During World War I, Congress authorized the "ex officio" grade of general for the chief of staff of the Army and the commander of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) in France, but only during the wartime emergency. Unlike the 1866 grade, which was a permanent personal appointment, the 1917 grade was only held while occupying a specific office. Army chief of staff Tasker H. Bliss and AEF commander John J. Pershing were commissioned emergency generals on October 8, 1917, with Peyton C. March succeeding Bliss as chief of staff and emergency general on May 20, 1918.