General admiral General admiral was a Danish , Dutch , German , Russian , Portuguese , Spanish and Swedish naval rank . Its historic origin is a title high military or naval dignitaries of early modern Europe sometimes held , for example the ( nominal ) commander - in - chief of the Dutch Republic ' s navy ( usually the Prince of Orange ) . Third Reich . In the German " Kriegsmarine " of the Second World War , " Generaladmiral " was a rank senior to an admiral , but junior to a grand admiral . " Generaladmiral " was a four - star admiral rank , equivalent to a full admiral in the British and American navies . In the traditional German ranking system until World War II , an admiral was equivalent to a British or American vice admiral . The sleeve insignia for a " Generaladmiral " was the same as that of a regular admiral , being a thick rank stripe below three regular stripes ( " kolbenringe " in German naval parlance ) . " Generaladmiral " s wore a third pip on their shoulder boards to differentiate them from regular admirals . The German Army and Air Force equivalent of " Generaladmiral " was the rank colonel general ( " Generaloberst " ) . In 1943 , a directive was issued that should the " Oberbefehlshaber der Kriegsmarine " ( " commander of the navy " ) hold the rank of " Generaladmiral " , he would wear the sleeve insignia of a grand admiral , but the shoulder boards of a " Generaladmiral " . A similar practice was used in the German Army , allowing colonel generals to wear four pips on the shoulder board when engaged in duties befitting a field marshal . The rank of " Generaladmiral " was first given to the future grand admiral Erich Raeder on 20 April 1936 . Other holders of the rank were : It is interesting to note that Karl Dönitz was promoted to grand admiral without becoming a " Generaladmiral " first . Russian Empire . General - admiral ( ) was the highest rank of the Russian Navy as established by the Table of Ranks and equivalent to field marshal . This was purely an honorific rank and for much of its existence , it was awarded only to a person on active duty , usually for the head of the naval department , and typically a descendant of the Romanov royal family . There were only nine holders of this rank : The general admiral rank was abolished with the fall of the Empire and was not revived when rank distinctions were reintroduced during 1935 - 40 . The rank of admiral of the fleet of the Soviet Union can be considered as a modern equivalent . Kingdom of Spain . " Almirante general " is a rank in the Spanish Navy that is above an admiral , but subordinate to a captain general . Kingdom of Portugal . " Almirante - general " was the highest rank in the Portuguese Navy , from 1808 to 1812 and again , from 1892 to 1910 . It was the naval equivalent to the rank of " marechal - general " ( " general field marshal " ) of the Portuguese Army . The rank was initially introduced in 1808 , to be assigned to the commander - in - chief of the navy . The " almirante - general " had similar functions to those of the former " capitão - general da armada " ( captain general of the navy ) which had been extinguished in 1796 and whose functions passed to the Board of the Admiralty . The rank was only given to Infante Pedro Carlos de Bragança , being extinguished when he died in 1812 . In 1892 , the " almirante - general " rank was reintroduced as a mere ceremonial rank to be held by the King of Portugal in his constitutional function of supreme commander of the navy . As supreme commander of the army , the king also held the ceremonial rank of " marechal - general " . The last holder of the rank was King Manuel II . In fiction . " Admiral General " Aladeen from " The Dictator " is a parody of leaders who appoint themselves grandoise military ranks .