History of the Office of The Inspector General of the United States Army (IG January 10, 1863April 1, 1864; January 2, 1881March 8, 1885) was assigned as the "de facto" head of the Office of the Inspector General, which, until then had not existed. 2 major generals, 7 brigadier generals, 18 colonels, 118 lieutenant colonels, and 149 majors of the regular army served inspector duty during the Civil War. On January 22, 1866, a War Department order established the duties of the inspector general as: In July 1866, the number of inspectors general with the rank of colonel was fixed at four; assistant inspectors general with the rank of lieutenant colonel at three;
General officers in the United States General officers in the United States A general officer is an officer of high military rank; in the uniformed services of the United States, general officers are commissioned officers above the field officer ranks, the highest of which is colonel in the Army, Marine Corps, and Air Force and captain, in the Navy, Coast Guard, Public Health Service Commissioned Corps (PHSCC), and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Corps (NOAACC). General officer ranks currently used in the uniformed services are: Above these four general-officer ranks are five-star ranks, but these are generally reserved for wartime use. They are the General