History Trivia Thread Reducks

[jimmy olsen]

Providence, Rhode Island was abandoned and burned to the ground during what war?

The Stonewall riots ?

I laughed and laughed.

[Caliga]

You stood by and laughed while bloodthirsty savages burned Providence to the ground!?

Tim: Puerto Rico Nero. 

[Eddie Teach]

You stood by and laughed while bloodthirsty savages burned Providence to the ground!?

The rioters at Stonewall had a different fluid of choice.

[Viking]

I don't know.

[Kleves]

The floor seems to be open, so I will throw an easy one out there: By date of commission, who was the United States first 5-star general, and in what year was he promoted to that rank?

[Caliga]

Pershing... 1918?

[Barrister]

McClelland, 186...2?

[Grey Fox]

Grant or does he not count?

[Kleves]

Actually,  after double-checking wiki, it seems I may have made a mistake. My intended answer was: George Washington, 1864. I was under the impression that Congress posthumously promoted Washington in that year, so that Grant wouldn't outrank him; wiki says Washington wasn't promoted until 1976, and then to the rank of General of the Armies, or a six-star rank (which is apparently what Pershing held). Another potential source of confusion is whether or not the rank of General of the Army (Grant, Sherman, and Sheridan's rank) is equivalent to a 5-star general (it is), since none of them actually wore 5-stars on their uniform. Because of these discrepencies, I yield the floor, shame-faced. 

[Caliga]

I knew that George Washington received a posthumous 5-star promotion, but I thought you meant which person was the first to be awared five stars in chronological order of the award.  IIRC Washington got a later promotion to 6 stars and the title "General of the United States", which was Congress's way of making sure nobody would ever outrank Washington under any circumstances.

[jimmy olsen]

Actually,  after double-checking wiki, it seems I may have made a mistake. My intended answer was: George Washington, 1864. I was under the impression that Congress posthumously promoted Washington in that year, so that Grant wouldn't outrank him; wiki says Washington wasn't promoted until 1976, and then to the rank of General of the Armies, or a six-star rank (which is apparently what Pershing held). Another potential source of confusion is whether or not the rank of General of the Army (Grant, Sherman, and Sheridan's rank) is equivalent to a 5-star general (it is), since none of them actually wore 5-stars on their uniform. Because of these discrepencies, I yield the floor, shame-faced. 

Grant was General of the Army which was at the time a 4 star rank.

Marshal was the first 5 star general, and IIRC the reason there is no Field Marshal rank in the US. They thought it would be silly if he was Field Marshal Marshal.

[Caliga]

But Tim, it would have been Field Marshal Marshall.

[jimmy olsen]

But Tim, it would have been Field Marshal Marshall.

Well than that makes it A Okay.

[Kleves]

Grant was General of the Army which was at the time a 4 star rank.

Grant wore 4 stars, as did Sheridan, while Sherman wore 2. I don't think they had the stars hammered out at that point. Wasn't Marshall's rank that of General of the Army?

[Viking]

But Tim, it would have been Field Marshal Marshall.

Marshal Marshall Mann approves of this joke.