History of the Marine Corps Rank Structure

SSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 27 Sep 2014 04:25:54 -0400

This is not so much making an argument as it is just getting the information out there. It may be marine specific on some accounts, but the terms also transfer to other branches, and it's just all around good knowledge:

Private/PFC- Origin: Medieval England
Explanation-Kingdoms in the middle ages, for the most part, did not have a standing army at all times, but instead asked peasants to take up arms when the time came. In return for their services (in some places anyways) the reward for serving in the army was a piece of land that peasant could call their own, thereby making them a Private land owner. Because of that, the peasants that would answer the call were often termed "Privates". "Private First Class" were guys in the same situation, but were more proficient, as the term implies "Top of the Class" or "First in the Class".

Lance Corporal- Origin: Medieval Europe
Explanation-Upon becoming a Non-Commissioned Officer during the middle ages, one would obtain the rank of Corporal and would normally gain more of a command position, and would receive their own horse and lance to ride into battle. The horse was the critical way of demonstrating rank back then. So the obvious issue is what happens when your horse dies and you don't? Do you just go back to being a Private? In order to accommodate people in that situation, the rank of Lance Corporal was created to distinguish those guys. They fought on the ground- with a lance. The same principal applied to Sergeants whose horses were killed, and to this day the British military uses the title of Lance Sergeant.

Corporal- Origin: Ancient Roman Republic
Explanation-In the ancient world, the Roman Legion dominated Europe through strict discipline and cohesive organization; in fact the word cohesive comes from the Roman military cohort. A Cohort was one row of Centuries in a Legion, and a Century consisted anywhere from 80 to 150 legionnaires. Each Century was lead by a Centurion, which was equivalent of a Lieutenant today as far as authority. The issue was coordinating 80-150 men when they literally led from the front, so the Centurions began the practice of creating a title for their top men in each rank of the Century, giving them the Latin rank of "Capo Corporale" which translates to English as "Head of a Body", and these men stood in what we would compare to a Squad Leader's position in formation, meaning they were the head of each rank. "Capo Corporale" became Corporal over the last millennium, and today has this meaning, or "embodiment" depending on who you ask.

Sergeant- Origin: Unkown; Word comes from Ancient Roman Republic
Explanation-The concept, authority, and meaning of the modern Sergeant is the oldest rank still in use in the world. It goes back to the Fertile Crescent at the dawn of civilization, and the idea might even go back even further. The actual title and rank of Sergeant goes back once again to Ancient Rome. "Serventus" is Latin for "Servant", and "Sergentus" is Latin for "Sergeant"; the two were at one point one and the same, and as Rome began to glorify it's military more, they distinguished the Sergeant from the Servant. At the time, both still filled the same roles: coordinating the General's events, making his appointments, protecting the commander while enforcing his will and discipline to the rank and file, and making sure his is thoroughly briefed on everything.

*The rest of the Enlisted ranks, though used before and During WWII, were not made official ranks until the 1950's. While they had their own rank insignia, these ranks were more as billets, and not an actual rank (ie, the pay grade didn't change, only the responsibility). I'm not going to list the origins for them because they all came and went since the gunpowder age and each have multiple origins depending to the situation; some were given it permanently, some were given the rank for a single battle or operation.*

Staff Sergeant/Platoon Sergeant-
A Staff Sergeant is as simple as it sounds: A Sergeant that is accepted into the General's (or commander's) staff, and is usually the one dealing with security and relaying officers' orders to junior Sergeants. I add Platoon Sergeant in here because the ranks are very similar, only Platoon Sergeant was an infantry-specific rank and designated as the senior Sergeant in a Platoon, and acted as the escort, liaison, and advisor to his Platoon Commander (You will see this again).

Gunnery Sergeant-
A Gunnery Sergeant has history dealing with Artillery Batteries as far back as the Hundred Years' War. He was the senior Sergeant to a battery commander. Later the term would be used for various titles from the Sergeant that was in charge of training ranges, to the Sergeant in charge of the armory. "The Gunny" would gain a reputation as the only type of Sergeant that could be insubordinate and disrespectful to junior commissioned officers, even to the point of hitting them over the head and kicking them off of the range for flagging the line, damaging or tampering with weapons, or not following proper procedures. Though normally this type of behavior would be met with whippings, hangings, or demotion, depending on the time frame, senior officers knew the Gunnery Sergeant was the guy that made the guns, regardless of size, work, and they tended to side with him on disputes over the junior officers.

Master Sergeant/Master Gunnery Sergeant-
Master Sergeants and Master Gunnery Sergeants are newer ranks developed during the reorganization of the US military in the 1950's, although there is some scarce evidence of them being used prior to that. They were created to coincide with the quote describing the changing military: "I still need Marines who can shoot and salute. But I need Marines who can fix jet engines and man sophisticated radar sets, as well" (General Robert E. Cushman, Jr., USMC). These ranks were created as a way to equate a military version of civilian guild system (Apprentice-Journeyman-Master) and are regarded as Masters of their trade and craft, hence the rank titles.

First Sergeant/Sergeant Major-
This is simple- Both titles mean the same thing- they are the senior Sergeants in their unit. At the Company level, the First Sergeant is "The first among Sergeants" in his company. At all levels above, The Sergeant Major is the "Sergeant of the majority", which is also why you don't pluralize it as "Sergeant Majors", you say "Sergeants Major", because they are the Sergeants of the majority. Both their duties are the same, just on different levels: they act as the escort, liaison, and advisor to his/her commander.

Warrant Officer Ranks- Origin: Great Britain, age of discovery
Explanation: Warrant officer ranks started in the British Royal Navy and were created due to a high influx of nobility wanting to serve on British warships during the age of exploration. While these noblemen had previous military experience, none of them knew anything of life on a ship, how to steer, or how to relate. To avoid getting thrown off the ship, they wrote warrants to senior men, giving them the title of Warrant Officer (a rank by warrant, not commissioned and only recognized on the ship serving on and not by the rest of the Navy), as a buffer zone between the nobles and the drunken, angry sailors. As times changed, the rank split to be more efficient, where some were sent back to the enlisted ranks as Chief Petty Officers to man the cannons, and the remaining warrant officers became more absorbed with the commissioned officer ranks as the officer equivalent as Chief Warrant Officers; the rank of Warrant Officer was brought back later as a probational rank before being given a commission.

2nd and 1st Lieutenant- Origin: Medieval France
Explanation: Most military organization until the middle ages was simple: you have a General, and everybody else. When the General wasn't around, a Captain was appointed. That changed as armies became larger and needed more logistics and support in order to function properly. First, Generals were always nobility, and needed to constantly be at home to govern their lands. Captains were also lower nobility and also needed to frequently go home. So in order to keep control of the military,they would appoint someone else to lead the army while they were at home, usually one of their sons. These became Lieutenants, when broken down: "Lieu" and "Tenant" basically saying this guy is in charge "In lieu of the Tenant", the Tenant in this case being the Captain. There are two of them because sometimes the son appointed had to go home as well, so he appointed a brother, or sometimes a son to be the "Second guy that is in charge in lieu of the tenant".

Captain- Origin: Ancient Rome
Captain started as a naval term that designated the "Head" of a ship. Just as from Corporal's "Capo Corporale", "Capo", today's captain, means "Head", or more practically, "The Head". It can be the head of a Company, a ship, or industry.

Major- Origin: Medieval France
A Major simply commands "The Majority of the population". That is where is comes from and was probably created to distinguish a senior Captain from a Junior one.

Lieutenant Colonel/ Colonel- Origin: Renaissance in Spain and France
As gunpowder became a dominant weapon in Europe, many 'sword and shield' troops found themselves out of a job, and decided to band together to become mercenaries for hire. They settled in Spain and created mercenary camps known as "Coronelias", these camps were lead by a Coronel, which was believed to mean either the 'crown (Corona)', or the 'heart (Corazon)' of these armies. During the Protestant Reformation and the Thirty Years' War, almost all of these mercenaries were hired by the French to defend Catholicism. The Coronels were given high priority in the French military, and eventually the name merged with French and English until the name was watered down to become Colonel. A Lieutenant Colonel is in charge "In Lieu of the Colonel".

General Ranks- Origin: Ancient Rome, Medieval and Renaissance Europe
-Brigadier General- General in charge of a Brigade
-Major General- General in charge of the Majority
-Lieutenant General- General in charge "in lieu of" the General
-General- The guy in charge of the GENERAL population. This one is the oldest, and the other three were adapted later, and coincide with similar rank descriptions.

Response by SFC Mark Merino made Sep 27 at 2014 6:03 AM

SFC Mark Merino — Sat, 27 Sep 2014 06:03:23 -0400

The term Lance Corporal makes total sense now. Great intel paper SSgt Private RallyPoint Member What got stuck in your brain housing grup to undertake this research? Good deal!

Response by MSgt Keith Hebert made Sep 28 at 2014 1:43 AM

MSgt Keith Hebert — Sun, 28 Sep 2014 01:43:49 -0400

Very impressive

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 28 at 2014 1:57 AM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Sun, 28 Sep 2014 01:57:34 -0400

Great Read.

Response by Cpl Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 28 at 2014 3:06 AM

Cpl Private RallyPoint Member — Sun, 28 Sep 2014 03:06:18 -0400

Thank you for the history lesson. This is great information.

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 21 at 2014 7:45 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 21 Oct 2014 19:45:36 -0400

Very good history lesson. Very detailed and will become a good class to pass on. Thank You

Response by MSG Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 24 at 2015 5:59 PM

MSG Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 24 Feb 2015 17:59:12 -0500

Major General started out as Sergeant Major General. 17th Century English, or there abouts.

Response by PFC Zanie Young made Mar 6 at 2015 4:24 PM

PFC Zanie Young — Fri, 06 Mar 2015 16:24:08 -0500

Very informative. I learned a lot today. Do you have one for the Navy?

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 23 at 2015 6:34 AM

MAJ Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 23 Apr 2015 06:34:54 -0400

SSgt Private RallyPoint Member When I joined the Corps there were still several Marine Gunners serving. During your research did you find anything about them. They were technically Chief Warrant Weapons Officer (MOS 0306). They wore the Bursting Bomb insignia. They were not appointed as Warrants but commissioned directly to CW2. I remember we used to call our warrants "Gunner" but I camp to learn that was more tradition than being correct. Technically, only the "Gunner" can be called "Gunner." Supposedly, Marine Gunners were the first Marine Warrants and were pinned around the end of WWI.

Interesting stuff.

Semper Fi.

Response by Capt Mark Strobl made Sep 26 at 2015 11:36 AM

Capt Mark Strobl — Sat, 26 Sep 2015 11:36:36 -0400

Great stuff here, SSgt Private RallyPoint Member. I learned something today!

Response by SSgt Alex Robinson made Sep 26 at 2015 11:46 AM

SSgt Alex Robinson — Sat, 26 Sep 2015 11:46:36 -0400

Great post

Response by 1stSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 7 at 2015 3:12 PM

1stSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 07 Nov 2015 15:12:01 -0500

That is awesome. Thanks for the insight and good work. Semper Fidelis.

Response by MSgt Daniel Attilio made Nov 7 at 2015 4:28 PM

MSgt Daniel Attilio — Sat, 07 Nov 2015 16:28:27 -0500

The rank of Sergeant Major did not exist between 1946-1954 and we were honored to have (one of) the first Marine(s) promoted to that rank when it was reestablished in 1954 at our Marine Corps Ball in 2009. SgtMaj Conly was still an impressive Marine at 89 years old. All the wives followed him around like little groupies at the ball.

Response by Cpl Alan Mackin made Nov 17 at 2015 12:46 PM

Cpl Alan Mackin — Tue, 17 Nov 2015 12:46:42 -0500

Great read. Very informative. Thanks for posting.

Response by GySgt Carl Rumbolo made Feb 16 at 2016 5:25 PM

GySgt Carl Rumbolo — Tue, 16 Feb 2016 17:25:37 -0500

and your source data please.....

Response by LTC Paul Labrador made Feb 16 at 2016 6:07 PM

LTC Paul Labrador — Tue, 16 Feb 2016 18:07:45 -0500

"Major General" was originally supposed to be Sergeant Major General.....but that would have been waaaay too confusing. Also General was more in reference to their duties. Sub flag ranks are tied to their branch/MOS (Infantry, Cavalry, Artillery, etc), while General Officers are not. Thus they are "generalists".....

Response by LTC Paul Labrador made Feb 16 at 2016 6:16 PM

LTC Paul Labrador — Tue, 16 Feb 2016 18:16:11 -0500

Also wondering about the "lance corporal", since that rank is not unique to the USMC. In 17th and 18th century warfare, NCOs were not issued muskets like rank and file. They were armed with an espontoon (essentially a pike or lance) which was his sign of authority. His job was not to necessarily take part in the musket volleys, but to keep the ranks dressed as they maneuvered, gather up stragglers and discourage men from breaking ranks. Maybe the origin of lance corporal could also have come from a junior NCO who was given a espontoon instead of a musket.

Sergeant is also interesting. In addition to what you wrote, the term was used by medieval holy orders (Templars, Hospitallars, Teutonic Knights, etc) for a man-at-arms brother who bore armor and arms and rated a horse, but could not be knighted due to non-noble birth.

Response by Cpl David Klassen made Feb 17 at 2016 12:54 AM

Cpl David Klassen — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 00:54:05 -0500

Thank you SSgt. I wish they would have instructed us at NCO school. Way be when........

Response by PO1 Aaron Baltosser made May 8 at 2017 8:47 PM

PO1 Aaron Baltosser — Mon, 08 May 2017 20:47:41 -0400

When was Corporal first used in the Marine Corps as part of the NCO structure? I've been digging around tonight to answer a question on that point, but have come up with nothing.

Response by CSM Charles Hayden made Feb 24 at 2018 11:56 PM

CSM Charles Hayden — Sat, 24 Feb 2018 23:56:42 -0500

SSgt Private RallyPoint Member Well done!

Response by CWO3 Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 25 at 2018 12:10 AM

CWO3 Private RallyPoint Member — Sun, 25 Feb 2018 00:10:57 -0500

Interesting read. Seems you spent a fair amount of time compiling it. Thanks for your effort and for sharing with RP community.

Response by GySgt Thomas Reichard made May 24 at 2018 3:28 PM

GySgt Thomas Reichard — Thu, 24 May 2018 15:28:07 -0400

Very well done. I was surprised when first opening, expected to see an explanation of modern changes, i.e. 20th century. Very much enjoyed the refresher for the most part, education in others, on the subject of origins.

1946 - 1958 in RANK they were all M/Sgt's if wearing 3 up/3 down. The titles Sgt/Maj., 1st/Sgt. and sometimes MGy/Sgt. were billet titles, usually but not always bestowed on the senior M/Sgt depending on the unit billet.

As you referred to 1958 was the beginning of the admin/tech. separation in the upper ranks. I'm not sure when the "1st/Sgt. / Sgt/Maj." track way of doing things was instituted in it's present form. I do know though, that into the 70's Senior SNCO's could change from one to the other. I worked for a MGun's who had a cert. on his wall for that, 1st/Sgt. and M/Sgt. on the wall in his office. He was in receipt of orders at the time and his next stop was as a Bn. Sgt/Maj.

I'd had it explained how it worked back then and will have to do some brain-scrubbing. I'll see what I can come up with.

Again, really good info above.