Douglas Generals
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As armies grew larger, composed of multiple companies, one captain
was granted general (overall) authority over the field armies by the
King. (National armies were the armies of the kings. Field armies
were armies raised by the King to enter the battle field in
preparation for major battles.) In French history, “lieutenant du
roi” was a title borne by the officer sent with military powers to
represent the king in certain provinces. A lieutenant du roi was
sometimes known as a lieutenant general to distinguish him from
lieutenants subordinate to mere captains. The sergeant acting as
staff officer to the captain general was known as the sergeant-major
general. This was eventually shortened to major general, while
captain general was shortened to simply general. This is the reason
why a major outranks a lieutenant, but a lieutenant general outranks
a major general.
As armies grew bigger, heraldry and unit
identification remained primarily a matter of the regiment. Brigades
headed by brigadier generals were the units invented as a tactical
unit, by the Swedish king Gustavus Adolphus the second ("Gustav II
Adolf", dead at battle of Lutzen 1632). It was introduced to
overcome the normal army structure, consisting of regiments. The
so-called “brigada” was a mixed unit, comprising infantry, cavalry
and normally artillery too, designated for a special task. The size
of such “brigada” was a reinforced company up to two regiments. The
“brigada” was a 17th century form of the modern “task force”. In
some armies "Brigadier General" has been shortened to "Brigadier".
Around the end of the 16th century, companies were grouped into
regiments. The officers commissioned to lead these regiments were in
fact called colonels (column officers). They were first appointed in
Spain by King Ferdinand II of Aragon where they were also known as
coronellos (crown officers) since they were appointed by the Crown.
Thus the English pronunciation of the word colonel.
The first
colonels were captains granted command of their regiments by
commission of the King. The lieutenants of the colonel were the
lieutenant colonels. In the 17th century, the sergeant of the
colonel was the sergeant major. These were field officers, third in
command of their regiments (after their colonels and lieutenant
colonels), with a role similar to the older, army-level sergeants
major (although obviously on a smaller scale). The older position
became known as sergeant major general to distinguish it. Over time,
the sergeant was dropped from both titles since both ranks were used
for commissioned officers. This gave rise to the modern ranks of
major and major general.
The full title of sergeant major
fell out of use until the latter part of the 18th century, when it
began to be applied to the senior non-commissioned officer of an
infantry battalion or cavalry regiment.
Regiments were later split into battalions with a lieutenant
colonel as a commanding officer and a major as an executive officer.
Archibald Douglas, 4th Earl of Douglas, 1369 - 1424
Brig-Gen Henry Thompson Douglas, b.1838
Brigadier General Archibald Campbell Douglas c1886
Brigadier General Clarence J. Douglas, Jr.
Brigadier General Douglas Campbell Douglas, 1864-1927
Brigadier General Ephraim Douglas
Brigadier General John W. Douglass
Brigadier General Paul P. Douglas, Jr.
Brigadier General William M. Douglass, 1942 -
Brigadier William Charles Douglas, 1862-
Charles Pye-Douglas, 1767-1844
Col John Douglas, k1651
Gen Sir James Dawes Douglas, 1785-1862
Gen Sir John Douglas, 1817 - 1888
General Barrington Douglas, 1845-1918
General David Douglas Wemyss, 1760–1839
General Hugh Douglas, Living 1780
General John Douglas, 1734-1809
General Robert Douglas, Count of Skenninge
General Sir Charles Horsley Douglas, 1815-1940
General Sir Howard Douglas, 1776 - 1861
General Sir Kenneth Mackenzie-Douglas, 1754-1833
General William Douglas, d1747
George Douglas, 1st Earl of Dumbarton, 1635 - 1691/2
George Douglas, 2nd Earl of Dumbarton, 1687 - 1748/9
Governor Walter Douglas of Antigua
Lt Gen Archibald Douglas, 1707-1778
Lt General Charles Douglas,1814-1885
Lt General Sir Neil Douglas, living 1815
Lt General Sir Robert Douglas, abt 1745 - 1827
Major General Archibald Douglas, 1896-1981
Major General Henry Edward Manning Douglas VC, 1875-1939
Major General Henry Mcdonell De Wend Douglas Douglas, 1834-1897
Major General James Archibald Douglas, 1862-1932
Major General John Primrose Douglas 1908-1975
Major General Octavious Douglas-Hamilton 1821 - 1904
Major General Robert Douglas of Garlston, c1744 - 1798
Major General Robert Douglas, 1727-1809
Major General Robert Douglas, d1828
Major General Robert W. Douglass 1900 - 1976
Major General Sir Robert Percy Douglas, 1804-1891
Major General Sir William Douglas, 1770-1834
Major General Sir William Douglas, 1858-1920
Sir Robert Douglas, 3rd of Glenbervie, k1692
Sir Thomas Monteath Douglas, 1788–1868)
Vilhelm Archibald Douglas, 1883-1960
William, 8th Earl of Douglas, k1542
Is this list complete?
Any contributions will be
gratefully accepted
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