President Donald Trump will sign an executive order Friday to change the name of the Department of Defense back to the Department of War, reviving the agency’s original title. The move, confirmed by a White House official to Fox News Digital, is part of what the administration calls its “warrior ethos” campaign within the Pentagon.
The executive order stipulates that the Department of War will serve as an official secondary title to the Department of Defense, with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also taking on the title of “secretary of war.” According to a White House fact sheet, the order also directs Hegseth to propose legislative and executive actions to make the name permanent.
Implementation will extend beyond paperwork. Pentagon signage, websites, and even facilities will undergo rebranding, including the renaming of the public affairs briefing room to the “Pentagon War Annex.” Longer-term projects tied to the initiative are also in development, officials said.
Trump has repeatedly previewed the change in recent weeks. “Everybody likes that we had an unbelievable history of victory when it was Department of War,” he said on August 25. “Then we changed it to Department of Defense.” Hegseth echoed those remarks in a Fox News interview, arguing the new name better reflects the mission. “We won WWI, and we won WWII, not with the Department of Defense, but with a War Department,” he said. “We’re not just defense, we’re offense.”
The Department of War was the United States’ military authority from the country’s founding until 1949, when post–World War II reforms created the modern Department of Defense under the National Security Act of 1947. Supporters of the rebrand say returning to the old name will reestablish a stronger, more aggressive culture within the armed forces.
What remains unclear is whether Congress must approve the change. Lawmakers have the constitutional authority to establish executive departments, but Trump has insisted the White House can act on its own. “We’re just going to do it,” Trump said. “I’m sure Congress will go along if we need that. I don’t think we even need that.”
Friday’s executive order will mark the 200th of Trump’s second term and is likely to spark debate in Washington over symbolism, authority, and the future direction of U.S. military culture.