"Pourquoi n'y a-t-il pas de généraux à une étoile ?" [Why are there no one-star generals?] (PDF). Association Nationale des Officiers de Carrière en Retraite (in French). Groupement du Gers de l'Association Nationale des Officiers de Carrière en Retraite.
4 July 1976, with an effective appointment date of 4 July 1776a
The timing of the first seven appointments was to establish both a clear order of seniority and a near-equivalence between the Army and Navy services. In 1949, Arnold was honored by being made the first, and to date only, General of the Air Force. He is the only American to serve in a five-star rank in two of its military services.
By a Congressional Act of 24 March 1903, Admiral George Dewey's rank was established as admiral of the Navy, a rank which was specified to be senior to the four-star rank of admiral and was equal to admiral of the fleet in the British Royal Navy. Admiral Dewey was the only individual ever appointed to this rank, which lapsed with his death on 16 January 1917. Admiral of the Navy was considered superior to fleet admiral during World War II.
On 3 September 1919, John Pershing was promoted to the rank of General of the Armies (officially General of the Armies of the United States) in recognition of his service during World War I. He is the only person promoted to this rank during their lifetime.
^a During the United States Bicentennial year, George Washington was posthumously appointed to the grade of General of the Armies of the United States by the congressional joint resolution Public Law 94-479[dead link] passed on 19 January 1976, with an effective appointment date of 4 July 1976 but having rank and precedence over all other grades of the Army, past or present. This restored Washington's position as the most senior U.S. military officer. Between the joint resolution concerning Washington's rank, the fact that Omar Bradley was still alive, and thus still considered to be on active duty, and statements made and actions taken during and after World War II about the relationship between General of the Armies and General of the Army, it appears General of the Armies is superior in rank to General of the Army.
^b No official law or regulation established exact seniority or reciprocity between Admiral of the Navy Dewey, and Generals of the Armies Washington and Pershing. While Congress clearly indicated that Washington was senior to Pershing, and also all other "officers of the United States Army," and by decades of custom Pershing was considered senior to all five-star and other four-star generals of the U.S. Army, nowhere is Dewey's exact seniority established. As Washington was explicitly made senior only to Pershing and other officers of the U.S. Army, ambiguity remains whether Admiral Dewey, with a date of rank as early as 1899 above a four-star, and senior to all later five-stars, is not actually senior to Washington by date of rank, and by operation of naval custom making Dewey senior to all five-stars. As Dewey died (and his rank died with him) before Pershing was appointed to his final rank, and the Army and Navy were far more independent before the creation of the Department of Defense unified them, this could indicate Admiral of the Navy Dewey, not General of the Armies Washington, is actually the most senior ranking U.S. military officer in U.S. history. By definition, officers of each Armed Force rank amongst themselves by seniority. And when they serve with other Armed Services (Army and Navy, for example), they rank amongst themselves by date of rank notwithstanding their parent Service. In the case of Dewey, he is undisputedly the seniormost Navy officer ever to have served in the U.S. Navy, and he had nearly 20 years of seniority over Pershing as a "special rank, above 4-star." Washington's own, revised, date of rank in 1976 does not precede Dewey's date of rank nearly 75 years before, nor did Congress describe in unambiguous wording that Washington was – in fact – senior to all officers of the U.S. Army, as well as all other U.S. Armed Forces including the U.S. Navy. Had Congress chosen to explicitly so state, there would be no ambiguity, but it remains unsettled if – in spite of the desired outcome that Washington be the senior U.S. military officer to have ever served – Congress' ways and means achieved their object.
