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The Inimitable U.S. Navy& Its Masonic Kinship

by Barry J. Lipson 33°, PM

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The Inimitable U.S. Navy& Its Masonic Kinship1

by Barry J. Lipson 33°, PM

When is a Captain NOT a CAPTAIN?

Gilbert & Sullivan in their notorious ditty “I Am The Captain Of The Pinafore” proclaim:

[Captain] I am the Captain of the Pinafore!

[Chorus] And a right good captain, too!

[Captain]... I am never known to quail

At the fury of a gale,

And I'm never, never sick at sea!

[Chorus] What, never?

[Captain] No, never!

[Chorus] What, never?

[Captain] Hardly ever!

[Chorus] He's hardly ever sick at sea!

Then give three cheers, and one cheer more,

For the hardy Captain of the Pinafore!

Then give three cheers, and one cheer more,

For the Captain of the Pinafore!

Such was the respect shown for the CAPTAIN of the Royal Navy's HMS Pinafore, where theCaptain answered only to the Admiralty, the Admiralty only to the Monarchy, and the Monarchyonly to the Divinity!

But, was the same true for the Captain of the Watch who oversaw a segment of the crew andreported to the Mate, who in turn reported to the Ship’s Captain? Or the on-board Captain of theHMS Pinafore's Marine Brigade, reporting (as in the Army) on a daily basis to his Major, his Lt.Colonel, his Colonel and to his One to Four-Star Generals, to the extent on-board? And, oh yes, tothe Royal Navy's CAPTAIN of the HMS Pinafore, himself! But before we further explore theposition and status of Captains, let us view that U.S. Military Service that elevates Captaincy to itshighest elevation, even sometimes to the extent of the designation of “Commodore.”

The Second Continental Congress on October 13, 1775 resolved to create the Continental Navy.But then, following the American Revolutionary War, and after being deemed to be too expensiveand no longer necessary, the Continental Navy was disbanded. Thereafter no armed U.S. maritimeforce existed until 1790 when the Revenue-Marine or "Cutter" service, the forerunner of the U.S.Coast Guard, was formed to enforce the collection of tariffs and the other maritime laws. Between1790 and 1797 this Cutter service remained the only U.S. armed maritime force. In such capacity,in addition to its tariff duties, it captured and/or seized at least two pirate/privateer ships and

1 As delivered on November 12, 2015 to Doric Lodge No. 630, Free and Accepted Masons, Sewickley, Pennsylvania, inhonor of Veterans Day.

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enforced U.S. neutrality. Revenue-Marine Cutter Commanders were legislated "the subsistence of aCaptain in the Army," other Cutter Officers "the subsistence of an Army Lieutenant," and enlistedmen "the same ration as a soldier" (there, of course, being no sailors then).

With the rising threat to American commerce of the Barbary Pirates, Congress passed the NavalAct of 1794, creating a permanent standing U.S. Navy. On February 22, 1797 John Barry wasissued U.S. Naval Commission Number 1 (backdated to June 4, 1794), with the title of"Commodore," and he is still recognized as the first U.S. Naval flag officer.

This grandiose title of Commodore may just be as interesting as or even more interesting thenCaptain. I was brought up to believe that Naval Commodores were the equivalent of One-StarGenerals and only existed during times of war. The truth is much more complex. At first, asbestowed on Commodore Barry, it was the top and perhaps only Naval flag rank. Sometimesthereafter it has been used as an honorific attaching to some Naval Captains while having a multi-command, sometimes it has been a real One-Star Rank by that name, and sometimes it kickednormally Two-Star Rear Admirals in the wallet by reducing the “lower half” in seniority of theirranks to the One-Star Pay Grade.

In fact, from 1862 to 1899 Commodore was a permanent One-Star commissioned rank in the U.S.Navy, but then it was disestablished and all Commodores became Rear Admirals, with Congressspecifying at that time that the lower half of the Rear Admiral list would be the equivalent of anddraw the lower pay of a One-Star Brigadier General. The Supreme Court subsequently disagreed,holding that the rank of Commodore had been removed from the Navy, leaving it without a rankequivalent to Brigadier General, resulting in those “Lower Half’s” being paid as One-Stars buthaving the status and rank insignia of Two-Stars. Then, in 1943 the One-Star officer rank was re-established with the title of "Commodore," but fell into disuse after World War II. In 1982, theOne-Star rank of Commodore was officially reintroduced with the title Commodore Admiral, butwas quickly changed back to Commodore as Commodore Admiral was considered confusing andunwieldy, and then within a year, in 1983, was reverted back to Rear Admirals, Lower Half(RDML) but now wearing only One-Star. And the title Commodore? It is once again relegated tomerely an honorific for, you guessed it, some Naval Captains with Multi-Commands.

So now we are back to Captains. Naval Captains outrank all but flag office, to wit, Admirals andGenerals.2 But what of Military Non-Naval Captains? For them they are out-ranked by lowersounding ranks. Thus, a Navy Lt. Commander outranks a Captain, that is if he is a Captain in theArmy, Air Force or Marines. This Navy Lt. Commander is the equivalent of an Army, Air Force orMarine Major and wears the Gold Oak Leaf or Shoulder Board/Sleeve with two ½ inch stripes andone 1/4 inch stripe in between (and with an applicable specialty mark), depending on the uniformworn. And this Gold Oak Leaf is out ranked by the Silver Oak Leaf (or three ½ inch stripes) of aNavy Commander ( or Army, Air Force or Marine Lt. Colonel ), as due to historical U.S. military

2 A Naval Captain (four ½ inch stripes or Silver Eagle, same as an Army Colonel) serves as CommandingOfficer of a Major Command such as an Aircraft Carrier, Amphibious Assault Ship, Cruiser, DestroyerSquadron, Carrier Air Wing, Ballistic Missile Submarine, Submarine Squadron, SEAL Group or major shoreinstallation.

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happenstance silver outranks gold. Incidentally, Naval Commanders are the rank that normallycommands SEAL Teams.3

To add to the confusion, in the U.S. Navy Generals would be Admirals; Army, Air Force andMarine Captains would be Lieutenants; First Lieutenants would be Lieutenants, Junior Grade (orgrammatically “second” Lieutenants); and Second Lieutenants would be Ensigns.4

Relationship of Sailors & Marines

The term "Navy" includes more than the “fleet,” it includes "the complete military organization ofa nation for sea warfare including yards, shops, stations, men, ships, offices, and officers - the navalestablishment," which, of course, encompasses marine military personnel associated therewith[Webster's 3rd International Dictionary]. The United States Marine Corps (USMC] operates aspart of the Department of the Navy and forms the "sea-borne infantry arm" of the American warmachine - assaulting enemy positions traditionally, though not always, through amphibious means,fighting from “the shores of Tripoli” (First Barbary Pirates War – 1801 to 1805), to “the Halls ofMontezuma” (Chapultepec Castle in landlocked Mexico City – 1847).5

On November 10, 1775, two weeks after establishment of the Continental Navy, Congress resolvedto raise two battalions of Marines as ships guards. On the 28th Day of the same month, Congressadopted "Rules for the Regulation of the Navy of the United Colonies" that applied equally to theMarines as to the Sailors. Marine officers were to serve with naval officers on Courts Martials andMarines and Sailors subscribed to the same enlistment papers. The Constitution of the UnitedStates, adopted in 1787, gives Congress power to raise money to "provide and maintain a navy,"which implicitly includes the power to create a Marine Corps, though nowhere specificallyprovided for therein.

On November 12, 1908, President Theodore Roosevelt issued an executive order including withinthe duties of the Marine Corps the protection of shore facilities and participation in expeditionaryforces overseas, and the next year Congress reaffirmed the Marine Corps' continuing role as shipsguards. Non-combatant Marine Corps positions such as medical/dental and chaplains are filled bynaval personnel and some of these sailors, particularly Hospital Corpsmen and Religious ProgramsSpecialists, generally wear Marine uniforms emblazoned with Navy insignia.

I thoroughly enjoyed the reverberating salutes I received from Marine Guards when entering NavalInstallations during my service with Naval JAG.

3 Navel Commanders command Frigates, Destroyers, Fast Attack Submarines, Smaller Amphibious Ships,Aviation Squadrons, SEAL Teams and shore installations. Lt. Commanders are Department Heads andExecutive Officers on ships, aircraft squadrons and submarines, SEAL Team Executive Officers andCommanding Officer of Minesweepers and Patrol Crafts.

4 Generals with their Silver Stars and Admirals with their Silver Stars and Fouled Anchors are at the top ofthe food chain. At the bottom of the commissioned managerial officer chain are Ensigns (one ½ inch stripeor One Gold Bar, same as a Second Lieutenant), and just above them are Lieutenants Junior Grade (one ½inch stripe with one 1/4 inch stripe above it or One Silver Bar, same as a First Lieutenant).

5 Thus, the word "Navy" in the titles "Department of the Navy," and "Secretary of the Navy" is used in the dictionarysense of "the complete military organization of a nation for sea warfare...” The U.S. Marine Corps has in this broadsense been part of and served the United States Navy, subject and reporting to the civilian executive having authorityover all Sailors and Marines, the Secretary of the Navy, since such position was first established in 1798, it beingunderstood then and now that the Department of the Navy includes both Sailors and Marines.

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Masonic Kinship

Looking at the Navy through Masonic Glasses one can see certain similarities of organization andcreed. The Commissioned Officer Corps can be viewed as Grand Lodge and the Enlisted Corps asBlue Lodge. The Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy, like E-9’s of the other services, theSergeant Majors of the Marine Corps and Army and the Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force,being the spokespersons of the enlisted forces at the highest levels of their services, would stand inthe stead of the Worshipful Master; the Chief Petty Officers (E-7 through E-9, equivalent to higher-level Sergeant ranks), Master Masons; the Petty Officers (E-4 through E-6, equivalent to Corporaland the lower-level Sergeant ranks), Fellowcrafts; and Apprenticeships/Seamen (E-1 through E-3,equivalent to Private and Airman ranks), Entered Apprentices.6

But of more interest is the Chief Petty Officers Creed. As in Masonry, as "a Chief Petty Officer ...you have joined an exclusive fellowship and, as in all fellowships, you have a special responsibilityto your comrades, even as they have a special responsibility to you." Thus, explains the MasterChief Petty Officer of the Navy, "Chief Petty Officers are responsible for, have the authority toaccomplish and are held accountable for leading Sailors and applying their skills to tasks thatenable mission accomplishment for the U.S. Navy; developing enlisted and junior officer Sailors;communicating the core values, standards and information of our Navy that empower Sailors to besuccessful in all they attempt; and supporting with loyalty the endeavours of the chain of commandthey serve and their fellow Chief Petty Officers with whom they serve." Concepts equallyapplicable in Masonry.

For your viewing pleasure, please view the following Appendix “Women in the Navy.”

Copyright © 2015, by Barry J. Lipson

6 Commissioned Naval Officers do not “enlist,” they serve at the pleasure of the President, be they higheror traditionally commissioned officers (O1-O11), or Chief Warrant Officers (CWO2-CWO5 [CWO1 waseliminated in 1975]). Indeed, elsewhere Chief Warrant Officers are not traditionally “commissioned” andeven here are normally considered to be non-managerial officers who serve in 30 specialties and aretechnical specialist directing specific activities essential to proper operations. Only senior enlistedpersonnel with a minimum of 13 enlisted service years (pay grades E6 and above) may apply for the Navy’sWarrant Officer Program. Their insignias are silver and blue or gold and blue bars with breaks. Unlike theother U.S. military services, which organize service members according to ranks, the Navy organizes itsforce according to rates. The rate of an enlisted Sailor can be determined by their rating badge, which is acombination of a rate (pay grade) badge of stripes or chevrons, depending on rank, and rating(occupational specialty), represented by the symbol just above the stripes or chevrons on the left sleeve ofmost uniforms.

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Appendix

Women In The Navy