President Trump has signed an executive order rebranding the US Department of Defense as the Department of War.
He criticized the original name as “woke” and said the new title sends “a message of victory” and “a message of strength.”
Although the new name can only be used as a secondary title unless Congress approves the change, the department’s website has already switched to war.gov, and its social media accounts have followed suit.
The office of Pete Hegseth has also been updated with a “Secretary of War” sign.
Mr. Hegseth said the move was not “politically correct” but emphasized that it showed “we’re going to go on offence.” He added, “We’re going to raise up warriors, not just defenders.”
President Trump signed the executive order in the White House Oval Office on Friday. He remarked, “We won the First World War. We won the Second World War. We won everything before that and in between. And then we decided to go woke and we changed the name to Department of Defense. So we’re going Department of War.”
The president denied that the rebrand contradicted his peacemaking efforts, which he claims have already “ended seven wars.” “I think I’ve gotten peace because of the fact that we’re strong,” he told reporters.
The official executive order states that the name “demonstrates our ability and willingness to fight and win wars on behalf of our Nation at a moment’s notice, not just to defend.” It also directs Mr. Hegseth to pursue legislation within 60 days to make the change permanent.
Historically, the Department of Defense—commonly called the Pentagon due to the shape of its Washington headquarters—was known as the War Department from 1789 until 1949. Historians say the name was changed after the Second World War to reflect a focus on preventing conflict.
President Trump’s reversion to the previous, more combative title could cost tens of millions of dollars, as letterheads and building signs in the US and at military bases worldwide may need to be updated.
Earlier this year, Mr. Hegseth reversed Joe Biden’s effort to rename nine army bases honoring the Confederacy, a project estimated to cost $39 million (£29 million).
Trump’s other federal renaming orders have included labeling the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America” and reverting North America’s tallest mountain, Denali in Alaska, to its former name of Mount McKinley—both moves rejected by the Mexican government and Alaska’s Republican senators.
