The United States Constitution names the president of the United States the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces. Many presidents, however, also served in the military before taking office; all but 13 of the 45^[a] persons to become president have served.

Of the 32 presidents with military service, 31 have been commissioned officers, of whom five began their careers as regular officers (Jimmy Carter transferred to the Naval Reserve after five years in the Navy). There have been 13 presidents who held general officer rank (four regular officers, six militia officers, three volunteers).

In addition to this, 4 of them got military awards by heroism; Theodore Roosevelt (posthumous Medal of Honor), John F. Kennedy (Navy and Marine Corps Medal), Lyndon B. Johnson (Silver Star) and George H. W. Bush (Distinguished Flying Cross), although the third was object of controversy.

Table of United States presidents by military rank

General of the Armies

Rank order	Highest rank	Branch	President	Combat experience	Service notes
1	General of the Armies of the United States	Continental Army/United States Army Virginia militia	George Washington [1][2]	French and Indian War (1754–1758) Revolutionary War (1775–1783) Whiskey Rebellion (1791–1794)	Served in the Virginia militia (1752–1758), attaining the rank of colonel; served as commander in chief of the Continental Army (1775–1783) during the Revolutionary War, with the rank of "General and Commander in Chief." Washington was a lieutenant general in the United States Army at his death. In 1976, as part of the Bicentennial, then-president Gerald R. Ford posthumously appointed Washington as General of the Armies of the United States, a rank that ensured he would forever rank above all other officers.
		United States Army (Regular Army)	Ulysses S. Grant	Mexican–American War and Civil War	Graduated West Point; first Lieutenant General since Washington, appointed as four-star General of the Army of the United States in 1866. In 2022 Grant was promoted by the United States Congress to General of the Armies to celebrate the 200th anniversary of his birth. The rank of General of the Armies is considered senior to General of the Army. Grant became the third person to become General of the Armies after John J. Pershing and George Washington. Grant and Pershing are outranked only by Washington.

General of the Army

Rank order	Highest rank	Branch	President	Combat experience	Service notes
2	General of the Army	United States Army (Regular army)	Dwight D. Eisenhower	Supreme Commander of the Allied Invasion of Europe, primarily the Battles for Normandy, France and Germany World War II. - Army Distinguished Service Medal (5) Navy Distinguished Service Medal	Graduated West Point; served 1915–1952,resigned to run for president. Commission and rank restored by Congress in 1961. Commissioned but inactive until death. Served stateside during World War I and as Supreme Allied Commander during World War II.

Major general (O-8)

Rank order	Highest rank	Branch	President	Combat experience	Service notes
3	Major General	United States Army North Carolina Militia Tennessee Militia	Andrew Jackson	Revolutionary War, Creek War, War of 1812, First Seminole War.	Served at age 13 as a militia messenger during the Revolutionary War; was captured, becoming the only president to have been held as a prisoner of war (Washington had surrendered in the French and Indian War but was immediately paroled); served in the War of 1812, attaining the rank of major general and became a national hero after his success at the Battle of New Orleans.
		United States Army	William H. Harrison	Northwest Indian War, War of 1812	Dates of service: 1791–1798, 1812–1814. Became national hero after success at the Battle of the Thames.
			Zachary Taylor	War of 1812, Black Hawk War, Second Seminole War, and Mexican–American War	Became a national hero because of his achievements in the Mexican–American War.
	Brevet Major General of Volunteers	United States Army (volunteers)	Rutherford B. Hayes	American Civil War	Successful leadership in Virginia/West Virginia region; wounded at the Battle of South Mountain
	Major General of Volunteers	United States Army (volunteers)	James A. Garfield	American Civil War	His heroic ride at the Battle of Chickamauga later helped him to be elected president.
	Major General	American Red Cross (Under jurisdiction of the US War Dept)	William Howard Taft	None	He was Secretary of War under President Theodore Roosevelt from 1904 to 1908. Taft also joined a Connecticut Home Guard unit during World War I. He was commissioned with military rank in the American Red Cross by President Wilson August 1917[3]

Brigadier general (O-7)

Rank order	Highest rank	Branch	President	Combat experience	Service notes
4	Brigadier General	United States Army New Hampshire Militia	Franklin Pierce	Mexican–American War	Served in New Hampshire Militia from 1831 to 1847 and attained the rank of Colonel. Appointed to command 9th Infantry Regiment during Army expansion for Mexican–American War. Subsequently, promoted to Brigadier General and command of a brigade.
		New York State Militia	Chester A. Arthur	Inspector General of the New York Militia – Civil War	Joined militia as Judge Advocate of 2nd Brigade. Appointed Quartermaster General on Governor's staff, and later appointed Inspector General. Offered command of brigade raised in New York City, but Governor declined to allow him to leave state service. Left service in 1863 after new Governor appointed a successor.
		United States Army	Andrew Johnson	Military Governor of Tennessee – Civil War	Served in the 90th Regiment of Tennessee Militia in 1830s. Later appointed Colonel.
		United States Army Indiana State Militia	Benjamin Harrison	Civil War	Battle of Perryville – Atlanta Campaign – Battle of Nashville

Colonel (O-6)

Rank order	Highest rank	Branch	President	Combat experience	Service notes
5	Colonel	Virginia State Militia Albemarle County	Thomas Jefferson	None	Like other Virginia gentlemen, he had militia duties, and did administrative work
		Virginia Colonial Militia Orange County	James Madison	None	Left militia to enter Virginia legislature. (Some sources claim Madison briefly assumed command of an artillery battery during the British assault on Washington during the War of 1812. If true, he would join Washington (Whiskey Rebellion) as having seen military service as commander-in-chief.)
		Continental Army Virginia State Militia	James Monroe	Revolutionary War	Dates of service: 1776–1779. Wounded and nearly died in the Battle of Trenton. Returned to Virginia to recruit and lead a regiment as a militia Lieutenant Colonel, but the regiment was never raised. Commissioned as a Colonel during British invasion of Virginia in 1780 to command the militia raised in response and act as liaison to the Continental Army in North Carolina. Appointed As Secretary of State during the War of 1812, scouted and deployed troops during the British invasion of Washington.
		Tennessee Militia	James K. Polk	None	Captain in a cavalry unit beginning in 1821. Subsequently, appointed Colonel on staff of Governor William Carroll.
		United States Army	Theodore Roosevelt	Spanish–American War – Medal of Honor (posthumously; 2001)	Commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the New York National Guard's 8th Regiment in 1882. Company commander with rank of Captain when he resigned in 1886. Famous for charge up San Juan Hill. Posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. As ex-president, volunteered for service in World War I, but President Wilson declined.
			Harry S. Truman	World War I - Armed Forces Reserve Medal (2)	Served 1905–1911, then in World War I, 129th Field Artillery (1917–1919), Army Reserves (1919–1953)[4]

Commander (O-5)

Rank order	Highest rank	Branch	President	Combat experience	Service notes
6	Commander	United States Navy (Reserve)	Lyndon B. Johnson	World War II – Silver Star	Awarded Silver Star by General Douglas MacArthur for his role as an observer on a B-26 bomber mission. This award has been subject to controversy.[5][6][7][8]
			Richard Nixon	World War II - Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal	Served 1942–1945 on various islands in the South Pacific and commanded SCAT units in the South Pacific. United States Naval Reserve (1946–1966).[9]

Major / Lieutenant commander (O-4)

Rank order	Highest rank	Branch	President	Combat experience	Service notes
7	Major	New York State Militia	Millard Fillmore	None	Years of service: 1820s–1830s, 1860s–1870s
	Brevet Major	United States Army (volunteers)	William McKinley	Civil War	Served in the Army of the Potomac, originally with the 23rd Ohio Infantry same as President Rutherford B. Hayes. First major engagement in West Virginia in 1861 and was present at the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia.
	Lieutenant Commander	United States Navy (Reserve)	Gerald Ford	World War II - American Campaign Medal Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal World War II Victory Medal	Years of service: 1942–1946. Served on USS Monterey. Earned 10 battle stars.[10][11]

Captain / Lieutenant (naval) (O-3)

Rank order	Highest rank	Branch	President	Combat experience	Service notes
8	Captain	Virginia State Militia	John Tyler	War of 1812	Raised a company for the defense of Richmond in 1813
		Illinois State Militia	Abraham Lincoln	Black Hawk War	Initially elected to command a company as a captain. Was mustered in and out of service during the Black Hawk War, going from Captain to Private and finishing his service in an independent spy company commanded by Captain Jacob Early. Honorably discharged without seeing combat. Also served in Stillman's Run and Battle of Kellogg's Grove.
		United States Army Air Forces (Reserve)	Ronald Reagan	None	Served as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army Reserve; served in the United States Army Air Forces during World War II, attaining the rank of captain. Was barred from combat because of poor eyesight. Narrated pre-flight training films under the Army Air Forces Motion Picture Unit.
	Lieutenant	United States Navy (Reserve)	John F. Kennedy	World War II – Navy and Marine Corps Medal	Commanded a PT boat. Earned Navy and Marine Corps Medal for heroism in the PT-109 Incident.[12]
			George H. W. Bush	World War II – Distinguished Flying Cross	Years of service: 1942–1955 (on active service 1942–1945). Second[13] youngest pilot in the United States Navy during World War II (Three days before turning 19).[14] Earned Distinguished Flying Cross.
			Jimmy Carter	None - National Defense Service Medal	Years of service: 1946–1961 (on active service 1946–1953). Graduated 59th in class of 1946 out of 820, United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Submarine service (Nuclear Specialist). Midshipman during World War II, served during Korean War, but never sent to Korea

First lieutenant (O-2)

Rank order	Highest rank	Branch	President	Combat experience	Service notes
9
	First lieutenant	United States Air Force (Air National Guard)	George W. Bush	None - Outstanding Unit Award	He performed Air National Guard duty as an F-102 pilot through April 1972, logging 336 hours, when he lost his authorization to be a pilot for failing to meet attendance and physical examination requirements.[15] He was later discharged eight months short of his six-year service requirement.[16]

Private

Rank order	Highest rank	Branch	President	Combat experience	Service notes
10	Private	Pennsylvania National Guard	James Buchanan	War of 1812	Joined volunteer light dragoon unit and served in defense of Baltimore. Only future president with military service who did not serve as an officer.

Did not serve