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Encyclopedia > Lieutenant Colonel (United States)

Lieutenant Colonel is a rank of the United States armed forces which is currently used by the United States Army, United States Air Force, United States Marine Corps, and United States National Guard. The United States Navy and United States Coast Guard equivalent to a Lieutenant Colonel is the rank of Commander. The insignia for a Lieutenant Colonel is a silver oak leaf, although there are subtle design differences between the Army/Air Force version and the insignia used by the Marine Corps. USAF Lieutenant Colonel insignia, public domain image from af. ... The armed forces of the United States of America consist of the United States Army United States Navy United States Air Force United States Marine Corps United States Coast Guard Note: The United States Coast Guard has both military and law enforcement functions. ... The United States Army is the largest and oldest branch of the armed forces of the United States. ... “The U.S. Air Force” redirects here. ... The United States Marine Corps (USMC) is a branch of the United States military responsible for providing power projection from the sea,[1] utilizing the mobility of the U.S. Navy to rapidly deliver combined-arms task forces. ... The United States National Guard is a reserve forces component of the United States Army (the Army National Guard) and the United States Air Force (the Air National Guard). ... USN redirects here. ... USCG HH-65 Dolphin USCG HH-60J JayHawk The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is at all times a branch of the United States armed forces a maritime law enforcement agency, and a federal regulatory body. ... Commander is a military rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. ...

Contents

History

The rank of Lieutenant Colonel was first created during the American Revolutionary War when the position was held by aides to Regiment Colonels, and was sometimes known as "Lieutenant to the Colonel". The rank of Lieutenant Colonel had existed in the British Army since at least the 16th century. This article is about military actions only. ... For other uses, see Colonel (disambiguation). ... Insignia of a British Army Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant-Colonel is a British rank used in several Commonwealth countries superior to Major and subordinate to Colonel. ... (15th century - 16th century - 17th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 16th century was that century which lasted from 1501 to 1600. ...


During the 19th century, Lieutenant Colonel was often a terminal rank for many officers, since the rank of "full Colonel" was considered extremely prestigious reserved only for the most successful of officers. Upon the outbreak of the American Civil War, the rank of Lieutenant Colonel became much more common and was used as a "stepping stone" for officers who commanded small regiments or battalions and were expected, by default, to be promoted to full Colonel once the manpower of a regiment grew in strength. Such was the case of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain who commanded a Maine Regiment as both a Lieutenant Colonel and later as a Colonel. Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... Combatants United States of America (Union) Confederate States of America (Confederacy) Commanders Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee Strength 2,200,000 1,064,000 Casualties 110,000 killed in action, 360,000 total dead, 275,200 wounded 93,000 killed in action, 258,000 total... Stepping Stone was the first major single by Liverpool-based pop group The Farm. ... In military terminology, a battalion consists of two to six companies typically commanded by a lieutenant colonel. ... Maj. ...


After the Civil War ended, those officers remaining in the United States armed forces found Lieutenant Colonel to again be a permanent terminal rank while many Lieutenant Colonels were raised to higher positions in a brevet status. Such was the case with George Armstrong Custer who was a Lieutenant Colonel in the Regular Army but held the brevet rank of Major General. In the US military, brevet referred to a warrant authorizing a commissioned officer to hold a higher rank temporarily, but usually without receiving the pay of that higher rank. ... Custer redirects here. ... The Regular Army is the permanent force of the United States Army or any Countrys army that is maintained during peacetime, as opposed to those persons who may be part of a reserve or national guard outfit. ... Insignia of a United States Air Force Major General German Generalmajor Insignia Major General is a military rank used in many countries. ...


The 20th century saw Lieutenant Colonel in its present day status although, during the 1930s, many officers again found the rank to be terminal as the rank of Colonel was reserved for only a select few officers. Such was not the case during World War II, when Lieutenant Colonel became one of the most commonly held officer ranks in the Army of the United States. (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... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... The Army of the United States is the official name for the conscription (U.S. term: draft) force of the United States Army that may be raised at the discretion of the United States Congress in the event of the United States entering into a major armed conflict. ...


Modern usage

In the U.S. Army, a Lieutenant Colonel typically commands a battalion-sized unit (300 to 1,000 soldiers), with a Command Sergeant Major as principal non-commissioned officer assistant. A Lieutenant Colonel may also serve as a brigade or task force Executive Officer. In the Air Force, a Lieutenant Colonel is generally a director of operations or a squadron commander in the operations group, a squadron commander in the mission support and maintenance groups, or a squadron commander or division chief in a medical group. Lieutenant colonels may also serve on general staffs and may be the heads of some wing staff departments. Symbol of the Austrian 14th Armoured Battalion in NATO military graphic symbols This article is about the military unit. ... This article is about a military rank and position. ... 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. ... In military science a brigade is a military unit that is part of a division and includes regiments (where that level exists), or (in modern armies) is composed of several battalions (typically two to four) and directly attached supporting units. ... A task force (TF) is a temporary unit or formation established to work on a single defined task or activity. ... While Executive officer literally refers to a person responsible for the performance of duties involved in running an organization, the exact meaning of the role is highly variable, depending on the organization. ...


The rank of Lieutenant Colonel is usually gained in the 21st century U.S. military after 17-22 years of service as an officer. As most officers are eligible to retire after 20 years active service, it is the most common rank at which career officers retire.


Terminology

While written as "Lt. Colonel" in orders and signature blocks, as a courtesy, Lieutenant Colonels are addressed as "Colonel" verbally and in the salutation of correspondence. The US Army uses the three letter abbreviation LTC. The US Air Force uses the abbreviation Lt Col.


Irreverent slang terms for the rank in the US military are "Light Colonel," "Short Colonel," and "Bottlecap Colonel". "Bottlecap Colonel" comes from the old fashioned metal crimped caps of beer and soda bottles which resemble the silver oak leaf insignia.


Famous American Lieutenant Colonels



 

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