Embedded Files
Introduction
Introduction
The U.S Military has 6 branches: the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and Space Force. There is also the National Guard that acts as a reserve for the branches. Their primary role is to protect the country from international threats. They also support peace in different countries and are sent there to maintain the peace. The United States Executive Branch is what controls the military. It has a major impact on world peace and global diplomacy.
The Origins of the Military
The Origins of the Military
The origins of the U.S. Military has a long history dating all the way back to June 14, 1775. George Washington and the beginnings of the First Congress created the first army. They did this because they needed a structured military to fight the war. The military was at first called the Continental Army, as they were the first official armed forces of America. The Continental Army is not technically the first army of the United States, for there were many militias in each state, and the beginning of the war, which was fought in Lexington and Concord, was fought by the militias who found their weapons to fight with. The Continental Army was created first and then followed by the Continental Navy and Continental Marines on October 13, 1775, and November 10, 1775, respectively. The Coast Guard was then established in 1790 to fight smugglers and enforce laws. The next branch of the military didn't officially come into the United States until the Air Force, in 1947, became independent of the Army. The latest branch of the Military would be the Space Force, which was established in 2019.
Structure
Structure
The United States Military is made up of six branches. Each branch is structured in a different way by its nature. But they are all controlled by the Executive Branch, more specifically, it is controlled by the Department of Defence (DoD) . The head of the department is the Secretary of Defence, who has to be nominated by the president and accepted by the Senate(United States Secretary of Defence, n.d.). To start from the bottom, the Army, Navy, and Air Force have their own secretaries; the head of the Navy also controls the Marines, while the head of the Air Force controls the Space Force. The Coast Guard is controlled by the Secretary of Homeland Security. These secretaries are civilians who are appointed by the president. All of these secretaries are overseen by the Department of Defence, which is headed by the Secretary of Defence, who ultimately reports to the President (Veterans Employment Toolkit, n.d.).
Role
Role
The U.S. Military plays a big role in not just the country's peace, but all over the world. It protects the people in the country and provides security. They get deployed around the world to keep the peace or help allies win conflicts in different countries. The military also has disaster relief, which is when the country goes through some sort of natural disaster or man-made disaster, and people are in trouble. Some parts of the military, such as the Coast Guard, come and help get food to people who are blocked off and rescue people. America also helps when other countries that are their allies need help and disaster relief.
Impact
Impact
The United States Military is arguably the most powerful in the world, and therefore, has the most significant impact on countries and people around the world. Without it, there could be many circumstances where the world would not be the same as it is today, both in a good and a bad way. They impact the country in more ways than just protecting us from domestic and international threats. The military is a major employer and contributes to the American economy (US Economy | Costs of War, n.d.). There are, of course, some negative impacts of the military, such as the pollution it releases and the environmental damage that occurs when fighting. Many military activities, such as weapon testing, training, and missions, lead to a lot of air and water pollution(Mallinder & Fernández, 2023). But all in all, the military does all this to protect us and our allies from countries or groups of people that want to do even worse things to the world. The U.S. carried out many missions, such as Operation Desert Storm, to save Kuwait from Iraq (Topic: Operations and Missions: Past and Present, 2023), and Operation Neptune Spear, which was carried to perfection by locating and eliminating the person behind the attack on 9/11 (FBI, n.d.). All these missions they have carried out have had and still have a major impact on the world.
Conclusion
Conclusion
In short, the U.S. Military started all the way back in 1775 with only 231,000 people, with almost no weapons, resources, or money to fight with (MilitaryHallofHonor.com, n.d.). Now the army has grown up to nearly 1.3 million active soldiers in the military, with 700,000 in reserves. We have over 3000 nuclear weapons, 4.5 million small arms, and many other resources needed to fight. The Continental army spent 400 million back then, and now we have a defence budget of $849 billion. This is why America plays a tremendous role around the world. They act as a guardian to the United States and all of its allies. They act as a support and disaster relief in both man-made and natural disasters. Many things that are in the world and country right now are the way they are because the American Military has done the things they have, such as dangerous missions to protect the world. All in all, the United States Armed Forces play an immense role and factor on the globe by impacting it in several different ways.
References
References
Mallinder, L., & Fernández, B. (2023, December 12). 'Elephant in the room': What is the US military's carbon footprint? Al Jazeera. Retrieved June 15, 2025, from https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/12/12/elephant-in-the-room-the-us-militarys-devastating-carbon-footprint
Office of stability and Humanitarian Affairs. Stability and Humanitarian Affairs. (n.d.). https://policy.defense.gov/ousdp-offices/asd-for-special-operations-low-intensity-conflict/stability-and-humanitarian-affairs/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
Osama bin Laden — FBI. (n.d.). FBI. Retrieved June 15, 2025, from https://www.fbi.gov/history/famous-cases/osama-bin-laden
Structure and Branches - Veterans Employment Toolkit. (n.d.). VA.gov. Retrieved June 11, 2025, from https://www.va.gov/vetsinworkplace/docs/em_structureBranches.asp
Topic: Operations and missions: past and present. (2023, July 10). NATO. Retrieved June 15, 2025, from https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/topics_52060.htm
United States Secretary of Defence. (n.d.). United States Secretary of Defense - Wikipedia. Retrieved June 11, 2025, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Secretary_of_Defense
US Economy | Costs of War. (n.d.). Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs. Retrieved June 15, 2025, from https://watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/costs/economic/economy
US Military History. (n.d.). Military.com. Retrieved June 18, 2025, from https://www.military.com/history
Your online source to identify and honor every man and woman, dead or alive, that has honorably served, or is serving, in the US Armed Forces from 1775 to present. | MilitaryHallofHonor.com. (n.d.). Military Hall of Honor. Retrieved June 18, 2025, from https://militaryhallofhonor.com/military_branches.php
Page updated
Report abuse