United States Secretary of War

The Secretary of War was a member of the United States President's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War," was 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. 

The Secretary of War led the War Department. At first, he was responsible for all military affairs. In 1798, the Secretary of the Navy was added to the cabinet, and the scope of this office was reduced to a general concern with the Army. In 1947, the departments were recombined under the Secretary of Defense. The Secretary of War was replaced by the Secretary of the Army and the Secretary of the Air Force, non-Cabinet positions under the Secretary of Defense.

In 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order authorizing the use of Secretary of War as a secondary title for the secretary of defense, though an act of Congress would be required to change the official title.

Secretaries of War
 #  Picture  Name  State of Residence  Began Service  Ended Service  President(s) served under175pxHenry KnoxMassachusettsSeptember 12, 1789December 31, 1794George Washington275pxTimothy PickeringPennsylvaniaJanuary 2, 1795December 10, 1795Washington375pxJames McHenryMarylandJanuary 27, 1796May 13, 1800 WashingtonJohn Adams475pxSamuel DexterMassachusetts May 13, 1800January 31, 1801 John Adams5N/AHenry Dearborn MassachusettsMarch 5, 1801March 4, 1809 Thomas Jefferson675pxWilliam EustisMassachusetts March 7, 1809January 13, 1813  James Madison775pxJohn Armstrong, Jr.Pennsylvania January 13, 1813September 27, 1814 Madison875pxJames MonroeVirginia September 27, 1814March 2, 1815 Madison975pxWilliam Harris Crawford Georgia August 1, 1815October 22, 1816 Madison1075pxJohn Caldwell CalhounSouth Carolina October 8, 1817March 4, 1825 James Monroe1175pxJames Barbour VirginiaMarch 7, 1825May 23, 1828 John Quincy Adams1275pxPeter Buell PorterNew York May 23, 1828March 4, 1829 J. Q. Adams1375pxJohn Henry EatonTennessee March 9, 1829June 18, 1831  Andrew Jackson1475pxLewis CassMichigan August 1, 1831October 5, 1836 Jackson1575pxJoel Roberts PoinsettSouth Carolina March 7, 1837March 4, 1841 Martin Van Buren1675pxJohn BellTennessee March 5, 1841September 13, 1841 William Henry HarrisonJohn Tyler1775pxJohn Canfield SpencerNew York October 12, 1841March 4, 1843 Tyler18N/AJames Madison PorterPennsylvania March 8, 1843February 14, 1844 Tyler1975pxWilliam WilkinsPennsylvania February 15, 1844March 4, 1845 Tyler2075pxWilliam Learned MarcyNew York March 6, 1845March 4, 1849 James K. Polk21N/AGeorge Walker CrawfordGeorgia March 8, 1849July 22, 1850 Zachary Taylor2275pxCharles Magill ConradLouisiana August 15, 1850March 4, 1853 Millard Fillmore2375pxJefferson DavisMississippi March 7, 1853March 4, 1857 Franklin Pierce2475pxJohn Buchanan FloydVirginia March 6, 1857December 29, 1860 James Buchanan2575pxJoseph HoltKentuckyJanuary 18, 1861March 4, 1861 Buchanan2675pxSimon CameronPennsylvania March 5, 1861January 14, 1862 Abraham Lincoln2775pxEdwin McMasters StantonOhio January 20, 1862May 28, 1868 LincolnAndrew Johnson2875pxJohn McAllister SchofieldMissouri June 1, 1868March 13, 1869 Johnson2975pxJohn Aaron RawlinsIllinois March 13, 1869September 6, 1869 Ulysses S. Grant3075pxWilliam Worth BelknapIowa October 25, 1869March 2, 1876 Grant3175pxAlphonso TaftOhio March 8, 1876May 22, 1876 Grant3275pxJames Donald CameronPennsylvania May 22, 1876March 4, 1877 Grant3375pxGeorge Washington McCraryIowa March 12, 1877December 10, 1879 Rutherford B. Hayes3475pxAlexander RamseyMinnesota December 10, 1879March 4, 1881 Hayes3575pxRobert Todd LincolnIllinois March 5, 1881March 4, 1885 James A. GarfieldChester A. Arthur3675pxWilliam Crowninshield EndicottMassachusetts March 5, 1885March 4, 1889 Grover Cleveland3775pxRedfield ProctorVermont March 5, 1889November 5, 1891 Benjamin Harrison38N/AStephen Benton ElkinsWest Virginia December 17, 1891March 4, 1893 Harrison3975pxDaniel Scott LamontNew York March 5, 1893March 4, 1897 Cleveland (2nd term)4075pxRussell Alexander AlgerMichigan March 5, 1897August 1, 1899 William McKinley4175pxElihu RootNew York August 1, 1899January 31, 1904 McKinleyTheodore Roosevelt4275pxWilliam Howard Taft  OhioFebruary 1, 1904June 30, 1908 Th. Roosevelt4375pxLuke Edward WrightTennessee July 1, 1908March 4, 1909 Th. Roosevelt4475pxJacob McGavock Dickinson IllinoisMarch 12, 1909May 21, 1911 William Howard Taft4575pxHenry Lewis StimsonNew York May 22, 1911March 4, 1913 Taft4675pxLindley Miller GarrisonNew Jersey March 5, 1913February 10, 1916 Woodrow Wilson4775pxNewton Diehl BakerOhio March 9, 1916March 4, 1921 Wilson4875pxJohn Wingate WeeksMassachusetts March 5, 1921October 13, 1925 Warren G. HardingCalvin Coolidge4975pxDwight Filley DavisMissouri October 14, 1925March 4, 1929 Coolidge5075pxJames William Good IowaMarch 6, 1929November 18, 1929 Herbert Hoover5175px Patrick Jay HurleyOklahoma December 9, 1929March 4, 1933 Hoover5275pxGeorge Henry DernUtah March 4, 1933August 27, 1936 Franklin D. Roosevelt5375pxHarry Hines WoodringKansas September 25, 1936June 20, 1940 F. D. Roosevelt5475pxHenry Lewis StimsonNew York July 10, 1940September 21, 1945 F. D. RooseveltHarry S. Truman55Robert Porter PattersonNew York September 27, 1945July 18, 1947 Truman5675px Kenneth Claiborne RoyallNorth Carolina July 19, 1947September 18, 1947 Truman

References

War
Category:1789 establishments in the United States
Category:1947 disestablishments in the United States