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United States Secretary of War
Flag of the United States Secretary of the Army.svg
Flag of the Secretary of War
Seal of the United States Department of War.png
Official seal
Gilbert Stuart - Major-General Henry Dearborn - 1913.793 - Art Institute of Chicago.jpg
Longest serving
Henry Dearborn

March 5, 1801 – March 4, 1809
United States Department of War
Style Mr. Secretary
Member of Cabinet
Reports to President of the United States
Seat Washington, D.C.
Appointer The President
with Senate advice and consent
Term length No fixed term
Precursor Secretary at War
Formation September 12, 1789
First holder Henry Knox
Final holder Kenneth C. Royall
Abolished September 18, 1947
Succession 6th in the line of succession

The secretary of war was a member of the U.S. president's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War", had been appointed to serve the Congress of the Confederation under the Articles of Confederation between 1781 and 1789. Benjamin Lincoln and later Henry Knox held the position. When Washington was inaugurated as the first President under the Constitution, he appointed Knox to continue serving as Secretary of War.

The secretary of war was the head of the War Department. At first, he was responsible for all military affairs, including naval affairs. In 1798, the secretary of the Navy was created by statute, and the scope of responsibility for this office was reduced to the affairs of the United States Army. From 1886 onward, the secretary of war was in the line of succession to the presidency, after the vice president of the United States, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the President pro tempore of the Senate and the secretary of state.

In 1947, with the passing of the National Security Act of 1947, the secretary of war was replaced by the secretary of the Army and the secretary of the Air Force, which, along with the secretary of the Navy, have since 1949 been non-Cabinet subordinates under the secretary of defense. The secretary of the Army's office is generally considered the direct successor to the secretary of war's office although the secretary of defense took the secretary of war's position in the Cabinet, and the line of succession to the presidency.

List of secretaries

Secretary at War (1781–1789)

The office of Secretary at War was modelled upon Great Britain's secretary at war, who was William Barrington, 2nd Viscount Barrington, at the time of the American Revolution. The office of Secretary at War was meant to replace both the commander-in-chief and the Board of War, and like the president of the board, the secretary wore no special insignia. The inspector general, quartermaster general, commissary general, and adjutant general served on the secretary's staff. However, the Army itself under Secretary Henry Knox only consisted of 700 men.

No. Portrait Name State of residence Took office Left office Congress
1 General Benjamin Lincoln-restored.jpg Benjamin Lincoln Massachusetts March 1, 1781 November 2, 1783 Congress of the Confederation
2 Henry Knox by Gilbert Stuart 1806.jpeg Henry Knox Massachusetts March 8, 1785 September 12, 1789

Secretary of War (1789–1947)

Swearing in of Secretary Dwight Davis
Swearing in of Dwight F. Davis as Secretary of War in 1925. Former Secretaries John W. Weeks and Chief Justice William Howard Taft are standing beside him.

      Federalist (4)       Democratic-Republican (8)       Democratic (14)       Whig (5)       Republican (25)

No. Secretary of War Took office Left office Time in office Party State of residence President
serving under
Ref
1
Henry Knox
Henry Knox September 12, 1789 December 31, 1794 5 years, 110 days Federalist Massachusetts George Washington
2
Timothy Pickering
Timothy Pickering January 2, 1795 December 10, 1795 342 days Federalist Pennsylvania George Washington
3
James McHenry
James McHenry January 27, 1796 June 1, 1800 4 years, 125 days Federalist Maryland George Washington
John Adams (Federalist)
4
Samuel Dexter
Samuel Dexter June 1, 1800 January 31, 1801 244 days Federalist Massachusetts John Adams (Federalist)
5
Henry Dearborn
Henry Dearborn March 5, 1801 March 4, 1809 7 years, 364 days Democratic-Republican Massachusetts Thomas Jefferson (Democratic-Republican)
6
William Eustis
William Eustis March 7, 1809 January 13, 1813 3 years, 312 days Democratic-Republican Massachusetts James Madison (Democratic-Republican)
7
John Armstrong, Jr.
John Armstrong, Jr. January 13, 1813 September 27, 1814 1 year, 257 days Democratic-Republican New York James Madison (Democratic-Republican)
8
James Monroe
James Monroe September 27, 1814 March 2, 1815 156 days Democratic-Republican Virginia James Madison (Democratic-Republican)
9
William H. Crawford
William H. Crawford August 1, 1815 October 22, 1816 1 year, 82 days Democratic-Republican Georgia James Madison (Democratic-Republican)
10
John C. Calhoun
John C. Calhoun October 8, 1817 March 4, 1825 7 years, 147 days Democratic-Republican South Carolina James Monroe (Democratic-Republican)
11
James Barbour
James Barbour March 7, 1825 May 23, 1828 3 years, 77 days Democratic-Republican Virginia John Quincy Adams (Democratic-Republican)
12
Peter Buell Porter
Peter Buell Porter May 23, 1828 March 9, 1829 290 days Democratic-Republican New York John Quincy Adams (Democratic-Republican)
13
John H. Eaton
John H. Eaton March 9, 1829 June 18, 1831 2 years, 101 days Democratic Tennessee Andrew Jackson (Democratic)
14
Lewis Cass
Lewis Cass August 1, 1831 October 5, 1836 5 years, 65 days Democratic Ohio Andrew Jackson (Democratic)
15
Joel Roberts Poinsett
Joel Roberts Poinsett March 7, 1837 March 4, 1841 3 years, 362 days Democratic South Carolina Martin Van Buren (Democratic)
16
John Bell
John Bell March 5, 1841 September 13, 1841 192 days Whig Tennessee William Henry Harrison (Whig)
John Tyler (Whig)
17
John Canfield Spencer
John Canfield Spencer October 12, 1841 March 4, 1843 1 year, 143 days Whig New York John Tyler (Whig)
18
James Madison Porter
James Madison Porter March 8, 1843 February 14, 1844 343 days Whig Pennsylvania John Tyler (Whig)
19
William Wilkins
William Wilkins February 15, 1844 March 4, 1845 1 year, 17 days Democratic Pennsylvania John Tyler (Whig)
20
William Learned Marcy
William Learned Marcy March 6, 1845 March 4, 1849 3 years, 363 days Democratic New York James K. Polk (Democratic)
21
George W. Crawford
George W. Crawford March 8, 1849 July 22, 1850 1 year, 136 days Whig Georgia Zachary Taylor (Whig)
22
Charles Magill Conrad
Charles Magill Conrad August 15, 1850 March 4, 1853 2 years, 201 days Whig Louisiana Millard Fillmore (Whig)
23
Jefferson Davis
Jefferson Davis March 7, 1853 March 4, 1857 3 years, 362 days Democratic Mississippi Franklin Pierce (Democratic)
24
John B. Floyd
John B. Floyd March 6, 1857 December 29, 1860 3 years, 298 days Democratic Virginia James Buchanan (Democratic)
25
Joseph Holt
Joseph Holt January 18, 1861 March 4, 1861 45 days Republican Kentucky James Buchanan (Democratic)
26
Simon Cameron
Simon Cameron March 5, 1861 January 14, 1862 315 days Republican Pennsylvania Abraham Lincoln (Republican)
27
Edwin M. Stanton
Edwin M. Stanton January 20, 1862 May 28, 1868 5 years, 204 days Republican Pennsylvania Abraham Lincoln (Republican)
Andrew Johnson (Democratic)
Ulysses S. Grant  (Acting)
Ulysses S. Grant
(Acting)

Acting
August 12, 1867 January 14, 1868 155 days Republican Pennsylvania Abraham Lincoln (Republican)
Andrew Johnson (Democratic)
27
(2)
Edwin M. Stanton
Edwin M. Stanton January 20, 1862 May 28, 1868 290 days Republican Pennsylvania Abraham Lincoln (Republican)
Andrew Johnson (Democratic)
28
John McAllister Schofield
John McAllister Schofield June 1, 1868 March 13, 1869 285 days Republican Illinois Andrew Johnson (Democratic)
29
John Aaron Rawlins
John Aaron Rawlins March 13, 1869 September 6, 1869 177 days Republican Illinois Ulysses S. Grant (Republican)
-
William Sherman  (Acting)
William Sherman
(Acting)

Acting
September 6, 1869 October 25, 1869 49 days Republican Ohio Ulysses S. Grant (Republican)
30
William W. Belknap
William W. Belknap October 25, 1869 March 2, 1876 6 years, 129 days Republican Iowa Ulysses S. Grant (Republican)
31
Alphonso Taft
Alphonso Taft March 8, 1876 May 22, 1876 75 days Republican Ohio Ulysses S. Grant (Republican)
32
J. Donald Cameron
J. Donald Cameron May 22, 1876 March 4, 1877 286 days Republican Pennsylvania Ulysses S. Grant (Republican)
33
George W. McCrary
George W. McCrary March 12, 1877 December 10, 1879 2 years, 273 days Republican Iowa Rutherford B. Hayes (Republican)
34
Alexander Ramsey
Alexander Ramsey December 10, 1879 March 4, 1881 1 year, 84 days Republican Minnesota Rutherford B. Hayes (Republican)
35
Robert Todd Lincoln
Robert Todd Lincoln March 5, 1881 March 4, 1885 3 years, 364 days Republican Illinois James A. Garfield (Republican)
Chester A. Arthur (Republican)
36
William Crowninshield Endicott
William Crowninshield Endicott March 5, 1885 March 4, 1889 3 years, 364 days Democratic Massachusetts Grover Cleveland (Democratic)
37
Redfield Proctor
Redfield Proctor March 5, 1889 November 5, 1891 2 years, 245 days Republican Vermont Benjamin Harrison (Republican)
38
Stephen Benton Elkins
Stephen Benton Elkins December 17, 1891 March 4, 1893 1 year, 77 days Republican West Virginia Benjamin Harrison (Republican)
39
Daniel S. Lamont
Daniel S. Lamont March 5, 1893 March 4, 1897 3 years, 364 days Democratic New York Grover Cleveland (Democratic)
40
Russell A. Alger
Russell A. Alger March 5, 1897 August 1, 1899 2 years, 149 days Republican Michigan William McKinley (Republican)
41
Elihu Root
Elihu Root August 1, 1899 January 31, 1904 4 years, 183 days Republican New York William McKinley (Republican)
Theodore Roosevelt (Republican)
42
William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft February 1, 1904 June 30, 1908 4 years, 150 days Republican Ohio Theodore Roosevelt (Republican)
43
Luke Edward Wright
Luke Edward Wright July 1, 1908 March 4, 1909 246 days Republican Tennessee Theodore Roosevelt (Republican)
44
Jacob M. Dickinson
Jacob M. Dickinson March 12, 1909 May 21, 1911 2 years, 70 days Democratic Tennessee William Howard Taft (Republican)
45
Henry L. Stimson
Henry L. Stimson May 22, 1911 March 4, 1913 1 year, 286 days Republican New York William Howard Taft (Republican)
46
Lindley Miller Garrison
Lindley Miller Garrison March 5, 1913 February 10, 1916 2 years, 342 days Democratic New Jersey Woodrow Wilson (Democratic)
47
Newton D. Baker
Newton D. Baker March 9, 1916 March 4, 1921 4 years, 360 days Democratic Ohio Woodrow Wilson (Democratic)
48
John W. Weeks
John W. Weeks March 5, 1921 October 13, 1925 4 years, 222 days Republican Massachusetts Warren G. Harding (Republican)
Calvin Coolidge (Republican)
49
Dwight F. Davis
Dwight F. Davis October 14, 1925 March 4, 1929 3 years, 141 days Republican Missouri Calvin Coolidge (Republican)
50
James William Good
James William Good March 6, 1929 November 18, 1929 257 days Republican Iowa Herbert Hoover (Republican)
51
Patrick J. Hurley
Patrick J. Hurley December 9, 1929 March 4, 1933 3 years, 85 days Republican Oklahoma Herbert Hoover (Republican)
52
George Dern
George Dern March 4, 1933 August 27, 1936 3 years, 176 days Democratic Utah Franklin D. Roosevelt (Democratic)
53
Harry Hines Woodring
Harry Hines Woodring September 25, 1936 June 20, 1940 3 years, 269 days Democratic Kansas Franklin D. Roosevelt (Democratic)
54
Henry L. Stimson
Henry L. Stimson July 10, 1940 September 21, 1945 5 years, 73 days Republican New York Franklin D. Roosevelt (Democratic)
Harry S. Truman (Democratic)
55
Robert P. Patterson
Robert P. Patterson September 27, 1945 July 18, 1947 1 year, 294 days Republican New York Harry S. Truman (Democratic)
56
Kenneth C. Royall
Kenneth C. Royall July 19, 1947 September 18, 1947 61 days Democratic North Carolina Harry S. Truman (Democratic)

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Secretario de Guerra de los Estados Unidos para niños

  • Confederate States Secretary of War
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