Grand Admiral is a historic naval rank, generally being the highest such rank present in any particular country. Its most notable use is in Germany — the German word is Großadmiral.
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France
In Bourbon Restoration France, the rank was an honorific one equivalent to that of Marshal in the French Army.
Germany
In the German Navy, the rank was the equivalent of a British Admiral of the Fleet or a United States Fleet Admiral. It was created in 1901, and like Field Marshals its holders were authorised to carry a baton.[1]
World War I
Before and during World War I, the following men were made Grand Admirals of the German Kaiserliche Marine (Imperial Navy):
- Emperor Wilhelm II (1901)
- King Oscar II of Sweden (1901)
- Hans von Koester (28 June 1905)
- Prince Heinrich von Preußen (4 September 1909)
- Alfred von Tirpitz (27 January 1911)
- Henning von Holtzendorff (31 May 1918)
World War II
Before and during World War II, the following men were made Grand Admirals of the German Kriegsmarine:
- Erich Raeder, then-Commander-in-Chief of the Kriegsmarine, was made a Grand Admiral on 1 April 1939
- Karl Dönitz, commander of the U-Boat Fleet and later successor to Adolf Hitler, was made a Grand Admiral on 30 January 1943 upon succeeding Raeder as Commander-in-Chief.
The Kriegsmarine also used the rank of General Admiral (Generaladmiral) which was senior to a full Admiral, but junior to a Grand Admiral.
Italy
The rank of Grand Admiral (in Italian, Grande Ammiraglio) was created by Benito Mussolini in 1924. It was established primarily to honour Paolo Thaon di Revel, who had been head of the Italian Regia Marina during World War I — he was the only person to be awarded the rank. It was equivalent to Marshal of Italy in the army.
Peru
The rank of Grand Admiral of Peru (in Spanish, Gran Almirante del Perú) was created by Peruvian Congress in 1967. It was posthumously awarded to Miguel Grau Seminario who was a renowned Peruvian naval officer of German ancestry and hero of the Naval Battle of Angamos during the War of the Pacific (1879-1884).
Austria-Hungary
Anton Haus, commander of the Austro-Hungarian navy for part of World War I, was given the title of Grand Admiral (Großadmiral) in 1916. No other active-duty officer (except members of the Imperial family) was ever given this rank (although Haus's immediate successor, Maximilian Njegovan, was promoted to Grand Admiral on the retired list in 1918).
In Popular Culture
The rank of Grand Admiral also has appeared in science fiction literature, most significiant of which is the literature of Star Wars. Grand Admiral Thrawn, of the Timothy Zahn novels, is one such science fiction character who held this highest of naval ranks.
Footnotes
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