Grand General

Grand General was a highly placed and very influential rank in the Imperial hierarchy, subordinate to none other than the Emperor, the Supreme Commander, and the Grand Vizier. It was used by the Imperial armed forces, specifically by the Imperial Army and the Stormtrooper Corps, being the highest rank attainable in those branches. While it was technically equal to the rank of Grand Admiral in the Imperial Navy, Grand General did not achieve the same reputation as its naval counterpart.

During the reign of, there were no more than a few Grand Generals at a time (in contrast, there were always twelve Grand Admirals). One of the Grand Generals served on Army Command as the Chief of Army Staff, while the others held either other positions in Imperial High Command or were given important field postings. The Grand Generals and Army Command reported directly to, the Supreme Commander/Military Executor at the time.

Many of the original Grand Generals were responsible for the devastation caused during the Post-Endor Imperial power struggle. Taking complete control over resources at their disposal and elsewhere, these Grand Generals carved out their own spheres of influence and warred amongst each others and against the Navy as warlords.

By 9 ABY, all the original Grand Generals had either been killed during the Imperial infighting or captured by New Republic forces. When Emperor Vastir Tokrev rose to power, he began awarding the rank again, setting out to regain glory of the Empire and the Imperial Army.

Grand Generals were appointed by the Emperor and the Emperor alone, and answered directly to the Executor (or in certain cases in which the Executor could not be reached, the Emperor), in all matters. The creation of the rank of Grand General two years before the was widely recognized as a means to increase the Emperor's direct control of the Imperial Military. However, although all exceptionally gifted officers, the Grand Generals were not just front-line commanders; rather, they included several technical specialists and theoreticians, enabling them to serve as a leadership cadre for the whole military—and indeed the whole Empire.

All Grand Generals, upon promotion to the rank, were also given the esteemed and unique position in the Empire known as Warlord, a post held only by a few of the Emperor's most gifted military commanders.

Post-Endor
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