Venezuelan military ranks

A new law approved in July 2008 changed the military ranks of Venezuela, principally with regard to names, functions and commanding regulation of the armed forces. The law was sanctioned by Venezuela's National Assembly.

The main changes are for the General Officer Ranks, with the incorporation of the “Comandante en Jefe” rank, the upgrading of the “General en Jefe/Almirante en Jefe” Rank to that of a full 4-star general/flag officer rank, and the creation of the “Mayor General/Almirante” Rank.

Throughout Venezuelan Military history, the ranks system has been notably complex and quite different from other armies in Latin America and NATO. It has 3 types of Non-Commissioned Officers: Technical NCO's and Warrant Officers, Professional NCO's, and Enlisted NCO's – the largest in any military force worldwide.

History

Historically the Venezuelan system of ranks and insignia was based on Prussian patterns, just as is currently the case in the Chilean and Ecuadorian army. However, currently Prussian-style insignia are preserved only in the ceremonial full dress uniform (not displayed below),^[1] while for everyday use a system with simpler patterns was introduced. Only the Army and National Guard use the Prussian pattern in the ceremonial uniforms, while these services also have Prussian pattern epaulettes worn by select officers in command billets.

The Navy's rank insignia for officers follow the British pattern on the sleeve with the use of the executive curl due to the strong British influence.

Comandante en jefe (Commander in chief)

The office of the Venezuelan military supreme commander has always been held by the President of Venezuela as per constitutional requirements, however with the new law sanctioned in 2008, the “Comandante en Jefe” is not only a function and an appointment attributed to the executive branch, but is now set to be a military rank equivalent to a five-star general or a field marshal. Anybody who gets elected President of Venezuela is automatically made a full general of the National Armed Forces and may be granted full military uniform, but he may wear it or not depending on the circumstances.

Hugo Chávez left the Army as a lieutenant colonel in 1992, but when he became president he adopted the uniform of "Commander in Chief", with distinctive shoulder badge and sleeve and epaulet insignia and carried a saber similar to Simon Bolivar's in military events. During the Nicolas Maduro administration however, the rank insignia and epaulet (as well as the saber) were not worn by him during major military events, instead preferring to wear civilian dress or suits during formal events (with the national flag sash and the presidential medal). He wore a version of the "Commander in Chief" uniform for the first time on February 19, 2020, during a meeting with senior military leaders.^[2]

This rank holds the direct operational control and command over all armed forces, and is held while he is in the presidential office.

The position is a copy of the one used by Fidel Castro in Cuba, and the design of the shoulder patch are very similar, but not in the shoulder board and epaulet on the dress uniform since Venezuelan military ranks are inspired by German (especially Prussian) military influence, and thus is similar to a Marshal of the German Democratic Republic but with a dark red star inside.

Commissioned officer ranks

The rank insignia of commissioned officers.

Rank group	General / flag officers					Senior officers			Junior officers
Venezuelan Army^[3]^[4]^[5] v t e
Venezuelan Army^[3]^[4]^[5] v t e		General en jefe	Mayor general	General de division	General de brigada	Coronel	Teniente coronel	Mayor	Capitán	Primer teniente	Teniente
Bolivarian Navy of Venezuela^[3]^[4]^[5] v t e
Bolivarian Navy of Venezuela^[3]^[4]^[5] v t e		Almirante en jefe	Almirante	Vicealmirante	Contraalmirante	Capitán de navío	Capitán de fragata	Capitán de corbeta	Teniente de navío	Teniente de fragata	Alferez de navío
Venezuelan Air Force^[6] v t e
Venezuelan Air Force^[6] v t e		General en jefe	Mayor general	General de division	General de brigada	Coronel	Teniente coronel	Mayor	Capitán	Primer teniente	Teniente
Rank group	General / flag officers					Senior officers			Junior officers

Student officer ranks

In the 5 military schools of Venezuela, special military ranks are used by officer candidates and aspirants, with Cadet as the lowest rank, and with the highest ranks of Ensign or Midshipman depending on the service academy save for the Military Technical Academy, Military Medical Academy and Troop Officers Military College whose cadets come from all the service branches, and are ranked as per their service academies.

Student officers

Alférez mayor	Alférez auxilar	Alférez	Brigadier mayor	Primer brigadier	Brigadier	Sub-brigadier	Distinguido	Cadete

Guardiamarina mayor	Guardiamarina auxiliar	Guardiamarina	Brigadier mayor	Brigadier primero	Brigadier	Sub-brigadier	Distinguido	Cadete

Rank insignia for the cadets of the service academies are both on the shoulders and on the sleeves of all uniforms save for the combat uniform. Military high schools share the same insignia but use different ranks.

Technical Non-commissioned officers and Warrant officers

These were, until their transformation into the technical officers corps in 2009, technical high-ranking non-commissioned personnel and warrant officers, with a technical and professional degree, which are usually assigned to technical positions inside the National Armed Forces and as warrant officers in the different service arms. While the insignia for the ground and air forces and the National Guard and Militia (featured here) are both on the shoulders and collars, naval insignia are also used on the sleeve.

	Warrant officers					Senior non-commissioned officers
Venezuelan Army
Venezuelan Army	Maestro Técnico Supervisor	Maestro Técnico Mayor	Maestro Técnico De Primera	Maestro Técnico De Segunda	Maestro Técnico De Tercera	Sargento Técnico de Primera	Sargento Técnico de Segunda	Sargento Técnico de Tercera
Bolivarian Navy of Venezuela
Bolivarian Navy of Venezuela	Maestro Técnico Supervisor	Maestro Técnico Mayor	Maestre Técnico Principal	Maestre Auxiliar	Maestre Técnico	Maestre de Primera	Maestre de Segunda	Maestre de Tercera
Venezuelan Air Force
Venezuelan Air Force	Maestro Técnico Supervisor	Maestro Técnico Mayor	Maestro Técnico De Primera	Maestro Técnico De Segunda	Maestre Técnico De Tercera	Sargento Técnico de Primera	Sargento Técnico de Segunda	Sargento Técnico de Tercera

Other ranks

The rank insignia of non-commissioned officers and enlisted personnel.

Rank group	Senior NCOs							Junior NCOs		Enlisted
Venezuelan Army^[7] v t e											No insignia
Venezuelan Army^[7] v t e	Sargento supervisor	Sargento ayudante	Sargento mayor de primera	Sargento mayor de segunda	Sargento mayor de tercera	Sargento primero	Sargento segundo	Cabo primero	Cabo segundo	Distinguido	Soldado raso
Bolivarian Navy of Venezuela^[7] v t e
Bolivarian Navy of Venezuela^[7] v t e	Sargento supervisor	Sargento ayudante	Sargento mayor de primera	Sargento mayor de segunda	Sargento mayor de tercera	Sargento primero	Sargento segundo	Cabo primero	Cabo segundo	Distinguido	Marinero raso
Venezuelan Air Force^[6] v t e											No insignia
Venezuelan Air Force^[6] v t e	Sargento supervisor	Sargento ayudante	Sargento mayor de primera	Sargento mayor de segunda	Sargento mayor de tercera	Sargento primero	Sargento segundo	Cabo primero	Cabo segundo	Distinguido	Aviador
Venezuelan National Guard v t e											No insignia
Venezuelan National Guard v t e	Sargento supervisor	Sargento ayudante	Sargento mayor de primera	Sargento mayor de segunda	Sargento mayor de tercera	Sargento primero	Sargento segundo	Cabo primero	Cabo segundo	Distinguido	Guardia Nacional raso
Bolivarian Militia of Venezuela (Ground element) v t e											No insignia
Bolivarian Militia of Venezuela (Ground element) v t e	Sargento supervisor	Sargento ayudante	Sargento mayor de primera	Sargento mayor de segunda	Sargento mayor de tercera	Sargento primero	Sargento segundo	Cabo primero	Cabo segundo	Distinguido	Miliciano
Bolivarian Militia of Venezuela (People's Navy) v t e
Bolivarian Militia of Venezuela (People's Navy) v t e	Sargento supervisor	Sargento ayudante	Sargento mayor de primera	Sargento mayor de segunda	Sargento mayor de tercera	Sargento primero	Sargento segundo	Cabo primero	Cabo segundo	Distinguido	Miliciano Marina Popular
Rank group	Senior NCOs							Junior NCOs		Enlisted

References

^ "Venezuelan Army / Ejército Venezolano".
^ "El uniforme militar de "comandante en jefe" que creó Chávez en Venezuela y que Maduro ahora rescató". BBC News Mundo.
^ ^a ^b "Grados de Generales y Almirantes". ejercito.mil.ve. Government of Venezuela. 28 August 2017. Archived from the original on 17 July 2019.
^ ^a ^b "Grados de Oficiales Superiores". ejercito.mil.ve. Government of Venezuela. 28 August 2017. Archived from the original on 17 July 2019.
^ ^a ^b "Grados de Oficiales Subalternos". ejercito.mil.ve. Government of Venezuela. 28 August 2017. Archived from the original on 17 July 2019.
^ ^a ^b "Manual de Uniformes de la Aviación Militar Bolivariana" (PDF). aviacion.mil.ve (in Spanish). Ministry of Defense (Venezuela). November 2009. Retrieved 18 June 2021.
^ ^a ^b "Jerarquías de la Tropa Profesional". ejercito.mil.ve. Government of Venezuela. 28 August 2017. Archived from the original on 17 July 2019.

External links

"Ley Orgánica de la Fuerza Armada Nacional Bolivariana" (PDF). Gaceta Oficial Nº 5.891 (in Spanish). Retrieved 13 June 2021.
"De los Grados, Jerarquías y Categorías" (PDF). Gaceta Oficial Nº 6.508 (in Spanish): 18–19. 30 January 2020. Retrieved 13 June 2021.

[1] "Venezuelan Army / Ejército Venezolano".

[2] "El uniforme militar de "comandante en jefe" que creó Chávez en Venezuela y que Maduro ahora rescató". BBC News Mundo.

[Venezuela_Officer1-3] "Grados de Generales y Almirantes". ejercito.mil.ve. Government of Venezuela. 28 August 2017. Archived from the original on 17 July 2019.

[Venezuela_Officer2-4] "Grados de Oficiales Superiores". ejercito.mil.ve. Government of Venezuela. 28 August 2017. Archived from the original on 17 July 2019.

[Venezuela_Officer3-5] "Grados de Oficiales Subalternos". ejercito.mil.ve. Government of Venezuela. 28 August 2017. Archived from the original on 17 July 2019.

[Venezuela_AirForce-6] "Manual de Uniformes de la Aviación Militar Bolivariana" (PDF). aviacion.mil.ve (in Spanish). Ministry of Defense (Venezuela). November 2009. Retrieved 18 June 2021.

[Venezuela_Other1-7] "Jerarquías de la Tropa Profesional". ejercito.mil.ve. Government of Venezuela. 28 August 2017. Archived from the original on 17 July 2019.

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