US President Donald Trump on Friday signed an executive order renaming the Department of Defense as the Department of War , reviving a historic title last used in 1947.
Trump said the change was meant to reflect American military toughness.
“It's a much more appropriate name, especially in light of where the world is right now,” Trump said. He added that the old title was “woke” and insisted, “We decided to go woke and change the name to Department of Defense. So we're going Department of War.”
The Department of War was created in 1789 and oversaw the Army until President Harry Truman reorganised it in 1947, merging it with the Navy and newly created Air Force into the Department of Defense.
Trump has argued that the War title “just sounded better,” telling reporters in August, “Everybody likes that we had an unbelievable history of victory when it was Department of War. Then we changed it to Department of Defense,” as quoted by AP.
Congressional support
Pentagon leader Pete Hegseth , who joined Trump at the announcement, welcomed the move. “We haven't won a major war since” the name change, he said. “We’re going to go on offense, not just on defense.”
Hegseth and Trump have also targeted what they call “woke” ideology in the military. They recently moved to restore names of nine bases once linked to Confederate leaders, which had been renamed under a 2023 congressional mandate. Because the old names were barred, officials picked replacements with similar namesakes.
Some of Trump’s closest allies in Congress are pushing to make the change permanent. Rep Greg Steube of Florida, an Army veteran, said, “From 1789 until the end of World War II, the United States military fought under the banner of the Department of War. It is only fitting that we pay tribute to their eternal example and renowned commitment to lethality by restoring the name of the ‘Department of War’ to our Armed Forces.”
Trump said the change was meant to reflect American military toughness.
“It's a much more appropriate name, especially in light of where the world is right now,” Trump said. He added that the old title was “woke” and insisted, “We decided to go woke and change the name to Department of Defense. So we're going Department of War.”
The Department of War was created in 1789 and oversaw the Army until President Harry Truman reorganised it in 1947, merging it with the Navy and newly created Air Force into the Department of Defense.
Trump has argued that the War title “just sounded better,” telling reporters in August, “Everybody likes that we had an unbelievable history of victory when it was Department of War. Then we changed it to Department of Defense,” as quoted by AP.
Congressional support
Pentagon leader Pete Hegseth , who joined Trump at the announcement, welcomed the move. “We haven't won a major war since” the name change, he said. “We’re going to go on offense, not just on defense.”
Back to work. pic.twitter.com/M7wRax9gOm
— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) September 5, 2025
Hegseth and Trump have also targeted what they call “woke” ideology in the military. They recently moved to restore names of nine bases once linked to Confederate leaders, which had been renamed under a 2023 congressional mandate. Because the old names were barred, officials picked replacements with similar namesakes.
Some of Trump’s closest allies in Congress are pushing to make the change permanent. Rep Greg Steube of Florida, an Army veteran, said, “From 1789 until the end of World War II, the United States military fought under the banner of the Department of War. It is only fitting that we pay tribute to their eternal example and renowned commitment to lethality by restoring the name of the ‘Department of War’ to our Armed Forces.”
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