Editing Field marshal (section)

==Origins==
The origin of the term dates to the early [[Middle Ages]], originally meaning the keeper of the king's horses (from [[Old German]] ''Marh-scalc'', {{lit|horse-servant}}), from the time of the early [[Franks|Frankish]] kings; words originally meaning "servant" were sometimes used to mean "subordinate official" or similar. The German [[Holy Roman Empire]] and the kingdom of France had officers named ''[[Generalfeldmarschall|Feldmarschall]]'' and ''Maréchal de camp'' respectively as far back as the 1600s. The exact wording of the titles used by field marshals varies: examples include "[[marshal]]" and "[[field marshal general]]".

The air force equivalent in [[Commonwealth of Nations|Commonwealth]] and many Middle Eastern air forces is [[marshal of the air force]] (not to be confused with [[air marshal]]). Navies, which usually do not use the nomenclature employed by armies or air forces, use titles such as "[[fleet admiral]]," "[[grand admiral]]" or "[[admiral of the fleet]]" for the equivalent rank. The traditional attribute distinguishing a field marshal is a [[baton (symbol)|baton]]. The baton nowadays is purely ornamental, and as such may be richly decorated. That said, it is not necessary for the insignia to be a baton (Such is the case in Russia post-1991 and the former Soviet Union, which use a jewelled star referred to as a [[Marshal's star]]).