The name of what military formation in which members are arranged diagonally has also come to mean a level of command or rank?
"Echelon formation An echelon formation () is a (usually military) formation in which its units are arranged diagonally. Each unit is stationed behind and to the right (a ""right echelon""), or behind and to the left (""left echelon""), of the unit ahead. The name of the formation comes from the French word échelon, meaning a rung of a ladder, which describes the shape that this formation has when viewed from above or below. Use of the formation dates back to ancient infantry and cavalry warfare, as an alternative to column, line-abreast, or phalanx (box) formations. One of the earliest uses"
"Rank (formation) A rank is a line of military personnel, drawn up in line abreast (i.e. standing side by side). Commonly, you start out with a height line. Shortest person in front, all the way to the tallest person in the rear. Subsequently when troop/ sailors are called to 'By the right, fall in!' do so by forming in line abreast, shortest person ""falling in"" on the far most right of the company commander. Each person in line then follows suit, lining up to the person next to them on their right shoulder until the rank is formed, then a"
"officer making observations and calling orders from the end of the rank. (The order may be given to fall in by the left as well). Rank (formation) A rank is a line of military personnel, drawn up in line abreast (i.e. standing side by side). Commonly, you start out with a height line. Shortest person in front, all the way to the tallest person in the rear. Subsequently when troop/ sailors are called to 'By the right, fall in!' do so by forming in line abreast, shortest person ""falling in"" on the far most right of the company commander. Each"
"Tactical formation A tactical formation (or order) is the arrangement or deployment of moving military forces such as infantry, cavalry, AFVs, military aircraft, or naval vessels. Formations were found in tribal societies such as the ""pua rere"" of the Māori, and ancient or medieval formations which include shield walls (""skjaldborg"" in Old Norse), phalanxes (lines of battle in close order), Testudo formation and skirmishers. Tactical formations include: A vanguard is the forward element of a column formation, and the rear-guard is the rear-most element of the column formation. In naval use only ""van"" and ""rear"" are applied to a formation"
"a diamond formation, and that of a ""général d'armée"" is five stars in a cross-shaped arrangement. The arrangement for the air force is the same, but the ranks are called ""général de corps d'armée aérien"" (""general of an air corps"") and ""général d'armée aérienne"" (""general of an air army"") respectively. The Italian army and Carabineer rank of ""generale di divisione"" translates as ""divisional general"". The air force equivalent is ""generale di divisione aerea"" (literally ""general of air division""). The Polish equivalent is ""generał dywizji"" (literally, ""general of division""). The symbols of this rank are the ""general's wavy line"" and two"
"from two to five, with three ranks being the most common arrangement. Each rank was approximately half a metre apart from the next, and soldiers in a rank were positioned closely to each other (usually within arm's length), with just enough room to present their weapons, fire, and reload. The line formation required that the troops be well-drilled and constantly supervised by officers and non-commissioned officers (NCOs). In 17th- and 18th-century European armies, NCOs were positioned to the rear of the line. They were equipped with long polearms, which they used to ""dress"" or arrange the ranks, a practice which"
"Corporal Corporal is a military rank in use in some form by many militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. Within NATO, each member nation's corresponding military rank of corporal is combined under the NATO-standard rank scale code OR-4. However, there are often differences in how each nation (or service in each nation) employs corporals. Some militaries don't have corporals, but may instead have a Junior Sergeant. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corresponds to commanding a section or squad of soldiers. However, in the United States Army, the rank of corporal is considered a"
"Commander (order) Commander (, , , , ), or Knight Commander, is a title of honor prevalent in chivalric order and fraternal orders. The title of Commander occurred in the medieval military orders, such as the Knights Hospitaller, for a member senior to a Knight. Variations include Knight Commander, notably in English, sometimes used to denote an even higher rank than Commander. In some orders of chivalry, Commander ranks above ""Officier"" (i.e. Officer), but below one or more ranks with a prefix meaning ""Great"", e.g. ""Grand -"" in French, ""Grosskomtur"" in German, ""Comandante Mayor"" (using an equivalent suffix) in Spanish,"
"of a single officer. Although during the Second World War a Command was also a name given to a battle group in the US Army, in general it is an administrative and executive strategic headquarters which is responsible to the national government or the national military headquarters. It is not uncommon for a nation's services to each consist of their own command (such as Land Component, Air Component, Naval Component, and Medical Component in the Belgian Army), but this does not preclude the existence of commands which are not service-based. A formation is defined by the US Department of Defense"
"troops. Army groups received Arabic numeral designations and national designations when combined. These examples illustrate a standard that holds true all over the world and throughout military history, namely that higher rank generally implies command of larger units in a nested system of ranks and commands. The specific size of a command for any given rank will, however, depend on the task the unit performs, the nature of weapons used, and the strategies of warfare. Military rank Military ranks are a system of hierarchical relationships in armed forces, police, intelligence agencies or other institutions organized along military lines. Military ranks"
"temples he built. Commanding Officer's Rank : Senathipathi – Meaning Lord of the Army Modern equivalent Rank : Marshal of the Army The 'Standing' Army was organised into multiple Senais. The composition of each senai depended on its deployment/Stationed location and role. Normally, A Chola Senai is the largest Organisational unit. At various times in its existence the army had between 1 and 3 Senais. ""Commanding Officer's Rank"" : Thalapathi – (this rank is the equivalent of the Naval Rank of Kalapathi) Modern equivalent Rank : General The Senai is divided into various Thalams. A Thalam is a self-sustaining army"
"Ordre profond The ordre serré (close order) and the ordre profond (deep order) were two ways of grouping soldiers. Historically, the ordre serré was the way of assembling soldiers in units during a battle or on the march. It is particular to infantry troops, originating in the Greek phalanx formation. Such grouping of men orientated their arms and their efforts to attack in the same direction and, combined with the hoplites' morale and cohesion (reassured as they were by their comrades' proximity), allowed them to defeat larger but less organised armies (as at the Battle of Marathon). It was also"
"Military rank Military ranks are a system of hierarchical relationships in armed forces, police, intelligence agencies or other institutions organized along military lines. Military ranks and the military rank system define among others dominance, authority, as well as roles and responsibility in a military hierarchy. The military rank system incorporates the principles of exercising power and authority, and the military chain of command – the succession of commanders superior to subordinates through which command is exercised – constructs an important component for organized collective action. Usually, uniforms denote the bearer's rank by particular insignia affixed to the uniforms. Ranking systems"
"Command hierarchy A command hierarchy is a group of people who carry out orders based on others authority within the group. It can be viewed as part of a power structure, in which it is usually seen as the most vulnerable and also the most powerful part. In a military context, the chain of command is the line of authority and responsibility along which orders are passed within a military unit and between different units. Orders are transmitted down the chain of command, from a higher-ranked soldier, such as a commissioned officer, to lower-ranked personnel who either execute the order"
"command. The system used either a ""brigadier general"" or a ""colonel general"" rank (i.e. exclude one of the italicised ranks). The rank of field marshal was used by some countries as the highest rank, while in other countries it was used as a divisional or brigade rank. Many countries (notably pre-revolutionary France and eventually much of Latin America) actually used two brigade command ranks, which is why some countries now use two stars as their brigade general insignia. Mexico and Argentina still use two brigade command ranks. In some nations (particularly in the Commonwealth since the 1920s), the equivalent to"
"of ships sailing in column. Examples of military aircraft tactical formations are the Vic formation, echelon, the combat box, and the finger-four (also known as the ""fluid four."") A tactical formation is not to be confused with military organization or the table of organization and equipment (TOE). Tactical formation A tactical formation (or order) is the arrangement or deployment of moving military forces such as infantry, cavalry, AFVs, military aircraft, or naval vessels. Formations were found in tribal societies such as the ""pua rere"" of the Māori, and ancient or medieval formations which include shield walls (""skjaldborg"" in Old Norse),"
"Armed Forces, the military rank of Commander is Comandante. In German, ""Komtur"" (derived from ) was a rank within military orders, especially the Teutonic Knights. In the State of the Teutonic Order, the Komtur was the commander of a basic administrative division called ""Kommende"" (also ""Komturei""). A Komtur was responsible for feeding and supporting the Order's Knights from the yield of local estates. He commanded several Procurators. A ""Kommende"" had a convent of at least 12 brothers. Various ""Kommenden"" formed a ""Ballei"" province. ""Grosskomtur"" (Großkomtur or Grand Commander) was one of the highest ranks within the Knights responsible for the"
"""edge in"" as well as ""top-down"" flow of intent. Command hierarchy A command hierarchy is a group of people who carry out orders based on others authority within the group. It can be viewed as part of a power structure, in which it is usually seen as the most vulnerable and also the most powerful part. In a military context, the chain of command is the line of authority and responsibility along which orders are passed within a military unit and between different units. Orders are transmitted down the chain of command, from a higher-ranked soldier, such as a commissioned"
"rank. The rank can be traced back to the militaries of Europe where a brigadier general, or simply a brigadier, would command a brigade in the field. The rank name ""général de brigade"", (which translates as ""brigade general""), was first used in the French revolutionary armies. In the first quarter of the 20th century, British and Commonwealth armies used the rank of brigadier general as a temporary appointment, or as an honorary appointment on retirement; in the 1920s this practice changed to the use of brigadier, which was not classed as a general officer. Some armies, such as Taiwan and"
"Lance corporal Lance corporal is a military rank, used by many armed forces worldwide, and also by some police forces and other uniformed organisations. It is below the rank of corporal, and is typically the lowest non-commissioned officer, usually equivalent to the NATO Rank Grade OR3. The presumed origin of the rank of lance corporal derives from an amalgamation of ""corporal"" from the Italian phrase ""capo corporale"" (""head of the body"") with the now-archaic ""lancepesade"", which in turn derives from the Italian ""lancia spezzata"", which literally means ""broken lance"" or ""broken spear"", formerly a non-commissioned officer of the lowest rank."
"lance-bombardier in February 1918 and became a full rank, as did lance-corporal, in 1961. ""Bummer"" is widely used as an informal form of address for both full bombardiers and lance-bombardiers. They may also be referred to as a ""full screw"" (bombardier) or ""mate"" (lance-bombardier), in common with corporals and lance-corporals. As with other common military abbreviations, such as ""sarnt"", these terms are not used on formal occasions. Bombardier (rank) Bombardier () is a military rank that has existed since the 16th century in artillery regiments of various armies, such as in the British Army and the Royal Prussian Army. It"
"scale than of functional office in a particular organization. As European military influence expanded throughout the world, the rank of colonel became adopted by nearly every nation (albeit under a variety of names). With the rise of communism, some of the large communist militaries saw fit to expand the colonel rank into several grades, resulting in the unique senior colonel rank, which was found and is still used in such nations as China and North Korea. In many modern armies, the 'regiment' has more importance as a ceremonial unit or a focus of members' loyalty than as an actual battle"
"structure found in medieval orders of chivalry and created new ones instead, e.g. the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany, the Decoration for Services to the Republic of Austria, or the Legion of Merit of the United States. Following the example set by the French Legion of Honour, founded by Napoleon, most multi-level European orders comprise five ranks or classes. The highest is usually called the Grand Cross, then descending with varying titles. Alternatively, the ranks are referred to by number (for example ""Ist class"" instead of ""Grand Cross""). Typical rankings are: Each of these ranks wear"
"Forces split into Unified Combatant Commands (regions) that are assigned to a particular theater of military operations. A strategic direction is a group of armies also known as a task (field) forces or battlegroups. A strategic command or direction in general essence would combine a number of tactical military formations or operational command. In the modern military, a strategic command is better known as a combat command that may be a combination of groups. The Soviet and Russian Armed Forces classify a large geographic subdivision - such as continental geographic territories with their bordering maritime areas, islands, adjacent coasts and"
"with, respectively, one vertical tick or three dots. While in Commonwealth armies, the regiment as a tactical formation does not normally exist, in some cases a regimental sized (i.e. larger than battalion and smaller than brigade) Task Force may exist where the operational requirement exists. These formations may be commanded by Colonels. Note that, for brigades and higher, the number of Xs corresponds to the number of stars in the United States military's insignia for the typical general officer grade commanding that size unit. For example, a division is capped with XX and is usually commanded by a major general"
"meaning ""leader of ten"". The term ""lochos"", along with the associated rank of ""lochagos"" and its derivatives, has been revived in the modern Greek military for a company-sized command. Lochos A lochos, plural lochoi ( ""lokhos"", pl. ""lokhoi""), is a tactical sub unit of Classical Greece and of the modern Greek army. The term derived from the ancient Greek for ambush and the men carrying out the ambush, but in practice, its meaning was essentially that of ""war-band"", a body of armed men. This translation has been used traditionally, e.g. for the Sacred Band of Thebes. Evolving as it did"
"Bombardier (rank) Bombardier () is a military rank that has existed since the 16th century in artillery regiments of various armies, such as in the British Army and the Royal Prussian Army. It is today equivalent to the rank of corporal in other branches. The rank of lance-bombardier is the artillery counterpart of lance-corporal. Bombardier (Bdr) and lance-bombardier (LBdr or L/Bdr) are used by the British Army in the Royal Artillery and Royal Horse Artillery. The same applies to the Royal Australian Artillery, the Royal New Zealand Artillery, the South African Army Artillery and the Armed Forces of Malta. The"
"Column (formation) A military column is a formation of soldiers marching together in one or more files in which the file is significantly longer than the width of ranks in the formation. The column formation allowed the unit rapid movement and a very effective charge (due to weight of numbers), and it could quickly form square to resist cavalry attacks, but by its nature only a fraction of its muskets would be able to open fire. The line formation offered a substantially larger musket frontage than the column, allowing for greater shooting capability, but required extensive training to allow the"
"Triangular division A triangular division is a designation given to the way military divisions are organized. In a triangular organization, the division's main body is composed of three regimental maneuver elements. These regiments may be controlled by a brigade headquarters (more typical in World War I) or directly subordinated to the division commander. By contrast, in a square division, there were typically two brigades of two regiments. Other structures are possible, such as a pentomic division, where the division commander controls five maneuver elements, which was used in the United States Army in the late 1950s, with the regiments replaced"
"Captain (armed forces) The army rank of captain (from the French ""capitaine"") is a commissioned officer rank historically corresponding to the command of a company of soldiers. The rank is also used by some air forces and marine forces. Today, a captain is typically either the commander or second-in-command of a company or artillery battery (or United States Army cavalry troop or Commonwealth squadron). In the Chinese People's Liberation Army, a captain may also command a company, or be the second-in-command of a battalion. In NATO countries, the rank of captain is described by the code OF-2 and is one"
"a full regiment or brigade in the process. The corps was then headed by a cadet lieutenant colonel. The corps and the rank system has since evolved. Cadet officers wear gold rank stars or ""pips."" Pips are similar in design to the ""Order of the Bath"" rank stars worn by the British Army and the Royal Marines, except the three crowns have been replaced with an image of George Washington kneeling in the snow, from the painting ""The Prayer at Valley Forge"" by Henry Brueckner, and the motto ""Tria Juncta In Uno"" replaced with ""Valley Forge Military Academy,"" as represented"
"Phalanx The phalanx (; plural phalanxes or phalanges, , ""phalanges"") was a rectangular mass military formation, usually composed entirely of heavy infantry armed with spears, pikes, sarissas, or similar pole weapons. The term is particularly (and originally) used to describe the use of this formation in Ancient Greek warfare, although the ancient Greek writers used it to also describe any massed infantry formation, regardless of its equipment. Arrian uses the term in his ""Array against the Alans"" when he refers to his legions. In Greek texts, the phalanx may be deployed for battle, on the march, or even camped, thus"
"the same name. The rank of squadron leader derived its name from the RNAS rank of squadron commander. Initially the highest rank was titled marshal of the air. However, only a few days after it was promulgated, this rank title was changed to marshal of the Royal Air Force at the request of King George V, his belief being that the former sounded too much like it encroached on the attributes of God. RAF officers typically wear composite braid rank slides with their working and operational uniforms. Composite braid consists of a single piece of fabric, where the ""background"" between"