Captain

Captain was a commissioned officer rank, the equivalent of which was used by the service organizations of many civilizations. The title of was often used by vessel commanders and, as a naval rank, in many Earth navies and Starfleet, was above commander. 
== History ==
Captain was originally a junior rank placed between a lieutenant and colonel; over time the rank of major became common as an intermediary infantry position while the naval rank of captain denoted the commander of a sailing ship. The naval version became common in Earth militaries and was used by the United States Navy branch of the United States military and was comparable to the infantry rank of colonel. 
By the mid-22nd century, captain was a senior line officer rank of most space services and usually given to the commanding officers of starships. In the Earth Starfleet, and later the Federation, it was represented by four collar pips. This naval rank was equivalent to the Romulan Star Empire's commander grade, the Cardassian Union's title of gul, and the Ferengi Alliance's quasi-military DaiMon title. 
A senior captain given a large degree of responsibility or administrative assignment was sometimes given the title of fleet captain.
The rank of captain could also be held by non-command personnel, especially on ships with several veteran and senior officers whose experience had warranted advancement to the rank of captain but without command of a starship. Such was the case on the , where the senior staff consisted of no less than three captains: the commanding officer (James T. Kirk), the first officer (Spock), and the chief engineer (Montgomery Scott). () Captain Scott had previously held his rank of captain while chief engineer of the , where he was known as the "captain of engineering". ()
The rank of captain could also be held by staff officers, such as Phillipa Louvois, a Judge Advocate General sector officer in 2365. () Although most Starfleet Captains were in the command division, the rank was obtainable in both the sciences and operations division, as the rank was held by Captain Krasnovsky in 2267 and Captain Worf in 2401. (; )
Tryla Scott was said to have achieved the rank of captain faster than anyone in Starfleet history as of 2364. ()
In the 2360s, K'Vada, Kargan, Korris, Kurn, , and Tel-Peh were captains in the Klingon Defense Force. (; ) In the 2150s, Vorok was a captain in the Klingon Imperial Fleet. ()
Captain was a title typically held by commanders of merchant vessels and sometimes service craft. In 2367, Wesley Crusher remarked in a bemused manner that Dirgo was claiming to hold the rank of captain while serving as the master of the mining shuttle Nenebek. To this, Dirgo sternly told Crusher that yes, indeed, his rank was that of captain in comparison to Crusher's rank of ensign. ()
When Lieutenant Commander Data was asked in 2368 by why he wasn't captain of the Enterprise-D, Data explained that "My service experience does not yet warrant such a position." ()
Some known Starfleet captains included:
*Captain Jonathan Archer of 
*Captain Balthazar Edison of 
*Captain Richard Robau of the 
*Captain Robert April of the 
*Captain Philippa Georgiou of the 
*Captain Christopher Pike of the and 
*Captain Gabriel Lorca of the 
*Captain James T. Kirk of the and 
*Captain Hikaru Sulu of the 
*Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the , , and 
*Captain Phillipa Louvois of the Judge Advocate General's office
*Captain Benjamin Sisko of Deep Space 9 
*Captain Kathryn Janeway of the 
*Captain William T. Riker of the and 
*Captain Carol Freeman of the 
*Captain Saru of the 
*Captain Michael Burnham of the USS Discovery
*Captain William Boimler of the Anaximander
*Captain Jack Ransom of the USS Cerritos
*Captain Chakotay of the 
*Captain Worf
*Captain Cristóbal Rios of the 
*Captain Liam Shaw of the 
*Captain Tuvok
*Captain Seven of Nine of the 
The Starfleet of the alternate reality established in 2233 by the temporal incursion of the Romulan Nero had the following noteworthy captains:
*Captain Frank Abbott of the 
*Captain of the 
*Captain of the and 
File:Jonathan Archer, 2155.jpg|Captain Jonathan Archer
File:Balthazar Edison file.png|Captain Balthazar Edison
File:Richard Robau.jpg|Captain Richard Robau
File:Robert April, young.jpg|Captain Robert April
File:Philippa Georgiou.jpg|Captain Philippa Georgiou
File:Christopher Pike, 2253.png|Captain Christopher Pike
File:James Kirk, 2266.jpg|Captain James T. Kirk
File:Hikaru Sulu, 2293.jpg|Captain Hikaru Sulu
File:Jean-Luc Picard, 2364.jpg|Captain Jean-Luc Picard
File:Benjamin Sisko, 2375.jpg|Captain Benjamin Sisko
File:Kathryn Janeway, 2377.jpg|Captain Kathryn Janeway
File:William Riker, 2399.jpg|Captain William T. Riker
File:Carol Freeman.jpg|Captain Carol Freeman
File:Saru, 2257.jpg|Captain Saru
File:Chakotay hologram, Protostar dedication.jpg|Captain Chakotay
File:Captain Jack Ransom.png|Captain Jack Ransom
File:Cristóbal Rios, 2401.png|Captain Cristóbal Rios
File:Worf, 2401.png|Captain Worf
File:Seven of Nine, 2402.jpg|Captain Seven of Nine
File:Michael Burnham, Captain, 3189.png|Captain Michael Burnham
File:Frank Abbott.jpg|Captain Frank Abbott
File:Christopher Pike, 2258.jpg|Captain Christopher Pike
File:James T. Kirk, alternate reality.jpg|Captain James T. Kirk
File:Danby Connor (mirror).jpg|Captain Danby Connor
File:Maximilian Forrest.jpg|Captain Maximilian Forrest
File:Maddox.jpg|Captain Maddox
File:Gabriel Lorca Mirror Universe.jpg|Captain Gabriel Lorca
File:Sylvia Tilly (mirror).jpg|Captain Sylvia "Killy" Tilly
File:Michael Burnham (mirror).png|Captain Michael Burnham
File:James T. Kirk (mirror).jpg|Captain James T. Kirk
== Appendices ==
=== Background information ===
The lead characters in Star Trek productions have traditionally been Starfleet captains. In the broadcast television era, these characters were (in production order) James T. Kirk (William Shatner), Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart), Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks), Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew), and Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula; the only difference when listed chronologically being that Captain Archer was before the other four captains). This format was the intention from the very first episode of Star Trek, , wherein Captain Christopher Pike is established as the lead character. At first, the only exception to the captain-as-series-lead practice was when Sisko was portrayed as a commander during the first three seasons of , however in the streaming era, this has become much more common: for example, in , Captains Philippa Georgiou, Gabriel Lorca, Christopher Pike, and later Saru serve as secondary characters to series lead Michael Burnham, who only becomes a captain herself at the end of the third season after a long story arc. Similarly, follows retired Admiral Jean-Luc Picard, while follows a group of ensigns.
Regarding the challenge of following the legacy of so many extremely well-established series lead characters who had been Starfleet captains, Discovery Executive Producer Alex Kurtzman commented, "It's incredibly difficult to follow the amazing Starfleet captains that have already been created and beloved by so many. Every single one of them in different ways have been rendered so beautifully and so specifically that they're all tough acts to follow, but I'm sure that, when each one was being conceived, that the creators of those particular captains were scared about, you know, matching the one that had come before." ("Discovering Discovery: The Concepts and Casting of Star Trek: Discovery", DIS Season 1 DVD and Blu-ray special features)
The actors who have appeared in lead roles as Star Trek captains on broadcast television have been extremely varied. Jonathan Frakes remarked, "The five captains are so distinctive because of the five actors that play them, obviously. Patrick [Stewart] was cast against type, coming after Bill [Shatner]. Avery [Brooks], quite obviously, was cast against type, coming after Patrick. It was smart to bring Kate [Mulgrew] in, as a woman, and then Scott [Bakula] had an entire charm of his own. I think [...] whether it was planned or not, it was a very successful endeavor." (The Captains)
The Bajoran Militia, which also used army rank names, has been referred to by the as having a captain grade, with an insignia seen in episodes on officers subordinate to Major Kira Nerys, although they were never referred to by that rank on screen.
=== External link ===
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