U.S. Army’s Birthday Date in the current year: June 14, 2024

The predecessor of the present-day U.S. Army was the Continental Army formed by the Thirteen Colonies to participate in the American Revolutionary War. On June 14, 1775, the Second Continental Congress created a regular army to coordinate the military efforts of the colonies in their revolt against the British rule. George Washington was appointed its commander-in-chief and declined a salary.

Two days later, positions for five major staff officers were established: an Adjutant General, a Commissary of Musters, a Paymaster General, a Commissary General, and a Quartermaster General. After a debate, the Congress decided on the number of generals and appointed four major generals and eight brigadier generals.

The Continental Army comprised soldiers from all 13 American colonies, aged between 16 and 50. However, many men younger than 16 enlisted, as most colonies didn’t require parental consent to do so. Soldiers were citizens who had volunteered for military service, but they were paid for it. Early in the war the enlistment periods were short as the Congress didn’t want the Continental Army to evolve in the permanent army. After the tough winter of 1776-1777, longer enlistments were approved.

Despite the superior forces of the enemy, morale problems and funding issues (in 1781, the Congress went bankrupt and couldn’t pay soldiers), the Continental Army won the war and was disbanded following the signing of the Peace of Paris of 1783. Although Washington wanted to create a peacetime force, his suggestion was rejected by the Congress.

For a number of years, irregular state militias and two regular regiments were the nation’s sole ground forces. However, it was soon realized that the country needed a well-trained standing army to win in the ongoing conflict with Native Americans. In 1792, the Legion of the United States under the command of Major General Anthony Wayne was created. It was composed of four sub-legions consisting of professionally trained soldiers. Following Wayne’s death in 1796, the Legion was renamed the Army of the United States.

Although the present-day U.S. Army is the direct successor of the Legion, it is the foundation day of the Continental Army that is generally regarded as its birthday. Since its inception, the United States Army has participated in the American Civil War, the Spanish-American War, the Philippine-American War, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, the Iraq War, the War in Afghanistan, and other military conflicts and peacekeeping operations.

The U.S. Army is one of the seven uniformed services of the United States, alongside the Marine Corps, the Navy, the Air Force, the Coast Guard, the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps. As of 2017, it had 476,000 soldiers in the Regular Army, 343,000 soldiers in the Army National Guard, and 199,000 soldiers in the U.S. Army Reserve, as well as 330,000 civilian personnel.