Department of War Name Set in Bronze at Pentagon Entrances

At the Pentagon today, facilities personnel took down outdated bronze plaques at two of the building’s entrances and replaced them with recently minted plaques bearing the new name of the federal agency that leads America’s fighting force: “Department of War.”

One of those new plaques was put up at the River Entrance, which faces the Potomac River and serves as the Pentagon’s grand entrance. It’s where Secretary of War Pete Hegseth greets counterparts from partner and allied nations, as well as other dignitaries and distinguished visitors. 

The Mall Entrance, which faces north toward the National Mall in Washington, also got a new sign. Outside that entrance are the Pentagon’s helicopter landing pads. 

“We wanted to replace [the old signs] because we want everybody who comes through this door to know that we are deadly serious about the name change of this organization,” Hegseth said. 

In early September, President Donald J. Trump signed an executive order changing the name of the Defense Department back to the War Department — a name the department held for more than 150 years, from 1789 to 1947. 

Construction on the Pentagon began in 1941 and was completed in 1943. When the building opened that year, it housed the Department of War. In fact, the dedication stone on the Pentagon — located outside the Mall Entrance — has “War Department” engraved at the top, along with the names of Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was president at the time, and Henry L. Stimson, who served as Secretary of War from 1940 to 1945. 

Now, the Pentagon again houses the War Department. 

“We love everything that the Department of Defense represented,” Hegseth said. “But this is a new era of the Department of War that is focused on winning wars … and making sure that we know exactly what the mission is and that the troops are sent there to succeed and win.” 

The name “Department of War,” Hegseth said, harkens back to America’s founding. 

“[We are] reestablishing [the department] back to Henry Knox and George Washington and the founding of our nation — to fight and win our nation’s wars if called upon,” he said. “And of course, the whole goal is to deter wars in the first place … to establish peace.” 

The new name also reflects a new ethos for the department, Hegseth said, after he personally fastened the last screw on the new River Entrance plaque. 

“We are rebuilding it; we are reestablishing deterrence — it’s based on America first, peace through strength and common sense,” he said. “And now everybody that enters this building, whether it’s generals or civilians or foreign leaders, is going to see: this is not just on paper. This is not just a title. This is exactly who we are.” 

The new bronze plaques are each roughly 30 by 20 inches and weigh about 60 pounds. 

The old plaques, which say “Department of Defense,” had been on the building for more than 70 years, Hegseth said.