George Dewey, with his six admiral stars, surpasses even the highest-ranking American admirals from World War II.
On this day the admiral with the most senior rank in the U. S. Navy died. His name was George Dewey, and he has attained the unique rank of “Admiral of the Navy”. No other American was ever awarded with such a high rank of admiral, which can be attributed with as much as six stars. Ranks ranging from one star to four star are awarded in the U.S. today, but the five-star rank is reserved for the time when the U.S. is in a state of war (the last five-star rank was awarded in 1945).
George Dewey, with his six admiral stars surpasses even the highest American admirals from the Second World War – Leahey, King, Nimitz, and Halsey – the only ones in history who received the rank “Admiral of the Fleet” with five stars. How did Dewey actually manage to get such a senior rank? As a matter a fact, he successfully defeated the Spanish fleet at the Philippines in 1898, which led to the American conquest of these islands. The Philippines were after that a sort of American colonial possession for years. Upon returning to the U.S., Dewey was greeted as a hero. The U.S. Congress awarded him the rank of “Admiral of the Navy” in 1903. Dewey died on this day at the age of 80 in Washington, the U.S. capital.