Editing Captain general (section)

=== Spain ===

By the late 15th century, the title Captain General, besides being the usual meaning of commander-in-chief in the field, was also linked to the highest commander of specialized military branches (artillery, royal guards, etc.), usually signaling the independence of that particular corps.

No later than the fall of [[Granada]] (1492) the title was conferred also on officers with full jurisdiction of every person subject to ''fuero militar'' (military obligations) in a region. Those officers usually also acted as commanders for the troops and military establishments in their area and, as time passed, those duties (and the title) were mostly united in the highest civilian authority of the area. During the period of Spanish rule in much of [[Latin America]] there were several [[Captaincies of the Spanish Empire]]. The military post of ''captain general'' as highest territorial commander lasted in Spain until the early 1980s.

==== Army ====
{{Main|Captain general of the Army}}
In the late 17th or very early 18th century, a personal rank of ''captain general'' was created in the [[Spanish Army]] (and Navy) as the highest rank in the hierarchy, not unlike the [[Marechal de France]]. When wearing uniform, the kings used captain general insignia. [[Valeriano Weyler]], [[Governor-General|Governor General]] of [[Cuba]] in 1896–97 during the period preceding the [[Spanish–American War]], held the rank. Briefly abolished by the [[Second Spanish Republic]], it was restored during the regime of [[Francisco Franco]] in 1938; Franco himself was the only officer of this rank.<ref name=fnff>{{cite news |url=https://fnff.es/actualidad/201496330/la-corona-y-la-dictadura-totalitaria-de-franco.html |title=La Corona y la 'dictadura totalitaria' de Franco |date=6 November 2012 |access-date=30 June 2019 |work=Fundación Nacional Francisco Franco |language=es}}</ref> Later King [[Juan Carlos I]] (1975), [[Agustín Muñoz Grandes]] (1956) and [[Camilo Alonso Vega]] (1972) were promoted while on active duty; a few posthumous promotions and promotions of retired officers to this rank were also made. In 1999, the rank was reserved to the reigning [[Spanish Monarchy|monarch]].

==== Navy ====
{{Main|Captain general of the Navy}}
The evolution of the title in the [[Spanish Navy]] is parallel to that of the army. During the 16th and 17th century the two main naval captain general posts were ''Capitán-General de la Armada del Mar Océano'' and ''Capitán-General de Galeras'', roughly [[Commander-in-Chief]] for the Atlantic and the Mediterranean respectively.

A peculiar usage of the rank arose in the Spanish Navy of the 16th century. A ''capitán-general'' was appointed by the king as the leader of a fleet (although the term 'squadron' is more appropriate, as most galleon fleets rarely consisted of more than a dozen vessels, not counting escorted merchantmen), with full jurisdictional powers. The fleet [[second-in-command]] was the 'almirante' (admiral), an officer appointed by the capitan-general and responsible for the seaworthiness of the squadron.<ref>"Spanish Galleon: 1530–1690" by Angus Konstam, copyright 2004 [[Osprey Publishing]], Ltd.</ref> One captain-general that sailed under the Spanish flag that is now well known was [[Ferdinand Magellan]], leader of the first fleet to sail around the world.

Under the Nationalist regime of 1939–1975, the only holder of the rank of ''capitán general de la armada'' was the [[Caudillo]], [[Generalísimo]] [[Francisco Franco]].<ref name=fnff/>

====Air force====
{{Main|Captain general of the Air Force}}
The rank of Captain General of the [[Spanish Air Force|Air Force]], originally created by Franco for himself, currently is reserved for the reigning monarch.<ref name=fnff/>