Field marshal (abbreviated as FM) is a five–star general officer rank and the highest attainable rank in the Indian Army. Field marshal ranks immediately above general, but is not in use in the army's current structure. Awarded only twice, field marshal is a rank bestowed on generals for ceremonial purposes or during times of war.

Sam Manekshaw was the first field marshal of the Indian Army, and was promoted on 1 January 1973. The second was Kodandera M. Cariappa, who was promoted to the rank on 15 January 1986.

Field marshal is equivalent to admiral of the fleet in the Indian Navy and Marshal of the Indian Air Force in the Indian Air Force. There has never been an admiral of the fleet in the Indian Navy, leaving Marshal of the Indian Air Force Arjan Singh as the only officer to hold an equivalent rank to the Indian Army's two field marshals.

History
To date, only two Indian Army officers have been conferred the rank. It was first conferred to Sam Manekshaw in 1973, in recognition of his service and leadership in the 1971 Indo-Pakistani War. Immediately after the war, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi decided to promote Manekshaw to Field Marshal and subsequently to appoint him as the Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS). This appointment was dropped after several objections from the bureaucracy and the commanders of the Navy and the Air Force. On 3 January 1973, after his term as the Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) Manekshaw was promoted to field marshal at a ceremony held at Rashtrapati Bhavan. As it was the first use of the rank, some details such as the rank insignia, had not been set worked out. A few weeks before Manekshaw's appointment, the first Indian field marshal's badges of rank were made at the Army workshop in Delhi Cantonment. These were inspired by the rank insignia of a British field marshal.

The second individual to be conferred the rank was Kodandera M. Cariappa, the first Indian to serve as the Commander–in–Chief of the Indian Army (the office that later became the Chief of the Army Staff). Unlike Manekshaw, who was promoted to field marshal a few days before leaving office as Chief of the Army Staff, Cariappa had been retired for close to 33 years at the time of his promotion. This posed a problem as field marshals remain on active duty for life. The Government of India elected to promote Cariappa regardless due to his exemplary service and conferred the rank of field marshal on him on 15 January 1986 at a special investiture ceremony held at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Overview
Field marshal is the five-star rank and highest attainable rank in the Indian Army. It is a ceremonial or wartime rank, having been awarded only twice.

A field marshal receives the full pay of a full general, and is considered a serving officer until their death. They are entitled to wear a full uniform on all ceremonial occasions.

Insignia
A field marshal's insignia consists of the national emblem over a crossed baton and sabre in a lotus blossom wreath. On appointment, field marshals are awarded a gold-tipped baton which they may carry on formal occasions. The star insignia, which comprises five golden stars over a red strip, is used on car pennants, rank flags and as gorget patches.

Rank holders

Sam Manekshaw

Sam Manekshaw, MC (1914–2008), also known as "Sam Bahadur" ("Sam the Brave"), was the first Indian Army officer to be promoted to the rank of field marshal. Commissioned into the British Indian Army on 1 February 1935 with seniority  antedated to 4 February 1934, Manekshaw's distinguished military career spanned four decades and five wars, beginning with service in World War II. He was first attached to the 2nd Battalion of Royal Scots, and later posted to the 4th Battalion of 12th Frontier Force Regiment, commonly known as the 54th Sikhs. Following partition, he was reassigned to the 16th Punjab Regiment.

Manekshaw rose to be the 8th COAS of the Indian Army in 1969, and under his command Indian forces conducted successful campaigns against Pakistan in the Liberation War of Bangladesh in 1971.The war lasted for 09 months. Indian Army joined as an ally force with Bangladesh for 12 days from 3 December to 16 December. On 16 December 1971, Lt. Gen A. A. K. Niazi of the Pakistan Army signed the Instrument of Surrender at Dhaka in the presence of Lt. Gen. Jagjit Singh Aurora, Lt. Gen. J. F. R. Jacob and other Senior Officers of the Indian Army. More than 93000 Pakistani Soldiers surrendered to the allied force led by Indian Army, which was recorded as one among the largest surrenders in history. The decisive results achieved by the Indian Army during this war, under the able military leadership of Manekshaw, gave the nation a new sense of confidence, and in recognition of his services, in January 1973 the President of India conferred the rank of field marshal on him. He was also awarded the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan, the second and third highest Indian civilian awards respectively, for his services to the Indian nation.

Controversies
Though Sam Manekshaw was conferred the rank of field marshal in 1973, it was reported that he was never given the complete allowances he was entitled to as a field marshal. It was not until President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam took the initiative when he met Manekshaw in Wellington, and made sure that the field marshal was presented with a cheque for ₹1.3 crores–his arrears of pay for over 30 years. Even more surprisingly, Manekshaw's funeral was not attended by the top brass from civil, military, or political leadership, because non parsis are not allowed to enter parsi funeral.

Kodandera Madappa Cariappa

Kodandera Madappa Cariappa, OBE (1899–1993), was the first Indian to be appointed as commander-in-chief (C-in-C) of the Indian Army. His distinguished military career spanned almost three decades. Cariappa joined the British Indian Army on 1 December 1920, and was commissioned as temporary second lieutenant in the 2/88 Carnatic Infantry. He was later transferred to 2/125 Napier Rifles, then to the 7th Prince of Wales Own Dogra Regiment in June 1922, and finally to the 1/7 Rajput, which became his parent regiment.

He was the first Indian officer to attend the course at Staff College, Quetta, the first Indian to command a battalion in the Indian Army, and also was one of the first two Indians selected to undergo a training course at the Imperial Defence College, Camberly, UK. He served in various staff capacities at various unit and command headquarters (HQ) and also at the General HQ, New Delhi.

He led the Indian forces in Kashmir during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. He was a member of the Army Sub Committee of the Forces Reconstitution Committee, which divided the British Indian Army into the Indian and Pakistani Armies after the Partition of India in 1947. After his retirement from the Indian Army in 1953, he served as the high commissioner to Australia and New Zealand until 1956. As a token of gratitude for the exemplary service rendered by him to the nation, the Government of India conferred the rank of field marshal on Cariappa in his 87th year, on 15 January 1986.

See also
 Army ranks and insignia of India
 Marshal of the Indian Air Force Arjan Singh
 Field marshal
 Five-star rank

Notes

References

Bibliography

Further reading

External links
 Profile on Sam Manekshaw Indian Army official website
 Profile on K. M. Cariappa Indian Army official website

Indian generals
India Army
Indian Army
Military ranks of the Indian Army
Five-star officers