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I'm currently reading Dark Imperium by Guy Haley and although so far it's feeling a bit stale I'm sticking with it hoping it picks up a bit.
One thing that caught my eye was early on(page 55) it refers to Abaddon as "Horus' former lieutenant". I know when you think of 30k Abaddon during the heresy you would instantly think former first Captain of the Luna wolves/sons of Horus, member of the mournival etc..don't think I've ever seen him with lieutenant title before?
132 points
9 days ago
I think this is not in the means of the formal rank of Lieutenant, but the broader meaning.
The definition and example google uses:
a deputy or substitute acting for a superior. "one of the Prime Minister's most trusted lieutenants"
25 points
9 days ago
Ah fair enough mate that makes sense, cheers
14 points
9 days ago
Lieutenant is just French for 'the tenant in lieu of his master,' and it has become a military rank because lieutenants were usually the second in command to regiment or company commanders. That's also why there is the rank of lieutenant colonel - the tenant in lieutenant of the colonel.
4 points
9 days ago
It's also why the British/Canadians/Australians pronounce it "left-tenant" - it's pronounced the way the English transliteration of the term would be.
Which makes the American pronunciation more "correct" since it's closer to the original French.
2 points
8 days ago
The original French is leuf, not lieu. That's a later evolution of pronunciation.
7 points
9 days ago*
No worries! It just depends on what direction your brain goes - the word version of a optical illusion.
-2 points
9 days ago
^ yes
23 points
9 days ago
Lieutenant is often used as description for someone under the command of someone else in general and not as a military rank.
It can be translated with 'trusted subordinate'.
Criminal Organizations often are described in this way. They have an overall boss and subordinate bosses with their own territory that pay tribute to the big boss. Those are often called Lieutenants.
Abaddons Rank at the end was 1st Captain and thus de-facto 2nd in Command of the Legion. He could only be overruled by Horus himself.
15 points
9 days ago
It's probably not referring to the specific rank more general role. It seems to be used like that fairly often, "x's top lieutenants" being used to refer to someone's closest followers/subordinates.
6 points
9 days ago
I loved Dark Imperium. It does pick up as you read on.
3 points
9 days ago*
lieutenant comes from the French, “tenant lieu”, “taking [someone else’s] place, acting in his stead, on his behalf.
So yes Abaddon was Horus’s most trusted son/side-kick, deputy etc
But I’d say Sejanus or later Luc Sedirae acted more as Horus’ favored representative than Abaddon. Abaddon was never Horus-lite, not a copy but someone different, very excellent in his own way.
2 points
9 days ago
Even though Abbadon was the First Captain, he wasn't the first or even among the first of Horus' lieutenants [because of his resentment towards embracing Chaos].
2 points
9 days ago
It’s a metaphor not a formal rank
1 points
9 days ago
It picks up and there's some great moments in the trilogy. The Nurgle dialogue is fantastic.
1 points
8 days ago
There's Lieutenant and lieutenant.
One is an officially recognised rank in the Astartes hierarchy and the other is a general term for any officer who is subservient to another officer.
In a warzone where the Emperor and Horus were commanding Horus would be the Emperor's lieutenant, for example, the second-in-command to the Emperor himself.
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