Mestre de camp was a military rank in the Ancien Régime of France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

, equivalent to colonel

Colonel

Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...

. A mestre de camp commanded a regiment and was under the authority of a Colonel General

Colonel General (France)

A Colonel General was an officer of the French army during the Ancien Régime, Napoleonic era and the Bourbon Restoration.The positions were not military ranks, but rather offices of the crown. The position was first created under François I. The Colonels General served directly below the Marshals...

, who commanded all the regiments in one "arme

Combat Arms

Combat Arms is a multiplayer game, free-to-play modern first-person shooter developed by the South Korea-based developer Doobic Studios, and published by Nexon. The game uses the Lithtech game engine to produce its graphics.- Gameplay :...

". The rank also existed in Portugal

Portugal

Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

 ando Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

, as mestre de campo.

When the role of infantry colonel general was abolished in 1661, the mestre de camp took the title of colonel. The cavalry regiments, on the other hand, remained under the authority of a colonel general, were commanded individually by mestres de camp up until the French Revolution

French Revolution

The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...

. Like the rank of captain, the rank of mestre de camp was "vénale", that is, it could be purchased and/or handed on to another man without hindrance. Consequently, precocious rejects from the high aristocracy could accede to the rank at a very young age and thus be in a good position to obtain promotions (by seniority) to the rank of brigadier

Brigadier

Brigadier is a senior military rank, the meaning of which is somewhat different in different military services. The brigadier rank is generally superior to the rank of colonel, and subordinate to major general....

.

The rank of mestre de camp was demonstrated by wearing a pair of épaulette

Epaulette

Epaulette is a type of ornamental shoulder piece or decoration used as insignia of rank by armed forces and other organizations.Epaulettes are fastened to the shoulder by a shoulder strap or "passant", a small strap parallel to the shoulder seam, and the button near the collar, or by laces on the...

s with gilded or silver fringes.

The rank was abolished at the Revolution and replaced by that of chef de brigade

Chef de brigade

Chef de brigade was a military rank, equivalent to colonel, in the French Revolutionary army, in command of a demi-brigade. Both that unit and that rank were created at the same time, in 1793. The two designations disappeared just before the institution of the French Empire, in 1803, with the...

.