Commandant - South Africa

South Africa

In South Africa, commandant was the title of the commanding officer of a commando (militia) unit in the 19th and early 20th centuries. During the First World War, Commandant was used as a title by officers commanding Defence Rifle Association units, also known as Burgher Commandoes. The Commandoes were militia units raised in emergencies and constituted the third line of defence after the Permanent Force and the part-time Active Citizen Force regiments. The Commandant rank was equivalent to Major or Lieutenant-Colonel depending on the size of the Commando. From 1950 to 1994 Commandant (rank) was the rank equivalent of lieutenant colonel. and commander of a battalion. The rank was used by both the Army and the Air Force. The Naval equivalent was Commander . The rank was not used by the Police who continued with Lieutenant Colonel . The rank insignia for a Commandant (Kommandant in Afrikaans) was initially a crown over a five-pointed star. In 1957 the crown was replaced by a pentagonal castle device based on the floor plan of the Castle of Good Hope in Cape Town, South Africa's oldest military building. In 1994,the rank of Commandant / kommandant was changed back to Lieutenant Colonel.

From 1968 to 1970, a related rank, Chief Commandant existed in the Commando Forces .