History of the
National War College

According to Lieutenant General Leonard T. Gerow, President of the Board which recommended its formation, "The College is concerned with grand strategy and the utilization of the national resources necessary to implement that strategy... Its graduates will exercise a great influence on the formulation of national and foreign policy in both peace and war..." This theme is underscored with the inclusion of State Department, DoD, and other interagency representatives on the faculty and in the student body.

American experience in 20th Century wars has repeatedly shown that the complexity of planning and conducting global war plus joint and combined military operations required officers and civilians in government, inter-agencies, industry, and non-governmental organizations to be thoroughly familiar with each other's roles, functions, and missions. They also needed the skills to operate comfortably at levels in which key national security and strategy decisions would be made in peace and war. Since its inception, the National War College has proven invaluable in preparing its students for those responsibilities.

The College is located in Theodore Roosevelt Hall on Fort Lesley J. McNair, the oldest active Army Post in existence today. Established near the confluence of the Anacostia and Potomac rivers, it was originally designed to protect Washington from river invasions. Later, it was the site of the trial and subsequent hanging of four co-conspirators associated with President Lincoln's assassination. On 21 February 1903, President Theodore Roosevelt laid the cornerstone to the building which now bears his name. The building has been home to the Army War College (1907 - 1917, 1919 - 1940), War Plans Division, War Department General Staff, Selective Service System Headquarters, Headquarters U.S. Army Ground Forces (all successively during World War II), and the National War College (1946 - present). The first National War College class met on 1 September 1946. One hundred American and six foreign observers attended the school. In June 1974, this unique structure was designated a National Historic Landmark.

To date, over 7,500 students have graduated from the College. The number of U.S. and international graduates who have been promoted to the top of their services or civilian agencies of the government is an indicator of the importance of the National War College, but its most profound effect has been on individual thinking and intellectual growth.