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Flag Officers of the Brazilian Navy

Oficiais Generais da Marinha do Brasil

Last modified: 2017-11-11 by ian macdonald
Keywords: navy | cruzeiro | admiral | admiral of the fleet | vice admiral | rear admiral | star (white) | star: 21 | star: 5 | star: 4 | star: 3 | star: 2 | anchor | anchor: 2 |
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Proportions of all these flags are 3:4. In addition to indicating rank, Brazilian admirals' flags have two kind of markings indicating command status:
1. The flag of an admiral (of any rank) who is the Commander-in-Chief of the Esquadra (i.e., the fleet) is same as the appropriate flag for the Commander-in-Chief's rank with an anchor added in the lower hoist quarter and a star set the in lower fly quarter.
2. The flag for an admiral (of any rank) commanding a force (almirante comandante de força) is the same as the appropriate admiral's rank flag with an anchor added in the lower hoist quarter (unless the command is of a Marine force (Fuzileiros Navais), when the FN badge is set there).
Željko Heimer, 25 March 2001

I believe força refers to an operational command of any size, since there are flags for relatively junior officers commandante de força provided for in the Brazilian Navy Ceremonial manual, cited as MB Cerimonial.
Joseph McMillan, 23 March 2001

Admirals of the Brazilian Navy originally flew the Cruzeiro as their flag of rank, the point of hoist (mainmast, foremast, mizzenmast) corresponding to their rank, as in other navies at the time. The use of stars in the upper hoist to indicate rank (as well as the flag of the Minister of Marine with the star of the republican coat of arms in the upper hoist) date from the 1890s.
Joseph McMillan, 28 October 2002


Almirante (Admiral of the Fleet)

Admiral of the Fleet (Brazilian Navy) image by Željko Heimer

Source: Album des Pavillons, 2000

The cruzeiro flag defaced in the canton with five white stars set in points of an imagined pentagon. This agrees well with MB Cerimonial, apart from the question of the size of the aditional stars. Album de Pavillons (2000) here shows the rank stars larger than the stars forming the Cruzeiro, and in my image I used stars that are 50% larger (i.e., with 90 units hoist, the Cruzeiro stars are inscribed in 4 unit circles and the rank stars are in 6 unit circles). But that is based on my impressionistic feeling. MB Cerimonial does not provide an answer to this question.
Željko Heimer, 24 March 2001


Almirante de Esquadra (Admiral)

(commanding a force)

Admiral Commanding a Force(Brazilian Navy) image by Željko Heimer

Source: Album des Pavillons, 2000

Almirante de esquadra is a rank title that has nothing in particular to do with what the almirante commands.
Joseph McMillan, 23 March 2001

The Cruzeiro flag defaced in the canton with four white stars set in points of an imagined circle at 3, 6, 9 and 12 o'clock, and in lower hoist quarter a slanted white anchor. Even if Album shows here the admiral's stars of the same size as those in the cruzeiro, I drew them larger as in the previous flag.
Željko Heimer, 24 March 2001

(not in command)

Admiral (not in command)(Brazilian Navy) image by Željko Heimer

Source: Album des Pavillons, 2000

The Cruzeiro flag defaced in the canton with four white stars set in points of an imagined circle at 3, 6, 9 and 12 o'clock.
Željko Heimer, 24 March 2001


Vice-Almirante (Vice Admiral)

(senior afloat, commanding a force)

Senior Vice Admiral Commanding a Force (Brazilian Navy) image by Željko Heimer

Source: Album des Pavillons, 2000

The Cruzeiro flag defaced in the canton with three white stars set in points of an imagined isosceles triangle pointing up, in lower hoist quarter a slanted white anchor, and in upper fly quarter a single white star. If I understood the MB Ceremonial rightly, this is the flag used instead of the "senior officers afloat" if that senior officer holds rank of an admiral. The flag includes the appropriate number of rank stars in canton. My guess is that all combinations (2,3,4 and 5) could in theory be used, though I guess there would not be many chances for higher ranking admirals not to be entitled to some other flag.
Željko Heimer, 24 March 2001

(commanding a force, not senior afloat)

Vice Admiral Commanding a Force (Brazilian Navy) image by André Pires Godinho

(not in command)

Vice Admiral (not in command)(Brazilian Navy) image by Željko Heimer

Source: Album des Pavillons, 2000

The cruzeiro flag defaced in the canton with three white stars set in points of an imagined isosceles trangle pointing up.
Željko Heimer, 24 March 2001


Contra-Almirante (Rear Admiral)

Rear Admiral (not in command)(Brazilian Navy) image by Željko Heimer

Source: Album des Pavillons, 2000

The Cruzeiro flag defaced in the canton with two white stars set horizontally.
Željko Heimer, 24 March 2001

Rear Admiral Commanding a Force (Brazilian Navy) image by André Pires Godinho