The Complete List of U.S. Secretaries of War and Defense: Guardians of America's Military!

America's top military leaders have had different titles over time! From 1789 to 1947, they were called Secretaries of War (heading the War Department, mostly the Army). Then, in 1947, the National Security Act created the Department of Defense, and the job became Secretary of Defense (overseeing Army, Navy, Air Force, and more). There were 57 Secretaries of War and, as of 2025, 29 Secretaries of Defense (current: Pete Hegseth). Here's the full chronological list with years served and a quick kid-friendly fun fact for each. These folks handled everything from revolutions to rockets!

Secretaries of War (1789–1947)
  1. Henry Knox (1789–1794) – Fun fact: Big guy who hauled cannons over snow to win battles—George Washington's artillery hero!
  2. Timothy Pickering (1795–1796, acting then full) – Helped with early Navy plans.
  3. James McHenry (1796–1800) – Fort McHenry (Star-Spangled Banner fort) named after him!
  4. Samuel Dexter (1800–1801) – Short term; loved horses.
  5. Henry Dearborn (1801–1809) – Fought in Revolution; Dearborn, Michigan named for him.
  6. William Eustis (1809–1813) – Doctor who treated soldiers.
  7. John Armstrong Jr. (1813–1814) – Blamed for Washington burning in 1814.
  8. James Monroe (1814–1815) – Later became president #5!
  9. William H. Crawford (1815–1816) – Ran for president multiple times.
  10. George Graham (1816–1817, acting) – Short fill-in.
  11. John C. Calhoun (1817–1825) – Famous for "states' rights"; later VP.
  12. James Barbour (1825–1828) – Loved architecture.
  13. Peter B. Porter (1828–1829) – War of 1812 hero.
  14. John H. Eaton (1829–1831) – Scandal with "Petticoat Affair."
  15. Lewis Cass (1831–1836) – Later ran for president.
  16. Joel R. Poinsett (1837–1841) – Brought poinsettia plant to America!
  17. John Bell (1841) – Short term.
  18. John C. Spencer (1841–1843) – Also Treasury Secretary briefly.
  19. James M. Porter (1843–1844) – Short.
  20. William Wilkins (1844–1845) – Judge too.
  21. William L. Marcy (1845–1849) – "To the victor belong the spoils" quote.
  22. George W. Crawford (1849–1850) – Georgia governor.
  23. Charles M. Conrad (1850–1853) – Short.
  24. Jefferson Davis (1853–1857) – Later Confederate president—oops!
  25. John B. Floyd (1857–1860) – Resigned over secession.
  26. Joseph Holt (1861, acting) – Judge advocate.
  27. Simon Cameron (1861–1862) – Lincoln's "honest politician" joke.
  28. Edwin M. Stanton (1862–1868) – Tough on Civil War; "Now he belongs to the ages" at Lincoln's death.
  29. John M. Schofield (1868–1869) – General.
  30. John A. Rawlins (1869) – Short; died in office.
  31. William W. Belknap (1869–1876) – Scandal resignation.
  32. Alphonso Taft (1876) – Father of President Taft.
  33. J. Donald Cameron (1876–1877) – Son of previous Secretary.
  34. George W. McCrary (1877–1879) – Short.
  35. Alexander Ramsey (1879–1881) – Minnesota governor.
  36. Robert T. Lincoln (1881–1885) – Abraham Lincoln's son—saw three presidents assassinated!
  37. William C. Endicott (1885–1889) – Fort upgrades.
  38. Redfield Proctor (1889–1891) – Vermont marble king.
  39. Stephen B. Elkins (1891–1893) – West Virginia senator.
  40. Daniel S. Lamont (1893–1897) – Cleveland's private secretary.
  41. Russell A. Alger (1897–1899) – Spanish-American War criticism.
  42. Elihu Root (1899–1904) – Nobel Peace Prize winner.
  43. William Howard Taft (1904–1908) – Later president #27 and Chief Justice!
  44. Luke E. Wright (1908–1909) – Philippines governor.
  45. Jacob M. Dickinson (1909–1911) – Railroad lawyer.
  46. Henry L. Stimson (1911–1913) – Later WWII Secretary of War again!
  47. Lindley M. Garrison (1913–1916) – Resigned over preparedness.
  48. Newton D. Baker (1916–1921) – WWI era; Cleveland mayor.
  49. John W. Weeks (1921–1925) – Weeks Act for forests.
  50. Dwight F. Davis (1925–1929) – Invented Davis Cup tennis!
  51. James W. Good (1929) – Died after 6 months.
  52. Patrick J. Hurley (1929–1933) – Hoover's friend.
  53. George H. Dern (1933–1936) – Utah governor.
  54. Harry H. Woodring (1936–1940) – Isolationist.
  55. Henry L. Stimson (1940–1945) – Back for WWII; Manhattan Project overseer.
  56. Robert P. Patterson (1945–1947) – WWII logistics hero.
  57. Kenneth C. Royall (1947) – Last Secretary of War; transitioned to Army Secretary.
Secretaries of Defense (1947–Present)
  1. James V. Forrestal (1947–1949) – First one; tragic end.
  2. Louis A. Johnson (1949–1950) – Budget cutter.
  3. George C. Marshall (1950–1951) – Marshall Plan genius; Nobel Prize.
  4. Robert A. Lovett (1951–1953) – Korean War.
  5. Charles E. Wilson (1953–1957) – "What's good for GM..." quote.
  6. Neil H. McElroy (1957–1959) – Short.
  7. Thomas S. Gates Jr. (1959–1961) – Budget expert.
  8. Robert S. McNamara (1961–1968) – Longest until recently; Vietnam stats guy.
  9. Clark M. Clifford (1968–1969) – Vietnam shift.
  10. Melvin R. Laird (1969–1973) – "Vietnamization."
  11. Elliot L. Richardson (1973) – Shortest (months); Saturday Night Massacre.
  12. James R. Schlesinger (1973–1975) – Energy crisis.
  13. Donald H. Rumsfeld (1975–1977, 2001–2006) – Only non-consecutive!
  14. Harold Brown (1977–1981) – Stealth tech push.
  15. Caspar W. Weinberger (1981–1987) – Reagan buildup.
  16. Frank C. Carlucci (1987–1989) – Short.
  17. Dick Cheney (1989–1993) – Gulf War; later VP.
  18. Les Aspin (1993–1994) – Short; health issues.
  19. William J. Perry (1994–1997) – "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" era.
  20. William S. Cohen (1997–2001) – First Republican in Democrat admin.
  21. Donald H. Rumsfeld (2001–2006) – Back for 9/11 and Iraq.
  22. Robert M. Gates (2006–2011) – Served two presidents.
  23. Leon E. Panetta (2011–2013) – Bin Laden raid.
  24. Chuck Hagel (2013–2015) – Vietnam vet.
  25. Ash Carter (2015–2017) – DIUx tech innovation.
  26. James Mattis (2017–2019) – "Mad Dog"; resigned over Syria.
  27. Mark Esper (2019–2020) – Acting then full.
  28. Lloyd J. Austin III (2021–2025) – First African American Secretary.
  29. Pete Hegseth (2025–present) – Current; TV host turned leader.
Fun Wrap-UpFrom Knox's cannons to Hegseth's modern challenges, these leaders protected America through wars, peace, and everything in between. Three became presidents (Monroe, J.Q. Adams, Taft from War era). The job changed from "War" to "Defense" to sound less aggressive! Who's your favorite from the list—or who had the coolest nickname?
Back to blog

Love learning about the Presidents?

Our bestselling collections bring together a thematic bundle of 24-page activity books filled with historical fun facts, trivia, coloring pages, inspiring quotes, and hands-on activities designed for kids age 5-10.

View all

Recent posts

View all
1 3
View all