General of the Armies That a Commander of the United States shall be appointed and commissioned by the style of General of the Armies of the United States and the present office and title of Lieutenant General shall thereafter be abolished. The rank of General of the Armies was intended for bestowal upon George Washington, who held the rank of "General and Commander-in-Chief" which was a grade senior to all American major generals and brigadier generals from the American Revolutionary War. However, only a few months after the Congressional proposal, Washington died on December 14, 1799. The United States Army at that time had
General-in-chief general officers of the army have been promoted: General-in-chief General in Chief has been a military rank or title in various armed forces around the world. On January 31, 1865, the 2nd Confederate States Congress established a “General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate States”. General Robert E. Lee was appointed to the position on February 6th and served until the end of the American Civil War. During the entire time, Lee retained command of the Army of Northern Virginia, serving in both positions until he was paroled as a prisoner of war on April 12th. In France,