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.
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.
Members or units of the ARNG may be ordered, temporarily or indefinitely, into United States service. 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. Individuals volunteering for active federal service may do so subject to the consent of their governors. 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.
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. 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.
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.
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 billet, 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. 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. 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. 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:
Deployable Army units are organized as Table of organization and equipment (TOE) organizations or modified table of organization and equipment (MTOE) organizations. Non-deployable units, such as a state's joint force headquarters or regional training institutes are administered as Table of distribution and allowance (TDA) units.
In addition to many deployable units which are non-divisional, the Army National Guard's deployable units include eight infantry divisions. These divisions, their subordinate brigades or brigades with which the divisions have a training oversight relationship, and the states represented by the largest units include:
Army Aviation Magazine wrote on 31 March 2021 that "The ARNG is pressing forward with the Division Alignment for Training (DIV AFT) effort. The DIV AFT intent is to enhance leader development and training readiness through codified relationships across echelons and states to develop combat capable division formations for large scale combat operations. The Director, ARNG. recently convened a DIV AFT Initial Planning Conference to clarify unit alignments for all eight ARNG Division Headquarters and synchronize activities that will facilitate unity of effort between Division Headquarters and aligned for training States."
The Army National Guard fields 37 multifunctional support brigades.
In 2016, the Army and the Army National Guard began a training and readiness initiative that aligned some Army brigades with National Guard division headquarters, and some National Guard brigades with Army division headquarters. Among others, this program included the National Guard's 86th Infantry Brigade Combat Team becoming affiliated with the Army's 10th Mountain Division and the National Guard's 1st Battalion, 143rd Infantry Regiment affiliating with the Army's 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team. In addition, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division began an affiliation with the National Guard's 36th Infantry Division.
Army units partnering with Army National Guard headquarters include:
The Army and Air National Guard in each state are headed by the state adjutant general. The adjutant general (TAG) is the de facto commander of a state's military forces, and reports to the state governor.
Upon the creation of the United States Air Force in 1947, the National Guard Bureau was organized into two divisions; Army National Guard and Air National Guard. Each were headed by a major general who reported to the chief of the National Guard Bureau. The head of the Army National Guard was originally established as the chief of the Army Division at the National Guard Bureau. The position was downgraded to brigadier general in 1962 due to force reduction. It was renamed to Director of the Army National Guard and elevated back to major general in 1970. The position was later elevated to the rank of lieutenant general in 2001. The Army National Guard is also authorized a deputy director which was originally established as a brigadier general office in 1970. It was elevated to the rank of major general in 2006.
The director of the Army National Guard oversees a staff which aids in planning and day-to-day organization and management. In addition to a chief of staff, the director's staff includes several special staff members, including a chaplain and protocol and awards specialists. It also includes a primary staff, which is organized as directorates, divisions, and branches. The directorates of the Army National Guard staff are arranged along the lines of a typical American military staff: G-1 for personnel; G-2 for intelligence; G-3 for plans, operations and training; G-4 for logistics; G-5 for strategic plans, policy and communications; G-6 for communications; and G-8 for budgets and financial management.
Of the 45 individuals to serve as president of the United States , 33 had military experience. Of those 33, 21 served in the militia or ARNG.
(Note: President George W. Bush served in the National Guard in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and he was the first Air National Guard member to attain the presidency.)