By: Patrick J. Kiger
See Images of US Presidents Who Served in the Military—in Uniform
From George Washington to Dwight D. Eisenhower to John F. Kennedy, military veterans have risen to the nation's highest office many times through history.
When the United States chose its first president in 1788, Americans turned to George Washington, who, as an army general, had led them to victory over the British and to independence. The acclaim that he had received as a war hero made him a unifying figure and gave him tremendous power.
America 101: What Qualifications Do You Need to Be President?
With all the talk about experience, you might be surprised to learn there are actually only a few qualifications to become President. Ebro Darden explains.
As historian Ron Chernow has written, the first Commander-in-Chief made a decision to wear a brown suit rather than his army uniform to his inauguration, which helped ease fears that the fledgling democracy might be taken over by a military coup.
Since Washington, the nation has often elevated other veterans to its highest office. According to a list compiled by the U.S. Veterans Administration, 31 of the nation’s 45 presidents served in the military in some capacity.
Wars have sometimes produced multiple future presidents, including four who served in the Revolutionary War, seven who served in the Union Army during the Civil War, and another eight who served during World War II (counting Jimmy Carter, who was a midshipman at the U.S. Naval Academy, and Ronald Reagan, who remained stateside in the U.S. Army because of poor eyesight).
Some presidents, like Washington, were generals who won great victories. Andrew Jackson led U.S. forces to victory in the Battle of New Orleans during the War of 1812. Zachary Taylor achieved fame by marching on Buena Vista and defeating an army three times the size of his own forces during the Mexican-American War. Dwight D. Eisenhower, the supreme Allied commander in Europe during World War II, orchestrated the D-Day invasion.
Others held lesser ranks but distinguished themselves in combat. William McKinley started the Civil War as a humble private in the Ohio volunteers and became a hero at the battle of Antietam by dodging enemy fire to bring warm food and hot coffee to other troops in the fray.
During World War II, Navy Lt. John F. Kennedy, commander of a Patrol Torpedo boat in the Pacific, survived a collision with a Japanese destroyer and swam to safety while towing a wounded member of his crew. His Navy comrade, Lt. George H.W. Bush, was a pilot who flew 58 combat missions against the Japanese and was shot down during a bombing raid.
Military credentials were once viewed as so crucial to political aspirations that during World War II, future President Lyndon B. Johnson, who went to the South Pacific as an observer, pressed hard for a chance to fly on a bombing mission, which nearly got him killed. In recent decades, though, fewer veterans have made it to the White House.
The 2012 election, in which incumbent Barack Obama defeated challenger Mitt Romney, was the first since World War II in which neither candidate had served in the armed forces. Current President Donald Trump received a medical deferment that enabled him to avoid service during the Vietnam War.
Even so, American voters appear to still value military experience in a president. A 2016 Pew Research Center survey found that 50 percent of Americans would be more likely to vote for a presidential candidate with military experience—the highest-ranked of the 13 traits that pollsters asked about.
Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of Collis P. Huntington, 1897George Washington
The nation’s first president, George Washington, served as general and Commander in Chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolution (1775-1783). Washington wore a suit rather than his army uniform to his inauguration to help ease fears that the fledgling democracy might be taken over by a military coup.
Stock Montage / Getty ImagesAndrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson, as a major general of the Army, led U.S. forces to victory in the battle of New Orleans during the War of 1812.
Hulton Archive/Getty ImagesZachary Taylor
Zachary Taylor commanded troops in the War of 1812 and became a full-fledged war hero through his service in the Mexican War, which broke out in 1846.
Kimball/Library of Congress/Corbis/VCG via Getty ImagesFranklin Pierce
Pierce served as a brigadier general in the New Hampshire Militia (1846-1848).
Corbis/Getty ImagesUlysses S. Grant
As commanding general, Grant led the Union army to victory over the Confederacy during the American Civil War.
Library of Congress/Corbis/VCG via Getty ImagesRutherford B. Hayes
Hayes served in the in the Union Army in the American Civil War from 1861 until 1865. He started as a major in the 23rd Ohio Regiment and, by the end of the war, had been promoted to the rank of major general.
Mathew Brady/Hulton Archive/Getty ImagesJames A. Garfield
Garfield served during the American Civil War as a major general, fighting in the battles of Shiloh, Middle Creek and Chickamauga.
Library of Congress/Corbis/VCG via Getty ImagesBenjamin Harrison
Harrison served during the American Civil War as a brigadier general, reaching the front lines of General Sherman’s Atlanta Campaign in 1864.
The National McKinley Birthplace Memorial AssociationWilliam McKinley
McKinley served in the 23rd Ohio Infantry of the United States Army from 1861, until 1865. During the American Civil War, he served on the staff of fellow future president, and Ohioan, Rutherford B. Hayes, forming a lifelong friendship that eventually helped McKinley rise through Ohio’s political ranks.
Buyenlarge/Getty ImagesTeddy Roosevelt
Roosevelt resigned his post as Assistant Secretary of the Navy in 1898 and volunteered to head a cavalry unit, known as the Rough Riders, to fight as a colonel in the Spanish-American War.
Getty ImagesHarry Truman
Captain Harry S. Truman in the 129th Field Artillery uniform. After the war, he entered Missouri Democratic politics and later became U.S. President following Franklin Roosevelt’s death.
Corbis/Getty ImagesDwight Eisenhower
Captain Dwight Eisenhower stands next to a tank at Camp Meade, Maryland in 1919.
Frank Turgeon Jr./John F. Kennedy Library and MuseumJohn F. Kennedy
Kennedy served as a Navy lieutenant in World War II. He received the Purple Heart and the Navy Marine Corps Medal for his heroics when his PT 109 was sunk by a Japanese destroyer in 1943. He’s the only president to receive either medal.
Bettmann Archives/Getty ImagesLyndon B. Johnson
Johnson became the first member of Congress to volunteer for active duty in the military when the United States entered World War II. Serving in the U.S. Navy as a lieutenant commander, Johnson took part in a bombing raid on a Japanese Island on the northeast coast of New Guinea, where his life was spared by a fortunately-timed bathroom break.
Bettmann Archive/Getty ImagesRichard Nixon
Nixon served as a Navy lieutenant and saw action in the Pacific Theater during World War II.
National Archives CatalogueGerald Ford
As lieutenant commander, Ford served in the Navy during World War II. After his honorable discharge in 1946, he remained in the inactive Naval Reserve until 1963.
Library of Congress/Corbis/VCG/Getty ImagesJimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter served as Lieutenant, U.S. Navy (1946-1953). Jimmy Carter was a midshipman at the U.S. Naval Academy, although he did not see combat during World War II.
Bettmann Archive/Getty ImagesRonald Reagan
Reagan served as a lieutenant in the U.S. Army but remained stateside during World War II because of poor eyesight. He starred in the First Motion Picture Unit, producing films to support the war effort.
Robert Daemmrich Photography Inc/Corbis via Getty ImagesGeorge H.W. Bush
George Bush served as a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy (1942-1945). On September 2, 1944, while on a bombing run of the island of Chi Chi Jima, his plane was shot down. After floating on a raft for several hours, he was rescued by the submarine, the U.S.S. Finback. Overall, he flew in 58 combat missions and received several medals, including the Distinguished Flying Cross.
Robert Daemmrich Photography Inc/Corbis via Getty ImagesGeorge W. Bush
George W. Bush served as a first lieutenant in the Texas Air National Guard (1968-1973).
Related
U.S. Presidents
243 videos
Martial law is a temporary state of military rule during an emergency. Leaders have exploited martial law to suppress political opposition.
Both his biological mother and his stepmother helped set Abraham Lincoln on the pathway to the presidency.
Generations of Americans never saw any U.S. president on money.
About the author
Patrick J. Kiger has written for GQ, the Los Angeles Times, National Geographic, PBS NewsHour and Military History Quarterly. He's the co-author (with Martin J. Smith) of Poplorica: A Popular History of the Fads, Mavericks, Inventions, and Lore that Shaped Modern America.
Fact Check
We strive for accuracy and fairness. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! HISTORY reviews and updates its content regularly to ensure it is complete and accurate.
Citation Information
- Article Title
- See Images of US Presidents Who Served in the Military—in Uniform
- Author
- Patrick J. Kiger
- Website Name
- History
- Date Accessed
- October 21, 2026
- Publisher
- A&E Television Networks
- Last Updated
- November 20, 2025
- Original Published Date
- February 14, 2019
