General

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Général is the French word for General.

In France, Army generals are named after the type of unit they command. In ascending order there are two ranks :

Général de Brigade ("General of Brigade"; Brigadier General). Two stars.
Général de Division ("General of Division"; Major General). Three stars.

Officers of the rank of Général de Division can receive different positions and styles (rang et appellation) :

Général de Corps d'armée ("General of Army Corps"; Lieutenant General). Four stars.
Général d'Armée ("General of Army"). Five stars.

The appointment of Maréchal de France, wearing seven stars, is purely honorary.

History

The French army of the monarchy had several ranks of general officer:

Brigadier des armées (Brigadier of the Armies): a rank in a grey area of seniority, conferred on certain Colonels who were in command of a brigade. These officers wore Colonel's uniform with a star on the shoulder straps. This rank was abolished in 1788.
Maréchal de camp (Field Marshal): the first substantive rank of general. The Maréchaux de camp wore a special uniform, blue and red, with a single bar of gold lace, and in the late 18th century also received two stars on the shoulder straps. With the abolition of the rank of Brigadier des armées in 1788, it became the first officer general rank, but its insignia was unchanged. This explains why the French généraux insignia is more complex than other countries.
Lieutenant général: the highest military rank. Lieutenants généraux wore the same uniform as the Maréchaux de camp, but with two bars of gold lace, and in the late 18th century also received three stars on the shoulder straps.
Général: an appointment conferred on a Lieutenant général who was commander-in-chief of a campaign.
Maréchal de France: not a military rank, but a dignity of the Crown.

During the French Revolution, the ranks of Maréchal de camp and Lieutenant général were renamed Général de brigade and Général de division, and the appointment of Général was renamed Général en chef. In 1793, the dignity of Maréchal de France was abolished.

Napoléon Bonaparte reinstated the dignity of Maréchal de France, now named Maréchal d'Empire. In 1814, the ranks of Général de brigade and Général de division reverted to Maréchal de camp and Lieutenant général, but were changed back again in 1848.

The Third Republic of the 1880s reorganised the ranks of général:

Général de brigade, wearing two stars.
Général de division, wearing three stars.
Général de division commandant un corps d'armée (General of Division commanding an Army Corps), an appointment conferred on certain Généraux de division, wearing four stars. This appointment became the position and style (rang et appellation) of Général de corps d'armée in 1936.
Général de division membre du conseil supérieur de la Guerre (General of Division member of the Superior Council of War, a body of the Ministry of War wich had the functions of a General Staff), wearing five stars.
Général de division commandant la place de Paris (General of Division commanding the sector of Paris), wearing six stars

The experience of the First World War transformed the structure of the French Army. The Superior Council of War was abolished and an appointment of Général de division commandant une armée (General of Division commanding an Army) was created. This appointment became the position and style (rang et appellation) of Général d'armée in 1936. The dignity of Maréchal de France was reinstated and given to the commanders-in-chief of the conflict, such as Joseph Joffre, Ferdinand Foch and Philippe Pétain.

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