The Military Order of Foreign Wars of the United States (MOFW) is one of the oldest veterans' and hereditary associations in the United States with a membership that includes officers and their hereditary descendants from all of the Armed Services. Membership is composed of active duty, reserve and retired officers of the United States Armed Services, including the Coast Guard, National Guard, and allied officers, and their descendants, who have served during one of the wars in which the United States has or is engaged with a foreign power.
History The Order was founded on December 13, 1894, in the office of Frank M. Avery in the Tribune Building in New York City. The first signer of the Order's "Institution" (founding document) was Major General Fitz John Porter who was a veteran of both the Mexican War and the Civil War. Eighteen others signed the Institution of which five were Mexican War veterans, nine were descendants of American Revolutionary War officers and four who were descendants of officers who served in the War of 1812.
The resultant Order was initially known as the Military and Naval Order of the United States and was organized and later incorporated under that name. Its hereditary line of descent spans the period of American history since national independence during the Revolutionary War. Initially membership in the Order was limited to officer veterans (and their hereditary descendants) of the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, and the Mexican War. (In addition, there is a requirement that ancestors who were militia officers must have had active service during wartime.)
Although there were many individuals who served as officers in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars who were living at the time of the Order's founding, that service did not qualify them for membership as those wars were considered to be domestic rather than foreign wars.
In April 1895, the name of the Order was officially changed to its present name – The Military Order of Foreign Wars of the United States (MOFW). By the end of 1896, commanderies had been formed in seven states.
The MOFW was patterned after the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States (MOLLUS) which was a military society for officers, and their descendants, who had served the Union during the American Civil War. As MOLLUS had restricted its membership to officers who had served in one particular war, the need was felt to have an organization for the descendants of officers who had served in the American Revolution, War of 1812 and the Mexican War – as well as the few surviving Mexican War veterans who were officers.
The influence of the Order spread rapidly and soon commanderies (state level organizations) were formed in other states. It was deemed advisable to form a National Commandery to centralize and coordinate the activities of the various state commanderies, and which would have general supervision and control over the policies and activities of the Order. The National Commandery was founded at a joint meeting of the individual state commanderies in March 1896 and General Alexander S. Webb was elected as the first Commander General.
The motto of the Military Order of Foreign Wars is the Latin phrase Deus et Libertas meaning God and Liberty.
The War and Navy Departments, and later the Department of Defense, under various resolutions of Congress, gave recognition to the Order and permitted the wearing of its insignia on uniforms.
Membership qualifications For the first two years of the MOFW's existence, membership categories were limited to Veteran and Hereditary companions who were either veteran officers or descendants of veteran officers who had served during the American Revolution, War of 1812, War with Tripoli or the Mexican War. Service during the American Civil War and the Indian Wars did not qualify as those were considered domestic rather than foreign conflicts.
In 1896 the membership category of Honorary Companion was created for presidents of the United States and officers who had attained the rank of major general or rear admiral. President William McKinley, President Grover Cleveland and Lieutenant General John M. Schofield were among the earliest honorary companions. The qualifications for Honorary Companions were later changed to require that officers be equal to or higher than lieutenant general or vice admiral.
The Spanish–American War of 1898 provided the Order with a great number of new Veteran Companions – particularly the Pennsylvania Commandery which, according to the MOFW Register published in 1900, accounted for over half of the Order's membership. Among the individuals who joined the MOFW between 1898 and 1900 were Admiral George Dewey, future president Theodore Roosevelt and future General of the Armies John J. Pershing. Most senior officers who served in the Spanish–American War were also veterans of the Civil War, and many belonged to both the MOFW and MOLLUS.
In 1928, a fourth membership status (junior companion) was created for sons of companions who had not reached the majority age of 21. In 1969, companionship was extended to those who served in an enlisted status during a foreign war and were later commissioned.
In time, the Order's membership qualifications were expanded to include service during conflicts with foreign powers which include, but are not limited to, the War with Spain, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, the War in Iraq and the War in Afghanistan. Combat or "in theater" service is not required for membership.
The membership of the Order and the number of state commanderies over the 100 years of the Order's existence has fluctuated, typically increasing after the end of a war and declining during times of peace. The Order's stringent and high eligibility requirements make it difficult for the Order to recruit members in large numbers. However, this selectivity has enabled the Order to sustain itself for over 100 years because it continues to fill its ranks with individuals of the highest caliber, patriotism, loyalty, and character.
Past Commanders-General Brevet Major General Alexander S. Webb (1896–1911) Major General Charles Francis Roe (1911–14) Rear Admiral William B. Caperton (1914–17) Brigadier General Samuel W. Fountain (1917–20) Rear Admiral Robert E. Coontz (1920–23) Major General Clarence R. Edwards (1923–26) Captain William S. Bainbridge, MC, USN (1926–32) Lieutenant Colonel Pelham St.G. Bissell (1932–38) Colonel Philip L. Schuyler (1938–41) Colonel William I. Forbes (1941–45) Major General John F. O'Ryan (1945–46) Colonel James A. Doherty (1946–49) Colonel Edwin S. Bettelheirn Jr. (1949–51) Brigadier General Joseph H. Lewis (1951–53) Major General John Williams Morgan (1953–55) Commander Ross H. Currier (1955–57) Captain Richard F. Warren, USN (1957–59) Lieutenant Benjamin L. Cook Jr., (1959–61) Colonel Frederick B. Wiener (1961–63) Commander James A. Lamphier, USNR (1963–65) Brigadier General William C. Baxter (1965–67) Rear Admiral Robert Granville Burke (1967–69) Colonel Wilbur J. Myers (1969–71) Rear Admiral Theodore C. Aylward (1971–73) Colonel R. Graham Bosworth (1973–75) Brigadier General Joseph S. Zarieko (1975–77) Colonel Richard H. Love (1977–79) Colonel John Denny Dale (1979–81) Brigadier General William Uriah Ogletree (1981–83) Brigadier General Arthur N. Phillips (1983–85) Lieutenant Commander T. Johnson Ward, USN (1985–87) Major General James C. McElroy (1987–89) Commander Thomas F. Wiener, USN (1989–91) Colonel Charles H. Bechtold, USMC (1991–93) First Lieutenant Charles F. Dale (1993–95) Colonel Versel Case Jr. (1995–97) Lieutenant Colonel Ronald R. Sommer (1997–99)
Recent Commanders-General Colonel Joseph P. Kirlin III, USAR (1999–2001) Captain Ronald E. Fischer, AUS (2001–03) Major General John J. Salesses, USMCR (2003–05) Colonel Duane Bartrem, MIARNG (2005–07) Colonel Arthur J. Nattans, MDARNG (2007–09) Lieutenant Colonel Lewis L. Neilson Jr., USAR (2009–11) Major Wulf Lindenau, USA (2011–13) Colonel David H. Russell, RIARNG (2013–15) Captain Richard A. Coutermarsh, USAR (2 May 2015 until resigned on 1 September 2015) Lieutenant Colonel Orfeo "Chuck" Trombetta Jr., USAR (1 September 2015 to 3 April 2018) Lieutenant Colonel Kent A. D. Clark, USA (3 April 2018 to 4 May 2019) Colonel Christopher V. Herndon, USA (4 May 2019 to 29 May 2021) Lieutenant Commander Christopher Saint Victor-de Pinho, USN (29 May 2021 – May 2023) Colonel Thomas Pike (2025 - Present)
Notable companions Note – The rank listed is the highest held by that individual in their career.Register of the Military Order of the Foreign Wars of the United States. National Commandery MOFW. 1900.
Veteran Companions United States Army Colonel Theodore Roosevelt, USV – Hero of the Battle of San Juan Hill, posthumous Medal of Honor recipient and President of the United States. General of the Army Dwight D. Eisenhower – Army Chief of Staff, Supreme Allied Commander in Europe and President of the United States. General of the Armies John J. Pershing – Commander of the American Expeditionary Force and Army Chief of Staff. General of the Army Douglas MacArthur – Medal of Honor recipient, Army Chief of Staff, Commander Southwest Pacific Area and United Nations Commander during the Korean War. General Tasker H. Bliss – Army Chief of Staff. General Alexander Haig – NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe and Secretary of State. General John L. Hines – Army Chief of Staff. Lieutenant General Stanley H. Ford Lieutenant General Nelson A. Miles – Commanding General of the United States Army and Medal of Honor recipient. Lieutenant General Samuel B. M. Young – First U.S. Army Chief of Staff. Major General Thomas M. Anderson – Nephew of Brigadier General Robert Anderson. Major General Christopher C. Augur – Mexican War Veteran and Civil War general. Major General Frank Baldwin – Two time Medal of Honor recipient. Major General Joseph Cabell Breckinridge Sr. – Veteran of the Civil War and the Spanish–American War. Major General John R. Brooke – Commander of Puerto Rican Expedition in Spanish–American War. Major General Matthew C. Butler – Served as major general in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War and in the United States Army during the Spanish–American War. Major General Reginald A. Centracchio – Former Adjutant General of Rhode Island. Major General John Clem – Youngest Union soldier in the American Civil War. Major General George Whitefield Davis – Spanish–American War veteran. Major General George W. Getty – Mexican War Veteran and American Civil War Union general. Major General William Montrose Graham Jr. – Veteran of the Civil War and Spanish–American War. Major General Frederick D. Grant – Son of General and President Ulysses S. Grant. Major General Francis V. Greene – Spanish–American War veteran. Major General Mark L. Hersey – Veteran of the Spanish–American War and commanded the 4th Division during the First World War. Major General William August Kobbé – Veteran of the Civil War, Spanish–American War and Philippine Insurrection. Major General Wesley Merritt – Military Governor of the Philippines. Major General Paul B. Malone – General in First World War. Major General James S. Negley – Veteran of the Mexican War and the Civil War. Major General John F. O'Ryan – Commander of 27th Division in the First World War. Major General Fitz John Porter – Mexican War and Civil War Veteran. Major General William R. Shafter – Commander of V Corps in Cuba during the Spanish–American War. Major General William Farrar Smith – Mexican War and Civil War Veteran. Major General David S. Stanley – Medal of Honor recipient. Major General Samuel S. Sumner – Cavalry brigade commander at the Battle of San Juan Hill. Major General Joseph Wheeler – Lieutenant general in the Confederate States Army and division commander at Battle of San Juan Hill.