In the

United States uniformed services The United States has eight federal uniformed services that commission officers as defined by Title 10 and subsequently structured and organized by Titles 10, 14, 32, 33 and 42 of the U.S. Code. Uniformed services The uniformed services ...

, captain is a commissioned-officer rank. In keeping with the traditions of the

militaries A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

of most nations, the rank varies between the services, being a senior rank in the naval services and a junior rank in the ground and air forces. Many fire departments and police departments in the United States also use the rank of captain as an officer in a specific unit.

Usage

For the naval rank, a captain is a senior officer of

U.S. uniformed services pay grades Pay grades are used by the eight uniformed services of the United States (Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, Coast Guard, Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, and NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps) to determine wages and benef ...

O-6 (the sixth officer rank), typically commanding seagoing vessels, major aviation commands and shore installations. This rank is used by the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...

U.S. Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mul ...

, U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, the

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Corps The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps, known informally as the NOAA Corps, is one of eight federal uniformed services of the United States, and operates under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administ ...

, and the

U.S. Maritime Service The United States Maritime Service (USMS) was established in 1938 under the provisions of the Merchant Marine Act of 1936 as voluntary training organization to train individuals to become officers and crewmembers on merchant ships that form the U ...

. Seaborne services of the United States and many other nations refer to the officer in charge of any seagoing vessel as "captain" regardless of actual rank. For instance, in the civilian

United States Merchant Marine United States Merchant Marines are United States civilian mariners and U.S. civilian and federally owned merchant vessels. Both the civilian mariners and the merchant vessels are managed by a combination of the government and private sectors, an ...

, the commander of a vessel is also referred to as a captain, and everyone in his boat must abide by his commands. While not an official rank, as in military pay grade, it is an official title. One exception to the rule is when an officer of higher rank than captain, such as admiral, is the officer in charge of one or more seagoing vessel(s), such as a

carrier battle group A carrier battle group (CVBG) is a naval fleet consisting of an aircraft carrier capital ship and its large number of escorts, together defining the group. The ''CV'' in ''CVBG'' is the United States Navy hull classification code for an ai ...

. An admiral is never referred to as "captain". In the seaborne services, especially for submarine and aviation commands, the commanding officer is often referred to informally as " skipper" whether the officer is a captain or below. For the ground and air forces rank, a captain is of pay grade O-3 (the third officer rank), usually serving as the commander of a company-sized unit in the ground forces, as a flight leader or other squadron officer in air units, or serving as an executive officer or staff officer for a larger unit such as a

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...

squadron Squadron may refer to: * Squadron (army), a military unit of cavalry, tanks, or equivalent subdivided into troops or tank companies * Squadron (aviation), a military unit that consists of three or four flights with a total of 12 to 24 aircraft, ...

. This rank is used by the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sign ...

, and U.S. Marine Corps. The rank of captain is also used in other organizations outside the military, particularly in fire departments, police, and law enforcement. US Air Force O3 shoulderboard.svg,

File:Army-USA-OF-02.svg, Captain rank, U.S. Army OCP.png, CPT-ACU.jpg, US Marine O3 shoulderboard vertical.svg, Captain subdued rank insignia, USMC.png,

Captain (naval rank)

Captain (ground, air, and space forces)

The insignia for captains in the United States Army was first authorized in 1836. During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, the rank of captain was used in both the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...

and

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

. The rank was typically held by either junior staff officers or company commanders. In the case of the latter, company officers were normally elected by the men of their unit, unless the officer in question held rank in the

Regular Army A regular army is the official army of a state or country (the official armed forces), contrasting with irregular forces, such as volunteer irregular militias, private armies, mercenaries, etc. A regular army usually has the following: * a standin ...

. In cases where regiments had suffered high casualties, it was not uncommon for a captain to assume duties as the regimental commander. Such was the case in the 1st Mississippi Infantry which was commanded by Captain Owen Hughes after the regiment had lost over half its number at the

Battle of Nashville The Battle of Nashville was a two-day battle in the Franklin-Nashville Campaign that represented the end of large-scale fighting west of the coastal states in the American Civil War. It was fought at Nashville, Tennessee, on December 15–16, 1 ...

. US Army O3.svg, Union army cpt rank insignia.jpg,

Rank equivalency between services

Because of the ambiguity created by the common use of "captain" for officers of different grades among the Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marine Corps, Navy, NOAA, Public Health Service, and Space Force, equivalency is conferred between officers by use of identical

pay grade A pay grade is a unit in systems of monetary compensation for employment. It is commonly used in public service, both civil and military, but also for companies of the private sector. Pay grades facilitate the employment process by providing a fix ...

rather than title of rank. The higher the grade, the higher the rank of the officer. For example, an Army, Air Force, Marine, or Space Force captain is equivalent in rank, responsibilities, and grade to a Navy, Public Health Service, NOAA, or Coast Guard

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

, all of which are of the third officer grade, or O-3. Similarly, a Navy, Public Health Service, NOAA, or Coast Guard captain is equivalent in rank, responsibilities, and grade to an Army, Air Force, Marine, or Space Force

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

, all of which are of the sixth officer grade, or O-6. Thus, Army, Air Force, Marine, and Space Force colonels together with Navy, Public Health Service, NOAA, and Coast Guard captains wear the silver eagle insignia of the grade of O-6, while Army, Air Force, Marine, and Space Force captains together with Navy, Public Health Service, and Coast Guard lieutenants wear the double silver bars of the rank insignia of the grade of O-3. Additionally, the O-6 rank of Navy, Public Health Service, NOAA, and Coast Guard captain is abbreviated as uppercase "CAPT", while the O-3 rank of captain is abbreviated as "CPT" for the Army and mixed-case "Capt" for the Air Force, Marine Corps, and Space Force.

Early history

In the United States, the rank of captain first appeared in the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies (the Thirteen Colonies) in the Revolutionary-era United States. It was formed by the Second Continental Congress after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, and was establis ...

during the Revolutionary War. A captain was the

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," f ...

placed in charge of a company of soldiers and was granted a commission from the regimental

. A captain was afforded one to several

s, depending on the size of the company, and the captain's commission could be revoked or expired at the end of a particular military campaign. The Continental Navy used the rank of captain as the commander of a sailing vessel at war, with the captain having several lieutenants on board, as well as a sailing master to assist in their duties. This use of the rank carried over into the

. Captain was the highest naval rank from 1775 until 1857, when the United States Congress created the rank of

flag officer A flag officer is a commissioned officer in a nation's armed forces senior enough to be entitled to fly a flag to mark the position from which the officer exercises command. The term is used differently in different countries: *In many countries ...

. With the addition of the ranks of

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

and

lieutenant commander Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding rank i ...

between lieutenant and captain, a Navy captain became equivalent in rank to an Army

Notes

References

DA Pamphlet 600–3, Commissioned Officer Professional Development and Career Management
{{US officer ranks Military ranks of the United States