WASHINGTON — Protection Secretary Pete Hegseth signed an order Monday restoring the title of a storied particular operations forces base again to Fort Bragg. The North Carolina base was renamed Fort Liberty in 2023 as a part of a nationwide effort below the Biden administration to take away names that honored Accomplice leaders.
The bottom’s unique namesake, Gen. Braxton Bragg, was a Accomplice normal from Warrenton, North Carolina, who was recognized for proudly owning slaves and shedding key Civil Warfare battles, contributing to the Confederacy’s downfall.
However the Pentagon spokesman mentioned Hegseth was renaming the bottom to honor Pfc. Roland L. Bragg, who he mentioned was a World Warfare II hero who earned the Silver Star and Purple Coronary heart for his distinctive braveness through the Battle of the Bulge.
“This transformation underscores the set up’s legacy of recognizing those that have demonstrated extraordinary service and sacrifice for the nation,” spokesman John Ullyot mentioned in an announcement.
The selection of the World Warfare II non-public first-class acquired round a regulation prohibiting the army from naming a base after a Accomplice chief.
In a video he posted on X saying that he was renaming the bottom, Hegseth mentioned: “That’s proper. Bragg is again!”
In actuality, the bottom had nonetheless been broadly generally known as Bragg, the brand new title having probably not taken maintain. On Hegseth’s first official day as protection secretary he made a degree of calling it Fort Bragg in his first trade with reporters.
