Global InformationMilitary rank information
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Military ranks are a system of hierarchical relationships, within armed forces,[1] police,[2] intelligence agencies or other institutions organized along military lines. The military rank system defines dominance, authority, and responsibility in a military hierarchy. It incorporates the principles of exercising power and authority into the military chain of command—the succession of commanders superior to subordinates through which command is exercised. The military chain of command constructs an important component for organized collective action.[3]
Uniforms denote the bearer's rank by particular insignia affixed to the uniforms on a number of countries.[4][5] Ranking systems have been known for most of military history to be advantageous for military operations, in particular with regards to logistics, command, and coordination. As time went on and military operations became larger and more complex, military ranks increased and the ranking systems themselves became more complex.[6][7]
Rank is not only used to designate leadership, but to establish pay-grade as well. As rank increases, pay-grade follows, but so does the amount of responsibility.[8]
Within modern armed forces, the use of ranks is almost universal. Communist states have sometimes abolished ranks (e.g., the Soviet Red Army 1918–1935,[9] the Chinese People's Liberation Army 1965–1988,[10] and the Albanian People's Army 1966–1991[11]), but they have had to re-establish them after encountering operational difficulties in command and control.
- ^ "Oxford Dictionaries". Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on August 30, 2012. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
- ^ Cowper, Thomas J. (September 2000). "The Myth of the "Military Model" of Leadership in Law Enforcement" (PDF). Police Quarterly. 3 (3): 228–246. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.184.9816. doi:10.1177/1098611100003003001. S2CID 14276039. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 May 2013. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
- ^ "Meanings of military ranks"; Jukka Mattila, Sampo Tukiainen & Sami Kajalo, Defence Studies Vol. 17, Iss. 4, 2017.
- ^ "U.S. Army Uniforms". army.mil. Archived from the original on 2018-01-30. Retrieved 2022-05-27.
- ^ "Ministry of Defence" (PDF). March 23, 2017. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved May 27, 2022.
- ^ "The Real History of American Military Ranks". The Balance Careers. Archived from the original on 2022-07-01. Retrieved 2022-05-27.
- ^ Scupham, William. ""Friends, Fellows, Citizens. and Soldiers": The Evolution of the French Revolutionary Army, 1792–1799" (PDF). Primary Source. V (I): 24–31. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-10-05. Retrieved 2022-05-27.
- ^ "Ranks". GoArmy. July 10, 2018. Archived from the original on October 17, 2020. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
- ^ Rosignoli, Guido (1984). World Army Badges and Insignia Since 1939. Dorset: Blandford Press.
- ^ "CCC – China's Upcoming Leadership Changes and the PLA". Archived from the original on 2012-01-18. Retrieved 2010-01-31.
- ^ Zickel, Raymond E.; Iwaskiw, Walter R., eds. (1994). Albania: A Country Study (2nd ed.). Washington, D.C.: Federal Research Division, Library of Congress. ISBN 0844407925. OCLC 29360048. Archived from the original on 2020-11-03. Retrieved 2020-11-02.
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
