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
Major general armed forces. The major general assists the chief of staff of the French army with matters such as human resources, management, and discipline, and his role is roughly analogous with the British Army position of Adjutant-General to the Forces. The position of "major général" can be considered the equivalent of a deputy chief of staff. The five major generals are: the Major General of the Armed Forces, head of the General Staff, the Major General of the Army, the Major General of the Navy, the Major General of the "Gendarmerie", and the Major General of the Air Force. In the