What is United States Department of War?
[[File:Seal of the United States Department of War.png|thumb|Line drawing of the Department of War's seal.]] The '''United States Department of War''', also called the '''War Office''', was the department of the [[United States]] [[Federal government of the United States|government]]'s [[Federal government of the United States#Executive branch|executive branch]] responsible for the [[wikt:operation|operation]] and [[wikt:maintenance|maintenance]] of land (and later air) [[Military of the United States|forces]] from 1789 until September 18, 1947, when it became part of the '''[[United States Department of Defense|National Military Establishment]]''', renamed on August 10, 1949, the [[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]]. The War Department also had responsibility for the young nation's naval affairs until the establishment of the [[United States Department of the Navy|Navy Department]] in 1798. {{USCabinet}} {{Commonscat}} [[Category:Former United States Executive Departments]] [[Category:1949 disestablishments]] [[Category:1789 establishments in the United States]] [[Category:1940s disestablishments in the United States]] {{US-stub}}