The proud lineage of the Adjutant General's Corps dates back nearly as far as the Army which it has honorably served for more than 200 years. On June 16, 1775, the Continental Congress appointed Horatio Gates, a former British Army major, as the first Adjutant General and commissioned him in the grade of brigadier general. With that appointment, the second oldest existing branch of the Army received its birthright.

Horatio Gates is honored as the forefather of the Adjutant General's Corps. Historically, he was the second officer to receive a commission in the Continental Army (George Washington was the first). General Gates' primary duty was to serve as key advisor and principal assistant to General Washington. Horatio Gates proved himself to be an able assistant as well as a brilliant field commander. Under his leadership, the Continental Army won the Battle of Saratoga -- considered by many to be the most critical battle of the Revolutionary War. Following his strategic victory over the British, Congress awarded General Gates our country's highest honor, the Congressional Gold Medal.

During the War of 1812, Adjutant Generals proved themselves to be officers of exceptional character, judgment and combat prowess. Two men in particular who served as the Adjutant General during this period rose to prominence. Alexander Macomb is noted for repulsing the British in the Battle of Plattsburg and later become the Commanding General of the Army. The famous explorer Zebulon Pike was killed in battle while leading the victorious assault on York, Canada.

With the appointment of Brevet Brigadier General Roger Jones in 1825, the office began its climb in importance to the Army. During his tenure, General Jones molded the office of the Adjutant General into the central bureau of the War Department. Adjutants General became the only officers invested with the authority to speak for the commander.

Recognizing this, the Army began appointing West Point graduates almost exclusively as Adjutants General from 1839 through early 1900. The first two graduates so appointed, Samuel Cooper and Lorenzo Thomas, served with distinction as Adjutants General during the Civil War. Cooper served the South, Thomas the North.

By the onset of the Spanish-American War, The Adjutant General's Office had evolved as the central coordinating bureau in the Army. Strengthening military organizations has been the legacy of the Adjutants General from one era to another. Major General William H. Carter, under the direction of Secretary of War Elihu Root, bolstered that legacy by designing the modern general staff. The relationships between The Adjutant General's Department and the this newly-organized general staff took several years of refinement as some functions were transferred and others were duplicated.

Traditionally, Adjutant General's Corps officers were charged with most of the non-supply functions of the staff as we know them today. Their focus has been primarily centered around records, and as such, they have been given the responsibility for developing Army personnel and administrative policies and programs.

Today's Adjutant General's Corps is at the forefront of transforming the way the Army manages its most important resource -- people. The officers, soldiers, and civilians of the AG Corps are a highly trained and multifunctional group of Human Resources experts. Their focus for today and for tomorrow is to provide solutions to the human resource and administrative problems of a transforming Army. Serving in the tradition of Major General Horatio Gates and AG soldiers of the past, they are a vital part of America's Army.