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Corporal is a military rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The rank is usually the lowest ranking non-commissioned officer. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corresponds to commanding a section or squad of soldiers.
The word is a contraction from the Italian language phrase capo corporale ( of). While most Indo-European languages use this contraction, West Iberian languages use cabo.
Units with a cavalry, artillery or Logistic Corps (Transport unit) tradition replace Corporal by "Brigadier".
The equivalent of these ranks in the Naval Component are quartermaster, chief quartermaster and 1st chief quartermaster.
The rank insignia of a corporal is a two-bar chevron, point down, worn in gold thread on both upper sleeves of the service dress jacket; in rifle green (army) or dark blue (air force) thread on CADPAT slip-ons for operational dress; in old gold thread on blue slip-ons on other air force uniforms; and in gold metal and green enamel miniature pins on the collars of the army dress shirt and outerwear coats. On army ceremonial uniforms, it is usually rendered in gold braid (black for rifle regiments), on either both sleeves, or just the right, depending on unit custom.
Corporal is the first non-commissioned officer rank, and the lowest rank officially empowered to issue a lawful command. Corporals can lead troops if they have the formal qualifications to be promoted to master corporal but have not been promoted yet. However, the rank of corporal was severely downgraded after Unification, along with the attendant responsibilities. A corporal in the Canadian Army in 1967 had the same duties and responsibilities that a sergeant has today. In an infantry section, a corporal will sometimes command an fireteam if a master corporal is leading the section or they are pending promotion to master corporal.
Another effect of Unification was to delete the appointments of lance-corporal and lance-sergeant (a corporal holding the acting rank of sergeant). The former is still common in other Commonwealth militaries.
Corporal is deemed to be the substantive rank of the members carrying the appointment of master corporal. On pay documents, corporal was formerly listed as "Cpl (A)" and master corporal as "Cpl (B)".
In rifle regiments, a distinction was historically drawn between a corporal and an acting corporal; The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada had a special insignia to distinguish between the two.
In September 2021, the Bundeswehr reimplemented the grade of Korporal, but this time as a senior enlisted rank below NCO level. Additionally, a completely new rank was created with the grade of Stabskorporal what is the most senior enlisted rank now.Anordnung des Bundespräsidenten über die Dienstgradbezeichnungen und die Uniform der Soldatinnen und Soldaten (15 September 2021) Both ranks are classified OR-4 in the NATO rank code system. In the Bundeswehr, both ranks share paygrade A6 with the junior NCO rank Stabsunteroffizier.
In regiments with a cavalry tradition, using white insignia, and artillery, brigadier is used instead.
In the Artillery Corps, the corporal is normally assigned to a gun detachment as a Gun laying, or a detachment commander. Artillery corporals can also find themselves in charge of the battery signals section.
The army rank insignia consists of two winged chevrons (or "stripes"), the dress uniform being red chevrons with a yellow border.
Like their British, Canadian and Australian counterparts, they wear two chevrons to distinguish their rank.
Corporals have what is termed 'power of arrest', and is impressed on recruits in RNZAF basic training. Basically, this power means that any airman or private disobeying or ignoring an order from a corporal will be subject to military arrest by that individual. Power of arrest is used by higher ranks to enforce their orders, corporal in the RNZAF being the lowest rank with this power.
The Philippine Revolutionary Army also used corporal as part of their ranks during the Philippine Revolution and the Philippine–American War. It is the lowest enlisted personnel rank on the service, below the rank of sergeant.
As of 8 February 2019, a new ranking classification for the Philippine National Police was adopted, eliminating confusion of old ranks. The rank of corporal is included on the new ranking classification. It is the second from the bottom, placing above the rank of Patrolman and below police staff sergeant.
As with many other military ranks, direct comparison between various armies might be misleading. Before World War II, the Polish Army's kapral was more or less equivalent to the British rank of lance corporal, while the British rank of corporal was named plutonowy (lit. platooner). In modern times, the rank is still equivalent to a UK lance corporal or a private first class in the U.S. Army (OR-3), while the British and American rank of corporal (OR-4) is equivalent to the Polish rank of starszy kapral (), which was introduced in 1971.
Historically, the rank was first introduced in Poland in the 17th century, together with mercenary troops of Italian origin. In foreign troops on the royal payroll, a kapral commanded four ranks of or part of a company of pikemen. In the 20th century, between the world wars, the rank of corporal was held by both conscripted NCOs and professional soldiers alike. This was changed after World War II, when the Polish Army was under Soviet command and the rank of kapral was modified to resemble that of Soviet junior sergeant, reserved for conscripted NCOs. In the modern Polish Army, the rank is exclusively reserved for professional soldiers.
The insignia of kapral (worn on shoulder straps or badge above breast pocket) are two bars.
The several ranks of corporal correspond to the several , above that of private, that can be reached inside the enlisted rank professional category of the Army, the Air Force and the National Republican Guard. In the Navy, the rank of cabo da Armada is the highest pay grade in the enlisted rank category.
Prior to 1992, the SAF followed the British model where corporals were non-commissioned officers often holding the appointment of section leader. Today, a corporal is not a specialist (NCO-equivalent). Corporals are usually given higher responsibilities/ appointments as a section 2IC, or 2nd-in-command.
The rank insignia for a corporal is two chevrons pointing downwards.
For NCC, the rank insignia is same as that of an SAF CPL, except that the letters 'NCC' are below the insignia, so as to differentiate NCC from SAF personnel. As for NPCC and NCDCC, the rank insignia is two pointed-down chevrons with the letters 'NPCC' and 'NCDCC' below the insignia, so as to differentiate NPCC and NCDCC cadets from Singapore Police Force and Singapore Civil Defence Force personnel, respectively.
The rank of Corporal is generally awarded to cadets in Secondary Two, or Secondary Three. Corporals, after being appointed, are given training to command a squad.
The badge of rank is a two-bar chevron (also known as "stripes", "tapes", or "hooks"). A corporal's role varies between regiments; but, in the standard infantry role, a corporal commands a section, with a lance-corporal as second-in-command (2ic). When the section is split into fireteam, they command one each. In the Royal Armoured Corps, a corporal commands an individual tank. Their duties therefore largely correspond to those of in the United States Army and corporals are often described as the "backbone" of the British Army.
In the Household Cavalry, all non-commissioned ranks are designated as different grades of corporal up to regimental corporal major (who is a warrant officer class 1). There is no effective actual rank of corporal, however, and the ranks progress directly from lance-corporal to lance-corporal of horse (who is effectively equivalent to a corporal; technically, a lance-corporal of horse holds the rank of corporal but is automatically give the appointment of lance-corporal of horse). Similarly, in the Foot Guards and in the Honourable Artillery Company, every Corporal is appointed as a lance-sergeant meaning they wear three chevrons rather than the regular two, with a lance-corporal wearing two chevrons instead of one: this is sometimes said to have originated with Queen Victoria who did not like "her own guardsmen" having only one chevron.
Royal Artillery corporals are called bombardiers; although, until 1920, the Royal Artillery had corporals and bombardier was a lower rank. The rank of second corporal existed in the Royal Engineers and Royal Army Ordnance Corps until 1920.
A common nickname for a corporal is a "full screw", with lance-corporals being known as "lance-jacks".
Corporal is the lowest NCO rank in the Royal Air Force (aside from the RAF Regiment who have lance-corporals), coming between junior technician or Senior aircraftman technician and sergeant in the technical trades, or senior aircraftman and sergeant in the non-technical trades. Between 1950 and 1964, corporals in technical trades were known as "corporal technicians" and wore their chevrons point up.
In the Royal Navy, the equivalent to corporal is Leading rating.
The Army Cadet Force, Combined Cadet Force, Air Training Corps, Royal Marines sections of the Sea Cadet Corps and the Combined Cadet Force all have the rank of corporal, reflecting the structure of their parent service; therefore it is the second NCO rank of the ACF, CCF (including the RAF Section, which has the rank of lance corporal) and marine cadets, and the first NCO rank in the ATC.
A corporal rank shares the same pay grade (E-4) as a specialist, though unlike a specialist, a corporal is a non-commissioned officer and may direct the activities of other soldiers.
The rank of corporal dates to the Revolutionary War. Each company in the Continental Army was divided into four squads, with the Enlisted rank contingent of each comprising a sergeant, a corporal, and nineteen privates. The corporal, along with the superior sergeant, were responsible for the care, discipline, and training of their men.
After the Civil War, U.S. Army infantry strategy increasingly focused on units below the company level. In 1891, a squad was defined as an eight-man unit led by a corporal, a definition which held through World War I until the eve of the U.S. entry into World War II.In 1940, with the recognition of the increasing importance of small-unit tactics, the size of the squad was increased to twelve men, now led by a sergeant, with a corporal as assistant squad leader. In February 1944, the squad leader became a staff sergeant, assisted by a sergeant, dropping the corporal from the infantry company's chain of command. As a result of this "steady inflation" of the NCO corps, writes historian Ernest F. Fisher, "the rank of corporal came to mean very little in a line organization, though the corporal was in theory and by tradition a combat leader."
After the Korean War, squad leaders were further promoted to sergeant first class (E-7), and the "once-honored rank of corporal sank into oblivion."As of July 2021, specialists who are graduates of the Basic Leader Course (BLC) and who have been recommended for promotion are to become corporals before further promotion; conversely current corporals who have not yet graduated from BLC will be laterally reassigned as specialists until they have graduated from BLC. No change in pay is involved, but corporals are expected to lead, teach, and mentor their teams. Joseph Lacdan, Army News Service (4 June 2021) Soldiers to pin on corporal after BLC
ranking immediately above lance corporal and immediately below sergeant. The Marine Corps, unlike the Army, has no other rank at the pay grade of E-4. Corporal is the lowest grade of non-commissioned officer in the U.S. Marine Corps, though promotion to corporal traditionally confers a significant jump in authority and responsibility compared to promotion from private through lance corporal. Marine infantry corporals generally serve as "fire-team leaders", leading a four-man team or weapons crew of similar size (e.g., assault weapons squad, medium machine gun team, or LWCMS mortar squad).
In practice, however, the billet of fire team leader is generally held by a lance corporal, while corporals serve in the squad leader billet that would normally be held by a sergeant (E-5) in infantry units. In support units, corporals generally serve in "journeyman" level roles in which they direct the activities of junior Marines and provide technical supervision, on a very limited scope, under the direct supervision of a sergeant or SNCO.
Due to its emphasis on small-unit tactics, its infantry-centric ethos, and its tradition of empowering junior NCOs to exercise first-level leadership, the U.S. Marine Corps' Tables of Organization (TOs) usually places corporals (as well as sergeants and staff sergeants) in billets where other services would normally have higher ranking NCOs in authority. For example, the USMC Table of Organization "billet" rank for rifle fire team leader, rifle squad leader, and rifle platoon sergeant is corporal (E-4), sergeant (E-5), and staff sergeant (E-6), respectively. However, the same positions (Table of Organization and Equipment "slots") in US Army infantry units are one grade higher and, except in fire teams (both services with four men in each team), the equivalent Army units are smaller (viz., USMC rifle squad and rifle platoon – 13 men and 43 men, respectively, vice US Army rifle squad and rifle platoon – 9 men and 34 men, respectively). Specifically, for the Army rifle units, the rank of the fire team, squad leader, and platoon sergeant are: sergeant (E-5), staff sergeant (E-6), and sergeant first class (E-7), respectively.USMC Table of Organization, TO 1013G: Rifle Company, Infantry Battalion, Infantry Regiment and US Army Table of Organization and Equipment, TOE 07015C000: Rifle Company, Infantry Battalion (Light), Light Infantry Division Similarly, the term "strategic corporal" refers to the special responsibilities conferred upon a Marine corporal over against the normal responsibilities, and usual authority, of service members in the grade of E-4 in the other branches of the U.S. Armed Forces.
Until the mid-to-late 1980s, corporals were the lowest USMC rank eligible for selection as a drill instructor for USMC recruit training.
The history of the rank of corporal in the USMC roughly parallels that of the U.S. Army until 1942. From 1775 until WWII, the Marine Corps used essentially the same rank and organizational structure as its common British and colonial forebears with the Army, as well as the later Continental and U.S. armies. In 1942, as the Army modified its triangular division infantry organization to best fight in the European/North African/Middle Eastern Theatre the Marine Corps began modifying the triangular division plan to best employ its amphibious warfare doctrine in the Pacific Theatre. This meant that for the Corps, squad leaders would remain as sergeants and that the rifle squad would be sub-divided into three four-man fire teams each led by a corporal.
In the same process sergeant was first replaced by Airman 1st class in 1952 (E-4, becoming E-3 in 1967). The title sergeant was reimplated in E-4 as lowest NCO rank from October 1967 to March 1991. From 1976, sergeant shared his paygrade with Senior airman (since then the most senior enlisted rank below NCO status), before phasing out in the late 1990s.
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