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Captain is both a nautical term and a rank in various uniformed organizations. The word came to English via French from the Latin capitaneus ("chief") which is itself derived from the Latin word caput ("head").
The term has different meanings both at sea and in the military. Confusion between the different types of captain (nautical, naval and army) often exists in literature, drama and real life. The customs indicated are necessary to avoid confusion at sea when the question of "Who is in charge of the ship?" may be a matter of life and death.
Nautical
Captain is the traditional customary title given to the person in charge of a ship at sea, but on most legal documents in the merchant shipping industry, he or she is correctly referred to as the ship's Master. A nautical "captain" may be a civilian or a naval commissioned officer of any rank. The Master of a merchant ship will be qualified as a Master Mariner. As the commander of a vessel under way, a nautical captain has enormous legal powers, including the right to use deadly force to suppress piracy and mutiny. Contrary to popular belief, the captain of a ship does not have any special legal power to conduct a marriage. A captain does, however, have the legal right to administer morphine to a patient, a legal right shared only with doctors and pharmacists.
The captain of a ship at sea is in absolute command of that vessel even if higher-ranking persons are aboard. If higher-ranking persons give orders to the nautical captain, such persons are very careful to say what they want done rather than specifying how the orders are to be carried out, because even higher rank does not give them the right to interfere in how a captain runs the ship.
On shore, a harbormaster, as the equivalent "chief" of a port, was sometimes titled "captain" if he had merchant marine or naval rank and professional service in command at sea, but this is rare today.
The traditional sleeve emblem for captains is four gold stripes (often called "rings") on the lower sleeve or shoulderboard. Many navies follow the precedent of the Royal Navy and have an "executive loop" on the top or inner ring. In the Royal Navy, the stripes and rings are called Nelsons if the ring sits above the stripe, and Half Nelson if only half above the stripe. Oftentimes harbormasters have a foul anchor or other local symbol on the gold rings.
The officer who is ranked immediately below the captain of a ship is designated the chief mate, or first officer (also executive officer on Naval vessels), and is responsible for implementing the orders of the captain as well as conferring with the captain on matters concerning the ship. This "second in command" is typically responsible (along with the senior enlisted petty officer) for maintaining minor discipline on the ship. Ranked below the chief mate are the second mate (navigational officer) and the third mate (safety officer).
In older times, a captain was a nobleman given responsibility over a ship, but was not likely to have any nautical experience. The next officer of the ship would be the ship's master, who would carry out the executive functions of a captain, while the titular captain filled a ceremonial and legal role.
Naval
Captain is the name most often given to the naval rank (equivalent to NATO rank code OF-5) of a commissioned officer between commander (OF-4) and commodore or rear admiral (OF-6). The navy of Poland is, however, a notable exception, with "commander" being OF-5. By nautical custom, naval officers below the rank of captain who command a ship are addressed as "captain" while aboard that ship. A naval captain traveling aboard a vessel he does not command is never referred to by rank to avoid confusion with the nautical captain, who remains in charge of the entire ship (including the passengers who outrank the nautical captain).
Captains with field naval commands generally command ships of cruiser size or larger. The more senior the officer, the larger the ship. Commanders of aircraft carriers can be rear admirals, but generally, ship commanders are of captain rank or lower. Also, many captains are either retired or have desk jobs.
Army and Marines
In armies and marines, captain is the rank (equivalent of NATO rank code OF-2) of a commissioned officer that is a rank above a lieutenant and below a major. The military rank of captain is ranked three steps lower than a naval captain, and has no special authority with respect to a ship; an army or marine captain is just another passenger or crew member while on board. In Germany, the rank is hauptmann.
Prior to the professionalization of the armed services of European nations subsequent to the French revolution, a captain was a nobleman who purchased the right to head a company from the previous holder of that right. He would in turn receive money from another nobleman to serve as his lieutenant. The funding to provide for the troops came from the monarch or his government; the captain had to be responsible for it. If he was not, or was otherwise court-martialed, he would be dismissed ("cashiered"), and the monarch would receive money from another nobleman to command the company. Otherwise, the only pension for the captain was selling the right to another nobleman when he was ready to retire.
Captains in the United States Army and Marine Corps generally command and control company-sized units (62 to 190 Soldiers), together with a principal Non Commissioned Officer assistant. They instruct at service schools and combat training centers and are often staff officers at the battalion level. In medical units, captain is the entry-level rank for doctors and registered nurses. In Judge Advocate General units, captain is the entry-level rank for lawyers who already have their academic degree and are members of a Bar.
Captains in the United States Marine Corps are sometimes referred to as "skipper" in informal situations. This term for a captain is most often used by very senior staff non-commissioned officers.
Air Force
Due to most air forces being the junior service in most countries, it has adopted ranks from one of the other services. Many, such as the United States Air Force, use a rank structure and insignia similar to those of the army, while the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force and the air forces of many Commonwealth countries use a unique rank structure, loosely based on the naval one, in which a group captain is equivalent to the naval rank of captain. In the unified system of the Canadian Forces, however, the air force rank titles are identical to that of the Army, while the rank insignia is common to Army, Navy, and Air Force; thus, an air force or army captain wears two gold stripes on sleeve or epaulet (the same as a naval lieutenant), while the modern equivalent of the British group captain bears the rank and insignia of colonel, i.e. four gold stripes on sleeve or epaulet (same as a naval captain).
Police
In most U.S. police departments, the rank of captain is immediately above lieutenant. A captain is often the officer in charge of a precinct. In the New York City Police Department, the rank of captain is below deputy inspector.
In the United Kingdom, the approximate equivalent rank is chief inspector.
Fire
In most U.S. fire services, a captain ranks above a lieutenant and below a battalion chief. This varies, though, between departments – in Los Angeles County, for example, engineer is the next lowest rank below captain.
Generally, a fire department captain is in charge of a specific fire station. In paid departments, as opposed to volunteer departments, there is a captain for each shift at each station. In these cases, the senior captain is responsible for the station overall. The head of the training division is often a captain, or there may be multiple captains reporting to a battalion chief of training. Additionally, captains may be assigned over other areas, such as Hazmat response or EMS.
Captain is approximately equivalent to the rank of station officer in the United Kingdom and some other Commonwealth countries.
In the Australian New South Wales Rural Fire Service and Country Fire Authority, the rank of captain indicates the head of a brigade.
In the New Zealand Fire Service in the early 1980's, a captain was in charge of a station. The NZFS has now moved to senior station officer and station officer as station management ranks. The person in charge of a fire brigade is the chief fire officer, and captain is no longer used.
Civil Aviation
In commercial aviation, a pilot in command of an aircraft is often referred to as a "captain". This practice began with the flying boats of the 1930s and quickly spread to most of the airline industry. Most airline captains wear uniforms with four bars on the sleeve and shoulderboard (imitating the rank insignia in both the U.S. and Royal Navies), although this varies between company. Traditionally, they sit in the left hand seat of a fixed-wing aircraft, and on the right in a helicopter.
See also: military rank and comparative military ranks
Insignia
A variety of images illustrative of different forces' insignia for captain (or captain-equivalents) are shown below:
See also
Becoming a Ship's Captain:
External link
Military ranks | Police ranks | Military ranks of Australia | Military ranks of Canada | Military ranks of India | Military ranks of Ireland | Military ranks of Singapore | Military ranks of the United Kingdom | Military ranks of the United States Army | Military ranks of the United States Air Force | United States Marine Corps ranks | Military ranks of the United States Navy
Capità | Hauptmann (Offizier) | Capitán | سروان | Kapteeni | Capitaine | Kapten | 大尉 | Kapitein (rang) | Kaptein | Kapitan | Stotnik | 上校
"Captain"