
1799 | |
Ulrich, Anthony Duke Anthony Ulrich of Brunswick | Russian Imperial Army | Russia ![]() |
1740–1741 | [38] |
Maxime Weygand | French Army | France ![]() |
1940 | His rank was général d'armée, but his title as commander-in-chief of the French Armed Forces was généralissime. |
José de San Martín | Peruvian Army | Peru ![]() |
1821–1822 | Generalísimo de las Armas del Perú |
Joseph Stalin | Soviet Armed Forces | Soviet Union ![]() |
1945 | Generalissimus of the Soviet Union[39] (declined usage) |
Sun Yat-sen Sun Yat-sen | National Pacification Army | China ![]() |
1921 | Technically as da yuan shuai or "grand marshal of the army and navy"[40][41] |
Rafael Trujillo | Dominican Army | Dominican Republic ![]() |
1930 | [42] |
Albrecht von Wallenstein | Thirty Years' War | Holy Roman Empire Template:Country data Holy Roman Empire | 1625 | Via the "Principal Decree of the Imperial Deputation"[43][44] |
William William, Count of Schaumburg-Lippe | Royal Portuguese Army | Portugal Template:Country data Kingdom of Portugal | 1762–1763 | William became Generalissimus of the Allied Armies in Portugal during the Spanish Invasion. |
Zhang Zuolin Zhang Zuolin | National Pacification Army | China ![]() |
1927–1928 | Leader of the Beiyang government, declared generalissimo (da yuan shuai) in June 1927[45] |
Gallery
See also
- Admiralissimo
- Capo dei capi
- Caudillo
- Commander-in-chief
- Grand marshal
- Da yuan shuai
- Dai-gensui
- Field marshal
- General of the Armies
- Generalissimus of the Soviet Union
- Highest military ranks
- Shogun
- Six-star rank
- Marshal General of France
- First marshal of the empire
Notes
- ↑ The Napoleonic Marshal of France Jean Baptiste Bernadotte, Prince of Ponte Corvo, was elected Crown Prince of Sweden by the Riksdag of the Estates and King Charles XIII in 1810. Given his exalted French military rank, the rank of generalissimus was likely granted him in order to give him precedence over "mere" Swedish field marshals. Once he became King of Sweden and Norway in 1818, the generalissimus rank became superfluous.
References
- ↑ Encyclopaedia Britannica: Or, A Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, and Miscellaneous Literature, Enlarged and Improved. Archibald Constable. 1823. pp. 484. https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_HconAAAAMAAJ. "generalissimo."
- ↑ Webster's Third New International Dictionary., French Larousse Étymologique.
- ↑ "Online Etymology Dictionary". Online Etymology Dictionary. http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=generalissimo.
- ↑ "Define Generalissimo at Dictionary.com". Reference.com. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/generalissimo.
- ↑ "Generalissimo – Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary". Merriam-Webster. http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/generalissimo.
- ↑ "Definition of generalissimo – Oxford Dictionaries (British & World English)". Oxford Dictionary of English. http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/generalissimo.
- ↑ Thomas Hobbes (1660), Chapter XVIII: Of the Rights of Sovereigns by institution, http://jim.com/hobbes_on_right_of_sovereigns.htm, retrieved August 16, 2015
- ↑ Service, Robert (2005). Stalin: A Biography. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. p. 548. ISBN:978-0-674-01697-2.
- ↑ S. M. Shtemenko. The General Staff in the War Years. Moskva 1985. Vietnamese version (vol. 2) . pp. 587–588.
- ↑ Сборник законов СССР и Указов Президиума Верховного Совета СССР (1938 — июль 1956) / Сост.: М. И. Юмашев, Б. А. Жалейко. — М., 1956. — С. 202.
- ↑ "Generalissimo Stalin (Hansard, 7 November 1945)". https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1945/nov/07/generalissimo-stalin.
- ↑ Marshall, B: Father Hilary's Holiday Doubleday & Company, New York 1965.
- ↑ Script error: No such module "cite archive".
- ↑ Barton, Sir Dunbar (1925). Bernadotte Prince and King. P. 39. John Murray, London.
- ↑ Barton, Sir Dunbar (1925). Bernadotte Prince and King. P. 127. John Murray, London.
- ↑ Scott, Franklin (1935). Bernadotte and the Fall of Napoleon. P. 153. Harvard University Press, Cambridge.
- ↑ (in Swedish) Ancienneté och Rang-Rulla öfver Krigsmagten år 1813
- ↑ Barton, Sir Dunbar (1925). Bernadotte Prince and King. P. 4. John Murray, London.
- ↑ The New York Times , December 4, 1926, pg.6.
- ↑ John McGroarty :The Gray Man of Christ: Generalissimo Foch (1919) Los Angeles, Walter A Abbott
- ↑ Andermann, Jens; Rowe, William (2006). Images of Power: Iconography, Culture and the State in Latin America. Berghahn Books. p. 176. ISBN 9781845452124. https://books.google.com/books?id=uvlQ6FipbMgC&pg=PA176. Retrieved August 11, 2019.
- ↑ "Franco of Iberia". Time (magazine) , October 18, 1943. cover.
- ↑ Pock, Johann Joseph (1724). Der politische, katholische Passagier, durchreisend alle hohe Höfe, Republiquen, Herrschafften und Länder der ganzen Welt. Brechenmacher. p. 832. https://books.google.com/books?id=6ClMAAAAcAAJ&pg=GBS.PA832. Retrieved September 16, 2018. "wurde 1720. von dem König in Schweden ... zum Generalissimo der sämmtlichen Schwedischen Trouppen ernennet"
- ↑ Rioseco, Pedro. "Generalísimo Máximo Gómez, ejemplo de internacionalismo y genio militar" (in es). https://www.contraloria.gob.cu/noticias/generalisimo-maximo-gomez-ejemplo-de-internacionalismo-y-genio-militar.
- ↑ Comunica Miguel Hidalgo su proclamaci n como General simo de Am rica . Documentos Historicos de Mexico, October 24, 1810.
- ↑ Bix, Herbert P. (13 October 2009) (in en). Hirohito And The Making Of Modern Japan. Harper Collins. ISBN 978-0-06-186047-8. https://books.google.com/books?id=zjmVltzm1kYC&dq=Generalissimo&pg=PA31. Retrieved June 5, 2022.
- ↑ Anna, Timothy E. (1985). "The Rule of Agustin de Iturbide: A Reappraisal". Journal of Latin American Studies 17 (1): 79–110. doi:10.1017/S0022216X00009202. ISSN 0022-216X.
- ↑ Roper, Michael (1998). The Records of the War Office and Related Departments, 1660–1964. Kew, Surrey: Public Record Office. p. 5.
- ↑ Chapter XXII: Act Act To Organize The Military Forces Of The Kingdom. Honolulu: Black & Auld. 1886. pp. 37–41. OCLC 42350849. https://books.google.com/books?id=2LMwAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA37. Retrieved March 16, 2017.
- ↑ Peck, Harry Thurston (1898) (in en). The International Cyclopedia: A Compendium of Human Knowledge, Rev. with Large Additions. Dodd, Mead. p. 238. https://books.google.com/books?id=gj5MAAAAMAAJ&dq=generalissimo&pg=PA238. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
- ↑ "The Daily Yomuiri, 29 September 2010, Kim Jong Un spotlighted / 'Heir apparent' promoted to general, makes DPRK media debut". http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/world/T100928004855.htm.
- ↑ 32.0 32.1 "Late North Korean Leader Promoted to Generalissimo" (in en). Voice of America. 14 February 2012. https://www.voanews.com/a/late-north-korean-leader-promoted-to-generalissimo-139347773/152066.html.
- ↑ "The Australian, 15 February 2012, Late Kim Jong-il awarded highest honour by North". http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/late-kim-jong-il-awarded-highest-honour-by-north/story-e6frg6so-1226271640849.
- ↑ "Menschikow und Stalin waren die einzigen Heerführer der russischen Geschichte, die sich 'Generalissimus' nennen ließen." [Menshikov and Stalin were the only military leaders in Russian history who declared themselves "generalissimus".] Jena, Detlev (1996): Die russischen Zaren in Lebensbildern, Graz, p. 520.
- ↑ "Inauguration of the exhibition José María Morelos y Pavón. Generalissimo of Mexican America armies" (in spanish). Noticias – Dirección General de Asuntos internacionales – Secretaría de Cultura. https://www.cultura.gob.mx/dgai/noticias-detalle/?id=43828&orden=1&ln=en.
- ↑ Bletch Chirguh, La Question Kurde: ses origines et ses causes, Le Caire, Impimerie Paul Barbey, 1930, front cover, Ihsan Nouri Pacha Généralissime des forces nationales Kurdes (in French)
- ↑ Public Law 66-45 of September 3, 1919, to revive the office of General of the Armies
- ↑ "Portrait of Prince Anton Ulrich von Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel (1714-1774)". hermitagemuseum.org. 2023. https://www.hermitagemuseum.org/wps/portal/hermitage/digital-collection/01.+Paintings/128240.
- ↑ Joseph Stalin was appointed generalissimus of the Soviet Union. See: Ivan Aleksandrovich Venediktov, Selskokhozyaystvennaya entsiklopediya, Vol. 4, Gos. izd-vo selkhoz, 1956, p. 584. (in Russian)
- ↑ Linda Pomerantz-Zhang (1992). Wu Tingfang (1842–1922): Reform and Modernization in Modern Chinese History. Hong Kong University Press. p. 255. ISBN 962209287X. https://books.google.com/books?id=otwbBh_GgrwC&q=tang+jiyao&pg=PA255. Retrieved October 31, 2010.
- ↑ Taylor, Jay (April 15, 2009). The Generalissimo: Chiang Kai-shek and the struggle for modern China. Harvard University Press. p. 32. ISBN 978-0-674-05471-4. https://archive.org/details/generalissimochi00tayl. Retrieved February 28, 2017.
- ↑ Stanley Walker, Generalissimo Rafael L. Trujillo (1955) Caribbean Library
- ↑ A short history of Germany. Ernest Flagg Henderson, 1908
- ↑ Tilly und Wallenstein – ein Vergleich zweier Heerführer. Harry Horstmann, 2010. (in German)
- ↑ Moore, Frederick (June 18, 1927). "Chang Tso-lin Made Dictator in Move to Beat Back South". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/1927/06/18/archives/chang-tsolin-made-dictator-in-move-to-beat-back-south-northerners.html.