A FEW WORDS ABOUT VIRTUAL INSIGNIA
D.E.Belokurov
Along with the world of reality in which we live, there are countless virtual universes created by the imagination of artists, writers, filmmakers, computer game developers and other creative individuals. From the moment of its appearance, each of these worlds begins to live its own life, no less interesting and rich than the one in which we live. They develop, they grow up, they show the features inherent in the real world. And far from the last place among these features is occupied by people and other sentients in often unusual uniforms with no less unusual insignia, which can already be safely considered as representatives of a virtual unimorphological subculture.
At the same time, it should be noted that this subculture is developing exponentially, and to date, in terms of the variety of types of uniforms and insignia, it is far ahead of real uniformology.
For example: This article attempts to provide a brief overview of the uniform subculture created by world cinema, and, specifically, the insignia used in films. And, since "it is impossible to grasp the immensity", it is proposed to focus on the most prominent representatives of this community, who have already become "classics".
1. Star Wars - Star Wars
Perhaps it’s worth starting with well-known sagas, and, first of all, with such a landmark space opera as Star Wars by George Lucas, the first film of which was released in 1977. In total, 6 feature films have been released so far, not counting the many animated series.
Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker, Master Yoda, Solo Hon and Chewbacca immediately come to mind at the words "Star Wars", squadrons of A- and X-fighters attacking the Death Star flash before your eyes, and a characteristic "discharge" sound is in your ears clashing in the desperate cutting of Jedi lightblades. And all these events unfold against the backdrop of a galactic confrontation between two systems - the Galactic Empire of Palpatine (Galactic Empire), which rose on the ruins of the Galactic (Old) Republic (Galactic Old Republic), and supporters of this very Republic, called the Rebel Alliance - Rebel Alliance (full name Alliance for Restore the Republic, The Alliance to Restore the Republic). Well, of course, where there is a war, there is an army with a fleet (in this case, a stellar one), and what army can do without a uniform and appropriate insignia? This is how the unimorphological component appeared in the Star Wars universe, and, apparently, at the mercy of people who have no idea about ergonomics and functionality. And, first of all, it concerns the insignia of the Galactic Empire.
The ranks and ranks of imperial officers were marked with a set of colored squares located on the left side of the chest, in combination with a certain number of metal cylinders, which played the role of multifunctional code devices, which were placed in the "shoulder" pockets. In principle, initially there were several versions of the mentioned system, however, from a certain moment, the system shown in Fig. 1.1 was adopted as the base one. Figure 1.2 shows an example of wearing insignia by officers of the Galactic Empire Armed Forces.
Of course, from an ergonomic point of view, such a system is, to put it mildly, heavy - just try to count the squares on the insignia of senior and senior officers for a fraction of a second to determine the rank.
As for the insignia of privates and sergeants, “this is a great secret”, since none of the sources could find them, and what is found on the Internet is nothing more than fanfiction of Star Wars fans. Of course, fanfiction also has every right to exist, but cannot be considered as the original version.
Fig.1.1. Breastplate officer insignia of the Armed Forces of the Galactic Empire (naval in the numerator, army in the denominator) |
The rank insignia of the Rebel Alliance military personnel seems to be more functional and understandable than those of the imperial opponents, but, apparently, they were created by a big fan of dice or dominoes (Fig. 1.3). Well, how else to regard the gray square stripes with a set of red and blue dots, located on the right or left side of the chest, with the help of which it was possible to identify the owner's rank (Fig. 1.4)?
Nevertheless, despite the numerous shortcomings, we can safely say that Star Wars has made a worthy contribution to the development of virtual cinematic uniformology.
2. "Star Trek" - Star Trek
The next, even bigger space opera is Star Trek.
For the first time, we learned about the United Federation of Planets in 1966, when the first series of the saga appeared on the screens. To date, the Star Trek cinematic universe has 6 television series and 12 feature films.
The evolution of the uniform component of the epic turned out to be much more intense than that of Star Wars. It should be noted that in general only in the Federation Starfleet (Federation Starfleet) 9 systems of insignia were used, replacing each other in chronological sequence and covering a period of 200 years from 2180 to 2380.
One of the features of the Starfleet uniform was its color, depending on the type of service. At the same time, over the 200 years of the described history, the color scheme was constantly changing, but the main line remained practically unchanged: the red color of the uniform or uniform details indicated belonging to the tactical command service, the yellow was left at the mercy of the engineering service, and the research corps secured Blue colour.
Since in this article it is not possible to fully present all the illustrative material related to the insignia of each of the eras, Fig. 2.1 shows the evolution of insignia from 2180 to 2380. on the example of the captain.
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Fig.2.1. The evolution of the insignia of the Starfleet of the Federation on the example of the captain |
And Fig. 2.2 shows the insignia of the Starfleet of the Federation in the final version, which has become a kind of "textbook". The indicated insignia were worn on the collar on the right, with the exception of flag officers - the latter were worn on the collar on both sides (Fig. 2.3). It is easy to see that the American-British naval rank system is taken as the basis.
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Fig.2.2. "Textbook" Starfleet collar insignia |
In addition to the "textbook", I would also like to note two more original systems of insignia that were used in the feature film "Into Darkness", which was shown in our box office under the name "Retribution", and the series "Dark Mirror" (Dark Mirror) from the 4th season of the television series, relating to the periods 2259-2270. and 2367, respectively (Fig. 2.4 and 2.5). Figure 2.6 shows an example of wearing insignia in the film "Retribution".
All of the above applies only to the Federation Starfleet, in addition to which there were many more races that had their own armed forces and, accordingly, their own system of insignia. And, of course, first of all, it is necessary to mention the Klingon Empire.
Among the Klingons, insignia in the form of pins were worn on the collar on the right side, and although due to the lush vegetation inherent in this race on the face it is almost impossible to see them, the officer line of insignia was restored (Fig. 2.7), which cannot be said about the line of the lower ranks.
3. "Babylon 5" - Babylon 5
This 110-episode space opera revolves around the giant space station Babylon 5, which acts as a stronghold for the peaceful resolution of conflict situations on a galactic scale. The first series was released in 1993, the last - in 1998.
One of the main players in the galactic political arena is the community of planets, known as the Earth Alliance, which has a fairly powerful armed forces in the army and star fleet. And, quite naturally, the mentioned armed forces had their own uniforms and original insignia, however, also based on the US-British system (Hollywood, well, what can you take from it).
Sleeve patches were used as insignia for privates and sergeants of both the army and navy, almost identically repeating the insignia of the US Army, only with a chevron down (Fig. 3.1), and officers differed in rectangular shoulder straps (Fig. 3.2 shows shoulder straps army officers, Fig. 3.3 - navy). An example of wearing shoulder straps is shown in Fig. 3.4
In general, the system is understandable and quite functional, despite not some excess. At least you don't have to count the squares to figure out the rank of the owner.
4. "Underwater Odyssey" - SeaQuest DSV
The creators of this 59-episode television series, which delighted the eyes of fans from 1993 to 1996, decided not to leave their native planet, quite sensibly judging that there were enough white spots on Earth waiting for their discoverers. And, first of all, it concerns, of course, the depths of the World Ocean.
In the center of the story - the adventures that befell the crew of the experimental combat submarine "Sequest" (SeaQuest, literally "sea search") of the United Earth Oceans Navy.
Since we are talking about the fleet, there are two branches of the Armed Forces in the series - the fleet itself (Navy) and the "rapid reaction forces" in the format of the marines (Marines).
As insignia, triangular stripes were used - sleeve and collar. The navy insignia is shown in Fig. 4.1, and Fig. 4.2 shows the insignia of the Marine Corps of the United Oceans of the Earth. Figure 4.3 shows examples of wearing insignia on uniforms.
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Fig.4.1. United Oceans Navy insignia |
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Fig.4.2. United Oceans of the Earth Marine Corps insignia |
We must pay tribute to the filmmakers - the world of "Underwater Odyssey" turned out to be well-developed and solid, and another confirmation of this is the logical system of ranks and their corresponding insignia.
5. "Andromeda" - Andromeda Ascendant
Andromeda is an American-Canadian space opera released in 2000.
In total, for the period from 2000 to 2005, 5 seasons were released with a total duration of 110 episodes, after which the series moved into the category of "completed".
The film follows the adventures of the crew of the starship Andromeda Ascendant, or simply Andromeda, led by Captain Dylan Hunt, in the Systems Commonwealth universe, which encompasses our Milky Way Galaxy, the Triangulum Galaxy and the Andromeda Nebula.
The interests of the Commonwealth are protected from external and internal enemies by the armed forces - the High Guard (High Guard), consisting of a star fleet, called Argosa (The Argosy), and an army, represented by the Lancer Corps (Lancer Corps).
As insignia, both of them used badges or stripes located on the collar. At the same time, each type of armed forces has its own badges and their corresponding ranks: in Fig. 5.1 the naval system is presented, in Fig. 5.2. - army. Figure 5.3 shows an example of wearing insignia.
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5.2. Lancer Corps insignia |
In my opinion, the insignia are quite functional (with the exception of the naval lower ranks, again, ergonomics let us down) - however, one gets the impression that chess played an important role in the life of their developers.
6. Battlestar Galactica - Battlestar Galactica
This film epic, perhaps, can be safely attributed to the category of "Phoenixes", now and then reborn from the ashes. The fact is that the first feature film with that name was released in 1978, followed by a 24-episode television series that ended in 1979. Then, in 2003, a decision was made to remake, and between 2004 and 2009, 73 episodes were released, divided into 4 seasons, and in 2010 a 12-episode film "Caprica" was released, which tells about the beginning of the confrontation between people and Cylons. And this is not counting several feature films also related to the Galaxy cruiser universe.
It should be noted that from a uniformological point of view, the film epic turned out to be on top. True, there is some eclecticism in the rank system itself due to the mixing of army and navy officer ranks, but, in general, this does not spoil the overall picture.
This uniformological aspect is most clearly manifested in the series of 2004-2009. Badges (pins) placed on the collar are used here as insignia (Fig. 6.1).
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Fig.6.1. Insignia of the armed forces of mankind of the universe of the cruiser "Galaktika" (naval in the numerator, army in the denominator) |
It is clear, convenient and quite ergonomic (Fig. 6.2).
And, most importantly, it is original, functional, and from an aesthetic point of view it looks quite good. It seems to me.
7 Starship Troopers - Starship Troopers
Although Starship Troopers by Paul Verhoeven was based on the novel of the same name by American science fiction writer Robert Heinlein, apart from the very idea of confrontation between people and bugs and the main characters, the film and the book have practically nothing in common. At the same time, I personally like the interpretation of events in the film version much more, despite the numerous technical and logical mistakes - well, here, as they say, the taste and color.
The film was released in 1997 and immediately gained enormous popularity among fans of the genre. Subsequent films in the franchise have not been as compelling, however, the Starship Troopers universe has taken a strong position alongside the cinematic worlds already mentioned in this article.
What immediately caught my eye after the first viewing was a well-designed uniform component with understandable and functional insignia (Fig. 7.1) - at least with regard to the daily uniform of the mobile infantry, the main strike force of the Federation (Fig. 7.2).
At the same time, the insignia system of the Federation starfleet looks less coherent; in any case, with all the desire, it was not possible to build any harmonious sequence. Nevertheless, the mentioned insignia are present in the film (Fig. 7.3), and perhaps a deeper analysis will allow us to recreate the entire line as a whole.
It is clear that the aforementioned line can be found on the Internet, but - alas - all this, again, is exclusively fan fiction.
8. "Safari No. 6"
In 1990, the domestic film "Safari No. 6" by a little-known director and screenwriter Andrejs Abols was released, which tells about a civil war in a certain fictional country. The plot was not original (a detachment under the command of Captain Ander and Sergeant Gez needed to destroy a certain strategic object, and during the operation, the participants gradually realize that they are only pawns in someone's own game), and the budget was clearly not up to par, so that the film went practically unnoticed at the box office, despite the fact that Viktor Avilov played the main role in it.
At the same time, this film is of great interest precisely from a uniformological point of view, since it was the first time in Soviet cinema that a system of virtual insignia was used. The latter were discs of red and white colors, which in a certain amount (depending on the rank) were attached to the flap of the left breast pocket (Fig. 8.1). In principle, it is understandable and accessible, and, most importantly, inexpensive (Fig. 8.2).
From a uniformological point of view, this film is interesting because, in fact, after Safari No. 6, it turned out to be the second domestic film that uses fictional insignia.
Unfortunately, it was not possible to restore the entire line of insignia, we had to limit ourselves to only three ranks - really private, corporal and captain (Fig. 9.1). A candidate for a truly ordinary, of course, did not wear insignia.
The insignia was located on the left side of the chest of the uniform of the Combat Legion (Fig. 9.2).
At the same time, it is not entirely clear whether the color scheme of the stripes carries any semantic load or not.
Instead of a conclusion
As noted above, this article is an attempt to review virtual cinematic uniformology exclusively in the context of insignia. But this is just the tip of the iceberg, whose name is creative fantasy. And God forbid that this iceberg does not melt in the ocean of everyday life.
Sources
1. Films of the Star Wars series - Star Wars, 1977-2008
2. The series and films of the Star Trek franchise - Star Trek, 1966-2014
3. The series "Babylon 5" - Babylon 5, 1993-1998
4. The series "Underwater Odyssey" - SeaQuest DSV, 1993-1996
5. The series "Adromeda" - Andromeda Ascendant, 2000-2005
6. The series "Battlestar Galactica" - Battlestar Galactica, 2004-2009
7. The movie "Starship Troopers" - Starship Troopers, 1997
8. The film "Safari No. 6", 1990
9. The film "Inhabited Island", 2008-2009
Generality:
General chase and:
-Field Marshal General* - crossed wands.
-general of infantry, cavalry, etc.(the so-called "full general") - without asterisks,
- lieutenant general- 3 stars
- major general- 2 stars
Headquarters officers:
Two gaps and: 
-colonel- without asterisks.
- lieutenant colonel(since 1884, the Cossacks have a military foreman) - 3 stars
-major** (until 1884 the Cossacks had a military foreman) - 2 stars
Ober-officers:
One light and: 
-captain(captain, captain) - without stars.
- staff captain(headquarters captain, podesaul) - 4 stars
-lieutenant(sotnik) - 3 stars
- second lieutenant(cornet, cornet) - 2 stars
- Ensign*** - 1 star
Lower ranks
-zauryad-ensign- 1 galloon stripe along the length of the shoulder strap with the 1st star on the stripe
- Ensign- 1 galloon stripe in the length of the epaulette
- sergeant major(wahmistr) - 1 wide transverse stripe
-st. non-commissioned officer(st. fireworks, st. constable) - 3 narrow cross stripes
- ml. non-commissioned officer(ml. fireworks, ml. sergeant) - 2 narrow cross stripes
- corporal(bombardier, orderly) - 1 narrow transverse stripe
-private(gunner, cossack) - without stripes
*In 1912, the last Field Marshal Dmitry Aleksevich Milyutin, who held the post of Minister of War from 1861 to 1881, dies. This rank was not awarded to anyone else, but nominally this rank was preserved.
** The rank of major was abolished in 1884 and was no longer restored.
*** Since 1884, the rank of warrant officer has been left only for wartime (assigned only during the war, and with its end, all warrant officers are subject to either dismissal or they should be assigned the rank of second lieutenant).
P.S. Ciphers and monograms on shoulder straps are not conditionally placed.
Very often one hears the question "why does the junior rank in the category of staff officers and generals begin with two stars, and not with one like the chief officers?" When, in 1827, stars on epaulettes appeared in the Russian army as insignia, the major general received two stars on the epaulette at once.
There is a version that one star was supposed to be a foreman - this rank had not been assigned since the time of Paul I, but by 1827 they still existed
retired brigadiers who had the right to wear uniforms. True, epaulettes were not supposed to be retired military men. And it is unlikely that many of them survived until 1827 (passed
for about 30 years since the abolition of the brigadier rank). Most likely, the two general's stars were simply copied from the epaulette of a French brigadier general. There is nothing strange in this, because the epaulettes themselves came to Russia from France. Most likely, there was never a single general's star in the Russian imperial army. This version seems more plausible.
As for the major, he received two stars by analogy with the two stars of the Russian major general of that time.
The only exception was the insignia in the hussar regiments in the front and ordinary (everyday) form, in which shoulder cords were worn instead of shoulder straps.
Shoulder cords.
Instead of an epaulette of a cavalry type, the hussars on dolmans and mentics have
hussar shoulder cords. For all officers, the same from a gold or silver double soutache cord of the same color as the cords on the dolman for the lower ranks, shoulder cords from a double soutache cord in color -
orange for regiments having the color of the instrument metal - gold or white for regiments having the color of the instrument metal - silver.
These shoulder cords form a ring at the sleeve, and a loop at the collar, fastened with a uniform button sewn half an inch from the collar seam.
To distinguish the ranks, gombochki are put on the cords (a ring from the same cold cord covering the shoulder cord):
-y corporal- one, of the same color with a cord;
-y non-commissioned officers tricolor gombochkas (white with St. George's thread), in number, like stripes on shoulder straps;
-y sergeant major- gold or silver (as for officers) on an orange or white cord (as for lower ranks);
-y ensign- a shoulder cord of a smooth officer with a gombochka of a sergeant-major;
officers on officer cords have gombos with stars (metal, as on shoulder straps) - in accordance with the rank.
Volunteers wear twisted cords of Romanov colors (white-black-yellow) around the cords.
The shoulder cords of the ober and headquarters officers do not differ in any way.
Headquarters officers and generals have the following differences in uniform: on the collar of a dolman, generals have a wide or gold galloon up to 1 1/8 inches wide, and staff officers have a gold or silver galloon 5/8 inches wide, having the full length "
hussar zigzags", and for chief officers, the collar is sheathed with only one cord or filigree.
In the 2nd and 5th regiments of the chief officers along the upper edge of the collar, there is also galloon, but 5/16 inches wide.
In addition, on the cuffs of the generals there is galloon, the same as the one on the collar. The stripe of galloon comes from the cut of the sleeve with two ends, in front it converges over the toe.
For staff officers, the galloon is also the same as the one on the collar. The length of the entire patch is up to 5 inches.
And the chief officers are not supposed to galloon.
Below are pictures of the shoulder cords
1. Officers and generals
2. Lower officials
The shoulder cords of the chief, staff officers and generals did not differ in any way from each other. For example, it was possible to distinguish a cornet from a major general only by the appearance and width of the braid on the cuffs and, in some regiments, on the collar.
Twisted cords relied only on adjutants and aide-de-camp!
Shoulder cords of the adjutant wing (left) and adjutant (right)
Officer's epaulettes: lieutenant colonel of the air squadron of the 19th army corps and staff captain of the 3rd field air squadron. In the center are shoulder boards of the cadets of the Nikolaev Engineering School. On the right is the epaulette of a captain (most likely a dragoon or lancer regiment)
The Russian army in its modern sense began to be created by Emperor Peter I at the end of the 18th century. The system of military ranks of the Russian army took shape partly under the influence of European systems, partly under the influence of the historically established purely Russian system of ranks. However, at that time there were no military ranks in the sense in which we are accustomed to understand. There were specific military units, there were also quite specific positions and, accordingly, their names. company commander. By the way, in the civil fleet even now, the person in charge of the ship's crew is called the "captain", the person in charge of the seaport is called the "port captain". In the 18th century, many words existed in a slightly different sense than they do now.
So "General" meant - "chief", and not just "highest military leader";
"Major"- "senior" (senior among regimental officers);
"Lieutenant"- "assistant"
"Outbuilding"- "Jr".
"Table of ranks of all ranks of military, civilian and courtiers, in which class the ranks are acquired" was put into effect by the Decree of Emperor Peter I on January 24, 1722 and lasted until December 16, 1917. The word "officer" came into Russian from German. But in German, as in English, the word has a much broader meaning. In relation to the army, this term means all military leaders in general. In a narrower translation, it means - "employee", "clerk", "employee". Therefore, it is quite natural - "non-commissioned officers" - junior commanders, "chief officers" - senior commanders, "headquarters officers" - staff members, "generals" - the main ones. Non-commissioned officer ranks also in those days were not ranks, but were positions. Ordinary soldiers were then named according to their military specialties - musketeer, pikeman, dragoon, etc. There was no name "private", and "soldier", as Peter I wrote, means all military personnel ".. from the highest general to the last musketeer, cavalry or on foot ..." Therefore, soldier and non-commissioned officer ranks were not included in the Table. The well-known names "second lieutenant", "lieutenant" existed in the list of ranks of the Russian army long before the formation of the regular army by Peter I to designate military personnel who are assistants to the captain, that is, the company commander; and continued to be used within the framework of the Table as Russian-language synonyms for the positions "non-commissioned lieutenant" and "lieutenant", that is, "assistant" and "assistant". Well, or if you want - "assistant officer for assignments" and "officer for assignments." The name "ensign" as more understandable (wearing a banner, ensign), quickly replaced the obscure "fendrik", which meant "candidate for an officer position. Over time, the process of separation of the concepts of "position" and "rank" was going on. After the beginning of the 19th century, these concepts were already separated quite clearly. With the development of means of warfare, the advent of technology, when the army became large enough and when it was necessary to compare the official position of a fairly large set of job titles. It was here that the concept of "rank" often began to obscure, divert the concept " job title".
However, in the modern army, the position, so to speak, is more important than the rank. According to the charter, seniority is determined by position, and only with equal positions is the one with a higher rank considered older.
According to the "Table of Ranks", the following ranks were introduced: civil, military infantry and cavalry, military artillery and engineering troops, military guards, military fleets.
In the period from 1722-1731, in relation to the army, the system of military ranks looked like this (the corresponding position in brackets)
Lower ranks (ordinary)
By specialty (grenadier. Fuseler ...)
non-commissioned officers
Corporal(part-commander)
Fourier(deputy platoon commander)
Captainarmus
Ensign(foreman of a company, battalion)
Sergeant
Feldwebel
Ensign(Fendrik), junker bayonet (art) (platoon commander)
Second Lieutenant
lieutenant(deputy company commander)
lieutenant captain(company commander)
Captain
Major(deputy battalion commander)
Lieutenant colonel(battalion commander)
Colonel(commander of the regiment)
Brigadier(brigade leader)
generals
Major General(division commander)
lieutenant general(corps commander)
General-anshef (General Feldzekhmeister)- (commander of the army)
Field Marshal General(commander-in-chief, honorary title)
In the Life Guards, the ranks were two classes higher than in the army. In the army artillery and engineering troops, the ranks are one class higher than in the infantry and cavalry. During the period 1731-1765 the concepts of "rank" and "position" are beginning to separate. So in the state of the field infantry regiment of 1732, when indicating the staff ranks, it is already written not just the rank of "quartermaster", but the position indicating the rank: "quartermaster (of the lieutenant rank)". With regard to officers of the company level, the separation of the concepts of "position" and "rank" is not yet observed. In the army "fendrick" is replaced by " ensign", in the cavalry - "cornet". Ranks are being introduced "Second Major" And "Prime Major" During the reign of Empress Catherine II (1765-1798) ranks are introduced in the army infantry and cavalry junior and senior sergeant, sergeant major disappears. Since 1796 in the Cossack units, the names of the ranks are the same as the ranks of the army cavalry and are equated to them, although the Cossack units continue to be listed as irregular cavalry (not part of the army). There is no rank of second lieutenant in the cavalry, and captain corresponds to the captain. During the reign of Emperor Paul I (1796-1801) the concepts of "rank" and "position" in this period are already separated quite clearly. The ranks in the infantry and artillery are compared. Paul I did a lot of useful things to strengthen the army and discipline in it. He forbade the registration of minor noble children in the regiments. All recorded in the regiments were required to serve really. He introduced disciplinary and criminal liability of officers for soldiers (preservation of life and health, training, clothing, living conditions) forbade the use of soldiers as labor force on the estates of officers and generals; introduced the awarding of soldiers with insignia of the orders of St. Anne and the Maltese Cross; introduced an advantage in promotion in the ranks of officers who graduated from military educational institutions; ordered to be promoted in ranks only on business qualities and ability to command; introduced holidays for soldiers; limited the duration of officers' vacations to one month a year; dismissed from the army a large number of generals who did not meet the requirements of military service (old age, illiteracy, disability, absence from service for a long time, etc.). Ranks are introduced in the lower ranks ordinary junior and senior salary. In the cavalry sergeant major(company foreman) For Emperor Alexander I (1801-1825) since 1802, all non-commissioned officers of the nobility are called "junker". Since 1811, the rank of "major" was abolished in the artillery and engineering troops and the rank of "ensign" was returned. During the reign of Emperors Nicholas I (1825-1855) , who did a lot to streamline the army, Alexander II (1855-1881) and the beginning of the reign of Emperor Alexander III (1881-1894) Since 1828, army Cossacks have been given ranks other than army cavalry (In the Life Guards Cossack and Life Guards Ataman regiments, the ranks are like those of the entire guards cavalry). The Cossack units themselves are transferred from the category of irregular cavalry to the army. The concepts of "rank" and "position" in this period are already completely separated. Under Nicholas I, the discrepancy in the naming of non-commissioned officers disappears. Since 1884, the rank of warrant officer has been left only for wartime (assigned only during the war, and with its end, all warrant officers are subject to either dismissal or they should be assigned the rank of second lieutenant). The rank of cornet in the cavalry is retained as the first officer rank. He is a class below the infantry lieutenant, but in the cavalry there is no rank of second lieutenant. This equalizes the ranks of infantry and cavalry. In the Cossack units, the classes of officers are equated with the cavalry, but have their own names. In this regard, the rank of military foreman, previously equal to major, now becomes equal to lieutenant colonel
"In 1912, the last General Field Marshal Milyutin Dmitry Alekseevich, who served as Minister of War from 1861 to 1881, dies. This rank was not assigned to anyone else, but nominally this rank was preserved"
In 1910, the rank of Russian Field Marshal was awarded to the King of Montenegro, Nicholas I, and in 1912, to the King of Romania, Carol I.
P.S. After the October Revolution of 1917, by the Decree of the Central Executive Committee and the Council of People's Commissars (Bolshevik government) of December 16, 1917, all military ranks were abolished ...
The officer epaulettes of the tsarist army were arranged completely differently than modern ones. First of all, the gaps were not part of the galloon, as we have been doing since 1943. In the engineering troops, two harness galloons or one harness and two headquarters officer galloons were simply sewn onto the shoulder strap. For each type of troops, the type of galloon was determined specifically. For example, in the hussar regiments on officer shoulder straps, a galloon of the "hussar zig-zag" type was used. On the shoulder straps of military officials, a "civilian" galloon was used. Thus, the gaps of officer epaulettes were always the same color as the field of soldier epaulettes. If shoulder straps in this part did not have a colored edging (edging), as, say, it was in the engineering troops, then the edgings had the same color as the gaps. But if in part the epaulettes had a colored edging, then it was visible around the officer's epaulette. A silver-colored epaulette button without sides with an extruded double-headed eagle sitting on crossed axes. and letters, or silver monograms (to whom it is necessary). At the same time, it was widespread to wear gilded forged metal stars, which were supposed to be worn only on epaulettes.
The placement of the stars was not rigidly fixed and was determined by the size of the encryption. Two stars were supposed to be placed around the encryption, and if it filled the entire width of the shoulder strap, then above it. The third asterisk had to be placed so as to form an equilateral triangle with the two lower ones, and the fourth asterisk was slightly higher. If there is one asterisk on the chase (for the ensign), then it was placed where the third asterisk is usually attached. Special signs were also gilded metal patches, although it was not uncommon to find them embroidered with gold thread. The exception was the special signs of aviation, which were oxidized and had the color of silver with a patina.
1. Epaulette staff captain 20 engineer battalion
2. Epaulette for lower ranks Lancers 2nd Leib Ulansky Courland Regiment 1910
3. Epaulet full general from the cavalry suite His Imperial Majesty Nicholas II. The silver device of the epaulette testifies to the high military rank of the owner (only the marshal was higher)
About the stars on uniform
For the first time, forged five-pointed stars appeared on the epaulettes of Russian officers and generals in January 1827 (during the time of Pushkin). Ensigns and cornets began to wear one golden star, two - lieutenants and major generals, three - lieutenants and lieutenant generals. four - staff captains and staff captains.
A with April 1854 Russian officers began to wear embroidered stars on the newly established shoulder straps. For the same purpose, diamonds were used in the German army, knots in the British, and six-pointed stars in the Austrian.
Although the designation of a military rank on shoulder straps is a characteristic feature of the Russian army and the German one.
Among the Austrians and the British, shoulder straps had a purely functional role: they were sewn from the same material as the tunic so that the shoulder straps would not slip. And the rank was indicated on the sleeve. The five-pointed star, the pentagram is a universal symbol of protection, security, one of the oldest. In ancient Greece, it could be found on coins, on the doors of houses, stables and even on cradles. Among the Druids of Gaul, Britain, Ireland, the five-pointed star (druidic cross) was a symbol of protection from external evil forces. And until now it can be seen on the window panes of medieval Gothic buildings. The French Revolution revived the five-pointed stars as a symbol of the ancient god of war Mars. They denoted the rank of the commanders of the French army - on hats, epaulettes, scarves, on the tails of the uniform.
The military reforms of Nicholas I copied the appearance of the French army - this is how the stars "rolled down" from the French sky to the Russian one.
As for the British army, even during the Anglo-Boer War, stars began to migrate to shoulder straps. This is about officers. For the lower ranks and warrant officers, the insignia remained on the sleeves.
In the Russian, German, Danish, Greek, Romanian, Bulgarian, American, Swedish and Turkish armies, shoulder straps were insignia. In the Russian army, shoulder straps were for both lower ranks and officers. Also in the Bulgarian and Romanian armies, as well as in the Swedish. In the French, Spanish and Italian armies, insignia were placed on the sleeves. In the Greek army, the officers on shoulder straps, on the sleeves of the lower ranks. In the Austro-Hungarian army, the insignia of officers and lower ranks were on the collar, those were lapel. In the German army, only officers had insignia on shoulder straps, while the lower ranks differed from each other by the galloon on the cuffs and collar, as well as the uniform button on the collar. The exception was the so-called Kolonial truppe, where as additional (and in a number of colonies the main) insignia of the lower ranks were chevrons made of silver galloon sewn on the left sleeve of a-la gefreiters of 30-45 years.
It is interesting to note that with service and field uniforms in peacetime, that is, with a tunic of the 1907 model, the officers of the hussar regiments wore shoulder straps, which were also somewhat different from the shoulder straps of the rest of the Russian army. For hussar shoulder straps, galloon with the so-called "hussar zigzag" was used
The only unit where epaulets with the same zigzag were worn, except for the hussar regiments, was the 4th battalion (from 1910 a regiment) of the riflemen of the Imperial family. Here is a sample: the epaulette of the captain of the 9th Kyiv Hussars.
Unlike the German hussars, who wore uniforms of the same tailoring, differing only in the color of the fabric. With the introduction of khaki shoulder straps, the zigzags also disappeared, the encryption on the shoulder straps indicated belonging to the hussars. For example, "6 G", that is, the 6th Hussar.
In general, the field uniform of the hussars was of the dragoon type, those combined arms. The only difference indicating belonging to the hussars was indicated by boots with a rosette in front. However, the hussar regiments were allowed to wear chakchirs with field uniforms, but not all regiments, but only the 5th and 11th. The wearing of chakchira by the rest of the regiments was a kind of "non-statutory". But during the war, this happened, as well as the wearing by some officers of a saber, instead of the standard Dracoon saber, which was supposed to be with field equipment.
The photograph shows the captain of the 11th Izyum Hussar Regiment K.K. von Rosenshild-Paulin (sitting) and Junker of the Nikolaev Cavalry School K.N. von Rosenshield-Paulin (also later an officer of the Izyum regiment). Captain in summer full dress or dress uniform, i.e. in a tunic of the 1907 model, with galloon epaulettes and the number 11 (note that on the officer epaulettes of the peacetime cavalry regiments, there are only numbers, without the letters "G", "D" or "U"), and blue chakchirs worn by officers of this regiment in all forms of clothing.
Regarding "non-statutory", during the years of the World War, apparently, the wearing of galloon epaulettes of peacetime by hussar officers was also encountered.
on the galloon officer shoulder straps of the cavalry regiments, only numbers were affixed, and there were no letters. which is confirmed by photographs.
Zauryad Ensign- from 1907 to 1917 in the Russian army, the highest military rank for non-commissioned officers. The insignia for ordinary ensigns were ensign shoulder straps with a large (larger than officer's) asterisk in the upper third of the shoulder strap on the line of symmetry. The rank was assigned to the most experienced non-commissioned officers, with the outbreak of the First World War, it began to be assigned to ensigns as an encouragement, often immediately before the first senior officer rank (ensign or cornet) was awarded.
From Brockhaus and Efron:
Zauryad Ensign, military During mobilization, with a lack of persons who meet the conditions for promotion to an officer's rank, some. non-commissioned officers are awarded the rank of Z. Ensign; correcting the duties of a junior. officers, Z. great. limited in the rights of movement in the service.
Interesting history of ensign. In the period 1880-1903. this rank was assigned to graduates of cadet schools (not to be confused with military schools). In the cavalry, he corresponded to the rank of standard junker, in the Cossack troops - to the cadet. Those. it turned out that it was a kind of intermediate rank between the lower ranks and officers. Ensigns who graduated from the Junkers School in the 1st category were promoted to officers not earlier than September of the graduation year, but outside the vacancies. Those who graduated from the 2nd category were promoted to officers not earlier than the beginning of the next year, but only for vacancies, and it turned out that some were waiting for production for several years. According to the order of the BB No. 197 for 1901, with the production in 1903 of the last ensigns, standard junkers and cadets, these ranks were canceled. This was due to the beginning of the transformation of cadet schools into military ones.
Since 1906, the rank of lieutenant in the infantry and cavalry and cadet in the Cossack troops began to be assigned to overtime non-commissioned officers who graduated from a special school. Thus, this title became the maximum for the lower ranks.
Ensign, standard junker and cadet, 1886:
The epaulette of the staff captain of the Cavalry Guards Regiment and the epaulettes of the staff captain of the Life Guards of the Moscow Regiment.
The first shoulder strap is declared as the shoulder strap of an officer (captain) of the 17th Nizhny Novgorod Dragoon Regiment. But Nizhny Novgorod residents should have a dark green piping along the edge of the shoulder strap, and the monogram should be of an applied color. And the second shoulder strap is presented as the shoulder strap of a second lieutenant of the guards artillery (with such a monogram in the guards artillery there were shoulder straps of officers of only two batteries: the 1st battery of the Life Guards of the 2nd Artillery Brigade and the 2nd battery of the Guards Horse Artillery), but the shoulder strap button should not whether to have in this case an eagle with cannons.
Major(Spanish mayor - more, stronger, more significant) - the first rank of senior officers.
The title originated in the 16th century. The major was responsible for guarding and feeding the regiment. When the regiments were divided into battalions, the battalion commander, as a rule, became a major.
In the Russian army, the rank of major was introduced by Peter I in 1698, and abolished in 1884.
Prime Major - a staff officer rank in the Russian imperial army of the 18th century. He belonged to the VIII class of the "Table of Ranks".
According to the charter of 1716, the majors were divided into prime majors and second majors.
The Prime Major was in charge of the combat and inspector units in the regiment. He commanded the 1st battalion, and in the absence of the regimental commander - the regiment.
The division into prime and second majors was abolished in 1797."
"It appeared in Russia as a rank and position (deputy regiment commander) in the streltsy army at the end of the 15th - early 16th centuries. In the streltsy regiments, as a rule, lieutenant colonels (often of "mean" origin) performed all administrative functions for the head of the streltsy, appointed from among the nobles or boyars In the 17th century and the beginning of the 18th century, the rank (rank) and position were referred to as lieutenant colonel due to the fact that the lieutenant colonel usually, in addition to his other duties, commanded the second “half” of the regiment - the back rows in formation and the reserve (before the introduction of the battalion formation of regular soldier regiments) From the moment the Table of Ranks was introduced until its abolition in 1917, the rank (rank) of lieutenant colonel belonged to the VII class of the Table of Ranks and gave the right to hereditary nobility until 1856. In 1884, after the abolition of the rank of major in the Russian army, all majors (with the exception of the dismissed or those who have stained themselves with unseemly misconduct) are promoted to lieutenant colonels.
INSIGNIA OF CIVIL OFFICERS OF THE MILITARY MINISTRY (here are military topographers)
Ranks of the Imperial Military Medical Academy
Chevrons of combatant lower ranks of extra-long service according to "Regulations on the lower ranks of the non-commissioned officer rank, remaining voluntarily in extra-long active service" dated 1890.
From left to right: Up to 2 years, Over 2 to 4 years, Over 4 to 6 years, Over 6 years
To be precise, the article, from where these drawings are borrowed, says the following: "... the awarding of chevrons to super-enlisted lower ranks holding the positions of sergeant majors (wahmisters) and platoon non-commissioned officers (fireworks) of combatant companies, squadrons, batteries was carried out:
- Upon admission to long-term service - a silver narrow chevron
- At the end of the second year of long-term service - a silver wide chevron
- At the end of the fourth year of long-term service - a gold narrow chevron
- At the end of the sixth year of long-term service - a gold wide chevron"
In army infantry regiments to designate the ranks of corporal, ml. and senior non-commissioned officers, an army white braid was used.
1. The rank of WRITTEN, since 1991, exists in the army only in wartime.
With the beginning of the Great War, ensigns graduate from military schools and ensign schools.
2. The rank of WARNING OFFICER of the reserve, in peacetime, on the shoulder straps of an ensign, wears a galloon patch against the device at the lower rib.
3. The rank of WRITTEN OFFICER, in this rank in wartime, when military units are mobilized with a shortage of junior officers, the lower ranks are renamed from non-commissioned officers with an educational qualification, or from sergeants without
educational qualification. From 1891 to 1907, warrant officers on the shoulder straps of an ensign also wear rank stripes, from which they were renamed.
4. Title ZAURYAD-WRITTEN OFFICER (since 1907). Shoulder straps of a lieutenant with an officer's star and a transverse stripe according to the position. Chevron sleeve 5/8 inches, angle up. Shoulder straps of an officer's standard were retained only by those who were renamed Z-Pr. during the Russo-Japanese War and remained in the army, for example, as a sergeant major.
5. The title of WRITTEN OFFICER-ZURYAD of the State Militia Squad. Non-commissioned officers of the reserve were renamed into this rank, or, in the presence of an educational qualification, who served for at least 2 months as a non-commissioned officer of the State Militia Squad and was appointed junior officer of the squad. Ensigns-zauryad wore epaulettes of an active duty ensign with a galloon stripe of instrument color sewn into the lower part of the epaulettes.
Cossack ranks and titles
On the lowest rung of the service ladder stood an ordinary Cossack, corresponding to an ordinary infantry. This was followed by an orderly, who had one badge and corresponded to a corporal in the infantry. The next rung of the career ladder is the junior officer and the senior officer, corresponding to the junior non-commissioned officer, non-commissioned officer and senior non-commissioned officer and with the number of badges characteristic of modern sergeants. This was followed by the rank of sergeant major, who was not only in the Cossacks, but also in the non-commissioned officers of the cavalry and horse artillery.
In the Russian army and gendarmerie, the sergeant-major was the closest assistant to the commander of a hundred, squadron, battery for drill, internal order and economic affairs. The rank of sergeant major corresponded to the rank of sergeant major in the infantry. According to the regulation of 1884, introduced by Alexander III, the next rank in the Cossack troops, but only for wartime, was the cadet, an intermediate rank between a lieutenant and ensign in the infantry, which was also introduced in wartime. In peacetime, in addition to the Cossack troops, these ranks existed only for reserve officers. The next degree in the chief officer ranks is cornet, corresponding to a second lieutenant in the infantry and a cornet in the regular cavalry.
According to his official position, he corresponded to a junior lieutenant in the modern army, but wore shoulder straps with a blue gap on a silver field (the applied color of the Don Cossacks) with two stars. In the old army, compared to the Soviet one, the number of stars was one more. Next came the centurion - the chief officer rank in the Cossack troops, corresponding to a lieutenant in the regular army. The centurion wore epaulettes of the same design, but with three stars, corresponding in his position to a modern lieutenant. A higher step - podesaul.
This rank was introduced in 1884. In the regular troops, it corresponded to the rank of staff captain and staff captain.
The podesaul was an assistant or deputy to the Yesaul and in his absence he commanded a Cossack hundred.
Shoulder straps of the same design, but with four stars.
According to his official position, he corresponds to a modern senior lieutenant. And the highest rank of chief officer rank is Yesaul. It is worth talking about this rank especially, since in a purely historical sense, the people who wore it held positions in both civil and military departments. In various Cossack troops, this position included various official prerogatives.
The word comes from the Turkic "yasaul" - chief.
In the Cossack troops it was first mentioned in 1576 and was used in the Ukrainian Cossack army.
Yesauls were general, military, regimental, hundreds, stanitsa, marching and artillery. General Yesaul (two per Army) - the highest rank after the hetman. In peacetime, general captains performed inspection functions, in war they commanded several regiments, and in the absence of a hetman, the entire Army. But this is typical only for Ukrainian Cossacks. Troop captains were chosen on the Military Circle (in the Don and most others, two per Army, in the Volga and Orenburg - one each). Dealt with administrative matters. Since 1835, they were appointed as adjutants to the military ataman. Regimental captains (originally two per regiment) performed the duties of staff officers, were the closest assistants to the regiment commander.
Hundreds of Yesauls (one per hundred) commanded hundreds. This link did not take root in the Don Cossacks after the first centuries of the existence of the Cossacks.
The stanitsa Yesauls were typical only for the Don Cossacks. They were selected at stanitsa gatherings and were assistants to stanitsa atamans. They performed the functions of assistants to the marching ataman, in the 16th-17th centuries, in his absence, they commanded the army, later they were executors of the orders of the marching ataman.
Only the military captain was preserved under the military ataman of the Don Cossack army. In 1798 - 1800. the rank of captain was equated to the rank of captain in the cavalry. Yesaul, as a rule, commanded a Cossack hundred. Corresponded to the official position of the modern captain. He wore epaulettes with a blue gap on a silver field without stars. Next come the headquarters officer ranks. In fact, after the reform of Alexander III in 1884, the rank of Yesaul entered this rank, in connection with which the major link was removed from the headquarters officer ranks, as a result of which the soldier from the captains immediately became a lieutenant colonel. The name of this rank comes from the ancient name of the executive authority of the Cossacks. In the second half of the 18th century, this name, in a modified form, spread to persons who commanded certain branches of the Cossack army. Since 1754, the military foreman was equated with a major, and with the abolition of this rank in 1884, with a lieutenant colonel. He wore shoulder straps with two blue gaps on a silver field and three large stars.
Well, then comes the colonel, shoulder straps are the same as those of the military foreman, but without stars. Starting from this rank, the service ladder is unified with the general army, since the purely Cossack names of the ranks disappear. The official position of a Cossack general fully corresponds to the general ranks of the Russian Army.
In the state structures of the Empire, there is a division of people working there according to certain hierarchical ladders. One of these ladders is the hierarchy of ranks, which is enshrined in the Table of Ranks of the Arrv Empire. The Table of Ranks consists of two parts - "Hierarchy of military ranks of the armed forces and special services of the Arrv Empire" and "Hierarchy of official ranks of administrators and other services of the Arrv Empire". Each rank has its own numerical code, which is rank soldier according to the Table. The seniority of ranks increases from large numbers to smaller ones, that is, the smaller the numerical code, the older the rank in the Table. On the basis of the Table of Ranks, a management hierarchy is built (officers and employees of the same rank from various types of armed forces, special forces and public administration services head administrative structures of the same level of subordination), social benefits and the basic salary of officers and employees are calculated, in special cases they are carried out transfers from one branch of the Armed Forces to another, if necessary. As an exception, the first part of the Table also includes the Imperial Advisers, who are personal representatives of the Ruler of the Empire and report directly to him or to the Coordinator appointed by him from among the Senior Imperial Coordinators. As in the days of Emperor Palpatine, Imperial Advisors help the Ruler govern the state, they are his personal representatives "on the ground".
In each of the types of the Armed Forces and Special Services, there is a strictly defined hierarchy of military ranks, which is described in the first part of the Table of Ranks. The lowest rank is code 21, the highest is 1. The ranks of Lord Admiral and Grand Vizier are not coded and are above the main hierarchy, with the rank of Grand Vizier being considered higher than the rank of Lord Admiral. Military personnel whose ranks have the same code are considered equal in rank. Military personnel with a certain rank in relation to military personnel with lower ranks are considered senior, with higher ranks - junior. Rank codes in the first part of the Table united between different types of the Armed Forces and Special Services throughout the first part of the Table, that is, for example, the captain of the navy is equal in rank to an army colonel and junior in relation to an intelligence major.
The second part of the Table describes the ranks in state management structures and in the units of the Interior Ministry Forces. The coding of ranks in the second part of the Table, unlike the first, independent for each of the structures. This means that numeric rank codes are only meaningful within the structure for which they are defined, i.e. the prefect of the Regional Government is not equal in rank to an adviser to the Imperial Government or a major of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, despite the fact that all these three ranks have code 5 in each of their structures. Due to the lack of horizontal unity of the coding of ranks in the second part of the Table, these three ranks cannot in principle be comparable.
There is a clear separation between the concepts of "rank" and "position". Servants with the same rank can hold completely different positions in state structures, this division is especially evident in the Armed Forces. Rank is an indicator of the employee's ability level and capabilities. A position is a specific range of duties that he performs. As a rule, for all positions there is a regular range of ranks that employees must have to occupy this particular position, however, in the Armed Forces this principle is not always observed in combat conditions. In the second part of the Table of Ranks, the ranks are called “official”, since the range of positions for the rank of each rank is quite clearly defined (this is especially true for high ranks of the Government, where the correspondence between the rank and position is unambiguous and, for example, when an employee is transferred to the position of minister, he is automatically appropriate rank is assigned), but, nevertheless, in most cases, the difference between the concepts of rank and position remains.
Hierarchy of military ranks of the armed forces and special services of the Arrv Empire
| Code | space fleet | Army, space infantry, stormtroopers, Guardsmen |
Pilot Corps | Imperial Advisors | military intelligence and counterintelligence |
KOSNOP |
| Code | space fleet | Army, space infantry, stormtroopers, Guardsmen |
Pilot Corps | Imperial Advisors | military intelligence and counterintelligence |
KOSNOP |
| Grand Vizier (GV) | ||||||
| Lord Admiral (Head of the Imperial Armed Forces) (LA) | ||||||
| 1 | Grand Admiral (GA) | Senior Imperial Coordinator (HIC) | Director (DIR) | Commissioner (CMS) | ||
| 2 | ||||||
| 3 | ||||||
| 4 | Chief Admiral (HA) | Chief General (HG) | Marshal (MSH) | |||
| 5 | Fleet Admiral (FA) | General (GN) | Imperial Coordinator (IC) |
General (GN) | General (GN) | |
| 6 | Admiral (AD) | Colonel General (CG) | Vice Marshal (VMSH) | Colonel (COL) | Colonel (COL) | |
| 7 | Vice Admiral (VA) | Lieutenant General (LG) | ||||
| 8 | Rear Admiral (RA) | Major General (MG) | General (GEN) | Junior Imperial Coordinator (JIC) |
Lieutenant Colonel (LC) | Lieutenant Colonel (LC) |
| 9 | Commodore (COM) | Brigadier General (BG) | Colonel (COL) | Senior Imperial Advisor (HIA) | Major (MAJ) | Major (MAJ) |
| 10 | Line captain (LCAP) |
Colonel (COL) | Lieutenant Colonel (LC) | Captain (CPT) | Captain (CPT) | |
| 11 | Captain (C.A.P.) | Lieutenant Colonel (LC) | Major (MAJ) | Oberleutnant (HLT) | Oberleutnant (HLT) | |
| 12 | Commander (CDR) | Major (MAJ) | Captain (CPT) | Imperial Advisor (IA) |
Lieutenant (LT) | Lieutenant (LT) |
| 13 | Lieutenant Commander (LTC) | Captain (CPT) | Oberleutnant (HLT) | Sub-lieutenant (SLT) | Sub-lieutenant (SLT) | |
| 14 | Oberleutnant (HLT) | Oberleutnant (HLT) | Lieutenant (LT) | Junior Imperial Advisor (JIA) | ||
| 15 | Lieutenant (LT) | Lieutenant (LT) | Sub-lieutenant (SLT) | |||
| 16 | Sub-lieutenant (SLT) | |||||
| 17 | Midshipman (MSM) | Master Sergeant (MSRG) | Master Sergeant (MSRG) | |||
| 18 | Senior Specialist (STC) | Sergeant (SRG) | Sergeant (SRG) | Senior Agent (SAG) | Senior Agent (SAG) | |
| 19 | Specialist (SP) | Corporal (CRP) | Senior Technician (STC) | Agent (AG) | Agent (AG) | |
| 20 | Private (PRV) | Technician (TC) | Freelance agent (UAG) | |||
| 21a | Cadet (CT) | Cadet (CT) | Cadet (CT) | Cadet (CT) | Candidate (C.A.N.) | |
| 21b | Recruit (REC) | Recruit (REC) | Recruit (REC) | Recruit (REC) | ||
Hierarchy of official ranks of administrators and other services of the Arrv Empire
| Code | Regional (Colonial) Government | imperial government | |||||
| Code | Regional government | imperial government | Forces of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (law enforcement agencies, fire department, etc.) | ||||
| Emperor (Ruler of the Empire) | |||||||
| Regent of the Imperial Power (Ruler of the Empire in the absence of the Emperor) | |||||||
| Prime Minister (PMN) | |||||||
| 1 | Grand Moff (GMF) | Minister (MIN) | Chief General (HG) | ||||
| 2 | Moff (MF) | Deputy Minister (VMN) | General (GN) | ||||
| 3 | Viceroy (GGO) | Privy Councilor (SADV) | Colonel General (CG) | ||||
| 4 | Vice Viceroy (VGO) | Active Advisor (AADV) | Lieutenant General (LG) | ||||
| 5 | Governor (GB) | Advisor (ADV) | Major General (MG) | ||||
| 6 | Lieutenant Governor (VG) | Secretary (SEC) | Brigadier General (BG) | ||||
| 7 | Prefect (PRF) | Clerk (CL) | Colonel (COL) | ||||
| 8 | Vice Prefect (VPR) | Lieutenant Colonel (LC) | |||||
| 9 | Manager (MNG) | Major (MAJ) | |||||
| 10 | Secretary (SEC) | Captain (CPT) | |||||
| 11 | Clerk (CL) | Oberleutnant (HLT) | |||||
| 12 | Lieutenant (LT) | ||||||
| 13 | Sub-lieutenant (SLT) | ||||||
| 14 | Master Sergeant (MSRG) | ||||||
| 15 | Sergeant (SRG) | ||||||
| 16 | Corporal (CRP) | ||||||
| 17 | Private (PRV) | 18 | Cadet (CT) | 19 | Recruit (REC) | ||
Military rank in the Russian Imperial Army, which existed in the 18-19 centuries, below major general and above colonel. It was introduced by Peter I.
The rank of captain-commander corresponded to him in the fleet. in some armies today it corresponds to the rank of "brigadier".
Wahmister
This position was common in the cavalry, its non-commissioned officers, as well as in the artillery in the army of our country (Cossack troops, cavalry, and also the gendarme corps). It existed until 1917, when the military ranks of the tsarist army of Russia were in effect. Not everyone had an analogue to the titles in the USSR. Wahmister, for example, was not in. The duty of a person with this rank was to assist in the training of troops and the organization of internal order and economy to the squadron commander. The corresponding rank in the infantry is sergeant major. For non-commissioned officers, this rank would have been the highest until 1826.
lieutenant general
We continue to describe the military ranks in tsarist Russia, let's move on to the lieutenant general. This rank and military rank was in the Ukrainian and Russian armies. It was used simultaneously (almost as a synonym) with the latter during the Northern War, more precisely, in its second half, supplanted the rank of lieutenant general.
Field Marshal General
This is the highest military rank in the ground forces of the Austrian, German and Russian armies. It was introduced in our country by Peter I in 1699. This rank of class I corresponded in the navy to the rank of admiral general, in the civil service - to the chancellor, as well as to the privy councilor (also class I). The field marshal's baton served as a badge of distinction, since the 19th century they began to be depicted in the buttonholes of field marshals in a crossed form. Distinguished military ranks in tsarist Russia were shoulder straps, where representatives of the rank we are describing also depicted wands. An example of a well-known Field Marshal in the history of our country is D. A. Milyutin.
Since 2009, this symbol has also been present on the emblem of the current one by all the Armed Forces of our country.
Generalissimo
In the Holy Roman Empire, this was the highest military rank, and later became such in the Russian Empire, as well as in the USSR and a number of other countries.
Historically, it was assigned to commanders of several, mostly allied, armies, commanders, and in some cases also to statesmen or persons belonging to families of reigning dynasties, as an honorary title. This rank stood outside the system of other officer ranks.
A.V. Suvorov received this title on October 28, 1799 in accordance with the Military Regulations, since he was the prince of the Sardinian kingdom, and at the same time the count of the Roman Empire, the prince of the Russian, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Austrian, Sardinian and Russian troops. Currently, in our country it is not provided for by law.
Esaul
The next rank continues our list of "Military ranks in Tsarist Russia". Esaul is the rank of chief officer in the Cossack and Russian troops. This title means assistant, deputy commander. Yesauls are: military, general, hundreds, regimental, marching, stanitsa, artillery.
Captain Commander
This rank existed in 1707-1732, and also in 1751-1827 in the fleet of our country. He was introduced in 1707 and listed in the Table of Ranks in 1722, belonged to class V, was considered lower than rear admiral and higher than the rank of captain of a ship (captain of the first rank - from 1713). In the army, this rank corresponded to a brigadier, and in state (civilian) positions - a state adviser. Appeal to the representative of this title - "Your honor." His duties included commanding detachments of ships (small), as well as replacing the rear admiral for a while.
Corporal
This military rank, which the junior command staff had, is the lowest sergeant (non-commissioned officer) rank. In our country, it appeared in 1647, introduced by Peter I "Military Regulations". Later, in the first half of the 19th century, it was replaced by the rank of non-commissioned officer. Today, in the modern Armed Forces, a corporal corresponds to such a rank as "junior sergeant".
Cornet
This is a military rank that was in the armies of some countries, mainly in the cavalry. Its name comes from the ancient position of a trumpeter, who was with the commander, who, on his orders, transmitted signals to the troops during the battle. The holders of this rank are listed in the same class as army lieutenants, therefore they wear the same shoulder straps. Note that the rank of second lieutenant does not exist in the cavalry.
Podsaul
We continue to describe military ranks in tsarist Russia, we present you the following. This position has existed since the 16th century, and then in Russia it was the chief officer rank in the Cossack troops of the X class (in 1798-1884) and the IX class in the aforementioned list of the "Table of Ranks" (1884-1917), in which there were military ranks in tsarist Russia and their salaries are indicated.
It was equated in 1798 in the cavalry to the rank of staff captain, in the infantry - to the staff captain, in the navy - to the lieutenant, and also to the rank of titular adviser in the civil service.
Second Lieutenant
This chief officer rank, which existed in the Russian army, was introduced by Peter I in Russia in 1703.
After the rank of ensign for peacetime was abolished in 1884, he became the first officer for all troops, except for the Cossacks and cavalry, where he corresponded to the rank of cornet, cornet. In the navy of the Empire, the rank of midshipman was an analogue to him, and in the civil service - the provincial secretary. In the armed forces of the Russian Federation, the rank of second lieutenant corresponds to "lieutenant".
lieutenant
The military rank belonging to junior officers in the armies of pre-revolutionary Russia and Poland corresponded to the position of senior lieutenant. In the 18-19 centuries, there was also a "lieutenant" as an orthographic variant of this rank. Military ranks in tsarist Russia in 1812, for example, included this rank.
It was an officer for assignments, which corresponds to the rank of senior lieutenant in the USSR and Russia.
Ensign
We continue to describe the military ranks in the tsarist army. The ensign exists in the armed forces, as well as other power structures in a number of countries. By decree of Alexei Mikhailovich, in the Russian army in 1649, standard-bearers began to be called ensigns, who were appointed from among the most physically strong, courageous and battle-tested warriors. Creating a regular army, Peter I in 1712 introduced this rank as a junior (first) rank of officers in the cavalry and infantry. Until 1917, it was assigned to persons who completed an accelerated course at ensign schools or military schools and passed exams according to a certain program. It was allowed to assign it without an exam for military distinctions to non-commissioned officers who had a secondary or higher education. Ensigns were usually appointed to positions by platoon commanders. In the Red Army (in 1917-1946), as well as the Soviet (until 1972), there was no similar rank of ensign. On January 1, 1972, it was introduced (along with the rank of midshipman) in the Armed Forces of the USSR. In the modern army of our country, he corresponds to the position of junior lieutenant.
Captain
The captain completes our list of "Military ranks in the tsarist army". It was the senior officer rank in the cavalry (in the Russian Empire - chief officer). In 1730, in connection with the creation of heavy cavalry, new titles of ranks appeared, among which was the captain. Ulansky and in 1882 were transformed into dragoons, and to establish uniformity in ranks throughout the cavalry, dragoon captains began to be called captains. In 1917, this rank was abolished. In the 20th century it existed, for example, in Poland.
These are the main military ranks in the tsarist army of Russia.
