The National Guard and National Defense: The Mobilization of the Guard in World War II

The battle for control over the National Guard began with the passage of the National Defense Act of 1933. The National Guard Association’s insistence on a federal role for the Guard prompted the creation of dual status for guardsmen so that after 1933 they were not only soldiers of the state, but of the American nation as well. The first test of the Guard’s status came as the world plunged into World War II. The compromises, conflicts, emotions, and legal precedents involved in the 1940-41 mobilisation were to affect the National Guard and national defense strategy for many years to come. This study demonstrates the importance of the political situation with regard to the National Guard and the consequences for later defense policy and legislation.