The term used to refer to all ranks below officers is Other Ranks (ORs). It includes Warrant Officers, Non-commissioned officers (NCOs) and ordinary soldiers with the rank of Private or equivalent. Officers may, in speaking, distinguish themselves from those "in the ranks". Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom. ... Image File history File links UK-Army-OR9. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Conductor (Cdr) is an appointment held by a few selected Warrant Officers Class 1 in the Royal Logistic Corps and is the most senior appointment that can be held by a warrant officer in the British Army. ... For Warrant Officers in the United States military, see Warrant Officer (United States). ... For Warrant Officers in the United States military, see Warrant Officer (United States). ... For Warrant Officers in the United States military, see Warrant Officer (United States). ... United States Military Staff Sergeant insignia (U.S. Air Force) Staff Sergeant is the fifth enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force, just above Senior Airman and below Technical Sergeant. ... Colour Sergeant (CSgt or C/Sgt) is an non-commissioned rank in the Royal Marines, ranking above Sergeant and below Warrant Officer Class 2. ... For other uses, see Sergeant (disambiguation). ... This article is about the military rank. ... For Bombardier Group, Canada see: Bombardier United Kingdom Bombardier and lance-bombardier are British Army ranks used in the Royal Artillery instead of (respectively) corporal and lance-corporal. ... Lance Corporal is a military rank used by some elements of the United States and United Kingdom Armed Forces, police, and other uniformed organizations. ... In the British Army, a Lance Bombardier (LBdr or L/Bdr) is the Royal Artillery equivalent of a Lance Corporal. ... A Private is a soldier of the lowest military rank (equivalent to Nato Rank Grades OR-1 to OR-3 depending on the force served in). ... In the 17th and 18th centuries, rank was generally denoted by the quantity of lace and through other decoration used on uniforms. ... For Warrant Officers in the United States military, see Warrant Officer (United States). ... A non-commissioned officer (sometimes noncommissioned officer), also known as an NCO or Noncom, is an enlisted member of an armed force who has been given authority by a commissioned officer. ... A Private is a soldier of the lowest military rank (equivalent to Nato Rank Grades OR-1 to OR-3 depending on the force served in). ...

The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. ... The Territorial Army (TA) is the principal reserve force of the British Army, the land armed forces of the United Kingdom, and composed mostly of part-time soldiers paid at the same rate, while engaged on military activities, as their Regular equivalents. ... This is a current and updated list of regiments of the British Army, changing as new regiments are formed following the defence review Delivering Security in a Changing World. ... The structure of the British Army is broadly similar to that of the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force, being divided into two Commands as top-level budget holders; Land Command and the Adjutant-General. ... Land Command (or HQ Land) is a military command and part of the structure of the modern British Army. ... The Adjutant-General to the Forces, commonly just referred to as the Adjutant-General (AG), is one of the most senior officers in the British Army. ... HQ Northern Ireland is the command formation responsible for the administration of all British Armed Forces stationed in and around Northern Ireland. ... The British Forces Germany (BFG) is the successor of the British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) and Royal Air Force Germany (RAFG), which were disbanded in 1994 after the end of the Cold War. ... UK Sovereign Base Areas (red) British Forces Cyprus is the name given to the British armed forces stationed in the UK sovereign base areas of Dhekelia and Akrotiri on the island of Cyprus. ... British Forces Gibraltar is the name given to the British Armed Forces stationed in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar. ... The British Military Garrison Brunei (BGB) is the name given to the British armed forces presence in Brunei. ... The origins of the modern British military rifles are within its predecessor the Brown Bess musket. ... This is a list of some of the equipment currently in use by the British Army. ... The history of the British Army spans three centuries and numerous European, colonial and world wars. ... // 1600-1699 1633 - The Royal Regiment of Foot (later the Royal Scots) is placed on the Scottish Establishment, later becoming the oldest infantry regiment in continious service in the British Army. ... This is a list of senior officers of the British Army. ... In the 17th and 18th centuries, rank was generally denoted by the quantity of lace and through other decoration used on uniforms. ...

Variants

Bombardier/Lance Bombardier are ranks of the Royal Artillery. Tactical Recognition Flash of the Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, generally known as the Royal Artillery (RA), is, despite its name, a corps of the British Army. ...

In the Foot Guards and Honourable Artillery Company: Foot guards is a term used to describe elite infantry regiments. ... Armorial bearings of the HAC, granted in 1821 The Honourable Artillery Company (HAC) is the oldest surviving regiment in the British Army, and the second most senior[2] in the Territorial Army [3] . // The HAC can trace its history as far back as 1296, but it received a Royal Charter...

• lance corporals wear two chevrons rather than one (allegedly because Queen Victoria did not like the look of one chevron, and thus decreed her personal troops would have at least two);
• corporals are automatically appointed Lance Sergeant, wearing three chevrons; in full dress, a lance sergeant's chevrons are white, whereas a full sergeant's are gold.

The Household Cavalry maintains the old cavalry tradition of having no rank of sergeant, which was originally an infantry rank only. It has its own peculiar set of insignia and ranks with the following equivalents: In the British Army, a Lance Sergeant (LSgt or L/Sgt) was a Corporal acting in the rank of Sergeant. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Dismounted Blues and Royals (left) and Life Guards (right) preparing to line the route of the Garter procession at Windsor Castle Household Cavalry is used across the Commonwealth to describe the cavalry of the Household Divisions, a country’s most elite or historically senior military groupings or those military groupings...

• Staff Corporal = Staff Sergeant: four chevrons, point up and worn on the lower sleeve, with metal crown above;
• Corporal of Horse = Sergeant: three chevrons, point down, with a metal crown above (confusingly similar to the insignia of a Staff Sergeant in other units);
• Lance Corporal of Horse = Lance Sergeant (Corporal): same as a Corporal of Horse, but with a cloth crown rather than a metal one;
• Lance Corporal: two chevrons, with a crown above.

Similarly, warrant officer appointments are different, with, for example, Regimental Corporal Major being used in place of Regimental Sergeant Major. Staff Corporal (SCpl or S/Cpl) is the equivalent rank to Staff Sergeant in the Household Cavalry, ranking between Corporal of Horse and Warrant Officer Class 2. ... Corporal of Horse (CoH) is a rank in the British Armys Household Cavalry corresponding to Sergeant in other regiments. ... Lance Corporal of Horse (LCoH) is an appointment unique to the Household Cavalry of the British Army, equivalent to Lance Sergeant in the Foot Guards. ... Lance Corporal (LCpl or L/Cpl) is a military rank used by some elements of the British, Commonwealth, and U.S. armed forces. ... For Warrant Officers in the United States military, see Warrant Officer (United States). ... Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM) is an appointment held by Warrant Officers Class 1 (WO1) in the British Army, Royal Marines and many Commonwealth armies including the Australian Army and New Zealand Army, and by Chief Warrant Officers (CWO) in the Canadian Forces. ...

Uniquely, non-commissioned officers and warrant officers of the Household Cavalry do not wear any insignia on their full dress uniforms (although officers do). Rank is indicated by a system of aiguillettes. An aiguillette is an ornamental braided cord worn on uniforms. ...

In 1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards, NCO's holding the rank of Lance Corporal wear two stripes. Full Corporals are distinguished by the addition of a "Bays" cypher (from the Queen's Bays (2nd Dragoon Guards)) above their two stripes. {{Infobox Military Unit |unit_name=1st The Queens Dragoon Guards |image= |caption=1st The Queens Dragoon Guards Cap Badge |dates=[[January 1] 1959- |country=United Kingdom |branch=Army |type=Line Cavalry |command_structure=Royal Armoured Corps |role=Formation Reconnaissance |size= One regiment |current_commander= |garrison= Osnabruck, Germany |ceremonial_chief=HRH The Prince...

Staff Sergeants in an appointment as Squadron Quartermaster Sergeant, wear four stripes with a crown and are referred to as "Sergeant Major".

Origins

The chevrons worn by many non-commissioned officers are based on heraldic devices and their current use for NCOs originates from the time of the Napoleonic Wars in 1802. As today, sergeants wore three chevrons, point downwards, on the upper arm, and corporals wore two, with sergeant-majors and quarter-master-sergeants then having four. Lance corporal, at the time not a rank but an appointment historically known as chosen man and carrying extra pay for privates holding it, were given a single chevron a few years later, and later in the century the lance-sergeant appeared, wearing three chevrons. Combatants Austria[a] Portugal Prussia[a] Russia[b] Sicily[c] Sardinia  Spain[d]  Sweden[e] United Kingdom French Empire Holland[f] Italy Etruria[g] Naples[h] Duchy of Warsaw[i] Confederation of the Rhine[j] Bavaria Saxony Westphalia Württemberg Denmark-Norway[k] Commanders Archduke Charles Prince Schwarzenberg Karl Mack... Year 1802 (MDCCCII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. ... For other uses, see Sergeant (disambiguation). ... This article is about the military rank. ... It has been suggested that Company Sergeant Major be merged into this article or section. ...

The Royal Artillery had the special rank of bombardier below the corporal, and both he and the acting bombardier wore one chevron. The Royal Engineers and Army Ordnance Corps also had an additional rank of second corporal, who wore one chevron. On full-dress tunics, badges in white or gold lace were worn only on the right arm, but on service dress jackets, badges in worsted embroidery were worn on both arms. In February 1918 the acting bombardier was renamed lance-bombardier, and the full bombardier gained a second chevron in 1920 replacing the rank of corporal in the RA. Second corporals also disappeared at that time (second corporal had been an actual rank, whereas lance-corporal was a private acting in the rank of corporal). Tactical Recognition Flash of the Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, generally known as the Royal Artillery (RA), is, despite its name, a corps of the British Army. ... For Bombardier Group, Canada see: Bombardier United Kingdom Bombardier and lance-bombardier are British Army ranks used in the Royal Artillery instead of (respectively) corporal and lance-corporal. ... The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps of the British Army. ... The Royal Army Ordnance Corps (RAOC) was a British Army corps formed in 1918 by the merger of the Army Ordnance Department (AOD) and the Army Ordnance Corps (AOC). ... Second Corporal was a former British Army rank in the Royal Engineers and Army Ordnance Corps. ... 1918 (MCMXVIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. ... In the British Army, a Lance Bombardier (LBdr or L/Bdr) is the Royal Artillery equivalent of a Lance Corporal. ... Year 1920 (MCMXX) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display 1920) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The pre-war infantry rank of Colour Sergeant had generally given way to the ranks of company sergeant-major and quartermaster-sergeant in 1914 when the four-company organisation was introduced. Both of these ranks, their squadron and battery equivalents, and staff-sergeants in other arms, wore three chevrons and a crown, although in 1915 company, battery, squadron and troop sergeant-majors became warrant officers class II (by Army Order 70) and thereafter wore a single large crown, without any chevrons, on each forearm. Note the designation of Warrant officer classes was in Roman rather than Arabic numerals until the latter half of the 20th century. Infantry of the Royal Irish Rifles during the Battle of the Somme in World War I Infantry or footmen are very highly disciplined and trained soldiers who fight primarily with small arms(rifles), but are trained to use everything from their bare hands to missle systems in order to neutralize... Colour Sergeant (CSgt or C/Sgt) is an non-commissioned rank in the Royal Marines, ranking above Sergeant and below Warrant Officer Class 2. ... Year 1914 (MCMXIV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Year 1915 (MCMXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday[1] of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Roman numerals are a numeral system originating in ancient Rome, adapted from Etruscan numerals. ... For other uses, see Arabic numerals (disambiguation). ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999 in the...

Regimental quartermaster-sergeants wore four chevrons on the lower sleeve, point upwards, with a star above, but adopted the crown when they too became warrant officers class II in 1915. In their case, however, the crown was surrounded by a wreath. Regimental sergeant-majors, who before the Boer War had worn four chevrons with a crown, were given in 1902 the badge of a single large crown on the lower arm, but adopted a small version of the Royal arms in its place in 1915 when they became warrant officers class I. Year 1915 (MCMXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday[1] of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Year 1902 (MCMII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Tuesday [1] of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Year 1915 (MCMXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday[1] of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ...

There were also certain senior grades of warrant officer, peculiar to the specialist branches, which ranked above regimental sergeant-majors. These were the conductors of the Army Ordnance Corps and the first-class staff sergeant-majors of the Army Service Corps and the Army Pay Corps. They also wore a large crown, surrounded by a wreath, on the lower arm, although in 1918 this was replaced by the Royal Arms within a wreath. The RA also had its Master Gunners in three classes, but these were technical specialists and not normally seen in the field. The Royal Arms within a wreath is the badge of rank for a Conductor, the most senior of all WO1 appointments, confined to the Royal Logistic Corps and held by fewer than twenty people as of 2004. For Warrant Officers in the United States military, see Warrant Officer (United States). ... Conductor (Cdr) is an appointment held by a few selected Warrant Officers Class 1 in the Royal Logistic Corps and is the most senior appointment that can be held by a warrant officer in the British Army. ... The Royal Logistic Corps is the British Army corps that provides the logistic support for the Army. ...

From 1938, there was also a rank of Warrant Officer Class III. The only appointments held by this rank were Platoon Sergeant Major, Troop Sergeant Major and Section Sergeant Major. The WOIII wore a crown on his lower sleeve. The rank was placed in suspension in 1940 and no new appointments were made, but it was never officially abolished. From 1938 to 1947 all WOII ranks wore the crown in wreath rank now worn by Regimental Quartermaster Sergeants. Year 1938 (MCMXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1938 (MCMXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1947 (MCMXLVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1947 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The grades of lance-sergeant and lance-corporal were not strictly ranks, but were appointments, held by selected corporals and privates, and usually carrying extra pay. The appointment was made by the man's commanding officer and could be taken away by him for disciplinary reasons, unlike full sergeants and corporals who could only be demoted by order of a court martial. It is only since 1961 that lance-corporal has been a separate rank in its own right, and the appointment of lance-sergeant was discontinued in 1946, except in the Foot Guards and Honourable Artillery Company (and its equivalent, lance-corporal of horse, in the Household Cavalry). Year 1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1946 (MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Foot guards is a term used to describe elite infantry regiments. ... Armorial bearings of the HAC, granted in 1821 The Honourable Artillery Company (HAC) is the oldest surviving regiment in the British Army, and the second most senior[2] in the Territorial Army [3] . // The HAC can trace its history as far back as 1296, but it received a Royal Charter... Dismounted Blues and Royals (left) and Life Guards (right) preparing to line the route of the Garter procession at Windsor Castle Household Cavalry is used across the Commonwealth to describe the cavalry of the Household Divisions, a country’s most elite or historically senior military groupings or those military groupings...

Sergeant or Serjeant

The spelling serjeant is sometimes seen. This was in fact the official spelling, even during and after World War I – though interestingly not in the Royal Air Force – and appeared in such publications as King's Regulations and the Pay Warrant, which defined the various ranks. In common usage the modern spelling sergeant was already more usual, as for instance in the volumes of the Official History which began to appear in the 1920s. Serjeant-at-Arms is a title still held by members of the security staff in the Houses of Parliament. Also, in the newly amagamated infantry regiment The Rifles, the spelling of Serjeant is held with the 'J' in place of the 'G'^[1]. This is currently the only British Army regiment using the alternate spelling. “The Great War ” redirects here. ... RAF redirects here. ... A Serjeant at Arms (also spelt Sergeant at Arms, and sometimes Serjeant-at-Arms) is an officer appointed by a deliberative body, usually a legislature, to keep order during its meetings. ... This may refer to the: British Houses of Parliament. ... For the band The Rifles, see The Rifles (band). ...

Historical Ranks

Serjeant-Major: equivalent to the current Regimental Sergeant Major, a Warrant Officer class 1

Company Serjeant-Major: now an appointment of Warrant Officer class 2

Quartermaster Serjeant: can now be a Regimental Quartermaster Sergeant (Warrant Officer class 2) or a Company Quartermaster Sergeant (Staff Sergeant)

Colour Serjeant: gave way to CSM/QMS over years prior to World War I although colour sergeant exists today in the Royal Marines, equivalent to a staff sergeant in the army, and is still used to refer to all staff sergeants in infantry regiments and the Honourable Artillery Company:

Lance-Serjeant: appointment originally given to corporals acting in the rank of sergeant, discontinued in 1946 except in the Foot Guards, Honourable Artillery Company: and some cadet units

Second Corporal: ordnance rank until 1920, equivalent to lance-corporal but a substantive instead of an acting rank

Chosen Man: became lance corporal in early 1800s

Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM) is an appointment held by Warrant Officers Class 1 (WO1) in the British Army, Royal Marines and many Commonwealth armies including the Australian Army and New Zealand Army, and by Chief Warrant Officers (CWO) in the Canadian Forces. ... For Warrant Officers in the United States military, see Warrant Officer (United States). ... For Warrant Officers in the United States military, see Warrant Officer (United States). ... For Warrant Officers in the United States military, see Warrant Officer (United States). ... For Warrant Officers in the United States military, see Warrant Officer (United States). ... Company Quartermaster Sergeant is a military rank or appointment. ... United States Military Staff Sergeant insignia (U.S. Air Force) Staff Sergeant is the fifth enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force, just above Senior Airman and below Technical Sergeant. ... “The Great War ” redirects here. ... The Royal Marines (RM) are the marines and amphibious infantry of the United Kingdom and, along with the Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary, form the Naval Service [2]. They are also the United Kingdoms amphibious force and specialists in mountain and Arctic warfare. ... Armorial bearings of the HAC, granted in 1821 The Honourable Artillery Company (HAC) is the oldest surviving regiment in the British Army, and the second most senior[2] in the Territorial Army [3] . // The HAC can trace its history as far back as 1296, but it received a Royal Charter... Foot guards is a term used to describe elite infantry regiments. ... Armorial bearings of the HAC, granted in 1821 The Honourable Artillery Company (HAC) is the oldest surviving regiment in the British Army, and the second most senior[2] in the Territorial Army [3] . // The HAC can trace its history as far back as 1296, but it received a Royal Charter... Year 1920 (MCMXX) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display 1920) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• British Army rank insignia (British Army website)

See also

• British Army officer rank insignia
• British Army Uniform
• Ranks and insignia of NATO Armies
• Comparative military ranks of World War I
• Comparative military ranks of World War II
• Comparative military ranks
• Military rank
• British Army
• British and United States military ranks compared