List_of_United_States_Navy_four-star_admirals

List of United States Navy four-star admirals

List of United States Navy four-star admirals

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This is a complete list of four-star admirals in the United States Navy. The rank of admiral (or full admiral, or four-star admiral) is the highest rank normally achievable in the U.S. Navy. It ranks above vice admiral (three-star admiral) and below fleet admiral (five-star admiral).

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four-star admiral

There have been 278 four-star admirals in the history of the U.S. Navy. Of these, 237 achieved that rank while on active duty, 40 were promoted upon retirement in recognition of combat citations, and one was promoted posthumously. Admirals entered the Navy via several paths: 238 were commissioned via the U.S. Naval Academy (USNA), 24 via Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps (NROTC), nine via Officer Candidate School (OCS), two via warrant, two via Aviation Officer Candidate School (AOCS), one via direct commission (direct), one via the Naval Aviation Cadet (NAVCAD) program, and one via the U.S. Merchant Marine.

List of admirals

Entries in the following list of four-star admirals are indexed by the numerical order in which each officer was promoted to that rank while on active duty, or by an asterisk (*) if the officer did not serve in that rank while on active duty. Each entry lists the admiral's name, date of rank,[1] active-duty positions held while serving at four-star rank,[2] number of years of active-duty service at four-star rank (Yrs),[3] year commissioned and source of commission,[4] number of years in commission when promoted to four-star rank (YC),[5] and other biographical notes.[6]

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Tombstone admirals

The Act of Congress of 4 March 1925, allowed officers in the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard to be promoted one grade upon retirement if they had been specially commended for performance of duty in actual combat. Combat citation promotions were colloquially known as "tombstone promotions" because they conferred all the perks and prestige of the higher rank including the loftier title on their tombstones but no additional retirement pay. The Act of Congress of 23 February 1942, enabled tombstone promotions to three- and four-star grades. Tombstone promotions were subsequently restricted to citations issued before 1 January 1947, and finally eliminated altogether effective 1 November 1959.

Any admiral who actually served in a grade while on active duty receives precedence on the retired list over any tombstone admiral holding the same retired grade. Tombstone admirals rank among each other according to the dates of their highest active duty grade.

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History

Four-star positions

Structure of the United States NavyStructure of the United States Navyfederal government of the United StatesUnited States Intelligence Communitycombined operationsUnified combatant commandUnified combatant commandJoint Chiefs of StaffIraq WarWar in Afghanistan (2001–2021)Gulf WarVietnam WarKorean WarCold WarWorld War IIWorld War ISpanish–American WarAmerican Civil War

1866–1941

The rank of admiral was created in 1866 to honor the Civil War achievements of David Farragut. Upon his death, another Civil War hero, David D. Porter Jr., succeeded to the title. In 1873, Congress stated that further vacancies in the grade would not be filled, and the rank lapsed with Porter's death in 1890. Congress revived the rank in 1899 to honor George Dewey, stipulating that the grade would again cease to exist upon his death or retirement. In 1903, Dewey was promoted to the unique rank of Admiral of the Navy, which during his lifetime was considered to be equivalent to an admiral of the fleet, but was later declared to be senior to the five-star grade of fleet admiral.

The Act of 3 March 1915, provided that the commanders in chief of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Asiatic Fleets would have the rank of admiral while so serving, and their seconds in command the rank of vice admiral. In 1916, the Chief of Naval Operations was also made an admiral while so serving, ranking next after the Admiral of the Navy. The ranks of admiral and vice admiral were strictly temporary appointments for the duration of an officer's tour in designated billets, and the temporary admiral reverted to his permanent grade of rear admiral immediately upon vacating the office bearing the title.

In 1917, Congress accommodated the Navy's desire to reorganize the fleet by authorizing the President to appoint three admirals and three vice admirals for any six fleet command positions. All fleet command tours lasted one year except for the commander in chief of the U.S. Fleet, whose term was sometimes renewed for a second year, and the commander in chief of the Asiatic Fleet, whose command was considered a backwater. (The Chief of Naval Operations was appointed for four years.) Officers would typically "fleet up" to admiral or vice admiral for their year of fleet command and then revert to rear admiral to mark time until mandatory retirement.

Charles P. Snyder (admiral)Harold R. StarkJames O. RichardsonThomas C. HartEdward C. KalbfusClaude C. BlochHarry E. YarnellArthur J. HepburnWilliam D. LeahyOrin G. MurfinHarris LaningFrank H. BrumbyFrank B. UphamJoseph M. ReevesDavid F. SellersWilliam H. StandleyLuke McNameeRichard H. LeighMontgomery M. TaylorFrank H. SchofieldJehu V. ChaseCharles B. McVay Jr.Louis M. NultonWilliam V. PrattLouis R. de SteiguerMark L. BristolHenry A. WileyRichard H. JacksonCharles F. HughesClarence S. WilliamsSamuel S. RobisonThomas WashingtonEdwin A. AndersonEdward W. EberleHilary P. JonesJoseph Strauss (admiral)Robert E. CoontzAlbert GleavesHugh RodmanHenry B. Wilson Jr.William S. SimsAustin M. KnightHenry T. MayoWilliam S. BensonWilliam B. CapertonCameron M. WinslowAlbert G. WinterhalterWalter C. CowlesThomas B. HowardFrank F. FletcherGeorge DeweyDavid Dixon PorterDavid FarragutWorld War IIWorld War ISpanish–American WarAmerican Civil War

1941–1991

Harry B. Harris, the first Asian-American four-star admiral, is pinned with his new rank on 16 October 2013

During World War II, the President was authorized to create as many admirals and vice admirals as he deemed necessary for the duration of the emergency. Most of these new creations retired at the end of the war, having been promoted to reward service in the fleet or headquarters, or to achieve parity with wartime counterparts. Although three- and four-star ranks remained temporary appointments, the practice of reverting to a lower grade pending retirement largely halted after 1942, when Congress authorized officers to be retired in the highest grade in which they served on active duty.[32] The rank of fleet admiral was created in 1944, and the four officers promoted to that grade were allowed to remain on active duty permanently.

By 1956, the Navy had equilibrated at a total of seven permanent billets bearing four-star rank: the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO); the Vice Chief of Naval Operations (VCNO), the commanders in chief of the unified commands in the Pacific (CINCPAC) and Atlantic (CINCLANT); the commander in chief of the U.S. Pacific Fleet (CINCPACFLT); the commander in chief of U.S. Naval Forces, Eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean (CINCNELM) (retitled commander in chief of U.S. Naval Forces Europe (CINCUSNAVEUR) in 1960); and the commander in chief of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) forces in Southern Europe (CINCSOUTH). In 1965, an eighth billet was added when the chief of naval material (CNM) was promoted to admiral. Occasionally this count would fluctuate when a Navy officer was selected as the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS), as the chairman's four-star representative to the NATO Military Committee (USMILREP), or as the director or deputy director of central intelligence; or by special legislation.[23]

When the long-serving director of the naval nuclear reactor program, Hyman G. Rickover, was finally compelled to retire in 1982, his successor was promoted to admiral and appointed director of naval nuclear propulsion, institutionalizing the position as a permanent four-star billet. To compensate, another four-star billet was eliminated by merging Allied Forces Southern Europe with U.S. Naval Forces Europe. Similarly, when the U.S. Atlantic Fleet commander (CINCLANTFLT) was separated from the Atlantic unified commander in 1985, the number of four-star billets was conserved by eliminating the chief of naval material position. The U.S. Atlantic Fleet was replaced by U.S. Fleet Forces Command (COMUSFF) in 2006.

Jerome L. JohnsonCharles R. LarsonJonathan T. HoweJames R. HoggBruce DeMarsLeon A. EdneyDavid E. JeremiahPowell F. Carter Jr.Huntington HardistyFrank B. Kelso IIArthur S. Moreau Jr.James B. Busey IVCarlisle A. H. TrostJames A. Lyons Jr.Lee Baggett Jr.Steven A. WhiteRonald J. HaysWesley L. McDonaldSylvester R. Foley Jr.Kinnaird R. McKeeGeorge E. R. Kinnear IIJohn G. Williams Jr.William N. SmallBobby R. InmanWilliam J. Crowe Jr.James D. WatkinsHarry D. Train IIAlfred J. Whittle Jr.Donald C. DavisRobert L. J. LongThomas B. HaywardDaniel Murphy (admiral)Stansfield TurnerDavid H. BagleyFrederick H. MichaelisJohn P. WeinelHarold E. ShearMeans Johnston Jr.Hyman G. RickoverWorth H. BagleyJames L. Holloway IIIMaurice F. WeisnerNoel A.M. GaylerRichard G. ColbertIsaac C. Kidd Jr.William F. BringleRalph W. CousinsJackson D. ArnoldCharles K. DuncanElmo R. Zumwalt Jr.Waldemar F. A. WendtBernard A. ClareyJohn J. Hyland Jr.Ephraim P. HolmesIgnatius J. GalantinJohn S. McCain Jr.Roy L. JohnsonAlfred G. WardJohn S. ThachHoracio Rivero Jr.Thomas H. MoorerU.S. Grant Sharp Jr.Charles D. GriffinDavid L. McDonaldClaude V. RickettsGeorge W. Anderson Jr.John H. SidesHarold Page SmithRobert L. DennisonCharles R. BrownJames S. RussellHerbert G. HopwoodJames L. Holloway Jr.Maurice E. CurtsHarry D. FeltWalter F. BooneRobert P. BriscoeArleigh A. BurkeJohn H. CassadyJerauld WrightFelix B. StumpDonald B. DuncanLynde D. McCormickRobert B. CarneyWilliam M. FechtelerForrest P. ShermanArthur W. RadfordLouis E. DenfeldWilliam H.P. BlandyRichard L. ConollyMarc A. MitscherBen MoreellCharles M. Cooke Jr.DeWitt C. RamseyJohn H. TowersSamuel M. RobinsonRichmond K. TurnerThomas C. KinkaidH. Kent HewittRichard S. Edwards Jr.Frederick J. HorneJonas H. IngramRaymond A. SpruanceWilliam F. Halsey Jr.Royal E. IngersollChester W. NimitzErnest J. KingHusband E. KimmelHarold R. StarkThomas C. HartWilliam D. LeahyGulf WarVietnam WarKorean WarCold WarWorld War II

1991–present

With the end of the Cold War, U.S. Atlantic Command was repurposed as the joint force trainer, becoming U.S. Joint Forces Command in 1999. The change in mission cost the Navy its traditional monopoly over that command, which has since rotated among all the services, but the Navy made up the difference through repeated appointments to other combatant commands and to the vice chairmanship of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (VJCS). All military commanders in chief were retitled "Commanders" in 2002, when the title of "Commander in Chief" was reserved solely to the President of the United States.

Stephen KoehlerWilliam J. HoustonJames KilbyLisa FranchettiStuart B. MunschDaryl CaudleSamuel PaparoWilliam K. LescherCharles A. RichardMichael M. GildayRobert P. BurkeCraig S. FallerJohn C. AquilinoChristopher W. GradyJames G. Foggo IIIWilliam F. Moran (admiral)Kurt W. TiddJames F. Caldwell Jr.Scott H. SwiftPhilip S. DavidsonMichelle J. HowardMichael S. RogersHarry B. Harris Jr.John M. Richardson (admiral)William E. GortneyBruce W. ClinganCecil D. HaneyMark E. Ferguson IIIWilliam H. McRavenSamuel J. LocklearJames A. Winnefeld Jr.John C. Harvey Jr.Mark P. FitzgeraldJonathan W. GreenertEric T. OlsonPatrick M. WalshJames G. StavridisGary RougheadHenry G. Ulrich IIIRobert F. WillardKirkland H. DonaldTimothy J. KeatingJohn B. NathmanMichael MullenEdmund P. Giambastiani Jr.Walter F. DoranGregory G. JohnsonWilliam J. FallonRobert J. NatterThomas B. FargoVernon E. ClarkDennis Blair (U.S. Navy officer)James O. EllisCharles S. AbbotRichard W. MiesDonald L. PillingJ. Paul ReasonArchie R. CleminsHarold W. Gehman Jr.Frank BowmanThomas J. LopezJay L. JohnsonJoseph W. PrueherWilliam J. Flanagan Jr.Ronald J. ZlatoperRichard C. MackeLeighton W. Smith Jr.William A. OwensHenry G. Chiles Jr.Henry H. Mauz Jr.Stanley R. ArthurWilliam O. StudemanJeremy M. BoordaRobert J. KellyWilliam D. SmithPaul David MillerJerome L. JohnsonCharles R. LarsonJonathan T. HoweBruce DeMarsLeon A. EdneyDavid E. JeremiahFrank B. Kelso IIIraq WarWar in Afghanistan (2001–2021)

See also

References

  1. [1]
    Dates of rank are taken, where available, from the Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, or from the U.S. Navy register of active and retired commissioned officers, or from the World Almanac and Book of Facts. The date listed is that of the officer's first promotion to admiral, and may differ from the officer's entry in the U.S. Navy register, which lists admirals who reverted to their permanent ranks of rear admiral as ranking from the date of the legislation that ultimately restored them to the rank of admiral, not from the dates of their original appointments.
  2. [2]
    Positions listed are those held by the officer when promoted to admiral. Dates listed are for the officer's full tenure, which may predate promotion to four-star rank or postdate retirement from active duty.
  3. [3]
    The number of years of active-duty service at four-star rank is approximated by subtracting the year in the "Date of rank" column from the last year in the "Position" column. Time spent between active-duty four-star assignments is not counted, nor is time spent on special duty as an unassigned fleet admiral.
  4. [4]
    The year commissioned is taken to be the year the officer graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy, or equivalent, which may precede the officer's actual date of commission by up to two years. Prior to 1912, graduates of the U.S. Naval Academy were required by law to serve two years at sea as passed midshipmen before receiving their commission as ensign. Sources of commission are listed in parentheses after the year of commission and include: the United States Naval Academy (USNA), Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps (NROTC), Officer Candidate School (OCS), warrant; the Massachusetts Maritime Academy (MMA), and the United States Military Academy (USMA).
  5. [5]
    The number of years in commission before being promoted to four-star rank is approximated by subtracting the year in the "Commission" column from the year in the "Date of rank" column.
  6. [6]
    Notes include years of birth and death; awards of the Medal of Honor, Congressional Gold Medal, Presidential Medal of Freedom, or honors of similar significance; major government appointments; university presidencies or equivalents; familial relationships with other four-star officers or significant government officials such as U.S. Presidents, cabinet secretaries, U.S. Senators, or state governors; and unusual career events such as premature relief or death in office.
  7. [7]
    Reverted to permanent rank of rear admiral upon vacating an office bearing the temporary rank of admiral.
  8. [8]
    Advanced to admiral on the retired list with date of rank 21 Jun 1930, as highest grade held during World War I.
  9. [9]
    Commissioned as ensign after two years of sea duty.
  10. [10]
    Advanced to admiral on the retired list with date of rank 16 Jun 1942, as highest rank held on the active list.
  11. [11]
    Advanced to admiral on the retired list with date of rank 14 Aug 1938, as highest rank held while Chief of Naval Operations.
  12. [12]
    Retired as rear admiral, 1 Jan 1937; advanced to admiral on the retired list, 14 Aug 1938; recalled as admiral, 13 Feb 1941; retired, 11 Feb 1942; recalled as admiral, 12 Apr 1944; retired, 31 Aug 1945.
  13. [13]
    Retired as rear admiral, Dec 1936; recalled as rear admiral, 13 May 1940; advanced to vice admiral on the retired list, 23 Feb 1942; advanced to admiral on the retired list, 16 Jun 1942; retired, Dec 1946.
  14. [14]
    Retired as admiral, Aug 1939; recalled as admiral, 6 Jul 1942; promoted to fleet admiral, 15 Dec 1944; rank made permanent, 13 May 1946 (Act of 23 Mar 1946).
  15. [15]
    Retired as rear admiral, 1939; recalled as rear admiral, 1941; advanced to vice admiral on the retired list, 23 Feb 1942; advanced to admiral on the retired list, 16 Jun 1942; retired, 15 Jan 1943; recalled as admiral, 23 Jun 1943; retired, 15 Jan 1945.
  16. [16]
    Retired as admiral, as highest rank held on active list.
  17. [17]
    Retired as admiral, Jul 1942, by Act of Congress; recalled as admiral, Jul 1942; retired, Feb 1945.
  18. [18]
    Promoted to admiral, 1947, with date of rank Jan 1946.
  19. [19]
    Reverted to vice admiral for final tour; retired as admiral.
  20. [20]
    Reverted to vice admiral for final tour; died in office.
  21. [21]
    Retired as vice admiral, 1964; retained on active duty until 1982; advanced to admiral on the retired list, 3 Dec 1973, with date of rank 16 Nov 1973.
  22. [22]
    Nomination as U.S. Secretary of Defense withdrawn, 1994.
  23. [23]
    In 1994, special legislation authorized Charles R. Larson to resume the superintendency of the U.S. Naval Academy, then a two-star billet, as a full admiral.
  24. [24]
    Nomination as commander in chief, U.S. Pacific Command (USCINCPAC) withdrawn, 1994.
  25. [25]
    Transferred from U.S. Merchant Marine, 1967.
  26. [26]
    Nomination as U.S. Ambassador to Australia withdrawn, 2018.
  27. [27]
    Nomination as Chief of Naval Operations confirmed, May 2019; retired prior to assumption of post.
  28. [28]
    First nomination as commander, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command (CDRUSINDOPACOM) returned to the President, 2021.
  29. [29]
    Retired as vice admiral, Dec 1946; advanced to admiral on the retired list by reason of combat citation, Jan 1954.
  30. [30]
    "US People--Struble, Arthur D". Archived from the original on 24 December 2010. Retrieved 16 November 2008. Struble entered the U.S. Naval Academy in 1911 and received his commission in 1915.
  31. [31]
    Transferred from U.S. Naval Reserve, 1921.
  32. [32]
    Act of Congress of 16 July 1942.

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