General-in-chief military forces in the field, as the generals-in-chief did in the 19th century. The rank of "General of the Armies of the United States" was conferred upon General John J. Pershing in 1919 and to Lieutenant General George Washington (posthumously) in 1975 by acts of Congress. Washington's date of rank was retroactively dated to 1799, so that he will always be the senior ranking general of the United States Army. (American general ranks and titles may be a little confusing; however, as reference is cited the public domain information of the Center for Military History of the United States Army
General of the Armies the Army Personnel Office began attempting to resolve the confusion surrounding the status of General of the Armies. The Army Personnel Office determined that, because of the number of living five-star generals still on the Army rolls in 1964, to introduce a rank of General of the Armies would require a formal regulation dealing with seniority, insignia, and retirement benefits. The Army Judge Advocate General also advised that, should MacArthur receive promotion to rank of General of the Armies, salary and benefits associated with the much more firmly established rank of five-star General of the Army would have to be