389th Birthday of the US Army National Guard: History, Militia Acts, and Legacy

By Donna Reuss

Alexandria, VA – December 13, 1636, is recognized as the birthdate of the US Army National Guard. On that date, the General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony ordered organization of three permanent regiments from the colony’s separate militias. All males between the ages of 16 and 60 were required to join one of the regiments, and assemble and train in military tactics for the common defense of the community and colony. Descendants of these regiments are today’s 181st and 182nd Infantry, 101st Field Artillery, and 101st Engineer Battalion, Massachusetts Army National Guard.

If you are familiar with our country’s early history, or you watched the Ken Burns documentary, The American Revolution, you know that the original 13 British colonies defended their territories with militias. A concept dating back thousands of years, the definition of “militia” has varied over time and context, but is generally accepted as meaning an organized group of civilians who provide protection and public safety for their community. These militias might augment a regular army or serve as first responders in an emergency.

The Second Amendment to the US Constitution begins “A well regulated militia…” According to Jack Rakove, Stanford University professor with the National Constitution Center, the term at that time likely connoted “well-organized, well-armed, and well-disciplined,” i.e., “in an effective shape to fight.”

The Militia Acts of 1792 are recognized as the basis for organization of the National Guard. Passed in response to the need for a more effective national defense force after the US Army’s defeat in 1791 against Native American forces at the Battle of the Wabash, the Acts provided federal standards for the organization of state militias, and temporarily authorized the president to take control of these militias in times of national crises, with a federal judge’s certification. The 1795 Militia Act replaced this last provision, making the president’s power permanent and unilateral: prior consent from a federal judge or state legislature was no longer needed.

The Militia Act of 1903 was the first federal legislation to define transformation of state and local militias into the modern National Guard. The Act sought to improve militia readiness, standards, and training on a par with the regular army, financed by federal instead of state funds, and to codify the circumstances under which the National Guard could be federalized.

National Guard units have fought in every American war from its founding to recent combat. Eighteen National Guard divisions bolstered the American Expeditionary Force in Europe in World War I; nineteen served overseas in World War II. National Guard readiness heightened for a potential conflict with the Soviet Union during the Cold War, and over 700 units – 37% of the Army National Guard – mobilized for the Korea War.

Vietnam proved a bit complicated. Popular perception was that men joined the National Guard to avoid the draft. However, more than 9,000 Guardsmen served in Vietnam, while many units performed duties in the states, such as responding to civil unrest. But incidences such as Kent State further tarnished the Guard’s reputation.

Post-Vietnam active Army downsizing, though, led to greater reliance on National Guard forces in conflicts and humanitarian missions. The 1990 Total Force policy mandated that National Guard troops deploy alongside their active-duty counterparts for all future conflicts. National Guard members accounted for more than 1.1 million overseas deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan, and other locations since 9/11. This is in addition to disaster relief missions, such as responses to Hurricane Katrina and the COVID-19 pandemic. Today’s National Guard is stronger than ever!

If you are a veteran or know a veteran who needs help, go to Virginia Board Veterans Services at www.dvs.virginia.gov/dvs; or contact American Legion Post 24 Veteran Service Officer at [email protected]. For crisis intervention and suicide prevention, dial 988 and Press 1, or text 838255, for the Veterans Crisis Line.