Lieutenant general Lieutenant general Lieutenant general, lieutenant-general and similar (abbrev Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second in command on the battlefield, who was normally subordinate to a captain general. In modern armies, lieutenant general normally ranks immediately below general and above major general; it is equivalent to the navy rank of vice admiral, and in air forces with a separate rank structure, it is equivalent to air marshal. A lieutenant general
General officers in the United States Lieutenant Generals and Generals reverted to their permanent ranks of Major General, except for Pershing. Pershing retired from the United States Army on 13 September 1924, and retained his rank of General of the Armies of the United States until his death in 1948. He was later considered a five or six-star general as the result of the creation of the General of the Army rank in 1944. The rank of general was reauthorized in 1929 as a unique temporary rank of the Army Chief of Staff starting with Charles Pelot Summerall. The main purpose of this was to give