Lieutenant

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A lieutenant is the third lowest rank of commissioned officer in most naval organizations.

Contents 1 Historical Context 2 Starfleet Usage 3 Other Usage 3.1 Bajoran Defense Force Navy 3.2 Bajoran Defense Force Militia 3.3 Rikon Defense Force 4 See Also

Historical Context

A word derived from the French, meaning "holding in lieu of" or "one who replaces." The introduction of this rank into the British Navy in 1580 was for the purpose of providing the captain with an assistant and qualified relief if necessary. The first lieutenant was for years, both in the British and American services, the executive officer of the ship. In smaller British ships, the title First Lieutenant obtained, and was referred to as Number One.

Since at least 1580, lieutenants in a ship had been the officers immediately subordinate to the Captain. Before the English Restoration Lieutenants were appointed by their Captains, and this inevitably led to abuses and to the widespread appointment of men of insufficient qualification. In 1677 Samuel Pepys introduced the first examination for Lieutenant, and it is from the date of this examination that their seniority was set.

Lieutenants were numbered by their seniority within the ship, so that a frigate which was entitled to three would have a First Lieutenant, a Second Lieutenant, and a Third Lieutenant. A first-rate was entitled to six, and they were numbered accordingly. At first a Lieutenant's commission was given only for the ship in which he served, but after the loss of HMS Wager in 1741 and the subsequent mutiny, Lieutenants were given full commissions upon passing their examination.

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.

Starfleet Usage

A lieutenant in Starfleet is an officer with at least two years of service in commission. Most lieutenants work as a division officer aboard heavy cruisers and battleships, though a senior lieutenant may be placed in command of a corvette-class vessel.

Starfleet used the following rank insignia to denote this rank of officer:

Period	2410-Present	2373-2410	2368-2373	2365-2373	2352-2365	2280-2352	2270-2280	2255-2270
Insignia

Other Usage

Some military and paramilitary groups use the rank "lieutenant" in their organizations:

Bajoran Defense Force Navy

Grade	Rank	Insignia (Sleeve)
O-3	Lieutenant

Bajoran Defense Force Militia

Grade	Rank	Insignia (Collar/Shoulder)
O-3	Lieutenant

Rikon Defense Force

Grade	Rank	Insignia (Shoulderboard)
O-3	Lieutenant

See Also

• Starfleet Ranks

Starfleet Rank Structure
Grade	Enlisted		Training	Officer
1	PVT	CREC	MID4	2LT	ENS
2	PFC	CAPP	MID3	1LT	LTJG
3	LCPL	CRMN	MID2	CPT	LT
4	CPL	PO3	MID1	MAJ	LCDR
5	SGT	PO2	OC	LTCOL	CDR
6	SSGT	PO1		COL	CAPT CDRE
7	GYSGT	CPO		BRGEN	BADM
8	MSGT	SCPO		MAJGEN	RADM
9	MGYSGT SGTMAJ	MCPO		LTGEN	VADM
10	SGTMAJOS	MCPOS		GEN	ADM
11					GADM