Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a

military 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 ...

rank used in many countries. The rank originates from the Old European System. The rank traces its origins to the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the

second-in-command Second-in-command (2i/c or 2IC) is a title denoting that the holder of the title is the second-highest authority within a certain organisation. Usage In the British Army or Royal Marines, the second-in-command is the deputy commander of a unit, ...

on the battlefield, who was normally subordinate to a captain general. In modern armies, lieutenant general normally ranks immediately below

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...

(or

colonel general Colonel general is a three- or four-star military rank used in some armies. It is particularly associated with Germany, where historically general officer ranks were one grade lower than in the Commonwealth and the United States, and was a ra ...

) and above

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

; it is equivalent to the navy rank of vice admiral, and in air forces with a separate rank structure, it is equivalent to air marshal. In the United States, a lieutenant general has a three star insignia and commands an army corps, typically made up of three army divisions, and consisting of around 60,000 to 70,000 soldiers. The seeming incongruity that a lieutenant general outranks a major general (whereas a

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

outranks a

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 sub ...

) is due to the derivation of major general from

sergeant major general Sergeant major general is a now mostly extinct name of military rank. A prominent example was Philip Skippon in the English New Model Army as organized by Oliver Cromwell. Over the course of the 17th century, the increasing professionalisation o ...

, which was a rank subordinate to lieutenant general (as a lieutenant outranks a sergeant major). Several countries (e.g. Balkan states) use the rank of lieutenant colonel general instead of lieutenant general, in an attempt to solve this apparent anomaly. In contrast, in

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

and a number of other countries of the former

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

, lieutenant general is a rank immediately below

, and above

– in these systems there is no use of the

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

of many Western countries. In addition, some countries use the lieutenant general as the rank of divisional commander, and some have designated them with French revolutionary system. For example, some countries of South America use

divisional general Divisional general is a general officer rank who commands an army division. The rank originates from the French (Revolutionary) System, and is used by a number of countries. The rank is above a brigade general, and normally below an army corps ...

as the equivalent of lieutenant general.

Lieutenant general ranks by country

Lieutenant general (Australia) Lieutenant general (abbreviated LTGEN and pronounced 'lef-tenant general') is the second-highest active rank of the Australian Army. It was created as a direct equivalent of the British military rank of lieutenant general, and is considered a th ...

Lieutenant general (Bangladesh) Lieutenant General (abbreviated as Lt. Gen. and in contraction simply known as 'general') is a senior rank in the Bangladesh Army. It is the second-highest active rank of the Bangladesh Army and was created as a direct equivalent of the British m ...

Lieutenant-general (Canada) Lieutenant-general (LGen; ) is a Canadian Forces rank used by commissioned officers of the Canadian Army or Royal Canadian Air Force. Vice-admiral is the equivalent rank in the Royal Canadian Navy. A lieutenant-general is a general officer, senio ...

* (

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

) * (

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

) * (

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

) * Lieutenant general (India) * Lieutenant general (Nigeria) * Lieutenant general (Pakistan) *

Lieutenant general (Sri Lanka) Lieutenant general (abbreviated as Lt. Gen. and pronounced 'lef-tenant general') (Sinhala language, Sinhala: ලුතිනන් ජෙනරාල් ''Lutinan Jenaral'') is the second-highest rank of the Sri Lanka Army and generally it is t ...

* (

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

) * Lieutenant general (United Kingdom) *

Lieutenant general (United States) In the United States Armed Forces, a lieutenant general is a three-star general officer in the United States Army, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Space Force. A lieutenant general ranks above a major general and below a general. The pay grad ...

Army ranks

File:ALB-Army-OF-8.svg,
(

Albanian Army The Albanian Land Force ( sq, Forca Tokësore të Republikës së Shqipërisë) is the land force branch of the Albanian Armed Forces. Mission The Albanian Land Force's main mission is the defense of the independence, sovereignty and territoria ...

) File:Angola-Army-OF-8.svg,
(

Angolan Army The Angolan Army () is the land component of the Angolan Armed Forces (FAA). History On August 1, 1974, a few months after a military coup d'état had overthrown the Lisbon regime and proclaimed its intention of granting independence to Angola, ...

) File:Argentina-Army-OF-9.svg,
(

Argentine Army The Argentine Army ( es, Ejército Argentino, EA) is the land force branch of the Armed Forces of the Argentine Republic and the senior military service of Argentina. Under the Argentine Constitution, the president of Argentina is the commander- ...

) File:Armenia-Army-OF-7.svg,

( Armenian Ground Forces) File:Australian Army OF-8.svg, Lieutenant general
(

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...

) File:Bundesheer - Rank insignia - Generalleutnant.png,
(

Austrian Army The Austrian Armed Forces (german: Bundesheer, lit=Federal Army) are the combined military forces of the Republic of Austria. The military consists of 22,050 active-duty personnel and 125,600 reservists. The military budget is 0.74% of natio ...

) File:General-leytenant AzSQ.svg,
( Azerbaijani Land Forces) File:Bangladesh-army-OF-8.svg, Lieutenant general

( Bangladesh Army) File:Post-Soviet-Army-OF-7.svg,

( Belarusian Ground Forces) File:Army-BEL-OF-08.svg,
(

Belgian Land Component The Land Component ( nl, Landcomponent, french: Composante terre) is the land branch of the Belgian Armed Forces. The King of the Belgians is the commander in chief. The current chief of staff of the Land Component is Major-General Pierre Gérard. ...

) File:15.Bhutan Army-LG.svg,
Lieutenant general
(

Royal Bhutan Army The Royal Bhutan Army (RBA; dz, བསྟན་སྲུང་དམག་སྡེ་, bStan-srung dmag-sde) is a branch of the armed forces of the Kingdom of Bhutan responsible for maintaining the country's territorial integrity and sovereign ...

) File:Rank insignia of Генерал-лейтенант of the Bulgarian Army.png,

( Bulgarian Land Forces) File:Botswana-Army-OF-8.svg, Lieutenant general
( Botswana Ground Force) File:18.RBrLF-LG.svg,
( Royal Brunei Land Force) File:Blank.svg,

( Burundi Army) File:Canadian Army OF-8.svg, Lieutenant-general

(

Canadian Army The Canadian Army (french: Armée canadienne) is the command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also respo ...

) File:DR Congo Army OF-8.svg,
( Land Forces of the DR Congo) File:CzArmy 2011 OF8-Generalporucik shoulder.svg,
( Czech Land Forces) File:Denmark-Army-OF-8-M11.svg,
(

Royal Danish Army The Royal Danish Army ( da, Hæren, fo, Herurin, kl, Sakkutuut) is the land-based branch of the Danish Defence, together with the Danish Home Guard. For the last decade, the Royal Danish Army has undergone a massive transformation of structures ...

) File:Capona Teniente General Ejercito Nacional.svg,
( Dominican Army) File:Estonia-Army-OF-8.svg,
(

Estonian Land Forces The Estonian Land Forces ( et, Maavägi), unofficially referred to as the Estonian Army, is the name of the unified ground forces among the Estonian Defense Forces where it has an offensive military formation role. It is currently the largest ...

) File:Kenraaliluutnantti M05.svg,

( Finnish Army) File:15.Gambian Army-LG.svg, Lieutenant general
(

Gambian National Army The Gambia Armed Forces, also known as the Armed Forces of The Gambia, consists of three branches: the Gambia National Army (GNA), the Gambia Navy, and the Republican National Guard (RNG). It formerly included the Gambia National Gendarmerie (GNG) ...

) File:Georgia-Army-OF-8.svg,

(

Georgian Land Forces The Georgian Land Forces ( ka, საქართველოს სახმელეთო ძალები) are the land force component of the Defense Forces of Georgia. They are the largest branch of the military and constitute the bulk o ...

) File:HD H 63 Generalleutnant.svg,
(

German Army The German Army (, "army") is the land component of the armed forces of Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German ''Bundeswehr'' together with the ''Marine'' (German Navy) and the ''Luftwaf ...

) File:15-Ghana Army-LG.svg, Lieutenant general
( Ghana Army) File:14. Guinea-Bissau LG.svg,
( Army of Guinea-Bissau) File:Haiti-Army-OF-8.svg,
(

Haitian Army The Armed Forces of Haiti (french: Forces Armées d'Haïti—FAd'H), consisted of the Haitian Army, Haitian Navy (at times), the Haitian Air Force, Haitian Coast Guard, (ANI) and some police forces (Port-au-Prince Police). The Army was always ...

) File:Lieutenant General of the Indian Army.svg, Lieutenant general

(

Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...

) File:21-TNI Army-LG.svg,
(

Indonesian Army The Indonesian Army ( id, Tentara Nasional Indonesia Angkatan Darat (TNI-AD), ) is the land branch of the Indonesian National Armed Forces. It has an estimated strength of 300,000 active personnel. The history of the Indonesian Army has its ...

) File:Ireland-Army-OF-8.svg, Lieutenant-general

( Irish Army) File:IT-Army-OF8.svg,
(

Italian Army "The safeguard of the republic shall be the supreme law" , colors = , colors_labels = , march = ''Parata d'Eroi'' ("Heroes's parade") by Francesco Pellegrino, ''4 Maggio'' (May 4) ...

) File:Jamaica-Army-OF-8 (new).svg, Lieutenant general
( Jamaican Army) File:18-RKGF-LG.svg,

( Kazakh Ground Forces) File:15. Kenyan Army LG.svg, Lieutenant general
( Kenya Army) File:Kosovo-Army-OF-8.svg,
(

Kosovo Security Force , image = KSF logo.svg , alt = , caption = Emblem , image2 = Flag of the Kosovo Security Force.svg , alt2 = , caption2 = Flag , motto = , founded ...

) File:LV-Army-OF8.png,
( Latvian Land Forces) File:Blank.svg, Lieutenant general
(

Lesotho Army The Lesotho Defence Force (LDF) is the military of the Southern African Kingdom of Lesotho, which consists of about 2,000 personnel and is tasked with maintaining internal security, territorial integrity, and defending the constitution of Lesoth ...

) File:Liberia-Army-OF-8.svg, Lieutenant general
( Liberian Ground Forces) File:21-Lithuania Army-LG.svg,
( Lithuanian Land Forces) File:15. Malawi Army - LG.svg, Lieutenant general
( Malawi Army) File:Malaysia-army-OF-8.svg,
(

Malaysian Army The Malaysian Army ( ms, Tentera Darat Malaysia; Jawi: تنترا دارت مليسيا) is the land component of the Malaysian Armed Forces. Steeped in British Army traditions, the Malaysian Army does not carry the title ‘royal’ () as do th ...

) File:Mongolian Army-LTG-service.svg,

(

Mongolian Ground Force The Ground Force of Mongolia (, ''Mongol Ulsyn Zevsegt hüchniy Huurai zamyn tsereg'', ) is the land force of the Mongolian Armed Forces, formed from parts of the former Mongolian People's Army in 1992. It was known as the "Mongolian General Purpo ...

s) File:Mozambique-Army-OF-7.svg,
( Mozambican Army) File:15-Namibia Army-LG.svg, Lieutenant general
( Namibian Army) File:Nl-landmacht-luitenant generaal.svg,
(

Royal Netherlands Army The Royal Netherlands Army ( nl, Koninklijke Landmacht) is the land branch of the Netherlands Armed Forces. Though the Royal Netherlands Army was raised on 9 January 1814, its origins date back to 1572, when the was raised – making the Dutc ...

) File:19.Nepalese Army-LG.svg, Lieutenant general

( Nepali Army) File:New Zealand-Army-OF-8.svg, Lieutenant-general
(

New Zealand Army , image = New Zealand Army Logo.png , image_size = 175px , caption = , start_date = , country = , branch = ...

) File:Nigeria-Army-OF-8.svg, Lieutenant general
(

Nigerian Army The Nigerian Army (NA) is the land force of the Nigerian Armed Forces. It is governed by the Nigerian Army Council (NAC). The Chief of Army Staff is the highest ranking military officer of the Nigerian Army. History Formation The Nigerian ...

) File:Norway-army-OF-8.svg,
( Norwegian Army) File:OF-8 PakistanArmy.svg, Lieutenant general

(

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ) is the Army, land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the partition of India, Partition of British India, wh ...

) File:PA Lt. Gen.png, Lieutenant general
( Philippine Army) File:Army-POR-OF-08.svg,
(

Portuguese Army The Portuguese Army ( pt, Exército Português) is the land component of the Armed Forces of Portugal and is also its largest branch. It is charged with the defence of Portugal, in co-operation with other branches of the Armed Forces. With its ...

) File:Romania-Army-OF-8.svg,
(

Romanian Land Forces The Romanian Land Forces ( ro, Forțele Terestre Române) is the army of Romania, and the main component of the Romanian Armed Forces. In recent years, full professionalisation and a major equipment overhaul have transformed the nature of the Lan ...

) File:Russia-Army-OF-7-2010.svg,

(

Russian Ground Forces The Russian Ground Forces (russian: Сухопутные войска �ВSukhoputnyye voyska V}), also known as the Russian Army (, ), are the land forces of the Russian Armed Forces. The primary responsibilities of the Russian Ground Forces ...

) File:15-Rwanda Army-LG.svg, Lieutenant general
( Rwandan Land Forces) File:Blank.svg, Lieutenant general
( Sierra Leone Army) File:10-RSA-OF08.svg, Lieutenant general
(

Singapore Army The Singapore Army is the land service branch of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF). The largest of the four branches of the SAF, the Singapore Army traces its origins to the 1st Battalion, Singapore Infantry Regiment (1 SIR), which was formed i ...

) File:Army-SVK-OF-08.svg,
(

Slovak Ground Forces The Slovak Ground Forces, also known as the Slovak Army, is the land specialized service branch of the Slovak Armed Forces. Structure Ground Forces Command * Ground Forces Command, in Trenčín (Commander: 2 Star General) ** Command Suppo ...

) File:Spain-Army-OF-8.svg,
(

Spanish Army The Spanish Army ( es, Ejército de Tierra, lit=Land Army) is the terrestrial army of the Spanish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is one of the oldest active armies — dating back to the late 15th century. The ...

) File:Sri Lanka-army-OF-8.svg, Lieutenant general
( Sri Lanka Army) File:SAA-OF-8.svg, Lieutenant general
(

South African Army The South African Army is the principal land warfare force of South Africa, a part of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), along with the South African Air Force, South African Navy and South African Military Health Service. ...

) File:Blank.svg, Lieutenant general
(

South Sudan Army The South Sudan People's Defence Forces (SSPDF), formerly the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), is the army of the South Sudan, Republic of South Sudan. The SPLA was founded as a guerrilla movement against the government of Sudan in 198 ...

) File:Blank.svg, Lieutenant general
( Eswatini Army) File:Sweden-Field-OF-8 (2019).svg,
(

Swedish Army The Swedish Army ( sv, svenska armén) is the land force of the Swedish Armed Forces. History Svea Life Guards dates back to the year 1521, when the men of Dalarna chose 16 young able men as body guards for the insurgent nobleman Gustav Vas ...

) File:Tajikistan-Army-OF-7.png,

(

Tajik National Army tg, Қувваҳои Мусаллаҳи Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, italics=off , image=File:Tajik Armed Forces Shoulder Patch.jpg , image_size= , image2 = , alt2 = Roundel , caption=The shoulder patch o ...

) File:16-Tanzania Army-LG.svg, Lieutenant general

(

Tanzanian Army Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...

) File:Timor-Leste-Army-OF-8.svg,
( Timor-Leste Army) File:Post-Soviet-Army-OF-7.svg,
(

Turkmen Ground Forces The Turkmen Ground Forces () is the army branch of the Armed Forces of Turkmenistan. The ground forces include the 2nd, 3rd, 11th, and 22nd Motor Rifle Divisions as well as smaller units consisting of various types of troops. History The b ...

) File:Uganda-Army-OF-8.svg, Lieutenant general
( Ugandan Army) File:Погон генерал-лейтенанта ЗСУ (2020).svg,

(

Ukrainian Ground Forces The Ukrainian Ground Forces ( uk, Сухопу́тні військá Збрóйних сил Украї́ни), also known as the Ukrainian Army, are the Army, land forces of Ukraine and one of the five Military branch, branches of the Armed For ...

) File:British Army OF-8.svg, Lieutenant-general
(

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

) File:US Army O9 (Army greens).svg, Lieutenant general
(

United States 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, cla ...

) File:Blank.svg,
( National Army of Uruguay) File:Uzbekistan-army-OF-7.svg,
( Uzbek Ground Forces) File:Blank.svg, Lieutenant general
( Zambian Army) File:Zimbabwe-Army-OF-8.svg, Lieutenant general
(

Zimbabwe National Army The Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) is the primary branch of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces responsible for land-oriented military operations. It is the largest service branch under the Zimbabwean Joint Operations Command (JOC). The modern army has ...

)

Air force ranks

File:US Air Force O9 shoulderboard.svg,

Lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

(

United States 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 Signal ...

)

Naval infantry

File:21-TNI Navy-VADM.svg,
( Indonesian Marine Corps) Maldives Army OF-8.svg,
Lieutenant general
( Maldivian Marine Corps) Netherlands-Navy-OF-8.svg,
(

Netherlands Marine Corps The Netherlands Marine Corps ( nl, Korps Mariniers) is the elite naval infantry corps of the Royal Netherlands Navy. The marines trace their origins back to the establishment of the on 10 December 1665, by the then grand pensionary of the Dut ...

) 0infant.png,
( Spanish Marine Infantry) Sweden-Navy-OF-8.svg,
(

Swedish Amphibious Corps The Amphibious Corps ( sv, Amfibiekåren, Amf) is the maritime land force arm of the Swedish Navy, with an emphasis on coastal defence. Until 2000 it was known as the Coastal Artillery ( sv, Kustartilleriet), but the name was changed to reflect i ...

) British Royal Marines OF-8.svg, Lieutenant-general
(

Royal Marines The Corps of Royal Marines (RM), also known as the Royal Marines Commandos, are the UK's special operations capable commando force, amphibious light infantry and also one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy. The Corps of Royal Marine ...

) US Marine O9 shoulderboard vertical.svg, Lieutenant general
(

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

)

References

External links