Lieutenant

Not to be confused with Leutnant, the more junior OF1/OF1b rank in Austrian, German and Swiss forces.

"Tenente" redirects here. For the bridge, see Rooster Bridge.

A lieutenant (UK: /lɛfˈtɛnənt/ lef-TEN-ənt or US: /luːˈtɛnənt/ loo-TEN-ənt abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a junior commissioned officer in the armed forces, fire services, police and other organizations of many nations.

The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but is often subdivided into senior (first lieutenant) and junior (second lieutenant and even third lieutenant) ranks. In navies, it is often equivalent to the army rank of captain; it may also indicate a particular post rather than a rank. The rank is also used in fire services, emergency medical services, security services and police forces.

Lieutenant may also appear as part of a title used in various other organisations with a codified command structure. It often designates someone who is "second-in-command", and as such, may precede the name of the rank directly above it. For example, a "lieutenant master" is likely to be second-in-command to the "master" in an organisation using both ranks.

Political uses include lieutenant governor in various governments, and Quebec lieutenant in Canadian politics. In the United Kingdom, a lord lieutenant is the sovereign's representative in a county or lieutenancy area, while a deputy lieutenant is one of the lord lieutenant's deputies.

Etymology

The word lieutenant derives from French; the lieu meaning "place" as in a position (cf. in lieu of); and tenant meaning "holding" as in "holding a position"; thus a "lieutenant" is a placeholder for a superior, during their absence (compare the Latin locum tenens).

In the 19th century, British writers who considered this word either an imposition on the English language, or difficult for common soldiers and sailors, argued for it to be replaced by the calque "steadholder". However, their efforts failed, and the French word is still used, along with its many variations (e.g. lieutenant colonel, lieutenant general, lieutenant commander, flight lieutenant, second lieutenant and many non-English language examples), in both the Old and the New World.

Pronunciation

Pronunciation of lieutenant is generally split between the forms /lɛfˈtɛnənt/ lef-TEN-ənt and /luːˈtɛnənt/ loo-TEN-ənt, with the former generally associated with the armies of British Commonwealth countries and the Republic of Ireland; and the latter generally associated with anyone from the United States. The early history of the pronunciation is unclear; Middle English spellings suggest that both proununciations may have existed even then. The majority of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century sources show pronunciations with /v/ or /f/, but Bullokar has /liu/.

The rare Old French variant spelling luef for Modern French lieu ('place') supports the suggestion that a final [u] of the Old French word was in certain environments perceived as an [f]. Furthermore, in Latin, the lingua franca of the era, the letter v is used for both u and v. In Royal Naval tradition—and other English-speaking navies outside the United States—a reduced pronunciation /ləˈtɛnənt/ is used. This is not recognised as current by recent editions of the OED (although the RN pronunciation was included in editions of OED up until the 1970s).

Army ranks

Conventionally, armies and other services or branches that use army-style rank titles have two grades of lieutenant, but a few also use a third, more junior, rank. Historically, the "lieutenant" was the deputy to a "captain", and as the rank structure of armies began to formalise, this came to mean that a captain commanded a company and had several lieutenants, each commanding a platoon. Where more junior officers were employed as deputies to the lieutenant, they went by many names, including second lieutenant, sub-lieutenant, ensign and cornet. Some parts of the British Army, including the Royal Artillery, Royal Engineers and fusilier regiments, used first lieutenant as well as second lieutenant until the end of the 19th century, and some British Army regiments still preserve cornet as an official alternative to second lieutenant.

Lieutenant

Main article: First lieutenant

See also: Lieutenant (British Army and Royal Marines)

The senior grade of lieutenant is known as first lieutenant in the United States, and as lieutenant in the United Kingdom and the rest of the English-speaking world. In countries that do not speak English, the rank title usually translates as "lieutenant", but may also translate as "first lieutenant" or "senior lieutenant". The Israel Defense Forces rank segen (סגן) literally translates as "deputy", which is equivalent to a lieutenant. In the Finnish military there is a senior lieutenant grade that ranks above lieutenant and second lieutenant but below captain; it does not have an English equivalent. In Germany it is called Oberleutnant (high-lieutenant).

There is great variation in the insignia used worldwide. In most English-speaking and Arabic-speaking countries, as well as a number of European and South American nations, full lieutenants (and equivalents) usually wear two stars (pips) and second lieutenants (and equivalents) one. An example of an exception is the United States, whose armed forces distinguish their lieutenant ranks with one silver bar for first lieutenant and one gold (brass) bar for second lieutenant.

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  Australia
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  Bangladesh
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  Bosnia and Herzegovina
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  Brazil
  (Primeiro Tenente)
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  Canada
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  Egypt
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  French ONF
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  France
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  Georgia
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  Germany
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  Greece
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  India
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  Indonesia
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  Iran
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  Ireland
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  Israel
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  Italy
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  Japan (JASDF)
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  Korea, North (Navy, senior lieutenant)
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  Korea, South (Marine)
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  North Macedonia
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  Mexico
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  Poland
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  Pakistan
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  Philippines (Philippine Army)
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  Romania
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  Russia (senior lieutenant)
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  South Africa
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  Sweden
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  Thailand
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  United Kingdom
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  United States
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  Venezuelan Army

Second lieutenant

Main article: Second lieutenant

Second lieutenant is usually the most junior grade of commissioned officer. In most cases, newly commissioned officers do not remain at the rank for long before being promoted, and both university graduates and officers commissioned from the ranks may skip the rank altogether. In non-English-speaking countries, the equivalent rank title may translate as "second lieutenant", "lieutenant", "sub-lieutenant" or "junior lieutenant". Non-English terms include alferes (Portuguese Army and Air Force), alférez (Spanish Army and Air Force), fänrik (Swedish Armed Forces), ensign, Leutnant (German Army), letnan (Indonesian National Armed Forces), poručík (Czech Army), segen mishne (Israel Defense Forces) or løjtnant (Danish Army).

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  Australia
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  Bangladesh
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  Bosnia and Herzegovina
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  Brazil
  (Segundo Tenente)
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  Canada
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  Egypt
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  France
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  Georgia
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  Germany
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  Greece
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  Indonesia
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  Iran
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  Ireland
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  Israel
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  Italy
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  Japan (JGSDF)
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  Korea, North (Army)
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  Korea, South (Air Force)
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  North Macedonia
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  Mexico
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  Poland
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  Pakistan
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  Philippines (Philippine Army)
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  Romania
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  South Africa
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  Sweden
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  Thailand
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  United Kingdom
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  United States
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  Venezuelan Army

Third lieutenant

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  Bulgaria
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  Georgia
  junior lt. army
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  Iran
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  Russia
  junior lt. navy
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  Russia
  junior lt. army/RVSN

Eastern European ranks

A few non-English-speaking militaries maintain a lower rank, frequently translated as "third lieutenant" OF1c. The rank title may actually translate as "second lieutenant", "junior lieutenant", "sub-lieutenant" or "ensign". Warsaw Pact countries (except Poland since 1957) standardised their ranking systems on the Soviet system. Some of the former Soviet and Warsaw Pact nations have now discarded the third rank while many retain it like Ukraine, Georgia and Armenia. Other nations use the term "senior poruchik" or "nadporuchik" (OF1a), "poruchik" (OF1b), and "junior poruchik" or "podporuchik" (OF1c).

Russia

The Soviet Union used the three ranks senior lieutenant (старший лейтенант; starshy leytenant - OF1a), lieutenant (лейтенант; leytenant - OF1b), and junior lieutenant (мла́дший лейтенант; mladshy leytenant - OF1c). The armed forces of the Russian Federation inherited this rank structure. If military personnel serve in a guards formation, or on a guards warship, the rank designation will be preceded by the word "guards" (e.g. "guards junior lieutenant"). For civil or military personnel in the medical or judicial professions, the military rank will be preceded by the words "legal" or "medical service".

gorget patch (1935 – 1940/43)				Army shoulder straps
Army	Armoured troops	Air Force		(1946–1955)	(1955–1994)	(until 2010)	(since 1994)	(since 1994)	(since 1994)

United States ranks

In March 1813, the US Army created the rank of third lieutenant. The rank was used as the entry level officer rank for the Ordnance Department and the Corps of Artillery until March 1821. Throughout the 19th century and until as late as World War II the United States Army sometimes referred to brevet second lieutenants as "third lieutenants". These were typically newly commissioned officers for which no authorized second lieutenant position existed. Additionally, the Confederate States Army also used "third lieutenant", typically as the lowest ranking commissioned officer in an infantry company.

Notably, the United States Revenue Cutter Service used a simple officer rank structure with Captain, First, Second and Third Lieutenants, each of whom had distinct insignia. The title of Third Lieutenant, essentially equal to the rank of ensign, existed until 1915 when the Service became the nucleus of the new United States Coast Guard. Because of the time required to fully establish this organization the rank continued for some time afterwards; the first Coast Guard aviator, Elmer F. Stone, was a third lieutenant until 1918.

Naval rank

Lieutenant commander

Main article: Lieutenant commander

Lieutenants were commonly put in command of smaller vessels not warranting a commander or captain: such a lieutenant was called a "lieutenant commanding" or "lieutenant commandant" in the United States Navy, and a "lieutenant in command" or "lieutenant and commander" in the Royal Navy. The USN settled on "lieutenant commander" in 1862, and made it a distinct rank; the Royal Navy followed suit in March 1914. The insignia of an additional half-thickness stripe between the two full stripes of a lieutenant was introduced in 1877 for a Royal Navy lieutenant of 8 years seniority, and used for lieutenant commanders upon introduction of their rank.

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  Greece
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  Philippines
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  Portugal
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  US

Lieutenant

Main article: Lieutenant (navy)

During the early days of the naval rank, a lieutenant might be very junior indeed, or might be on the cusp of promotion to captain; by modern standards, he might rank with any army rank between second lieutenant and lieutenant colonel. As the rank structure of navies stabilized, and the ranks of commander, lieutenant commander and sub-lieutenant were introduced, the naval lieutenant came to rank with an army captain (NATO OF-2 or US O-3).

The insignia of a lieutenant in many navies, including the Royal Navy, consists of two medium gold braid stripes (top stripe with loop) on a navy blue or black background. This pattern was copied by the United States Navy and various Air Forces for their equivalent ranks grades, except that the loop is removed (see flight lieutenant).

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  France
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  Greece
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  India
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  Philippines (Lieutenant Senior Grade)
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  Portugal
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  US

"First lieutenant" in naval use

The first lieutenant in the Royal Navy and other Commonwealth navies, is a post or appointment, rather than a rank. Historically the lieutenants in a ship were ranked in accordance with seniority, with the most senior being termed the "first lieutenant" and acting as the second-in-command. Although lieutenants are no longer numbered by seniority, the post of "first lieutenant" remains. In minor war vessels, destroyers and frigates the first lieutenant (either a lieutenant or lieutenant-commander) is second in command, executive officer (XO) and head of the executive branch; in larger ships where a commander of the warfare specialization is appointed as the executive officer, a first lieutenant (normally a lieutenant-commander) is appointed as his deputy. The post of first lieutenant in a shore establishment carries a similar responsibility to the first lieutenant of a capital ship.

In the U.S. Navy or U.S. Coast Guard the billet of first lieutenant describes the officer in charge of the deck department or division, depending upon the size of the ship. In smaller ships with only a single deck division, the billet is typically filled by an ensign while in larger ships with a deck department, consisting of multiple subordinate divisions, the billet may be filled by a lieutenant commander. On submarines and smaller Coast Guard cutters the billet of first lieutenant may be filled by a petty officer.

Sub-lieutenant

Main article: Sub-lieutenant

In the Royal Navy, the commissioned rank of mate was created in 1840, and was renamed sub-lieutenant in 1860. In the US Navy, the rank was called master until 1883, when it was renamed lieutenant, junior grade. In many navies, a sub-lieutenant is a naval commissioned or subordinate officer, ranking below a lieutenant, but in Brazil it is the highest non-commissioned rank, and in Spain it is the second highest non-commissioned rank. In Portugal, sub-lieutenant is the rank of a junior naval officer graduated from a civil university or promoted from a NCO rank, while the equivalent rank of an officer graduated in the naval academy is designated midshipman.

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  Canada
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  India
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  Philippines (Lieutenant Junior Grade)
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  Portugal
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  UK

Marine rank

See also: United States Marine Corps officer rank insignia

The United States Marine Corps and British Royal Marines both use army ranks, while many former Eastern-Bloc marine forces retain the naval form. Before 1999 the Royal Marines enjoyed the same rank structure as the army, but at a grade higher; thus a Royal Marine captain ranked with and was paid the same as a British Army major. This historical remnant caused increasing confusion in multi-national operations and was abolished.

Air force rank

Main articles: RAF officer ranks, United States Air Force officer rank insignia, and Canadian Forces ranks and insignia

While some air forces use the army rank system, the British Royal Air Force and many other Commonwealth air forces use another rank system in which flight lieutenant ranks with an army captain and naval lieutenant, a flying officer ranks with an army lieutenant and a pilot officer with an army second lieutenant.

NATO OF-2 / US O-3
Australian Flight lieutenant	Indian Flight lieutenant	Thai Flight lieutenant	UK Flight lieutenant
NATO OF-1a / US O-2
Brazil Primeiro Tenente	Canada Lieutenant	Germany Oberleutnant	Mexico Teniente	Philippines First Lieutenant	Poland Porucznik	Romania Locotenent	South Africa Lieutenant	Spain Teniente	Sweden Löjtnant	US First Lieutenant
NATO OF-1b / US O-1
Brazil Segundo Tenente	Canada Second lieutenant	Germany Leutnant	Mexico Subteniente	Philippines Second Lieutenant	Poland Podporucznik	Romania Sublocotenent	South Africa Second Lieutenant	Spain Alférez	Sweden Fänrik	US Second lieutenant

In the US Air Force, the Third Lieutenant Program refers specifically to a training program at active duty air force bases for cadets of the Air Force Academy and Air Force ROTC the summer before their fourth and final year before graduation and commissioning. A single silver or subdued pip is used to designate this rank.

The Royal Air Force also has an acting pilot officer designation, the most junior commissioned rank in the British armed forces. It is functionally equivalent to third lieutenant (OF-1c / O-0).

Other uses

Police rank

Main article: Police rank

France and the French Union

The first French Lieutenant of Police, Gabriel Nicolas de la Reynie, was appointed in Paris by Louis XIV on 15 March 1667 to command a reformed police force. He was later elevated to Lieutenant-General of Police. In the 17th century, the term "lieutenant" corresponded to "deputy" (i.e. a person appointed to carry out a task). La Reynie was the deputy for policing duties of the Provost of Paris, the ceremonial representative of the King in Paris. In 1995, the rank of lieutenant was introduced in the National Police as the first rank of the police officers scale.

United Kingdom and Commonwealth police forces

The rank of Lieutenant was formerly used in areas outside of the Metropolitan Police. The adoption of standardized ranks across the United Kingdom has eliminated its use. A number of city and burgh police forces in Scotland used the rank of lieutenant (and detective lieutenant) between inspector and superintendent from 1812 to 1948. It was replaced by the rank of chief inspector. The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary (founded 1871) had the rank of lieutenant between staff sergeant and inspector until 1997. In Australia, Queensland's first police force (founded 1864) had second lieutenants and lieutenants between the ranks of sergeant and inspector-general.

United States police forces

The rank of police lieutenant is used in most medium or large police departments in the United States, where it is one rank above sergeant and two ranks above a regular police officer (three in departments with a corporal rank). It is roughly equivalent to an inspector in the British and Canadian police forces. The usual role of a lieutenant is to carry out administrative duties and assist precinct commanders (normally a Captain, or sometimes the local police chiefs). In smaller police departments, they may command a precinct itself. Lieutenants either command a watch (8-hour "shift") of regular officers or a special unit for operations or investigations (like a Robbery-Homicide squad). The typical rank insignia for a lieutenant is a single silver bar (like that of an Army or Marine Corps First Lieutenant) or a single gold bar (like that of an Army or Marine Corps Second Lieutenant). Some police departments split the rank of lieutenant into two separate grades.

Other nations

File:ASP Rank Badge.gif
Bangladeshi Assistant Superintendent	Brazilian Military Police 2nd Lieutenant	Brazilian Military Police 1st Lieutenant	Indian Assistant Superintendent	Philippines Police Lieutenant	Polish Policja Komisarz	Romanian Inspector	US Police 2nd Lieutenant	US Police 1st Lieutenant	Russian Police Lieutenant

Fire services rank

Main article: Firefighter Ranks

Singapore

In the Singapore Civil Defence Force, the rank of lieutenant (LTA) is the second-lowest commissioned rank. The rank insignia of LTA is two pips.

Political titles

The British monarch's representatives in the counties of the United Kingdom are called Lords Lieutenant. The Lord Lieutenant of Ireland performed the function of viceroy in Ireland. In French history, "lieutenant du roi" was a title borne by the officer sent with military powers to represent the king in certain provinces. It is in the sense of a deputy that it has entered into the titles of more senior officers, lieutenant general and lieutenant colonel. In Canada the representative of the Canadian monarch in each of the Canadian provinces is called the Lieutenant Governor. The Lieutenant Governor exercises all the royal prerogative powers that the monarch holds.

Other organisations

The Boys' Brigade

Leaders, or officers of the Boys' Brigade, particularly in the United Kingdom, are ranked as lieutenants after having completed their formal training, before which they are ranked as warrant officers. Officers serving in staff or command posts are awarded the "brevet" rank of captain, these officers then revert to their lieutenancy after having completed their tour of duty.

National Civil Defence Cadet Corps

The rank of cadet lieutenant (CLT) is given to officer cadet trainees who have passed their officer's course. The rank insignia of CLT is a pip and a bar below it. CLTs may be promoted to the rank of senior cadet lieutenant (S/CLT), which has a rank insignia of a pip and two bars below it.

The Salvation Army

The Salvation Army also uses lieutenant to denote first time officers, or clergymen/women.

See also

• Captain lieutenant
• Military rank
• Comparative military ranks