Officer (Barrayar)

Ordnance officer's sword. Following a major court ruling, the non-Vor officer is authorized to purchase his own sabre or sword and Imperial Service uniform regulations strongly encourage officers to purchase privately-owned officer's swords, in order to keep traditions of warrior individualism.

In the Imperial Military Service of Barrayar, Officers are Service members who hold a position of authority; they are the top category of the military personnel. Officers are the directive element of the Imperial Service, whose typical function is the actual exercise of command. Officers are also entrusted with complementary functions, directive powers in the technical, logistical and administrative support. Officers have the right to be blindly trusted and obeyed by the troops as actual bearers of the "Trascendent Right of Command" of the Emperor.
The role of Officers is operationally characterized by a wide freedom of action. According to the official doctrine, too wordy orders should be avoided in preparation for battle. The commander in chief has to explain in a few words what he wants and needs to allow his commanders to take sides as they see fit. The doctrine provides that the instructions should guide the commander in the process of his self-education, and should be a basic framework on which to build the decisions to be taken in individual autonomy. Therefore, the commonly used method is to impart "mission orders" extremely laced with the only indication of the objectives, the forces available and the time constraints, delegating to the entire chain of command up to the lower platoon commander concerning the manner of performance for each micro-objective. The higher commands only intervene when looming external factors that can not be aware of the subordinate commands This method assumes a spirit of initiative, decision-making autonomy for a great deal different from those assumed operational situations without waiting for orders above, collaboration between executives, mutual trust and high level of professional preparation. The diversity and complexity of military leadership in an organization the size of the Imperial Service requires the allocation of specific-types of tasks to various levels in the military hierarchy. A clear understanding of these responsibilities is essential to permit each leader to discharge his assigned tasks. Such an understanding is also crucial so that each leader can avoid interfering with the accomplishments, responsibilities, and duties of other leaders.
Officers hold almost exclusively the major sanctioning and awarding powers. In addition, only officers can be part of councils or committees of discipline, formed by the competent military authorities, which express their opinion about the condition, if any military is worthy or not to retain the rank. On the occasion of this particular disciplinary proceedings, moreover, the accused can be defended only by an officer.
Although they have a responsibility positions and an higher pay than the troops, officers do not get compensations granted to the troops: for example, they do not get an uniform maintenance allowance, and they also have to pay for their own meals, whereas the enlisted sailors are fed on board their ships, or if they live ashore (i.e. on planet), are given a basic allowance for subsistence.
Officers are strictly segregated from the enlisted soldiers in many facets of military life. Facilities accommodating needs such as messing, separate billeting/berthing, domiciles, and general recreation facilities are separated between officers and enlisted personnel. This class system is focused on discouraging fraternization between officers and enlisted military personnel. Officers perform physical labour when operationally required to do so, e.g., in combat. However, it would be very unusual for an officer to perform physical labour in garrison. From a social point of view, the officers corps is a close-knit caste: most officers begin as student cadets in their early teens in preparatory schools, and essentially grow up together, live together, and know pretty much everything there is to know about their colleagues.

History

Captain in a field uniform. Officers tend to discard protective elements which may prevent to distinguish them.

The feudal system of the Time of Isolation made officers the true expression and even identification of the Vor hereditary warrior caste. The traditional Vor officer figure is the faithful liege-man linked to his lord by ties of oaths of allegiance and fidelity. At the start of the Imperial era, and of the Dorcas army's existence, Vor represented the entirety of commanders ensemble. While troopers and squad leaders were plebeians (although young Vor knights and warriors often started their careers as Leaders), commanders and the Supreme Commander were strictly Vor warriors. By the 2820s, officer ranks were six, all of these strictly reserved for Vor warriors.
In the late 28th/early 29th century Barrayar, the most influential Vor Houses (Vorkosigans, Vorrutyers, Vorpatrils) had the highest command posts, according to a consolidated tradition that transferred the lineage hierarchy into military organization. Behind them, however, is the varied world of the lower nobility that provides the cadres of all the officers coprs, both of the professional troops and of the militias: they are the rural Lesser Vors, who, in the continuation of the exercise of the military function, find a guarantee for their own class existence. As military commanders of the villagers, the nobles guarantee the tranquility of the territory and at the same time receive an investment that confirms the ancient attributes.
At the onset of the First Cetagandan War, officerdom was strictly restricted to the Vor class and the purchase of officer commissions was a common practice. Formally, the commission purchase price was a cash bond for good behaviour, forfeited to the Army's cashiers in the event of cowardice, desertion or gross misbehaviour. Only commissions in cavalry and infantry regiments, and up to the rank of colonel, could be purchased. The official values of commissions varied by regiment, usually in line with the differing levels of social prestige of different regiments; desirable commissions in fashionable regiments were often sold to the highest bidder. A certain degree of preservation of former District identities was ensured as regimental colonels were permitted to, and often did, refuse to allow the purchase of a commission in their regiment by anyone who had the necessary money but was not from a social background to their liking.
Such arrangements were wiped out from the Cetagandan invasion and from immediately subsequent campaigns, when a large part of Vor officers was killed in action or forced to retire due to their uncertain loyalty, being their territories and lands in Cetagandan hands. Alongside almost every other aspect of the Imperial Army, also the rank system was heavily reformed by General Pjotr Vorkosigan. The main change was to expand officers ranks to include platoon leaders, in order to allow initiative even by a bunch of isolated men.
With the development of military science, the acquisition of new instruments of war, such as artillery and especially with the Cetagandan Invasion, the professionalism of the profession of arms was accentuated, and caste and aristocratic features of the officer figure were diminished. Until mid-2840s, the officer corps was accessible only to Vor warriors. After the heavy deleption of Vor reserves, and in order to mobilize all best energies available, in 2844 General Pjotr Vorkosigan introduced the so-called Opening of Ranks, permitting non-Vor military to climb the ranks up to Host Commander (modern-day Colonel). In 2853, also general ranks were open to non-Vor people, much to the dismay of old conservatives, such as General Lord Vorrick, who felt that non-Vor officers would erode the privileges of the aristocratic officer corps and promote the ideas of modernism and even democracy.
The Escobaran War, the Civil War of Vordarian the Pretender and the Vorkosigan Regency reforms all represent the definitive watershed between the traditional, warrior and aristocratic conception of the officership and the modern conception of the officer as military commander who builds his fortune and his career exclusively on the battlefield. Nowadays Officers have a large social homogeneity: almost all are of town and a significant majority are of the middle and upper class, and their distinctive feature is their being imbued with the sense of honour and loyalty to the Emperor.

Officers' duties

The officer in the Imperial Service has three primary areas of duty he must fulfil: a duty to the Emperor and to his superiors, a duty to his subordinates, and a duty to himself. All three duties are equally important and the true measure of the successful officer lies in how well he manages to balance them and still meet his responsibilities as outlined above.
An officer’s duty to the Emperor and to his superiors are primarily to the Emperor, and his superiors are mere Emperor's deputies. The duty involves more than simply following orders and showing proper respect as required. The officer must also be ready to offer advice and suggestions if he sees a better of doing things or potential pitfalls in orders and objectives presented to the officer. This duty includes the questioning of any order the officer feels is treacherous, immoral or goes against the overall mission objective. The only time an Officer is free to disobey an order is when the order given is patently unlawful on its face and when it is not issued during a combat. If the Officer feels the need to disobey an order that is not obviously unlawful, he must contact higher headquarters, voice concern and then do as told by the higher headquarters staff.
An officer’s duty to his subordinates is possibly the simplest duty of the three aspects of duty. The duties owed by every officer to those entrusted to his command are to ensure they are trained to proper standards to meet whatever mission they may be given, that they understand their mission objectives and are given the tools to meet that objective. In essence, the duty of an officer to his subordinates is to give them the knowledge, training and tools needed to complete the mission and to survive.
One of the most important responsibilities shared by both Enlisted ranks and officers is the requirement to further the professional development of their subordinates. The execution of this responsibility varies as the officer rotates subordinates among different positions and assigns tasks which are themselves a growth experience; while the NCO participates in the development of subordinates through the actual accomplishment of training and direct supervision of the middle enlisted soldiers in the accomplishment of their tasks. This development is based on the logical requirement for investment in the future of the Service: such investment necessitates the provision to subordinates of opportunities for self-development, under conditions which allow them to learn by doing, without over supervision or the excessive restrictions which results when leaders are so overly fearful of mistakes that they in effect do the subordinate’s duty for him in order to attain higher quality short term results. Development of subordinates also entails the shared Warrant Officers and officer responsibility to set a proper example for subordinates in all aspects of leadership: ethics and self discipline, determination in their approach to mission accomplishment, and demonstrated concern for the dignity and welfare of the subordinate.
A caring and effective officer may very well subjugate his needs and health for the other duties and responsibilities he faces in carrying out his mission. This should be done only if it is the very only method possible, mainly because an officer serves as an example to those under his command.

Imperial Assent

The Imperial Assent is the authorization to marry that Officer must obtain. The Imperial Assent is granted only if the bride is pleasing to the institutions and the dowry in government bonds or estates the amount of which goes to make up the necessary contribution to a standard appropriate social, as it is believed that the officer's remuneration was just enough for its maintenance.

Careers

To be promoted to the higher rank, the officer must possess the physical, moral, intellectual, cultural and professional requirements necessary for good discharge of the functions of the new rank. Having disengaged functions well on its rank is a necessary condition, but not sufficient, condition for promotion to the next rank. For the promotion of the various ranks of general or admiral requirements must be possessed in an eminent way, in relation to the functions exercised in the new rank.
Officers differ from the other categories to the need to meet the prescribed requirements to a level higher than ordinary, otherwise the lack of promotion. In addition, Officers cannot be assigned to different branches of service during their career. While it is not uncommon for political influence to dictate the assignment of certain officers, ranks are awarded on a meritocratic basis; an older officer with a desirable assignment but low rank is not well looked upon.
A good but not so extraordinary Ensign could expect to be promoted to Lieutenant at the age of 24, three years after commissioning, and to wait about six years to receive his second promotion, both ground and space ranks (or others). During his career, the good and somewhat brilliant officer could expect to gain Captain rank at the age of 41-42, few years later than his once-twenty-years service. However, promotion ages could be retarded or anticipated for particularly brilliant (or infamously stupid) officers. At the end of career, a good, reliable senior officer with strong connections could be promoted to Commodore at the age of about 50, almost 30 years after his commissioning. After this rank, promotions could wait also 10 years, as well as be granted in a shorter time.
A deeply rooted tradition in the Space Forces is the manner of address for officers assigned to the Space Forces: officers who have obtained the Command School qualification are referred to, at least in space contexts, as "Commander Surname", while other space-assigned officers, who are not Space Command-qualified, are referred to as "Mister Surname" or "Lord Vor-surname".
For exceptionally brilliant officers promotions tend to be faster and closer between themselves.
However, as a general rule, promotions in the Service for officers are based on a review of performance after a certain length of time. Failure to get promoted is often, and from Commodore/Brigadier General rank mandatory, a cause for retirement/termination.
The major turning point of an Officer career is the end of his first twenty-years term. If after 20 years an officer has reached a medium point, such as Captain (naval)/Colonel, has two serious possibilities: or he chooses early retirement or he retakes his military oaths and gets serious about tracking for high command. The general way is to discourage medium officers who are not so motivated to compete for most senior ranks and appointments.
Among other ranks, the rank of Lieutenant is somewhat peculiar: up to the 10% of Ensigns are promoted to lieutenant after a year of service. The major stance is the time between the promotion to lieutenant and the promotion to Captain, especially within the ground-based hierarchy: it is not very unusual for a Lieutenant to be promoted directly to Captain (Naval) after approximately ten years as an officer. Lieutenants could linger in grade without being promoted for a very long time. This very elastic period is adopted in order to obtain enough time to train extensively officers who are deemed having a very high potential. Subsequent promotions would be fast and sure. However, there are also lieutenants who linger in grade just because they are not worth enough.

Officers Ranks

In the Imperial Military Service, there are five ranks below flag/general officers. While rank titles can vary according the individual branch, career progression and duties are substantially identical for all corps.
Ensigns are the most junior of Commissioned Officers. Ensign is placed in the category of subaltern officers (lieutenants and Ensign) and is not associated with any particular level of command: the stay in this rank is, generally, the period of application school attendance, subsequent to the officer schools; however, Ensigns may serve as Flight Controller aboard starships, or operations officer on very small starships. Ensigns also serve in relief or assistant capacities to most other positions. Officers typically spend around 3 years as an Ensign.
The higher rank is Lieutenant. The first level of command corresponds to the rank of Lieutenant: the operational level is variously called the platoon, section, or commands that are called directly by that rank, such as the Lieutenancy, local command of the Imperial Security. If needed, they act also as cashiers.

Emperor's Own Commission

An Emperor's Own Commission officer is a military officer who has received a commission without the standard prerequisites for achieving a commission, such as the Imperial Military Academy or one of the officer candidate school or officer training school programs.
Civilians who have special skills that are critical to sustaining military and security operations may receive what are called "Emperor's Own Commission". These officers usually occupy leadership positions in the following areas: law, medicine, state security, intelligence and others. Depending on the specialization and duty-status of the officer, officers having an Emperor's Own Commission attend some specific courses.
It is to note that Emperor's Own Commissions are very rare and usually are provided in order to appoint an Emperor's close confident in a responsibility position, and they are not used in order to "civilize" the Imperial Service.

Ensign

Ensign is the normal entry-level rank for most officers in the Imperial Service after the completion of the Officers' Schools. In ground-based brances, an Ensign typically is still in his specialist training, and may lead a platoon-size element, or may supervise flights as a flight leader or deputy flight leader, or may work in a variety of administrative positions. In spaceborne brances, an Ensign may directly serve as a division officer while still on training, or he may serve up one to two years of full-time specialty training before reporting to a combat unit. Ensigns who become division officers are responsible for leading a group of petty officers and enlisted men in one of the ship's divisions while at the same time receiving on-the-job training. However, he is an officer who combines operational duties with training. Ensign's primary duty is professional growth, both as a commmander and as an occupational specialist. Ensigns are mentored by more senior officers as well as their (nominally) subordinate chief petty officers or sergeants as part of their development as military commanders. As Ensigns prove themselves more capable, they are considered for promotion into the Lieutenant rank.
A good Ensign could expect to be promoted to Lieutenant three years after commissioning, although up to the 10% of Ensigns are promoted to lieutenant after a year of service.
Serving Ensigns of the 15th Regiment of Ordnance (Cuirassers), of the 15th Regiment of Ordnance (Lancers) and of the 10th Carabinier Regiment bear the title of Cornette.

Lieutenant

In the Imperial Service, a Lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer. It is above the rank of Ensign and just below the rank of Ground-Captain/Lieutenant Commander. The difference between Ensign and Lieutenant is slight, primarily being experienced and having higher pay. It is not uncommon to see officers moved to positions requiring more experience after promotion to Lieutenant. For example, these positions may include leading a specialty platoon, or assignment as the executive officer for a company-sized unit, or as a flight commander or section's officer; in the ground flight units and in the ORBIFORCOM mobile units, a Lieutenant is a rated officer (pilot, navigator, or air battle manager) who has just finished training. In spaceborne branches, Lieutenants typically lead petty officers and non-rated personnel, unless assigned to small aircraft or on staff duty as a division officer.
Promotion to Lieutenant is governed by policies suggesting that all "fully qualified" Ensigns should be promoted to Lieutenant. An Ensign is usually promoted to Lieutenant after 36 months (including specialist training periods); only up to the 10% of Ensigns are promoted to lieutenant after a year of service. A major departure from the ordinary career is the possibility for a Lieutenant to linger in the rank for a considerable amount of time. It is not very unusual for a Lieutenant to be promoted directly to Captain (Naval) or equivalents after approximately ten years or more as a Lieutenant. This very elastic period is adopted in order to obtain enough time to train extensively officers who are deemed having a very high potential. Subsequent promotions would be fast and sure. However, there are also lieutenants who linger in grade just because they are not worth enough.

Ground-Captain/Lieutenant Commander

The rank of Ground-Captain is the highest rank of the category of junior officers and corresponds to space-borne Lieutenant Commander. The rank of Ground Captain matches with the operating level of the Company, Squadron, Battery, department, team, also in support organizations of training centres. Ground Captains are also in charge of administrative teams, as well as supplies and ordnances section heads or surveillance heads in military prisons. Other tasks designed for the rank include Workshop director, Technical team chief (in various declinations), Quality control diector, Vehicle Unit Commander, Escort Commander, Technical Reporting Officer, Service officer in health/veterinary facilities, Service officer in Administration facilities/organizations. Uusally a Lieutenant has to wait about six years to receive his promotion to Ground-Captain/Lieutenant Commander, both ground and space ranks (or others).
Back in Time of Isolation, the same rank was styled differently according the individual branch and the dialect spoken in the relevant District (Rotmistr, Sotosaul, or Sototman for Cavalry officers of some Russian-speaking armies, Lochagos for Greek-speaking Infantry companies commanders, or Chef de Batterie for French-speaking artillery officers). Nowadays, some Artillery Regiments with traditional ties with French-speaking Districts retain the title of Chef de Batterie for French-speaking officers; Captains of the 15th Regiment of Ordnance (Cuirassers), of the 15th Regiment of Ordnance (Lancers) and of the 10th Carabinier Regiment bear the title of Banneret.

Major/Commander

The rank immediately higher than Captain is the rank of Major, corresponding to the Commander and to other rank titles. This rank marks the transition to the category of senior officers and is associated with the command of a Battalion, of a Squadron Group, of a Group, of a Territorial Department and of smaller to medium ships-of-the-line; space-borne Commanders may command a frigate, destroyer or ground installation, or may serve on a staff. Majors and Commanders also serve as a second-in-command in Regiments and on larger vessels or as responsible for administrative tasks and functions of an unit.
During the Time of Isolation centuries, the battalion-commander rank usually was the highest non-positional rank; in some of the largest and richest District armies, where it was the second-highest non positional rank, it was also known as "Host-Commander" or "Host Leader".
Current Imperial Service guidelines suggest that 65% of Ground Captains and Lieutenant Commanders should be promoted to commander after serving a minimum of three years at their present rank and after attaining 15-17 years of cumulative commissioned service, although this percentage may vary and be appreciably less for certain specialities. Before the promotion, Ground-Captains and Lieutenant Commanders must attend the "Information Course for Majors", a very short course in which the Captains who are to be promoted to senior officers are introduced to new tasks.
Majors of the 15th Regiment of Ordnance (Cuirassers), of the 15th Regiment of Ordnance (Lancers) and of the 10th Carabiniers Regiment bear the title of Commandant.

Seniority levels

Currently, there are three seniority levels within the rank of Major/Commander: Second Major/Commander, Prime Major/Commander and Senior Major/Commander.
The Second Major/Commander is the junior staff officer rank. The Second Major/Commander is an assistant to the deputy commander of the regiment, a Senior Major/Commander, and the closest assistant to the Prime Major/Commander. In ground-based units, the Second Major is in charge of the drill and guard service in the Regiment, and is the fourth officer in the Regiment. He also carries out the actual command of the 2nd battalion of the regiment (where the nominal commander is the deputy regimental commander).
The Prime Major/Commander is the staff officer rank. The Prime Major/Commander was an assistant to the Colonel/Captain (Naval), and the Second Major/Commander was an assistant to his deputy. In ground-based units, the Prime Major is in charge of the regiment and the inspection units. He was the third official in the regiment. He exercises real command of the 1st battalion of the regiment (where the nominal commander is the Colonel), and in the absence of the regiment commander and his deputy, he could command the whole regiment.
Senior Majors/Commanders are placed in command of Battalions, of Autonomous Units (especially within Interior Troops), of Information/Investigative Units (variously styled and ranked), of Formation Command Units; may be also employed within Ministers' staffs and cabinets (as deputies of Colonels), as well as head financial officers. They are also in charge of support departments of major training establishments; otherwise senior Majors and equivalents also serve as assistant heads of logistics major commands and sub-organisations, as well as general services chief in military hospitals/forensics.

Colonel/Captain (Naval)

The rank immediately higher than Major/Commander is Colonel, corresponding to the Captain (Naval) and to other rank titles. The rank of Colonel is traditionally associated with the figure of the corps commander and with a level variously called Regiment, Office, School, or major ship-of-the-line; in some of the pre-unitary Countly militaries the same rank was called "Reginder", which was derived (according to some schlolars) from the shortening of "Regimental Commander", while Captain (Naval) was abruptly tranlsated from the Cetagandan equivalent (Kaptandaii). With the rank of Colonel, an officer has also access to the military management. The rank of Colonel/Captain (Naval) or other titles may also be held by staff officers, such as those assigned to non-frontline corps. Reaching this rank in non-frontline branches of the Imperial Service is generally considered more difficult. Colonels of the 15th Regiment of Ordnance (Cuirassers), of the 15th Regiment of Ordnance (Lancers) and of the 10th Carabinier Regiment bear the title of Mestre de camp.
Colonel of His Majesty is an honorific rank in the Imperial Service. Appointment to this rank is a way for the Emperor to show special approval of an officer still too junior for promotion to a general/flag rank. It does not actually give the officer the command authority of a Colonel/Captain (Naval) in the Imperial Service, but he does receive a colonel's full salary in addition to any regular pay. The "Information Session for Colonels" is a course that introduces the duties of the rank and it is aimed to newly promoted personnel.
On a general level, Colonels and equivalent rank may serve as adjutants for Ministers and as special advisers for the Emperor, as well as ordinary members for promotion boards, professors in officers schools, office heads in the central bodies (including inspection teams other than general inspectorates). A ground-based Colonel finds his field employment as deputy brigade commander or as commander of a regiment (or equivalent). In ground-based staffs, a Colonel is usually assigned to hold the post of Chief or Deputy Chief of Staff (depending on the formation type), head of training in specialist training centres. As part of the Imperial Security, a Colonel directs an Office or a Commands Group; traditionally, field offices are paired with ground titles.
The rank of Captain (Naval) and the command of a starship very often go together, and it is often the most prestigious rank in space-based branches of Service. Captains (Naval) with space commands generally command ships of cruiser size or larger: the more senior the officer, the larger the ship. A Captain (naval) might also command a destroyer flotilla. On starships, the term captain is also often used as a synonym to commanding officer, regardless the actual rank. The rank of Captain (Naval) may also be held by non-command personnel, such as department heads on larger installations or office heads in space-based staffs.

General and Flag officers

A general/flag officer is a commissioned officer in a senior enough to be entitled to fly a flag to mark where the officer exercises command. In the Imperial Military Service, general/flag officers are commissioned officers above the field officer ranks, the highest of which is Captain/Colonel. It is to note that is only the Emperor who chooses and approves and promotions to/for general or flag officers. Therefore, the upper branches are politically encouraged to support the Emperor.
General officer ranks currently used are:

• Brigadier General and Commodore
• Major General and Rear Admiral
• Lieutenant General and Vice Admiral
• General and Admiral

Above these four general officer ranks is Chief of General Staff, but this rank is a positional one, and Commander-in-Chief, reserved for the Emperor or, in case of his minority, for the Regent. Among General ranks, Lieutenant Generals and Generals exercise specific command-and-control functions, senior management, coordination and control of the departments in their employment, with particular regard to those governed by officers with the rank of colonel and general, making sure that the activities are consistently oriented to institutional effectiveness and efficiency. They also ensure through inspections on the implementation of comprehensive guidelines and establish the criteria for the exercise of functions within the office spaces to their dependencies.

Full General/Admiral

That of General or Admiral is a general officer rank of the Imperial Service. General or Admiral is the highest operational rank within the Imperial Service, and its holders often serve as supreme military commanders of an entire designated theatre of operations, fleet or mahor command. The promotion to General or Admiral usually comes to a Lieutenant General or Vice-Admiral through his connections as well as a combination of the achievements earned during their prior command experiences and service to the Emperor. Those who rise to the rank of General or Admiral receive additional organisational training to prepare them to effectively lead potentially the vast numbers of personnel across multiple organisations. Every General or Admiral forms their own Staff comprised of lower ranking officers from both the military units put under his command and specialists.
In combat branches, a General or Admiral may hold tasks which make him responsible for all operations in a given Imperial system or foreign Segmentum. In such cases, a General or Admiral answers not only to his superiors in the Imperial Service but also to the relevant Viceroy (if in charge of Komarr- or Sergyar-based force) or to the Government of Barrayar as well. Deploying warships and men to patrols, permanent stations and reserve fleets in a way that satisfies both military and civilian needs is a headache most officers dread.
There are currently 65 active duty full General and full Admiral officers in the Imperial Service. Modern day Fourth-level General/Flag officers' ranks are usually referred to as "full general" or "full admiral", the officers themselves being referred to and addressed as 'General' or 'Admiral'. Fourth-level General/Flag officers are ranked in seniority by their time-in-grade or by statute via the position of office they hold. While there are not explicitly limits to the total number of Fourth-level General/Flag officers that may be on active duty at any given time, the total number of active duty general or flag officers is fixed by periodic regulations issued by the Council of Counts. Several of these slots are reserved by statute.
There are several exceptions to the limits allowing more than allotted Fourth-level General/Flag officers within the statute. A Fourth-level General/Flag officer serving as Chief of the General Staff or Deputy Chief of the General Staff does not count against general and flag officer cap, nor it does the Minister of War, who can designate up to 20 additional Fourth-level General/Flag officers, who do not count against any limit, to serve in one of several joint positions. Officers serving in civilian intelligence or police positions are not counted against statutory limit, including the Chief of Imperial Security. Finally, all statutory limits may be waived at the Emperor's full discretion during time of need.
Fourth-level General/Flag officers are appointed by the Emperor from any eligible officers, who also meets the requirements for the position, under the suggestion of the Chief of the General Staff or the Minister of War. Fourth-level General/Flag officers who are under investigation for misconduct typically are not allowed to retire until the investigation completes, so that the Minister of War can decide whether to certify that their performance was satisfactory enough to retire in their highest grade.

Aides-de-camp

Aides-de-camp are specifically appointed to general-grade officers, the Minister of War, Chief of General Staff, Chief of Imperial Security, Regent or Emperor; rank and number are determined by the rank held. For those general officers with more than one aide, the senior-ranking aide is the senior aide and serves in the capacity of coordinating the other aides and the others of the general's personal staff such as the driver, orderlies, et al. An aide is a trooper assigned to act as a non-ranking second to an officer. In this capacity the aide acts as a conduit for the officer's orders, as well as dealing with any additional assigned responsibilities, from paperwork to even standing-in for the officer at briefings. For the majority of the officers, the maximum tour of duty for aides is generally four years.

• Brigadier General/Commodore: 1 Lieutenant
• Major General/Rear Admiral: 1 Lieutenant Commander/Ground-Captain; 1 Lieutenant
• Lieutenant General/Vice-Admiral: 1 Commander/Major; 1 Lieutenant Commander/Ground-Captain
• General/Admiral: 1 Captain (naval)/Colonel, 1 Lieutenant Commander/Ground-Captain
• Chief of General Staff and Minister of War: 1 Captain (naval)/Colonel, 1 Commander/Major, 1 Lieutenant Commander/Ground-Captain

Batmen and further staff

A batman is a soldier assigned to a General officer as a personal servant. A batman's duties include:

• acting as a "runner" to convey orders from the officer to subordinates
• maintaining the officer's uniform and personal equipment as a valet
• driving the officer's vehicle, sometimes under combat conditions
• acting as the officer's bodyguard
• other miscellaneous tasks the officer does not have time or inclination to do

Every General officer is assigned a servant, usually chosen by himself from among his men. Batman is usually seen as a desirable position because the soldier is exempted from more onerous duties and often gets favours from his officer. It is not unusual for a former batman to follow the officer into later civilian life as a domestic servant, especially if the General is Vor.
Because a General officer is expected to move quickly and also independently from possible space forces under his own command, every "full" General/Admiral is assigned a further personal staff, consisting of a military physician, a personal inspection team and a security detail; he also has at his disposal a personal shuttle and its crew. The spacecraft assigned to the officer can be a jump pinnace as well as a detached fast courier.
A 600 square meters apartment is granted to all Field Commanders and Component Commanders, completely paid by the Empire.
The Chief of the General Staff, the Chief of the Ground Staff, the Chief of Space Staff, the Chief of Landing Forces Staff and the Chief of the Imperial Security enjoy the "special retirement allowance," which is added to the ordinary pension.

Senior Officers Reserve

The Senior Officers Reserve is the pool of temporarily unoccupied high-ranking military officers waiting for new assignments in the Imperial Service. The officers are required to remain at their assigned stations and be available to their superiors, but they cannot exercise any command function, which is equivalent to a temporary retirement while retaining their previous income. Politically problematic, troublesome, or militarily incompetent officers are assigned to the Senior Officers Reserve.

Officer titles

Beyond the equivalence between space and ground ranks, similar positions have multiple titles: the lowest Commissioned officer rank is called "Ensign" if assigned to Ground forces or to Space forces, but it is called, for example, "Ops Analyst Grade 1" if in the Operations; a Barrayaran space Captain is titled "Orbital-Captain" for a Space Station command slot, or "Executive Officer" for a flagship's commanding officer, and "Sail-Captain" if he's the actual commander of an independent command.

Officer ranks and insignia

Insignia	Naval rank	Ground rank
Orange'	Admiral Admiral Admiral Amiral Návarchos	General General General Général Stratigos
Yellow	Vice-Admiral Vice-Admiral Vitse-Admiral Vice-Amiral Antinávarchos	Lieutenant General Lieutenant General General Lyeĭtenant Général de Corps d'Armée Antistratigos
Indigo	Rear Admiral Rear Admiral Kontr-admiral Contre-amiral Yponávarchos	Major General General Maĭor General de division Ypostrátigos
Amethyst	Commodore Commodore Kommodor Commodore Archipliarchos	Brigadier General Brigadier General Brigadnyĭ General Général de brigade Taxíarchos
Blue	Captain Captain Kapitan Capitaine Kapetánios	Colonel Colonel Polkovnik Colonel Syntagmatárchis
Sangria	Commander Commander Komandir Commandant Dioikitis	Major Major Maĭor Majeur Tagmatárchis
Pale Green	Lieutenant Commander Lieutenant Commander Kapitan-Lyeĭtenant Capitaine de Corvette Plotarchis	Ground-Captain Ground-Captain Zemlya Kapitana Capitaine au Sol Oikópedo Kapetánios
Red	Lieutenant Lieutenant Lyeĭtenant Lieutenant Ypolochagós	Lieutenant Lieutenant Lyeĭtenant Lieutenant Ypolochagós
Pale Blue	Ensign Ensign Praporshchik Sous-Lieutenant Anthypolochagós	Ensign Ensign Praporshchik Sous-Lieutenant Anthypolochagós

Officer rank/command post corrispondence

Rank	Infantry	Cavalry and Air	Artillery	Space Forces	Imperial Security (Field Organization)	Imperial Security (Central Organization)	Other Noncombatant Services
Ensign	-
Lieutenant	Platoon	Troop	Section	Small crafts	Lieutenancy	Nucleus	Nucleus
Ground Captain/Lieutenant Commander	Company	Squadron	Battery	Minor vessels	Detachment	Unit	Detachment/Unit
Major/Commander	Battalion	Squadron Group	Group	Smaller ships-of-the-line	Territorial Command	Section	Section
Colonel/Captain (Naval)	Regiment / Imperial Service Station			Major ships-of-the-line	Commands Group	Office	Office
Brigadier General/Commodore	Brigade / Major Imperial Service Station			Battle Group / Sector	ImpSec Sector	Division	Division
Major General/Rear Admiral	Division / Imperial Service Base			Task Force / Segment	Major ImpSec Sector	Directorate	Inspectorate / Directorate
Lieutenant General/Vice Admiral	Corps			Numbered Fleet	Directorate		Overall Command
General/Admiral	Field Army and higher posts			Component Fleet and higher posts	Overall Command and higher posts		-

Ensigns are rarely given any leadership position, as they are still very much considered as having to learn the ropes

Officers forms of address

Space-related officers ranking as Rear-Admiral or higher are addressed as "Admiral". An Acting Ensign is addressed as "Ensign", and use of the "Acting" prefix is impolite except in formal communications. Lieutenant Commanders are addressed as "Commander", except in formal communications. Other naval officers and personnel are addressed simply by their literal rank. Commodores arguably could be addressed as "Admiral" and "General", but this is considered highly informal.
Ground-related officers ranking as Brigadier-General or above are verbally addressed as "General" A Lieutenant-Colonel is addressed as "Colonel"; a Ground Captain is addressed as "Captain", except in formal communications. Warrant Officers of first and second class are addressed as "Warrant Officer". Other ground officers and personnel are addressed according to their literal rank.
Occasionally the commander-in-chief of a facility or unit is colloquially addressed as "Commander".

Medical officers

Military doctors usually do not hold a commission, unless explicitly stated or they held previous military rank. That means that while they hold the rank for the purpose of pay scale they do not in fact have the authority to order anyone to do anything outside of the authority granted by their position.
Since doctors are relatively rare, those who like the service generally end up getting regular promotions and serving almost as long as they like. Usually only doctors whose posts demand it (i.e. Commander of a major military hospital for example) will ever make general. However, all Barrayaran medicos are versed in combat, because they are required to assist fighting troops and may be involved in a fire or an other combat action.

Related voices

• Military ranks of Barrayar
• Imperial Service (Barrayar)