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A Second Name Reversal: Hegseth Orders Army Base Return To Fort Benning

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The Big Story 

A second name reversal: Hegseth orders Army base return to Fort Benning

The Pentagon will change the name of the Georgia military base Fort Moore back to Fort Benning, formerly named after a Confederate general, though this time it will honor a different man.

© Mike Haskey/Ledger-Enquirer via AP

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday signed a memorandum to restore the name of the Army base to Fort Benning after it was renamed Fort Moore in May 2023, one of nine military installations honoring Confederate generals that Congress mandated be changed. 

 

Hegseth said the new moniker pays tribute to Cpl. Fred G. Benning, who was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his actions during World War I while serving with the U.S. Army in France in 1918. The base was originally named for Lt. Gen. Henry Benning, a Confederate general who opposed freeing slaves.

 

Hegseth’s order further fulfills a campaign pledge by President Trump, who vowed to revert bases to their original names.

 

The Pentagon in February switched the North Carolina military base Fort Liberty back to Fort Bragg. In that case, Private First Class Roland Bragg, a decorated World War II veteran, was chosen as the namesake, in lieu of Braxton Bragg, another Confederate general.

 

On his first official day at the Pentagon, Hegseth signaled the changes were coming when he called Fort Liberty and Fort Moore by their previous names, Fort Bragg and Fort Benning.

 

One of the largest military installations in the country, Fort Benning sits on Georgia’s border with Alabama and supports roughly 120,000 active-duty service members, their families, and civilian employees. 

 

It was renamed Fort Moore to honor Lt. Gen. Hal Moore and his wife, Julie Moore, who committed their lives to the service and helping Army families.

 

Steve Moore, one of the couple’s sons, last month wrote an essay in the War Horse, saying he was “disappointed” at Fort Bragg’s name change calling the decision “so wrong.”

 

Read the full report at TheHill.com.

 

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