Brigadier

Brigadier is a rank in the British Army, Royal Marines, Australian Army, New Zealand Army, and several other armies, ranking above Colonel and immediately below Major-General. It was introduced in 1928 to replace the short-lived appointment of Colonel-Commandant that had replaced the rank of Brigadier-General in 1922.

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Brigadiers generally command brigades. The term "Brigadier" was before 1922 often used to refer to brigadier-generals.

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Brigadier is the most senior field rank and is therefore basically a senior colonel, very much as a Commodore is to a Captain in the navy. Until shortly after the Second World War, it was only an appointment conferred on colonels (as commodore was an appointment conferred on naval captains) and not a substantive rank. Although it is not a general officer rank, it has been awarded the equivalent NATO status to a Brigadier General in services which use that rank.

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In Commonwealth and most Arabic-speaking countries (in which the rank is called Amid) the rank insignia comprises a crown (or national/presidential emblem in republics) over three stars (sometimes called "pips") arranged in a triangular pattern. A brigadier's uniform is otherwise identical to that of a colonel (colonels have two stars).

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In many French-speaking countries, some branches of the Army (such as logistics or former cavalry units), Police or Gendarmerie use Brigadier for a rank equivalent to Caporal (corporal). In the Police Nationale, variations (Sous-brigadier, Brigadier-chef and Brigadier-major) are used for all non-commissioned officers.

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British Army: The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. In contrast to the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force, the British Army does not include royal in its title, because of its roots as a collection of disparate units. The British Army has taken part in campaigns throughout ...

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Brigadier related Images and Photos (experimental)

Double Portrait of the Artist with Brigadier-General Robert Killigrew