“We won a lot of battles out of those forts. It’s no time to change. And I’m superstitious, you know, I like to keep it going, right? I’m very superstitious.”
Speaking at a ceremony marking the US Army’s 250th anniversary, President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that his administration will resore the original names of seven military bases that had previously honored Confederate leaders.
“For a little breaking news, we are also going to be restoring the names to Fort Pickett, Fort Hood, Fort Gordon, Fort Rucker, Fort Polk, Fort AP Hill and Fort Robert E Lee,” Trump said during remarks delivered at Fort Bragg in North Carolina.
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View on XThe bases were renamed under the Biden administration in 2023, following a recommendation from a naming commission. Fort Bragg, for example—one of the most prominent installations in the country—was renamed Fort Liberty at the time.
“We won a lot of battles out of those forts. It’s no time to change. And I’m superstitious, you know, I like to keep it going, right? I’m very superstitious,” Trump said. “We want to keep it going. So that’s a big story.”
In February, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth changed the name of Fort Liberty back to Fort Bragg.
"Pursuant to the authority of the Secretary of Defense, Title 10, United States code section 113, I direct the Army to change the name of Fort Liberty, North Carolina to Fort Bragg, North Carolina," Hegseth said, announcing the change. "That's right, Bragg is back."
The original name of the fort—Fort Bragg—was changed to Fort Liberty in June 2023. It had been named after Confederate General Braxton Bragg. Now, the Department of Defense, alongside Pete Hegseth, is changing the name again, this time in honor of Pfc. Roland L. Bragg, a World War II soldier recognized for his bravery at the Battle of the Bulge. According to a DoD press release, Bragg received both the Silver Star and Purple Heart for his actions during the war.
The initial name change followed recommendations made by a congressional commission in 2021, which was established to identify and rename U.S. military properties linked to Confederate figures. Fort Bragg was one of nine bases included in the commission’s list, according to NBC News.
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