‘Department of war’: Trump signs order renaming defence department; what it means

US president Donald Trump on Friday signed an executive order renaming the Department of Defence as the Department of War.

The Department of War was created in 1789 to oversee the Army. It carried the name until president Harry Truman reorganised the military in 1947, merging the Army, Navy and newly created Air Force under the Department of Defence.


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,” he said. He argued that the Defence title was “woke” and insisted, “We decided to go woke and change the name to Department of Defence. So we’re going Department of War.”

Trump earlier 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."

What the renaming means

Trump cannot legally bring back the old name on his own, as only Congress can make that change. His executive order, signed on Friday, does not make it official.

Instead, the White House said the “Department of War” will be used only as a secondary title for the agency, writes Forbes. Defence secretary Pete Hegseth will also be able to identify himself as “secretary of war” in official documents and ceremonies.

The order also tells Hegseth to propose steps needed to permanently change the Department of Defense’s name to the Department of War.

The renaming marks a symbolic shift, reflecting Trump and Hegseth’s push to roll back what they call “woke” policies in the military. It also ties back to earlier efforts to restore names of bases once linked to Confederate leaders, which had been renamed under a 2023 law.

The move does not change the structure or powers of the Pentagon, but it revives a historic label first introduced under George Washington in 1789 and retired after World War II.

At the announcement, defence secretary Pete Hegseth supported the move, saying: “We haven’t won a major war since the name change. We’re going to go on offence, not just on defence.”

Democrats sharply criticised Trump’s move to rename the Department of Defence, arguing that it glorifies “war” while doing little for troops. They called it a costly and performative step instead of a real investment in service members.

Senator Tammy Duckworth, a military veteran, told Reuters: “Why not spend this money on military families or on diplomats who help prevent wars? Trump would rather use the military for political points than strengthen national security or support our servicemembers.”