What is "field marshal"

Marshal \Mar"shal\, n. [OE. mareschal, OF. mareschal, F. mar['e]chal, LL. mariscalcus, from OHG. marah-scalc (G. marschall); marah horse + scalc servant (akin to AS. scealc, Goth. skalks). F. mar['e]chal signifies, a marshal, and a farrier. See Mare horse, and cf. Seneschal.]

1. Originally, an officer who had the care of horses; a groom. [Obs.]

2. An officer of high rank, charged with the arrangement of ceremonies, the conduct of operations, or the like; as, specifically:

   1. One who goes before a prince to declare his coming and provide entertainment; a harbinger; a pursuivant.

   2. One who regulates rank and order at a feast or any other assembly, directs the order of procession, and the like.

   3. The chief officer of arms, whose duty it was, in ancient times, to regulate combats in the lists.
      --Johnson.

   4. (France) The highest military officer. In other countries of Europe a marshal is a military officer of high rank, and called field marshal.

   5. (Am. Law) A ministerial officer, appointed for each judicial district of the United States, to execute the process of the courts of the United States, and perform various duties, similar to those of a sheriff. The name is also sometimes applied to certain police officers of a city.

      Earl marshal of England, the eighth officer of state; an honorary title, and personal, until made hereditary in the family of the Duke of Norfolk. During a vacancy in the office of high constable, the earl marshal has jurisdiction in the court of chivalry.
      --Brande & C.

      Earl marshal of Scotland, an officer who had command of the cavalry under the constable. This office was held by the family of Keith, but forfeited by rebellion in 1715.

      Knight marshal, or Marshal of the King's house, formerly, in England, the marshal of the king's house, who was authorized to hear and determine all pleas of the Crown, to punish faults committed within the verge, etc. His court was called the Court of Marshalsea.

      Marshal of the Queen's Bench, formerly the title of the officer who had the custody of the Queen's bench prison in Southwark.
      --Mozley & W.

n. (context military ranks English) In certain nations the highest military rank, ranking below only the commander in chief; now essentially disused.

n. an officer holding the highest rank in the army

Field marshal is a very senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually it is the highest rank in an army, and when it is, few (if any) persons are appointed to it. It is considered as a five-star rank (OF-10) in modern-day armed forces in many countries.

The origin of the term dates to the early Middle Ages, originally meaning the keeper of the king's horses (from Old German Marh-scalc = "horse-servant"), from the time of the early Frankish kings.

Promotion to the rank of field marshal in many countries historically required extraordinary military achievement by a general (a wartime victory). However, the rank has also been used as a divisional command rank and also as a brigade command rank. Examples of the different uses of the rank include Austria-Hungary, Prussia and Germany for an extraordinary achievement; Spain and Mexico for a divisional command ; and France, Portugal and Brazil for a brigade command (, ).

The traditional attribute distinguishing a field marshal is a baton. The baton nowadays is purely ornamental, and as such may be richly decorated. That said, it is not necessary for the insignia to be a baton. (Such is the case in Russia post-1991 and the former Soviet Union, which use a jewelled star referred to as a marshal's star.)

The exact wording of the titles used by field marshals varies: examples include " marshal" and " field marshal general". The air force equivalent in Commonwealth and many Middle Eastern air forces is marshal of the air force (not to be confused with air marshal). Navies, which usually do not use the nomenclature employed by armies or air forces, use titles such as " fleet admiral," " grand admiral" or " admiral of the fleet" for the equivalent rank.

Field marshal is the highest rank of the Australian Army and was created as a direct equivalent of the British military rank of field marshal. It is a five-star rank, equivalent to the ranks in the other armed services of admiral of the fleet in the Royal Australian Navy, and marshal in the Royal Australian Air Force. The subordinate army rank is general.

The rank of Field Marshal is a high rank in the military of Uganda. President Idi Amin was the commander-in-chief of the army, awarding himself the rank of field marshal. The highest ranking individual in the modern Ugandan army, the Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF), is the current President Yoweri Museveni, who uses the title of General.

Field marshal may refer to:

Field Marshal of the Philippines was a rank created in 1936 to be held by Douglas MacArthur. MacArthur was accorded the rank as Military Advisor to the Commonwealth Government of the Philippines, which retained his services to form an army in response to the growing danger from Japan and the increasing likelihood of war in the Pacific.

MacArthur retired from the United States Army as a major-general, having previously served as a full general while Chief of Staff of the United States Army. President Manuel L. Quezon then hired him as a military advisor and commissioned him a Field Marshal in the Philippine Army, a rank which had not previously existed. ( MacArthur’s wife found the situation amusing and often remarked that MacArthur had gone from holding the highest rank in the United States Army to holding the highest rank in a non-existent army.)

President Quezon officially conferred the title of Field Marshal on MacArthur in a ceremony at Malacañan Palace on August 24, 1936. He was presented at that time with a gold baton and a unique uniform.Although unofficially considered as the five-star rank in the Armed Forces of the Philippines, MacArthur wore no special insignia as Field Marshal of the Philippines, except for a modification to his army officer’s cap. To the standard gold-trimmed visor of a United States general's cap, MacArthur added gilt trim to the front body of the cap, above the visor. MacArthur referred to this modified headdress as his "Philippine Field Marshal's cap" and wore it for the duration of World War II and into the Korean War. However, the modified army headdress was against regulations, and MacArthur never officially obtained permission to wear this as a part of his uniform.

On December 31, 1937, MacArthur first retired from the U.S. Army and the Philippine Army. He ceased to represent the United States as military adviser to the government but remained in the Philippines as Quezon's adviser in a civilian capacity.

In July 1941, MacArthur was recalled to active duty as Supreme Allied Commander South West Pacific Area and for the duration of the war he continued to wear the "Field Marshal's cap".

Emilio Aguinaldo, the first President of the Philippines, holds an equivalent of five-star general under the title " Generalissimo" and " Minister/Field Marshal" as the first Commander-in-Chief of the AFP.

After 1946, the rank of Field Marshal disappeared from the Philippine military and today is obsolete (the highest rank now obtainable is that of four-star general). In theory, the rank could again be conferred, but this would only be in the event of the Philippines' entering into a major war.

Field marshal (FM) is a Five Star General Officer rank and the highest attainable rank in the Indian Army. Field Marshal is ranked immediately above General and is largely a ceremonial/war time rank, having been awarded only twice. A Field Marshal's insignia consists of the national emblem over a crossed baton and sabre in a lotus blossom wreath. It is equivalent to an Admiral of the Fleet in the Indian Navy or a Marshal of the Air Force in the Indian Air Force.

On appointment, Field Marshals are awarded a gold-tipped baton which they may carry on formal occasions.

Chom Phon or Field Marshal of Thailand is a military rank of the Royal Thai Army, considered the equivalent to a Field Marshal or General of the Army (although the former is more widely used). Today it is ceremonially held by members of the Thai Royal family and exists only on paper in the actual Thai military (have not been awarded since 1992). The Royal Thai Navy equivalent is known as Chom Phon Ruea (Admiral of the Fleet) and Chom Phon Akat (Marshal of the Air Force) for the Royal Thai Air Force.

The King of Thailand as Head of the Armed Forces is automatically made a Chom Phon upon accession. The rank was formally created in 1888, together with all other ranks of the military by King Chulalongkorn (Rama V), who wanted to modernize his Armed Forces through western lines. Apart from the monarchs, there have been 13 appointments to this rank.

In Finnish Defence Forces Field Marshal (Finnish: sotamarsalkka (lit. War Marshal), Swedish: fältmarskalk) is officially not an active military rank but an honorary rank that can be bestowed upon 'especially distinguished generals'. So far the only holder of this title has been Baron Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim, then Chairman of the Defence Council, who received it on 19 May 1933 by the decision of the State Council. Baron Gustaf Mannerheim (1867–1951) served as Regent 1918–1919 and President of the Republic 1944–1946.

Mannerheim had commanded the White Army in the Finnish Civil War in 1918, and his promotion to field marshal had already been suggested in 1928, the 10th anniversary of the end of the War. Back then the proposal was rejected as 'too warlike'—and there was also fears that such promotion would prove politically controversial—but Mannerheim was nevertheless given an unofficial marshal's baton by the Civil War's White veterans. Five years later the political climate was more favourable, and the State Council decided to bestow Mannerheim the rank of field marshal. The decision was kept in secret, and came as a pleasant surprise to Mannerheim. He observed "In a little ultrademocratic country it could seem quite pretentious to indulge in the luxury of a field marshal", but also admitted that it was "not so frightful when the marshal costs the state nothing".

It is not known why field marshal never became a substantive rank rather than honorary one, but this distinction caused Mannerheim some consternation at the time. He had to pay a substantial stamp duty of 4000 Finnish marks. Mannerheim's secretary at the Defence Council, the then Lieutenant Colonel Aksel Airo tried to make the Defence Forces or Ministry of Defence foot the bill. It is customary that the organization that has originally put a person forward for the title, pays the stamp duty that comes with it. But in this case no such payer could be found and finally Airo had to present the bill to Mannerheim, who commented wryly: "It's good they didn't make a bigger chief out of me." Mannerheim was also initially concerned that as field marshal was not an official rank, he was no longer in the Defence Forces service, but Mannerheim was then assured that he remained in the Finnish Army officer lists as a general of cavalry (ratsuväenkenraali, his substantive rank since 1918).

Mannerheim received the field marshal's title three days after the 15th anniversary of the end of the Civil War, choosing not to receive the title on the anniversary on 16 May, because he did not want to aggravate the wounds of the War. On this occasion Mannerheim was also given a new, official marshal's baton, but he still preferred to use the old, unofficial one, because it was lighter.

In practice field marshal was treated like a military rank. Mannerheim, in co-operation with artist and author Aarno Karimo designed a new rank insignia consisting of the three heraldic lions of a full general and crossed marshal's batons.

On Mannerheim's 75th birthday 4 June 1942 he was bestowed the title of Marshal of Finland (Finnish: Suomen marsalkka, Swedish: Marskalk av Finland) that has been specially created for him, although it was fully symbolic title and his rank insignia remained the same.

At the time when Finland was under Swedish rule (before the War of Finland in 1808–1809), a number of Finnish-born men reached the corresponding rank of Fältmarskalk.

Field Marshal ( or etymologically; ) was the highest rank in the army of the Kingdom of Serbia and Kingdom of Yugoslavia from 1901 until end of Second World War in 1945.

It was created with the passing of the Law on the Organization of the Army of the Kingdom of Serbia in 1901. Law was passed on the suggestion of Lieutenant colonel (later Divisional General) Miloš Vasić who was Minister of the Defense at the time. The rank was awarded only during the war for Particular military contributions of top generals.

In the Balkan Wars and World War I this title was used to designate the highest military rank in Serbian Army. The first Field Marshal was promoted by the Great military decree of the Kingdom of Serbia on 20 October 1912. Only four people ever officially held that military rank: Radomir Putnik (got it in 1912), Stepa Stepanović (middle 1914), Živojin Mišić (late 1914) and Petar Bojović (1918). Before this rank was introduced, the highest rank in the Kingdom of Serbia was Army General. After Second World War, newly formed Yugoslav People’s Army stopped using Royal ranking system, so this rank ceased to exist.

Field marshal has been the highest rank in the British Army since 1736. A five-star rank with NATO code OF-10, it is equivalent to an admiral of the fleet in the Royal Navy or a marshal of the Royal Air Force in the RAF. A field marshal's insignia consists of two crossed batons surrounded by yellow leaves below St Edward's Crown. As with marshals of the Royal Air Force and admirals of the fleet in their respective services, field marshals remain officers of the British Army for life, though on half-pay when not in an appointment. The rank has been used sporadically throughout its history and was vacant through parts of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries (when all holders of the rank were deceased). After the Second World War, it became standard practice to appoint the Chief of the Imperial General Staff (later renamed Chief of the General Staff) to the rank on his last day in the post. Army officers occupying the post of Chief of the Defence Staff, the professional head of all the British Armed Forces, were usually promoted to the rank upon their appointment.

In total, 141 men have held the rank of field marshal. The majority led careers in the British Army or the British Indian Army, rising through the ranks to eventually become a field marshal. Some members of the British Royal Family—most recently Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, and Charles, Prince of Wales—were promoted to the rank after shorter periods of service. Three British monarchs— George V, Edward VIII, and George VI— assumed the rank on their accessions to the throne, while Edward VII was already a field marshal, and two British consorts— Albert, Prince Consort and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh—were appointed by their respective queens. Other ceremonial appointments were made as diplomatic gestures. Twelve foreign monarchs held the honour, though three ( Wilhelm II, German Emperor; Franz Joseph I, Austrian Emperor; and Hirohito, Emperor of Japan) were stripped of it when their countries became enemies of Britain and her allies in the two world wars. Also awarded the rank were two distinguished foreign military officers, honoured for their contributions to World War I and World War II respectively, and one foreign statesman.

A report commissioned by the Ministry of Defence in 1995 made a number of recommendations for financial savings in the armed forces' budget, one of which was the abolition of the five-star ranks. Part of the rationale behind the recommendation was that the ranks of field marshal, admiral of the fleet and marshal of the Royal Air Force were disproportionate to the size of the forces commanded by these officers and that none of the United Kingdom's close allies, such as the United States (which reserves the rank of general of the army for officers who have commanded large armies in major wars), used such ranks. The recommendation was not taken up in full, but the convention of promoting service chiefs to five-star ranks was stopped and the ranks are now reserved for special circumstances. Sir Peter Inge was, in 1994, the last active officer to be promoted to the rank. Inge relinquished the post of Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS) in 1997 and his successor, Sir Charles Guthrie, was the first officer not to be promoted upon appointment as CDS.

The most recent promotions to field marshal came in 2012, eighteen years after the moratorium on routine promotions to the rank, when Queen Elizabeth II promoted Prince Charles, her son and heir-apparent to the throne, to the five-star ranks in all three services, in recognition of support provided for her in her capacity as Commander-in-Chief of the British Armed Forces. At the same time, Guthrie, who relinquished the post of CDS and retired from active service in 2001, was promoted to honorary field marshal. In June 2014 former Chief of the Defence Staff Lord Walker of Aldringham was also promoted to honorary field marshal.