Star Trek: How Old Every Captain Was In Each Series

Being a captain in the Star Trek universe is a huge responsibility and those few individuals who have held the rank have done so at a range of ages in every television series. In order “to boldly go where no man has gone before,” age might not really matter in a leader, but rather how their experiences on the final frontier shaped them into becoming a capable captain. Still, it raises some questions about just how old the captains were when they took command in their respective series.

There have been many captains in Starfleet, but each Star Trek series focuses on just a few of them and the crew they oversee. In each series, the captain has approached the role slightly differently, allowing their strengths to shine through whenever they can, while also knowing when they need to lean on others to assist them. A Starfleet captain doesn’t need to be any particular age in order to command their own crew, but they do need to have the ability to lead others, while also maintaining a cool head in the tensest moments.

There are nine captains the Star Trek franchise has spotlighted across seven television series. While they have commanded crews of various races, interestingly, all but one captain was human. The Star Trek captains’ ages range from 32 to 59 when they began their post, and there are two captains whose date of birth is unknown at this time. Here is how old every Star Trek captain was explained.

Captain James T. Kirk

James T. Kirk (William Shatner) sat at the helm of the legendary USS Enterprise during Star Trek: The Original Series after his predecessor Christopher Pike was promoted to fleet captain. Kirk began his tenure on the Enterprise in 2265 when he was just 32 years old. Kirk can also be seen in the controversially non-canon Star Trek: The Animated Series, which picks up in the year 2269, where the Original Series leaves off, making Kirk 36 years old at the start of the show. The Animated Series only covered about a year, so Krik was 37 when the show ended.

Captain Jean-Luc Picard

Having quickly proved himself as a competent leader in Starfleet, Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) eventually found himself as Captain of the USS Enterprise-D in 2364. Having been born in 2305 in France, Picard was 59 years old when he assumed his position as Captain in Star Trek: The Next Generation and was 65 in the year 2370 when the series ended. Though not in command of a starship in Star Trek: Picard, the former Captain is 94 at the start of the Paramount+ series.

Captain Benjamin Sisko

Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) actually began Star Trek: Deep Space Nine as a Commander aboard the space station the show takes place on. After a stint on the U.S.S. Saratoga, Sisko was assigned to Deep Space Nine in 2369, a space station located near the entry point of the Bajoran wormhole. The strategic position of DS9 allowed for further exploration into the Gamma Quadrant. Sisko was born in 2332 in New Orleans, which means he would have been 37 at the start of Deep Space Nine when he was a Commander. Sisko was officially promoted to Captain in 2371 making him 39 at that point. The show continued on to the year 2375 in the Star Trek universe, which means he would have been 43 at the end of the series.

Captain Kathryn Janeway

The first female captain of a Star Trek series, Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) assumed control of the USS Voyager in 2371. She was born in 2336, so Janeway was 35 years old at the start of her tenure on the Intrepid-class starship. After she and her crew were catapulted 70,000 lightyears from home, Janeway famously traversed the Delta Quadrant. In the last episode of Star Trek: Voyager, the Captain finds a way to time travel in order to save her and her crew from spending decades of time away from home. Originally, it took Voyager 26 years to get back to the Alpha Quadrant, which would put her at 61 when her journey ended. But thanks to the future Admiral Janeway, she manages to steal a Klingon device that allows her to travel back in time and tell her past self what to do to get back home quicker in the Star Trek: Voyager series finale. The journey instead takes only 7 years, and Janeway is just 42 when she brings her crew home.

Captain Jonathan Archer

Star Trek: Enterprise is a prequel to The Original Series and features Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula) as the Captain of the Enterprise NX-01. Archer made first contact with many races that had previously made appearances in other series based in later years, including the Klingons, Romulans, Ferengi, and Andorians, just to name a few. Born in 2112, Archer became Captain of the Enterprise in 2151, which puts him at 39 when he took up his post. The series lasted until the year 2155, so Archer would have been 43 at the end of the show.

Captain Gabriel Lorca

There have been a number of ship captains in Star Trek: Discovery, the first of which was Gabriel Lorca, or rather, the mirror of this character. As a fugitive wanted for treason by the Terran Empire, Mirror Universe Lorca managed to escape to a parallel timeline and switched with the Prime Universe Lorca. He was appointed as Captain of the USS Discovery in 2256 and unfortunately there is no record of when he was born.

Captain Christopher Pike

Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) was born in 2202 and was first seen in the Star Trek canon briefly in the pilot episode of The Original Series. His character was replaced by Shatner’s Kirk, but this wouldn’t be the last time viewers would see the well-decorated Captain as he was seen later on in The Original Series. More recently, Captain Pike was in Star Trek: Discovery as a sort of interim Captain in season 2, which takes place in the year 2257, meaning he would have been 55.

Captain Saru

The only non-human captain in a Star Trek series, Saru (Doug Jones), a Kelpien, had been acting Captain of the USS Discovery during the earlier seasons of Discovery. When the ship jumps forward to the 32nd century, Saru assumes control of the USS Discovery officially in 3189. Unfortunately, his date of birth is unknown at this time.

Captain Michael Burnham

Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) was born on Earth in 2226 and was later raised on Vulcan by Ambassador Sarek and Amanda Grayson after her parents died. Eventually, she was assigned to the USS Discovery serving under several other captains. In the year 2257, Discovery traveled in time to the 32nd century, landing in the year 3188. Burnham was appointed as captain of the ship in 3189, so with a little math, it can be figured that Burnham was 32 when she assumed command of Discovery.

With CBS Studios at the helm of future Star Trek television series, many more captains will find their way onto the small screen hoping to prove themselves just as their predecessors have. As the franchise progresses, there have already been improvements in the representation among those that have served as a captain, and hopefully, this will be explored further in the years to come. While many of the previously listed captains were eventually promoted to admiral, there will always be members of Starfleet ready to take up their mantle.

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