In the British service in 1845 there are 88 full generals, 131 lieutenant-generals, and 147 major-generals ; but of this number many command particular regi ments as colonels, or hold military go vernments in the country and colonies ; some of them have only local rank; and 20 have retired from the service, re tabling the title, but without receiving the pay or being qualified for obtaining any progressive promotion.
The military staff of Great Britain at head-quarters consists of the com mander-in-chief, the adjutant-general, and the quartermaster-general. The charge of this staff is provided for in the esti mates for Public Departments, and amounted in 1845 to 14,6401. The field marshal the commander-in-chief receives 59991. 13s. 9d. a year, and has an allow ance of 720/. for forage. The military secretary has 2000/. a year, and 1461. for forage, and the four aides-de-camp of the commander-in-chief have an allowance of 9s. 6d. a day each, and 88l. a year each for forage. The annual cost of the adjutant general's office is 32421. which includes the pay of a deputy adjutant-general, an assistant adjutant-general, and a deputy assistant. The charge of the quarter master-general's office is 2705/. a-year, which includes his own pay and that of the assistant and deputy quartermasters general. Besides the staff at head-quar ters there is a general staff which consists of the generals commanding districts and their aides-de-camp in Great Britain and Ireland, the aides-de-camp to the queen, &c. : the charge of this department in 1845 was 44,5041. in pay, and 25,000/.
for contingencies. There is also the military staff of the colonies, which in the same year cost 88,72C1. of which 33,0001. was for contingencies and 55,7261. for pay. The total of the contingencies and pay of the home and foreign staff amounted to 158,230/.
The duty of the adjutant-general falls partly under that of the serjeant-major general in the sixteenth century : in the field he receives the orders from the general officer of the day, and communi cates them to the generals of brigades ; he makes a daily report of the situations of all the posts placed for the security of the army ; and, in a siege, he inspects the guards of the trenches.
The quartermaster-general corresponds in part to the harbinger of the army in the sixteenth century. This officer has the charge of reconnoitring the country previously to any change being made in the position of the army ; he reports con cerning the ground which may be favour able for the site of a new encampment, and upon the practicability of the roads in the direction of the intended lines of route. He also superintends the forma tion of the encampment and the dispo sition of the troops in their cantonments.
The first notice of a commander of the artillery occurs in the time of Richard III.: this officer was designated simply master of the ordnance till 1603, when the Earl of Devon was dignified with the title of general. The head of this de partment is now styled master-general of the ordnance.