Captain General Royal Marines is the ceremonial head of the Royal Marines. The current Captain General is King Charles III.[a] The uniform and insignia currently worn by the Captain General are those of a Field Marshal.[1]
Appointed by the monarch of the United Kingdom, the ceremonial head of the Royal Marines was the Colonel in Chief until the title changed to Captain General in 1948.[2] The first Captain General Royal Marines was King George VI. Following his death he was succeeded by Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, consort to Queen Elizabeth II; Prince Philip is the longest serving Captain General to date.[3]
Following Prince Philip's retirement from royal duties in 2017, Prince Harry was appointed as Captain General.[4] As Captain General, Prince Harry was entitled to wear the rank insignia of a Field Marshal.[5] Despite this, Prince Harry, at least on some occasions, wore the rank insignia of a Colonel,[6][7] which is traditionally worn by some colonels-in-chief in the British Army.[8]
King Charles III was announced as Captain General on 28 October 2022, on the 358th anniversary of the corps' founding by King Charles II in 1664.[9] Charles III separately holds the position of Head of the Armed Forces, which like some of his predecessors also makes him the Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Marines.[10]
↑From 1910 onwards concurrently served as Head of the Armed Forces also making them Commander in Chief of the Royal Marines.
Notes
↑The Queen made an agreement with the Duke of Sussex to suspend his duties on 31 March 2020.[17][18][19] An announcement by Buckingham Palace on 19 February 2021 confirmed the relinquishment of the Duke of Sussex's honorary military appointments.[20][21]
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