Major General (rank)

A Major General, abbreviated to Maj Gen, is a 2-star rank in the British Army and Royal Marines. The rank was also briefly used by the Royal Air Force for a year and a half, to August 1919. In the British Army, a Major General is the customary rank for the appointment of division commander. In the Royal Marines, the rank of Major General is held by the Commandant General. A Major General is senior to a Brigadier but subordinate to Lieutenant General. The rank insignia is the star (or 'pip') of the Order of the Bath, over a crossed sword and baton. In terms of orthography, compound ranks were invariably hyphenated, prior to about 1980. Nowadays the rank is almost equally invariably non-hyphenated.