General officer brigadier general is brigadier, which is not always considered by these armies to be a general officer rank, although it is always treated as equivalent to the rank of brigadier general for comparative purposes. As a lieutenant outranks a sergeant major; confusion often arises because a lieutenant is outranked by a major. Originally the serjeant major was, exclusively, the commander of the infantry, junior only to the captain general and lieutenant general. The distinction of serjeant major general only applied after serjeant majors were introduced as a rank of field officer. Serjeant was eventually dropped from both rank titles, creating
General of the Armies of the first presentations of the uniform to Army leadership, the Institute of Heraldry created an insignia chart with officer ranks ranging from Second lieutenant to General of the Armies of the United States. This 21st-century insignia chart, showing both a five- and six-star general officer, was considered unofficial by the Army and was later refined to show insignia only to four-star general. John J. Pershing was the only person in history to hold the rank of General of the Armies while serving on active duty. In 1919, to honor his service in World War I, Congress authorized the promotion