Admiral ( nl, Admiraal) is theoretically the highest possible

military rank Military ranks are a system of hierarchical relationships, within armed forces, police, intelligence agencies or other institutions organized along military lines. The military rank system defines dominance, authority, and responsibility in a ...

in the

Royal Netherlands Navy The Royal Netherlands Navy ( nl, Koninklijke Marine, links=no) is the naval force of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. During the 17th century, the navy of the Dutch Republic (1581–1795) was one of the most powerful naval forces in the world an ...

, although no longer awarded. The admiral carries marshal bars as a distinguishing mark above the gold gallon and is therefore equivalent to the

five-star rank A five-star rank is the highest military rank in many countries.Oxford English Dictionary (OED), 2nd Edition, 1989. "five" ... "five-star adj., ... (b) U.S., applied to a general or admiral whose badge of rank includes five stars;" The rank is t ...

Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...

or Admiral of the Fleet in other navies like the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

. The rank of admiral is still described in the military

flag protocol A flag protocol defines the proper placement, handling, use, and disposal of flags. Some countries have added certain protocols into their legal system while others prefer to have "guidelines" without civil or criminal consequences attached. G ...

s of the Dutch navy. However, the rank is no longer mentioned in the Government gazette of the Netherlands describing the ranks for army, naval and air force officers (Royal Decree of 20 June 1956 no. 35, Gazette no. 361), and also no longer appears in the

Standardization Agreement In NATO, a standardization agreement (STANAG, redundantly: STANAG agreement) defines processes, procedures, terms, and conditions for common military or technical procedures or equipment between the member countries of the alliance. Each NATO st ...

s of NATO (STANAG 2116).- NATO Codes of Ranks
- website van de Ludovika - National University of Public Service Nowadays, the rank of

Lieutenant Admiral Lieutenant admiral () is a senior naval military rank in the Royal Netherlands Navy. The rank is a four-star rank, senior to a vice-admiral () and equivalent to admiral in most foreign navies. It is used whenever the Dutch Chief of Defence is fro ...

is in practice the ''de facto'' highest rank in the Dutch navy and armed forces (conferred to a naval officer who is the

Chief of Defence The chief of defence (or head of defence) is the highest ranked commissioned officer of a nation's armed forces. The acronym CHOD is in common use within NATO and the European Union as a generic term for the highest national military position withi ...

of the

Netherlands Armed Forces The Netherlands Armed Forces ( nl, Nederlandse krijgsmacht) are the military services of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The core of the armed forces consists of the four service branches: the Royal Netherlands Navy (), the Royal Netherlands ...

History

The rank can be held by either a naval officer appointed by the

Council of Ministers of the Netherlands The Council of Ministers ( nl, Ministerraad) is the executive council of Dutch Government, formed by all the ministers including the deputy prime ministers. This executive council initiates laws and policy. The Council of Ministers is distinct from ...

or a member of the

Dutch royal family The monarchy of the Netherlands is a constitutional monarchy. As such, the role and position of the monarch are governed by the Constitution of the Netherlands. Consequently, a large portion of it is devoted to the monarch. Roughly a third of ...

. The royal connection to the rank of admiral possibly originated in 1830, when King William I promoted his son Prince Frederick (who was already the Secretary of State for War and Navy) to the rank of admiral and commander-in-chief of the armed forces. The next and till today last person promoted to the rank of admiral was Prince Hendrik, the youngest brother of

King William III William III (William Henry; ; 4 November 16508 March 1702), also widely known as William of Orange, was the sovereign Prince of Orange from birth, Stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, and Overijssel in the Dutch Republic from the ...

, who made his brother admiral in 1879 to honor him for his long and exceptional career in the navy. The seniority of all Netherlands admiral ranks is as follows: # (

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

) # (

) # ( Vice Admiral) # (

Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

) # (

Commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ''Kommodore'' * Air commodore, a ...

)

List of ''Admiraal''s

* Prince Frederick: 1830 * Prince Hendrik: 1879

References

Military ranks of the Netherlands

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

{{navy-stub nl:Admiraal#Nederlandse admiraal