President Donald Trump is set to sign an executive order on September 5 that will rename the Department of Defense to the "Department of War." This change aims to revive a title that was last used in 1947 during a major Cabinet reorganization. A White House official confirmed the details of the order, which reflects the administration's push to promote a "warrior ethos" within the military.

Trump has hinted at this renaming for several months. During a press conference on August 25, he stated, "It used to be called the Department of War, and it had a stronger sound. And as you know, we won World War I, we won World War II. We won everything."

The executive order will allow the new name to be used in official correspondence and ceremonial contexts. It will also permit the Secretary of Defense, currently Pete Hegseth, to be referred to as the "Secretary of War." The order instructs Hegseth to propose both legislative and executive actions to make the name change permanent.

In addition to the name change, the order will require updates to public-facing websites and office signage at the Pentagon. For example, the public affairs briefing room will be renamed the "Pentagon War Annex."

Hegseth has expressed support for the change, emphasizing a cultural shift within the Pentagon. He stated, "We want warriors, folks that understand how to exact lethality on the enemy. We don't want endless contingencies and just playing defense. We think words and names and titles matter."

The Department of War was originally established in 1789 to oversee the U.S. Army. It was dissolved after World War II by the National Security Act of 1947, which merged the Army and Navy departments and created the Air Force. The agency was renamed the Department of Defense in 1949 to reflect a focus on preventing wars in the nuclear age.

While the executive order will allow the use of the new name, it remains unclear if Congress will need to approve the change for it to be permanent. Trump has previously expressed confidence that he does not require congressional approval, stating, "We're just going to do it. I'm sure Congress will go along if we need that. I don't think we even need that."

This executive order marks the 200th order Trump has signed during his second term. The administration has not provided a cost estimate for implementing the name change across government communications.