United States National Guard

The United States National Guard is a component of the United States Army (the Army National Guard) and the United States Air Force (the Air National Guard). The Militia Act of 1903 organized the various state militias into the present National Guard system. The Army National Guard is part of the United States Army, comprising approximately one half of its available combat forces and approximately one third of its support organization. The Air National Guard is part of the United States Air Force. Both are maintained through the National Guard Bureau, whose Chief is a Lieutenant General.

Various State Militias also exist which are reserves to the National Guard and are collectively known as State Defense Forces. The State Militias, in some cases, pre-date the existence of the National Guard and are maintained on both an organized and unorganized level. The organized militia exists to supplement the National Guard in the event of manpower shortages while the unorganized militia comprises every able bodied male in a state which may be called up for extreme emergencies such as an invasion of the United States or a major catastrophe inside her shores. The last time that the unorganized state militias were activated was during the Civil War.

Army National Guard units are trained and equipped as part of the United States Army; likewise, Air National Guard units are trained and equipped as part of the US Air Force. The same ranks and insignia are used and National Guardsmen are eligible to receive all United States military awards. The National Guard also bestows a number of state awards for local services rendered in a service member's home state.

Traditionally, National Guard personnel serve "One weekend a month, two weeks a year", although a portion serve in a full-time capacity. This slogan has lost some of its relevance since the Iraq War, when up to 40% of total US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan consisted of mobilized personnel of the reserve components.

Prior to the attacks against the United States on September 11, 2001, the National Guard's general policy regarding deployment was that Guardsmen would be required to serve no more than six months overseas at any time. Due to strains placed on active duty units following the attacks, the possible deployment time was increased to 18 months. Additional strains placed on military units as a result of the invasion of Iraq further increased the amount of time a Guardsman could be deployed to 24 months. Current Department of Defense policy is that no Guardsman will be involuntarily activated for a total of more than 24 months (cumulative) in one six year enlistment period (this policy is due to change 1AUG2007, the new policy states that soldiers will be given 24 months between deployments of no more than 24 months, individual states have differing policies). The Army National Guard is composed of 325,000 Soldiers

Constitutional charter of the National Guard

The Army National Guard's charter is the Constitution of the United States.

Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution contains a series of "militia clauses", vesting distinct authority and responsibilities in the federal government and the state governments.

1) Article I, Section 8; Clause 15

The Congress shall have Power ... To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions.

2) Article I, Section 8; Clause 16

The Congress shall have Power ... To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress.

3) Article I, Section 8, Clause 12

"The Congress shall have Power ... To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use shall be for a longer Term than two Years"

4) Article I, Section 10 Clause 3

"No State shall, without the Consent of Congress, lay any Duty of Tonnage, keep Troops, or Ships of War in time of Peace, enter into any Agreement or Compact with another State, or with a foreign Power, or engage in War, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent Danger as will not admit of delay."

5) The Second Amendment

"A well regulated Militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed."

6) Article IV, Section 4

The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion; and on Application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic Violence.

7) Article II, Section 2

The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States; he may require the Opinion, in writing, of the principal Officer in each of the executive Departments, upon any Subject relating to the Duties of their respective Offices, and he shall have Power to Grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.

Laws covering the National Guard

The United states Congress has enacted various laws which control the National Guard

The Militia Act of 1792
Providing for the authority of the President to call out the Militia, and providing federal standards for the organization of the Militia.
For the 111 years that the Militia Act of 1792 remained in effect, it defined the position of the militia in relation to the federal government. The War of 1812 tested this uniquely American defense establishment. To fight the War of 1812, the republic formed a small regular military and trained it to protect the frontiers and coastlines. Although it performed poorly in the offensive against Canada, the small force of regulars backed by a well-armed militia, accomplished its defensive mission well. Generals like Andrew Jackson proved, just as they had in the Revolution, that regulars and militia could be effective when employed as a team.
The Militia Act of 1862
Providing for the service of persons of African Descent in the Militia, and the Emancipation of Slaves owned by Confederate Rebels.
Posse Comitatus Act
Congress' suspension of southern states' right to organize a militia resulted in Posse Comitatus, a limiting of the president's use of military forces in peacetime.
The States revise the military codes - 1881 to 1892
The Militia Act of 1903
Affirmed the National Guard as the primary organized reserve force.
The National Defense Act, 1916
This act abandoned the idea of an expandable Regular Army and firmly established the traditional concept of the citizens' army as the keystone of the United States defense forces. It established the concept of merging the National Guard, the Army Reserve, and the Regular Army into the Army of the United States in time of war. The act further expanded the National Guard's role, and guaranteed the State militias' status as the Army's primary reserve force. The law mandated use of the term "National Guard" for that force, and the President was given authority, in case of war or national emergency, to mobilize the National Guard for the duration of the emergency. The number of yearly drills increased from 24 to 48 and annual training from five to 15 days. Drill pay was authorized for the first time.
The National Defense Act Amendments of 1920
This act established that the chief of the Militia Bureau (later the National Guard Bureau) would be a National Guard officer, that National Guard officers would be assigned to the general staff and that the divisions, as used by the Guard in World War I, would be reorganized.
The National Guard Mobilization Act, 1933
Made the National Guard a component of the Army.
The National Defense Act of 1947
Section 207 (f) established the Air National Guard, under the National Guard Bureau.
The Total Force Policy, 1973
Requires all active and reserve military organizations be treated as a single integrated force; reinforced the original intent of the founding fathers (a small standing army complemented by citizen-soldiers.)
The Montgomery Amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1987
provides that a governor cannot withhold consent with regard to active duty outside the United States because of any objection to the location, purpose, type, or schedule of such duty this law was challenged and upheld by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1990 (see case in Findlaw

)

Duties

National Guard units can be mobilized at any time by presidential order to supplement regular armed forces, and upon declaration of a state of emergency by the governor of the state in which they serve. Unlike Army Reserve members, National Guard members cannot be mobilized individually (except through voluntary transfers and Temporary DutY Assignments TDY), but only as part of their respective units. However, there has been a significant amount of individual activations to support military operations (2001-?); the legality of this policy is a major issue within the National Guard.

History

Throughout the 19th century the regular Army was small, and the militia provided the majority of the troops during the Mexican War, the start of the American Civil War, and the Spanish-American War. In 1903, part of the militia was federalized and renamed the National Guard and organized as a Reserve force for the Army. In World War I, the National Guard made up 40 percent of the U.S. combat divisions in France. In World War II the National Guard made up 19 divisions. One hundred forty thousand guardsmen were mobilized during the Korean War and over 63,000 for Operation Desert Storm. They have also participated in the U.S. peacekeeping forces in Somalia, Haiti, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bosnia, and Kosovo as well as for natural disasters, strikes, riots and security for the Olympic Games when they have been in the States.

The history of the National Guard began on December 13, 1636, when the General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony ordered the organization of the Colony's militia companies into three regiments: The North, South and East Regiments. The colonists had adopted the English militia system which obligated all males, between the ages of 16 and 60, to possess arms and participate in the defense of the community. The early colonial militia drilled once a week and provided guard details each evening to sound the alarm in case of attack. The growing threat of the Pequot Indians to the Massachusetts Bay Colony required that the militia be in a high state of readiness. The organization of the North, South and East Regiments increased the efficiency and responsiveness of the militia. Although the exact date is not known, the first muster of the East Regiment took place in Salem, Massachusetts. The 101st Engineer Battalion, Massachusetts Army National Guard, continues the East Regiment's proud heritage of 350 years of service.

The visit of the Marquis de Lafayette to the U.S., in 1824-25, was in every sense a triumphal procession. The 2d Battalion, 11th New York Artillery, was one of many militia commands turned out in welcome. This unit decided to adopt the title "National Guard," in honor of Lafayette's celebrated Garde Nationale de Paris. The Battalion, later the 7th Regiment, was prominent in the line of march on the occasion of Lafayette's final passage through New York en route home to France. Taking note of the troops named for his old command, Lafayette alighted from his carriage, walked down the line, clasping each officer by the hand as he passed. "National Guard" was destined to become the name of the U.S. militia.

The National Guard is not subject to the Posse Comitatus Act and can engage in law enforcement activities, except when federalized.

Following World War II, the National Guard aviation units became the Air National Guard. There is no Naval National Guard due to the constitutional provision against states having ships of war in time of peace, though Alaska, California, New Jersey, New York, and Ohio have incorporated Naval Militia units.

The Ohio National Guard was ordered to Kent State University by Ohio's governor James Rhodes to quell anti-Vietnam War protests, culminating in their shooting into a crowd of students on May 4, 1970, killing four and injuring nine.

National Guard members and reservists now comprise a larger percentage of frontline fighting forces than in any war in U.S. history (About 43 percent in Iraq and 55 percent in Afghanistan). There are now 183,366 National Guard members and reservists on active duty nationwide who leave behind about 300,000 dependents, according to U.S. Defense Department statistics.

The oldest military units in the country are the 182d Infantry Regiment and 101st Engineer Battalion of the Massachusetts Army National Guard, which were first organized in 1636.

National Guard units played a major role in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, in September 2005.

The Air National Guard has more than 106,000 personnel, and the Army National Guard (ARNG) around 333,000 personnel (as of February 2006).

The National Guard Bureau is located in Arlington, VA and is a joint command operated by the United States Department of the Army and The United States Department of the Air Force to conduct all the administrative matters pertaining to the Army National Guard and the Air National Guard. The current chief of the National Guard Bureau is Lieutenant General H. Steven Blum. The chief is the senior uniformed National Guard officer, in charge of developing all policies and advising the Secretary and Chief of Staff of the Air Force on all National Guard issues. He is appointed by the president in his capacity as Commander in Chief.

List of chiefs of the National Guard Bureau

Name	From	To
Colonel Erasmus M. Weaver, Jr.	February 14, 1908	March 14, 1911
Brigadier General Robert K. Evans	March 15, 1911	August 31, 1912
Major General Albert L. Mills	September 1, 1912	September 18, 1916
Major General William A. Mann	October 26, 1916	November 26, 1917
Major General Jessie Mcl. Carter	November 26, 1917	August 15, 1918
Major General George C. Rickards	June 29, 1921	June 28, 1925
Major General Creed C. Hammond	June 29, 1925	June 28, 1929
Colonel Ernest R. Redmond (Actg)	June 29, 1929	September 30, 1929
Major General William G. Everson	October 1, 1929	November 30, 1931
Major General George E. Leach	December 1, 1931	November 30, 1935
Colonel Harold J. Weiler (Actg)	December 1, 1935	January 16, 1936
Colonel John F. Williams (Actg)	January 17, 1936	January 30, 1936
Major General Albert H. Blanding	January 31, 1936	January 30, 1940
Major General John F. Williams	January 31, 1940	January 30, 1944
Major General John F. Williams (Actg)	January 31, 1944	January 31, 1946
Major General Butler B. Miltonberger	February 1, 1946	September 29, 1947
Major General Kenneth F. Cramer	September 30, 1947	September 4, 1950
Major General Raymond H. Fleming (Actg)	September 5, 1950	August 13, 1951
Major General Raymond H. Fleming	August 14, 1951	February 15, 1953
Major General Earl T. Ricks (Actg)	February 16, 1953	June 21, 1953
Major General Edgar C. Erickson	June 22, 1953	May 31, 1959
Major General Winston P. Wilson (Actg)	June 1, 1959	July 19, 1959
Major General Donald W. McGowan	July 20, 1959	August 30, 1963
Major General Winston P. Wilson	August 31, 1963	August 31, 1971
Major General Francis S. Greenlief	September 1, 1971	June 23, 1974
Lieutenant General La Vern E. Weber	August 16, 1974	August 15, 1982
Lieutenant General Emmett H. Walker, Jr.	August 16, 1982	August 15, 1986
Lieutenant General Herbert R. Temple, Jr.	August 16, 1986	January 31, 1990
Lieutenant General John B. Conaway	February 1, 1990	December 1, 1993
Major General Raymond F. Rees (Actg)	January 1, 1994	July 31, 1994
Lieutenant General Edward D. Baca	October 1, 1994	July 31, 1998
Lieutenant General Russell C. Davis	August 4, 1998	August 3, 2002
Major General Raymond F. Rees (Actg)	August 4, 2002	April 10, 2003
Lieutenant General H. Steven Blum	April 11, 2003	present

External links

References

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