Mustang (military officer)

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Mustang is a military slang term used in the United States Armed Forces to refer to a commissioned officer who began their career as an enlisted service member. A mustang officer is not a temporary or brevet promotion but is a commissioned officer who receives more pay according to their rank of O1-E, O2-E, etc., but has no more command responsibilities than those of any commissioned officer of the same grade.

Contents

Mustang officers are generally older than their peers-in-grade who have been commissioned from one of the service academies (such as the United States Merchant Marine Academy, United States Military Academy, United States Air Force Academy, United States Naval Academy, or United States Coast Guard Academy), Officer Candidate School, or the Reserve Officer Training Corps. [1]

History

The term "mustang" refers to the mustang horse, a feral animal and not a thoroughbred, which is captured and tamed.

The original definition of mustang was a military officer who had earned a battlefield commission; they were especially prevalent during World War II and the Korean War. Notable examples include Audie Murphy (World War II) and David Hackworth (Korean War). During the Vietnam War, some army warrant officer pilots were offered a direct commission to 2nd or 1st Lieutenant, while usually being younger than 25 at the time of commission. Department of Defense military pay tables authorize approximately ten percent pay premiums for officers in grades O-1, O-2 and O-3 who have credit for over four years of enlisted or warrant officer service before commissioning (Grades O-1E, O-2E, O-3E). [2]

A mustang is characterized by former enlisted service before transitioning to officer rank. As a slang term, there is no official U.S. Government definition or set of criteria to determine which officers can properly be called a mustang. By the end of World War II, it was understood across the armed forces that a Mustang was an officer with service in the enlisted ranks before commissioning.

A similar term is Maverick used for the same reason. [3]

By Branch

A United States Navy or United States Marine Corps mustang officer can be a chief warrant officer, a limited duty officer, a staff corps officer, a restricted line officer or an unrestricted line officer, depending on the particular situation. [4] [5]

Notable mustangs

American mustang officers

19th century

20th and 21st centuries

Non-American mustang officers

British Empire

France

  • Pierre Augereau – Served as an enlisted man in numerous European armies, including the French, before the French Revolution; became a Marshal of the Empire under Napoleon.
  • Jean-Baptiste Jules Bernadotte (aka King Charles XIV John) – Served in the Régiment Royal–La Marine for a decade; became a Marshal of the Empire under Napoleon, and later was elected Crown Prince of Sweden, he died as the King of Sweden and King of Norway.
  • Jean-Baptiste Bessières – Enlisted in the Constitutional Guard and served in the army during the French Revolutionary Wars; became a Marshal of the Empire under Napoleon.
  • Marcel Bigeard – Enlisted in 1936, became a sergeant in 1940, participated in World War II, the First Indochina War, and the Algerian War; ended his career as a lieutenant general
  • Jean-Baptiste Jourdan – Enlisted in the French Army when he was 15 years old and fought in the American War of Independence; became a Marshal of the Empire under Napoleon.
  • Jean Lannes – Served as sergeant-major of a volunteer battalion during the French Revolutionary Wars; became a Marshal of the Empire under Napoleon.
  • Jacques MacDonald – Served as an enlisted man in the Irish Legion and in Dutch service before receiving a commission in the French Army; became a Marshal of the Empire under Napoleon.
  • André Masséna – Served as an enlisted soldier in the Royal Italian Regiment of the French Army for 14 years; became a Marshal of the Empire under Napoleon.
  • Bon-Adrien Jeannot de Moncey – Enlisted twice as a youth but was quickly dismissed when his father intervened; became a Marshal of the Empire under Napoleon.
  • Michel Ney – Served 5 years as an enlisted cavalryman; became a Marshal of the Empire under Napoleon.
  • Nicolas Oudinot – Served 3 years as an enlisted soldier; became a Marshal of the Empire under Napoleon.
  • Laurent de Gouvion Saint-Cyr – Briefly served as an enlisted soldier before being elected as an officer in a volunteer unit during the French Revolutionary Wars; became a Marshal of the Empire under Napoleon.
  • Nicholas Savin – Cavalry NCO during the French Revolutionary Wars, promoted to lieutenant under Napoleon. Died in 1894 at the claimed age of 126.
  • Jean-de-Dieu Soult – Enlisted in the French Army as a teenager and served for several years before receiving a commission; became a Marshal of the Empire under Napoleon.
  • Louis-Gabriel Suchet – Served as cavalryman in the National Guard before receiving a commission; became a Marshal of the Empire under Napoleon.
  • Claude Victor-Perrin, Duc de Belluno – Had already retired after ten years of enlisted service; became a Marshal of the Empire under Napoleon.

Russia

Germany

Poland

Netherlands

See also

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References

  1. Milzarski, Eric. "7 reasons why enlisted love 'Mustang' officers". We Are The Mighty. Mighthy Networks. Retrieved 3 July 2018.
  2. Senior Airman Andrea Posey (May 12, 2016). "Face of Defense: Airman Earns Selection for Unique Commissioning Program". Archived from the original on 2016-07-13. Retrieved 2016-07-16.
  3. Parker, Verda L. (2016-08-15). "Marine 'Maverick' closes three-decade chapter in the Corps". United States Marine Corps. Archived from the original on 2024-03-02. Retrieved 2024-05-12.
  4. Anthony Koch (July 17, 2007). "Making Mustangs: Helping Enlisted Sailors Become Officers". United States Department of the Navy . Archived from the original on October 22, 2012. Retrieved May 12, 2024.
  5. "Membership Eligibility". Marine Corps Mustang Association. Retrieved May 12, 2024.
  6. Daniel E Russell, “Brevet Major General Frederic Winthrop: The Union’s Last Martyr” http://www.glencoveheritage.com/legacy_site/frederickwinthrop.pdf
  7. Dartmouth College (2013-09-25). General James Mattis, "Amid the Storm: A US Commander's View of the Changing Middle East". YouTube (Video). 80:10 minutes in. Archived from the original on 2021-12-22. Retrieved 2024-05-12.
  8. Reynolds, Nicholas E. (2005). Basrah, Baghdad and Beyond . Naval Institute Press. p.  4. ISBN   978-1-59114-717-6.
  9. Overy, Richard (2014). A History of War in 100 Battles. Oxford University Press. pp. 352–355. ISBN   978-0-19-939071-7 . Retrieved 2024-05-12.[ bare URL ]
  10. Achtung Panzer!