General of the Armies in chief of the Army of the [United States]". but only wore the three-star insignia of an Army lieutenant general. As of 1782, when Washington was listed as a lieutenant general on the rolls of the United States Army, his rank was informally called "three-star general". The United States at this point had no four-star general rank and would not until 1866. At that time, the European rank of captain general was shortened to simply "general"; there would also be no lieutenant generals in the American army until Winfield Scott was "brevetted" to the rank of lieutenant general in 1855.
General of the Armies Washington was posthumously promoted to the full grade of "General of the Armies of the United States", with effective date from July 4, 1976. The promotion was authorized by a congressional joint resolution on January 19, 1976 which recommended Washington's promotion and further declared that no officer of the United States armed forces should ever outrank George Washington. The signed by Secretary of the Army Clifford Alexander, Jr., simply formalised the promotion. It did not mention six-star status, nor did it include, as the legislation did, the phrasing "such grade to have rank and precedence over all other grades of