General of the branch

General of the branch also General of the branch of service was an OF8 general rank linked to the appropriate dranch of service in a number of armed forces. The classification of that particular rank was normally between lieutenant general (OF7) and colonel general (OF9).

Germany
In the German Wehrmacht this rank was linked to the service branch Heer, or air force Luftwaffe,  in which the officer served, and (nominally) commanded: in addition to the long established General der Kavallerie, General der Artillerie and General der Infanterie, the Wehrmacht also had General der Panzertruppen (armoured troops), General der Gebirgstruppen (mountain troops), General der Pioniere (engineers), General der Fallschirmtruppen (parachute troops), General der Flieger (aviators), General der Flakartillerie (anti-aircraft), General der Nachrichtentruppen (communications troops) and General der Luftnachrichtentruppen (air communications troops). A General was usually a corps commander.

Poland
In the Polish armed Forces this tradition was preserved, and today there is the OF8 rank Weapon general (pl: Generał broni).

Russian Empire


This OF8 rank was also established in the Russian Empire. The particular ranks General of the Cavalry, General of the Infantry and Generalfeldzeugmeister have been introduced already in the Army of Peter the Great in the year 1699.

Notes and references
General (mit dem Zusatz der Waffengattung) Generał broni Генерал рода войск