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From: rqdms@lims04.lerc.nasa.gov (Dennis Stockert)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Re: Confusion...
Message-ID: <1991Jun22.041610.2991@cbnews.cb.att.com>
Date: 22 Jun 91 04:16:10 GMT
References: <1991Jun21.014233.14421@cbnews.cb.att.com>
Sender: military@cbnews.cb.att.com (william.a.thacker)
Organization: NASA Lewis Research Center
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From: rqdms@lims04.lerc.nasa.gov (Dennis Stockert)
In article <1991Jun21.014233.14421@cbnews.cb.att.com>, Bob.Underdown@f1040.n391.z1.FidoNet.Org (Bob Underdown) writes...
> 
> 
>From: Bob.Underdown@f1040.n391.z1.FidoNet.Org (Bob Underdown)
> 
>Would someone care to explain why a Major outranks a Lieutenant but in
>the Civil War, a Lieutenant General was considered a higher rank than
>Major General?   [....]

I'm not totally sure I understand the specific question you have, but in 
those services with this rank structure (in the U.S.), it's still the same 
today.... a major still outranks a lieutenant, and a lieutenant general 
still outranks a major general.  The general officer ranks are, lowest to 
highest:  brigadier general, major general, lieutenant general, and general 
(omitting the very rare top rank of 5-star general :-)

As to =why= the apparent inconsistency of the relative status of the terms 
"major" and "lieutenant", I guess I'll leave that to the military history 
buffs (I =know= you're out there .... :-)


***********************************************************************
* Dennis Stockert              *  Life is what happens to you while   *
* rqdms@lims01.lerc.nasa.gov   *  you're planning other things - Mom  *
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*  No one that knows me would mistake my opinions for those of        *
*                 any respectable organization                        *
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