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Colonel (United States)

Army ,   Air Force , and   Marine Corps insignia   of the rank of 

colonel. Style and method of wear may vary between the ser-

vices.

In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps,

colonel   (pronounced “ker-nul”) is the most senior   field

grade military officer rank  immediately above the rank

of  lieutenant colonel and immediately below the rank of

brigadier general. It is equivalent to the naval   rank of

captain in theotheruniformed services.[n 1] The pay grade

for colonel is O-6.

The insignia of the rank of colonel, as seen on the right,

is worn on the officer’s left side (a mirror-image version

is worn on the right side, such that the eagle always faces

forward to the wearer’s front; the left-side version is also

worn centered on fatigue caps, helmets, ACU & ECWCS

breasts, inter alia).

1 Insignia

The insignia for a colonel is a  silver eagle which is a styl-

ized representation of the eagle dominating theGreat Seal

of the United States (which is the  coat of arms  of the

United States). As on the Great Seal, the eagle has a

U.S. shield superimposed on its chest and is holding an

olive branch and bundle of arrows in its talons. However,

in simplification of the Great Seal image, the insignia

lacks the scroll in the eagle’s mouth and the rosette above

its head. On the Great Seal, the olive branch is always

clutched in the eagle’s right-side talons, while the bundle

of arrows is always clutched in the left-side talons. The

head of the eagle faces towards the olive branch, rather

than the arrows, advocating peace rather than war. As

a result, the head of the eagle always faces towards the

viewer’s left. During World War II the military insignia

for the rank of Colonel changed somewhat with the eagle

facing the arrows. This was done only during war years.These special “war eagles,” although rare, can sometimes

be found in military surplus or memorabilia sales.

William Few in the uniform of a Continental Army colonel 

However, when worn as a single insignia with no match-

ing pair, such as on the   patrol cap,   garrison cap/flight

cap, or the front of the Army ACU, there is a split be-

tween the services on which mirror image of the eagle

should be worn. In the United States Army and United

States Air Force, the eagle is always worn with “the head

of the eagle to the wearer’s right,” with the olive branch

clutched in the eagle’s right hand talons (see Army Regu-

lation 670-1, paragraph 28-6 (a)(1)). In the United States

Navy, United States Marine Corps, United States Coast

Guard and NOAA, theeagle is worn with “the head facing

forward” on the wearer’s right side of the garrison cover

(see Marine Corps Order P1020.34G, Uniform Regula-

tion, paragraph 4005d(1)). Since respective service’s of-

ficer insignia is worn on the left side and the rank insignia

is worn on the right hand side of the Navy, Marine, Coast

Guard and NOAA garrison caps, the eagle is facing to

the eagle’s left with the olive branch clutched in the ea-gle’s left hand talons, which is a mirror opposite to the

wear of the single eagle for Army and Air Force officers.

1

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2   4 20TH CENTURY 

2 Origins

The United States rank of colonel is a direct successor

to the same rank in the British Army. The first colonels

in America were appointed from Colonial militias main-

tained as reserves to the British Army in the American

colonies. Upon the outbreak of the American Revolu-

tionary War, colonial legislatures would grant commis-

sions to men to raise a regiment and serve as its colonels.

Thus, the first American colonels were usually respected

men with ties in local communities and active in politics.

Such was the origin of the phrase “soldier and statesman”.

With the post-war reduction of the US Army, the rank

of colonel disappeared, and was not re-introduced until

1802.

The first insignia for the rank of colonel consisted of gold

epaulettes worn on the blue uniform of the  Continental

Army. The first recorded use of the eagle insignia was in1805 as this insignia was made official in uniform regu-

lations by 1810.

3 19th century

A colonel of the Confederate army wearing the three-star insignia

The rank of colonel was relatively rare in the early 19th

century, partly because the U.S. Army was very small,

A shoulder strap from an infantry colonel in the Union Army

A shoulder strap from an infantry colonel in the Union Army

and the rank was usually obtained only after long years

of service. During the   War of 1812   many temporary

colonels were appointed, but these commissions were ei-

ther considered  brevet   ranks or the commissions were

canceled at the war’s conclusion.

The American Civil War  saw a large influx of colonels

as the rank was commonly held in both the Confederate

army   and   Union Army   by those who commanded a

regiment. Since most regiments were state formations

and were quickly raised, the colonels in command were

known by the title “Colonel of Volunteers,” in contrast

to Regular Army colonels who held ranks from the “old

school” of the professional army before the Civil War.

During the Civil War, the Confederate Army maintained

a unique insignia for colonel, three stars worn on thecollar

of a uniform.   Robert E. Lee  wore this insignia due to

his former rank in the United States Army and refused to

wear the insignia of a Confederate general, stating that he

would only accept permanent promotion when the South

had achieved independence.

After the Civil War, the rank of colonel again became

rare as the forces of the United States Army became ex-tremely small. However, many brevet colonels were ap-

pointed again during the Spanish American War, promi-

nent among them  Theodore Roosevelt  and  David Grant

Colson.

4 20th century

World War I and World War II saw the largest numbers

of colonels ever appointed in the U.S. military. This was

mostly due to the temporary ranks of the National Army

and the   Army of the United States, where those whowould normally hold the rank of  Captain in the peace-

time Regular Army were thrust into the rank of colonel

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3

A U.S. Marine colonel (center) during the Vietnam War.

Colonel  Jeanette Sustad  as Director of Women Marines.

during these two wars.

By the end of the   Korean War, appointments to the

rank of colonel were standardized to be granted afterroughly 16–18 years of service in the military; how-

ever, temporary colonel appointments continued well into

the Vietnam War. The last temporary appointments to

the rank of colonel were in the late 1970s; since then,

all colonels have received permanent appointments upon

promotion. Currently, an officer typically reaches the

rank of colonel after around 21–23 years of military ser-

vice.

5 21st century

Modern American colonels usually command Army

infantry, artillery, armor, aviation or other types of

brigades, USAF groups or wings, and USMC regiments,

Marine Expeditionary Units or Marine Aircraft Groups.

An Army colonel typically commands brigade-sized units

(4,000 to 6,000 soldiers), with another colonel or a

lieutenant colonel as Deputy Commander, a major as

executive officer, and a  Command Sergeant Major  as a

senior  non-commissioned officer advisor. An Air Forcecolonel typically commands a wing consisting of 1,000 to

4,000+ airmen with another colonel as the vice comman-

der and a Command Chief Master Sergeant as principal

senior NCO enlisted adviser. Some USAF colonels are

commanders of  groups, which are the four major com-

ponents of wings. Colonels are also found as the chief of

staff at divisional level-(Army) or Numbered Air Force-

level staff agencies.

In the modern armed forces, the colonel’s eagle is worn

facing forward with head and beak pointing towards the

wearer’s front. Of all U.S. military commissioned officer

rank, only the colonel’s eagle has a distinct right and leftinsignia. All other commissioned officer rank insignia can

be worn on either the right or left side.

Colonels are sometimes referred to (but not addressed)

as full-bird colonels or “O-6”, which is their pay grade,

in order to differentiate between colonels and  lieutenant

colonels, since lieutenant colonels are also referred to and

addressed as simply “colonel”.

Most Army colonels receive postgraduate level senior

joint professional military education (JPME) at the Army

War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.[1] The 2009 grad-

uating class was 336 including 198 army officers and the

rest divided among other military branches as well as for-

eign military leaders.[2] All USAF colonels will be grad-

uates of the Air War College at Maxwell AFB, Alabama

via in-residence at Maxwell AFB, or via non-resident

seminar at another USAF installation, or via correspon-

dence, or will be graduates of an equivalent senior JPME

program sponsored by the National Defense University or

one of the other U.S. military services.

6 Honorary colonels

Main article:  Colonel (title)

Some people known as “colonels” are actually recipi-

ents of honorary colonel ranks from a state governor and

are not officers of the U.S. military. In the 19th cen-

tury the honorary colonels were military appointments

and they still are nominally appointed to governor’s staff,

but without military rights or duties. Famous honorary

colonels include Colonel Harland Sanders of KFC fame,

a   Kentucky colonel;   Colonel Tom Parker,   Elvis Pres-

ley's manager, who received the honor from a Louisiana

governor; and   Edward M. House, known as ColonelHouse, a Texas honorary colonel and adviser to President

Woodrow Wilson.

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4   7 FAMOUS AMERICAN COLONELS 

7 Famous American colonels

•   Edwin Eugene “Buzz” Aldrin—Second person to

step on the moon.

•   Charlie Beckwith—Founder of   1st Special Forces

Operational Detachment-Delta, the Army’s elitetop-secret special forces detachment.

•   John Boyd   —Air Force fighter pilot and military

strategist. Responsible for developing EM theory

(Energy-Maneuverability theory), a method of de-

termining the performance capabilities of a prospec-

tive fighter [plane] before production. Boyd also

developed and espoused the concept of the OODA

Loop, a decision making process now perceived as

highly relevant to strategic and tactical action in both

military and business operations. It favors agility

and maneuverability in making rapid decisions to

confound the opposition. Boyd also was one of the

chief architects of Operation Desert Storm, during

the Gulf War, transforming it from its initial concept

as a frontal assault into a maneuverability war.

•   Anthony G. Brown—Lieutenant Governor of

Maryland (2007–present) and Commander of the

153rd Legal Support Organization in Pennsylvania;

Highest-ranking elected official in the nation to

have served a tour of duty in Iraq;[3] Co-Chair of

the   Obama/Biden Presidential Transition Agency

Review Team   for the   Department of Veterans

Affairs.

•   Alexander Butterfield—U.S. Air Force colonel who

became an aide to President Nixon and was later ap-

pointed administrator of the Federal Aviation Ad-

ministration. Cooperated with prosecutors during

the Watergate scandal.

•   Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain—Commander of

the   20th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment   at

Gettysburg.

•   Jeff Cooper—WWII and Korean War veteran and

“The Father of Modern Shooting.”

•  John Jackson Dickison- led the Confederate forces

which captured the  USS  Columbine, in the only

known incident in US history where a cavalry unit

sank an enemy gunboat.

•   Federico Fernández Cavada- Union Army colonel

who fought in the Battle of Gettysburg and later

became the Commander-in-Chief of Cuban forces

during the Ten Years’ War.

•  Wesley L. Fox—United States Marine Corps recip-

ient of the Medal of Honor.

•   John Glenn—Marine Corps aviator, astronaut, and

U.S. Senator.

•   Ambrosio José Gonzales—Cuban revolutionary

who fought for the US annexation of Cuba before

serving as a colonel in the CSA.

•  David Hackworth—Served in Korea and Vietnam,

an author and military media consultant. Formerly

the highest decorated living soldier.

•   Jack H. Jacobs—Served in Vietnam, recipient of the

Medal of Honor.

•   Henry Knox—As colonel of the Continental Reg-

iment of Artillery in 1776, he brought guns from

Ft. Ticonderoga to  Dorchester Heights, forcing the

British out of   Boston   the next morning. Later,

President Washington made him Secretary of War

as part of the first  Presidential Cabinet   in Amer-

ica. He also served in Washington’s crossing of the

Delaware River for the Battle of Trenton.

•   W. Patrick Lang   Retired Special Forces officer,

Commentator on the Middle East. Intelligence Ex-

ecutive, and Author

•   Robert E. Lee—Led the raid against   John Brown

at   Harpers Ferry, Commanding general of the

Confederate Army.

•  Ed McMahon—United States Marine Corps aviator

and television personality.

•   Martha McSally—United States Air Force   first

American woman to fly in combat.

•   Virgil R. Miller- Regimental commander of the

442d Regimental Combat Team   (RCT), a unit

which was composed of "Nisei" (second generation

Americans of Japanese descent), during World War

II. He led the 442nd in its rescue of the Lost Texas

Battalion of the 36th Infantry Division, in the forests

of the Vosges Mountains in northeastern France.

•  William Moultrie—Defended Ft. Sullivan (later to

be named   Ft. Moultrie  in honor of the colonel)

against British attack in 1776; his regiment was later

absorbed by the Continental Army, and he was pro-moted to brigadier general.

•   William Wilson Quinn  - Served under Patton dur-

ing WWII and received two Purple Hearts, a Bronze

Star, a Silver Star and became a Knight and Offi-

cer of the National Order of the Legion of Honor;

he also was the commanding officer of the 17th

Infantry during the Korean War, which he served

two years in. He participated in the Battle of the

Bulge and captured Hermann Goring and arrived at

Dachau the day after it was liberated. After the war

Quinn played a key role in forming the CIA.

•   Felix Rodriguez   — A former Central Intelligence

Agency officer infamous for his involvement in the

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5

Bay of Pigs Invasion, in the interrogation and execu-

tion of Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara, and his

ties to George H. W. Bush during the Iran-Contra

Affair.

•   Theodore Roosevelt—1st United States Volunteer

Cavalry Regiment, recipient of the Medal of Honor,and later 26th President of the United States.

•   Henry Rutgers—Revolutionary War colonel - phi-

lanthropist and namesake of Rutgers University.

•   Robert Gould Shaw—Commander of the African

American Army Regiment, the 54th Massachusetts.

8 Notes

[1] The other United States uniformed services include the

United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, and thecommissioned corps of the  National Oceanographic and

Atmospheric Administration   and   United States Public

Health Service.

9 References

[1]  http://www.carlisle.army.mil/USAWC/Registar/

policies.cfm

[2]  http://www.carlisle.army.mil/graduation09.cfm#profile

[3]   http://lostintransition.nationaljournal.com/2008/11/maryland-lt-gov-serious-conten.php

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6   10 TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES 

10 Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

10.1 Text

•   Colonel (United States)   Source:    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonel_(United_States)?oldid=670540032   Contributors:    COR-

NELIUSSEON, Jouster, Jengod, Dale Arnett, Jonel, Husnock, Necrothesp, Neutrality, Marine 69-71, Rich Farmbrough, Kwamikagami,

Alansohn, Mwalcoff, Woohookitty, Pol098, Twthmoses, Ketiltrout, Rjwilmsi, Rogerd, Sango123, Gurch, Nimur, Tedder, Sceptre, JDooley,

MaxVeers, Alakazam, SmackBot, Gelston, McGeddon, Sn00kie, Ordrestjean, GoodDay, OrphanBot, MeekSaffron, Addshore, Sslevine,

Vertigo Acid, Esrever, Neovu79, MrDolomite, Ggjacobsen, Eastlaw, Americasroof, Neelix, CurtisJohnson, Bangelo, Dynaflow, NDCom-

puGeek, Nick Number, QuiteUnusual, Qwerty Binary, Kinston eagle, Jrssr5, PatPeter, Valerius Tygart, FlieGerFaUstMe262, Sm8900, Uh-

nivek, Nono64, Manticore, Ali, FLJuJitsu, Spinach Dip, Plasticup, Greg.varhall, Ndunruh, AzureCitizen, Andy Marchbanks, Hugo999, Os-

halme~enwiki, Kilmer-san, Scottamurphy, Mary quite contrary, TreySponer, Ipankonin, Sf46, Fratrep, Kumioko, Jons63, ImageRemoval-

Bot, ClueBot, Alexbot, Tyler, Eastcote, Berean Hunter, Stickee, Botpankonin, Addbot, Edgy01, Teddyisreallyfat, Stoicjim, Ehend661,

Tide rolls, Lightbot, Mapperson, Luckas-bot, MileyDavidA, Evans1982, AnomieBOT, Materialscientist, Srich32977, Raprchju, Erik9bot,

RightCowLeftCoast, Igallards7, Dumfie, Pinethicket, Qbradlee82, Vrenator, Pilot850, Jeffrd10, ZéroBot, Sharpie14, Illegitimate Barris-

ter, Sunkyperu2005, Neil P. Quinn, Spicemix, ClueBot NG, Vjiced, Mark Arsten, Magicsunshine, Polmandc, Mogism, Ramos37, Momo-

morgie, GottaGoFast and Anonymous: 114

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ized from raster image Image:6 Star.png Original artist:   Ipankonin•   File:ConfedColonel.jpg Source:  https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/0e/ConfedColonel.jpg License:  PD-US Contributors: 

(Original photograph now available through U.S. National Archives)

Original artist:  ?

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Released by the United States Center of Military History

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svg   License:    Public domain  Contributors:    Self-made from   Image:US-O10 insignia.svg   and   Image:Ribbonstar-gold.svg, design from

en:Image:General insignia 4 gold stars.png  Original artist:  Made from images by Ipankonin, design by  MrDolomite

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License:  Public domain Contributors:  SVG created from this image Original artist:  Arthur E. DuBois, according to  [1]

•   File:Sustad_JI.jpg  Source:   https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dc/Sustad_JI.jpg  License:  Public domain  Contributors: 

Colonel Jeanette I. Sustad, Who’s Who in Marine Corps History, History Division, United States Marine Corps.Original artist:  Official U.S. Marine Corps portrait

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