Captain-general of Marines (Themiclesia)
The Captain-general of Marines (冗人叞, nunk-ning-′uts) is the senior-most professional officer of the Themiclesian Marine Corps and enjoys the courtesy style of Principal of the Audience, rank of 2,000 bushels in the Civil Service, and the colonelcy of one of the Marines' constituent regiments. As part of the chain of command, the Captain-general reports to the Barons of the Navy, and as chairperson of the Marines Management Commission, she reports to the Secretary of State for Defence. The incumbent is Margaret Skur.
Rank
Under the Marines Service Re-organization Act of 1947, the Captain-general must hold the office of colonel in (any) one of the constituent regiments of the marine corps. Technically, ranks such as colonel and captain are regimental offices, which in turn take their seniority after pay grades in the imperial civil service. Thus, while most colonels enjoy the courtesy-rank of 1,000 bushels at the royal court, the captain-general is esteemed 2,000 bushels, because it was viewed as the successor to the former office Lieutenant-General of Marines, abolished in 1803 with the Admiralty Army. There is no surviving record suggesting that a "General of Marines" was ever appointed, probably because the admirals, being of baronial rank, exercised the functions of a general over marines.
History
The medieval predecessors of the marine corps were officers responsible for enlisting, training, arming, and paying men found at friendly cities to supplement the Themiclesian fleet, which often sailed understrengthed to economize on victuals. Admirals of the fleet, in turn, fielded them in battle in conjunction with Themiclesians. In the 10th century, the Exchequer sent its agents to superintend the payment of moneys to the men. Their armaments were the responsibility of the Department of Passengers, which was charged with manufacturing tools and supplies necessary on voyage. In 1318, the Exchequer was given full financial control over the mobilization of marines from foreign shores, a reform the Marines have come to consider their founding. At the end of the 14th century, this process was done in Themiclesia due to the loss of Meridia to Yi forces.