The Army National Guard (ARNG) is an organized militia force and a federal military reserve force of the United States Army. It is simultaneously part of two different organizations: the Militia of the United States (consisting of the ARNG of each state, most territories, and Washington D.C.), as well as the federal ARNG, as part of the National Guard as a whole (which includes the Air National Guard). It is divided into subordinate units stationed in each state or insular area, responsible to their respective governors or other head-of-government.
The Guard's origins are usually traced to the city of Salem, Massachusetts, in 1636. That year a regiment of militia drilled for the first time to defend a multi-community area within what is now the United States.
Activation
The ARNG operates under Title 10 of the United States Code when under federal control, and Title 32 of the United States Code and applicable state laws when under state control. It may be called up for active duty by the state or territorial governors to help respond to domestic emergencies and disasters, such as those caused by hurricanes, floods, and earthquakes, as well as civil disorder. The District of Columbia Army National Guard is a federal militia, controlled by the president of the United States with authority delegated to the secretary of defense, and through him to the secretary of the Army.National Archives and Records Administration, Executive Order 11485—Supervision and control of the National Guard of the District of Columbia, 1 October 1969
Members or units of the National Guard may be ordered, temporarily or indefinitely, into the Regular U.S. Army.10 USC 12211. Officers: Army National Guard of the United States10 USC 12107. Army National Guard of United States; Air National Guard of the United States: enlistment in If mobilized for federal service, the member or unit becomes part of the U.S. ARNG, which is a reserve component of the U.S. Army.32 USC 101. Definitions (NATIONAL GUARD)10 USC 12401. Army and Air National Guard of the United States: status10 USC 10105. Army National Guard of the United States: composition Individuals volunteering for active federal service may do so subject to the consent of their governors.North Atlantic Treaty organization, Fact Sheet, National Reserve Forces Status: United States of America, 2006, p. 1 Largely on the basis of a 1990 U.S. Supreme Court decision, governors generally cannot veto involuntary activations of individuals or units for federal service, either for training or national emergency.National Guard Bureau, Today in Guard History (June), 11 June 1990, 2013
The president may also call up members and units of the ARNG, in its status as the militia of the several states, to repel invasion, suppress rebellion, or enforce federal laws.10 USC 12406. National Guard in Federal service: call The Army National Guard is one of two organizations administered by the National Guard Bureau, the other being the Air National Guard. The director of the ARNG is the head of the organization, and reports to the chief of the National Guard Bureau. Because the ARNG is both the militia of the several states and a federal reserve component of the Army, neither the chief of the National Guard Bureau nor the director of the ARNG "commands" it. This operational command authority is performed in each state or territory by the state adjutant general, and in the District of Columbia by the commanding general of the D.C. National Guard when a unit is in its militia status. While under federal activation, the operational command authority is transferred to the commanders of the unified combatant commands, who command all U.S. forces within their area of responsibility. The chief of the National Guard Bureau and the director of the ARNG serve as the channel of communications between the Department of the Army and the ARNG in each state and territory, and administer federal programs, policies, and resources for the National Guard.Cornell University, legal Information Institute, 10 USC § 10503 – Functions of National Guard Bureau: Charter, accessed 20 June 2013
The ARNG's portion of the president's proposed federal budget for the 2018 fiscal year is approximately $16.2 billion to support an end strength of 343,000, including appropriations for personnel pay and allowance, facilities maintenance, construction, equipment maintenance and other activities.
History
The Army National Guard is constantly reorganizing. After the end of World War II, a large new land force for the National Guard was planned, to become the Army National Guard for the first time, as the new Air National Guard was just being established.
From November 1945, the Army Staff prepared a provisional postwar National Guard force list, including 24 divisions. It reached that total by counting the prewar 18 National Guard infantry and four National Guard cavalry divisions, the Americal Division (which had been largely composed of Guard units), and the 42nd Infantry Division. Most soldiers considered the 42nd Division, initially organized with state troops in 1917, as a Guard unit. The fact that the new plan allowed each of the forty-eight states to have at least one general officer also helped earn its acceptance. In the end it was necessary to approve a 27-division structure with 25 infantry divisions and 2 armored divisions to accommodate the desires of all the states. During this process New York, for example, successfully petitioned the War Department for the 42d Infantry Division. When the allotment was completed, the Guard contained the 26th through 48th and the 51st and 52d Infantry Divisions and the 49th and 50th Armored Divisions. The number 39 was used for the first time since 1923. Although a 44th Infantry Division had existed during the interwar years, the postwar 44th in Illinois was a new unit, as were the 46th, 47th, 48th, 51st, and 52d Infantry Divisions and 49th Armored Division. The 50th Armored Division replaced the 44th Infantry Division in New Jersey.
To prepare for challenges in Western Europe, the new troop basis of 1952 authorized the conversion of four National Guard infantry divisions to armored divisions. New York, California, Georgia, and Florida agreed to convert the 27th, 40th, and 48th Infantry Divisions. Later, Tennessee split off the 30th Armored Division from the existing 30th Infantry Division it had previously shared with North Carolina.
The 44th Division was disbanded in late 1954.
The 34th and 51st Divisions were disbanded in 1963. They both became Command Headquarters, Divisional, retaining a National Guard general officer position, to supervise training of combat and support units in the former division area. The 34th Division became a Command Headquarters (Divisional) on 1 MArch 1963.Armies, Corps, Divisions, and Separate Brigades, p. 336. The 35th and 43rd Infantry Divisions also disappeared at the same time.
After the ROAD reorganisation, on 1 July 1965, the National Guard had 23 divisions.
The Department of Defense continued to scrutinize reserve forces. It questioned the number of divisions and brigades, as well as the need for maintaining two reserve components, the National Guard and the Army Reserve. In 1967, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara decided that 15 combat divisions in the Army National Guard were unnecessary. He cut the number to eight divisions (one mechanized infantry, two armored, and five infantry), but increased the number of brigades from seven to 18 (one airborne, one armored, two mechanized infantry, and 14 infantry). Among the divisions inactivated were the 31st, 32nd, 33rd, 37th, 39th, 41st, 43rd, 45th, and 46th Infantry Divisions, and the 27th and 48th Armored Divisions. The loss of the divisions did not set well with the states. Their objections included the inadequate maneuver element mix for those that remained and the end to the practice of rotating divisional commands among the states that supported them. Under the proposal, the remaining division commanders were to reside in the state of the division base. No reduction, however, in total Army National Guard strength was to take place, which convinced the governors to accept the plan.DA, Why Merge (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1965); Ltr, TAG to CinC, USAREUR, and other addresses, 14 June 67, sub: Reserve Component Reorganization, AGAM-P (M) (13 June 67) ORC-OPT-OP, Ltr, TAG to CinC, USAREUR, and other addresses, 20 July 67, same subject, AGAM-P (M) (20 July 67) ORC-OPT-OP, and News Release, 27 November 67, Anny Reserve Components Will Commence Reorganization, all Army Reserve file, DAMHHSO; "The President Reports to the 89th General Conference," National Guardsman, 21 (Oct 1967): inside front cover and pp. 36–39; "Division Command Rotation Plan Set Aside," National Guardsman, 22 (Mar 1968): 16; James F. Cantwell, "A Salute to the Lost' Divisions," National Guardsman, 22 (Feb 1968): The states reorganized their forces accordingly between 1 December 1967 and 1 May 1968.
The 31st Infantry and 30th Armored Divisions were inactivated in 1973-74.
In the early 1990s, after the end of the Cold War, the force was cut once again. In the Northeast, the 26th Infantry Division and the 50th Armored Division were both inactivated on 1 September 1993.National Guard Educational Foundation, , 2011; U.S. House Appropriations Committee, Hearing Record, Department of Defense Appropriations for 1995, Volume 1, 1994, p. 296 Several parts of both divisions were incorporated into a reorganized 42nd Infantry Division. The Northeast had frequently struggled to maintain three full Army National Guard divisions at a reasonable strength.
Many storied formations with valiant battle histories have obscure descendants in the mid-2020s. Some have been renamed or inactivated. Some have had subordinate units reallocated to other commands. A partial list of inactivated major formations includes:
27th Infantry Division, reorganized as 27th Armored Division, 1 February 1955. (See below.)National Guard Educational Foundation, , 2011 27th Armored Division, inactivated 1 February 1968.National Guard Educational Foundation, , 2011 30th Armored Division, inactivated 1 December 1973. (See below.) 30th Infantry Division, inactivated 4 January 1974.National Guard Educational Foundation, , 2011 31st Infantry Division, inactivated 14 January 1968. Units allocated to 30th Armored Division.Tuscaloosa News, 31st Dixie Division Turning to Armor, 19 January 1968. 32nd Infantry Division, inactivated 1 December 1967.Wisconsin Historical Society, Dictionary of Wisconsin History, Red Arrow Division , accessed 19 June 2013 33rd Infantry Division, inactivated 1 February 1968.New York Times, Illinois Commander of Guard Replaced, 4 March 1968 37th Infantry Division, inactivated 15 February 1968.Al Goldberg, Toledo Blade, Taps Sounds for Ohio Guard's Famed 37th, 18 February 1968 39th Infantry Division, inactivated 1 December 1967.National Guard Education Foundation, 39th Infantry Division , 2011 Reorganized and redesignated as 39th Infantry Brigade in Arkansas. 40th Armored Division, inactivated 29 January 1968.California State Military Museum, Lineages and Honors of the California National Guard: 40th Armored Brigade Headquarters and Headquarters Company, accessed 19 June 2013 41st Infantry Division, inactivated 1 January 1968.Tri-City Herald, Taps for the 41st, 8 June 1967Washington Army National Guard, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 81st Brigade Combat Team , 2007 Reorganized and redesignated as 41st Infantry Brigade in Oregon. 43rd Infantry Division, inactivated 16 December 1967.Associated Press, The Telegraph, Yankee Infantry Division is Facing Reorganization, 30 November 1967 44th Infantry Division, inactivated 10 October 1954.Eugene Register-Standard, Army Disbands 44th Division, 18 September 1954