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'Commandant' is a military or police title or rank.

Contents

Ireland

France

Latin America

South Africa

United Kingdom

United States

Variations

Ireland

'Commandant' ('Comdt') (''Ceannfort'' in Irish) is a military rank equivalent to Major in both the Irish Army and Irish Air Corps. In the Irish Naval Service the equivalent rank is Lieutenant Commander.

France

'Commandant' (shortened from ''Capitaine-commandant'', i.e. a "captain commanding" (a battalion)), is a rank of the French Army and French Air Force which is used instead of major.
The ''commandant'' is also styled ''chef de bataillon'' (Battalion Head) in the Infantry, ''chef d'escadrons'' (Squadrons Head) in the armored Cavalry and ''chef d'escadron'' (Squadron Head - note the lack of s) in the Artillery and the ''Gendarmerie''.
''Commandant'' is also the style, but not the rank, of the senior officers of the French Navy (''capitaine de corvette'', ''capitaine de frégate'' and ''capitaine de vaisseau'').
Prior to the of armies subsequent to the French Revolution, the ''Major'' was the officer appointed by the King to keep track of the expenditures and readiness of a regiment. He could be either a commoner or a nobleman, and was graded as a Commissar, not an officer. The officer at commandant rank level was the ''chef de bataillon'' or ''chef d'escadron''.
''Major'' is now, however, the most senior Warrant Officer rank, above ''Adjudant-chef''.

Latin America

Commandant, in Spanish ''Comandante'', is a military officer rank used in some Latin American countries. ''Comandante'' can be translated into English either as commandant or as commander. The rank may also be found in numerous paramilitary organizations, such as the Sandinistas.
The rank ''Comandante en Jefe'', (Commandant-in-Chief or Commander-in-Chief) may be found in the nation of Cuba as a supreme military rank held by Fidel Castro. Translated as "Commander in Chief", the rank of ''Comandante en Jefe'' is the equivalent of a Field Marshal or General of the Army.
''Comandante'' was also the title of a motion picture regarding the life of Castro.

South Africa

In South Africa, Commandant was the title of the commanding officer of a commando (militia) unit in the 19th and early 20th centuries. From 1950 to 1994 it was the official designation of the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel in the South African Army, South African Air Force, and South African Medical Service.

United Kingdom

In the British Armed Forces, a Commandant is usually the Commanding Officer of a training establishment, such as the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst or the Royal Air Force College Cranwell.
Colonel-Commandant was an appointment which briefly existed in the British Army and Royal Marines between 1922 and 1928. It replaced Brigadier-General and was itself replaced by Brigadier.
Commandant was also the appointment, equivalent to Commodore, held by the Director of the Women's Royal Naval Service between 1951 and 1993.

United States

In the United States the following two appointments currently exist:

★ Commandant of the Marine Corps

★ Commandant of the Coast Guard
Formerly, Admirals were appointed as commandants of Naval Districts.

Variations

★ Colonel-Commandant, in the British Army between 1922 and 1928, an appointment held by senior colonels, later replaced by the rank of Brigadier

★ Captain-Commandant, in the Belgian Army, the highest rank of subaltern officer, ranking above Captain and below Major

★ Rank and Insignia of the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces