Rustmästare is a former Swedish rank that literally means the one responsible for the armory.
Rustmästare was used, among other things, as a designation for officer rank in the artillery during the 16th century and as a non-commissioned officer title in the infantry from around 1615 to 1835.[1]
Rustmästare was originally a non-commissioned officer rank and the holder of the rank was responsible for the care of the armory, weaponry and ammunition within a company.
Holders of the rank were elevated to furir, which then was the lowest non-commissioned officer rank.
The rank was reintroduced as the rank within the Underbefäl category.[1]
The rank of rustmästare was replaced with fanjunkare, and the rank was removed.
Prior to 1972, military personnel were divided into three categories Underbefäl (non-commissioned officers), Underofficerare (warrant officers) and Officerare (commissioned officers).
The Underbefäl category was split into two categories
fanjunkare - former överfurir and rustmästareThe Underofficer category was renamed kompaniofficerare to include:
fänrik - former sergeant and fanjunkare with less than 3 years of service
löjtnant - former sergeant and fanjunkare with 3-7 years of service
kapten - former sergeant, fanjunkare with a minimum of 7 years of service and förvaltare The Officer category was renamed regementsofficerare to include
kapten - kapten with less than 11 years of service and former Löjtnant with 3-11 years of service
major - former kapten and löjtnant with a minimum of 11 years of service
higher ranks
All categories were merged into one professional officer category with the lowest rank set to fänrik. Furir, överfurir, sergeant and fanjunkare were removed as a professional ranks. Holders of the rank fanjunkare were given the rank of löjtnant and the rest to fänrik.