Considering a Cadre Augmented Army - RAND Corporation

-282- A Historical Analysis of Cadre
militia until passage of the Dick Act in 1903. 32 Because the Militia Act perpetuated many of
the systemic problems with the militia, they would remain issues in the wars of the
nineteenth century.
2.1.3—The War of 1812
“By now it was evident that the militia could contribute little in a sudden emergency.
The states had neglected to train and make ready the battalions and divisions
enrolled under the act of 1792, and a Congressional enactment of 1803 requiring
them to make periodic reports on the condition of their militias failed to prod them
enough. So Jefferson recommended, and on April 12, 1808, Congress authorized, a
virtual tripling of the Regular establishment, to nearly 10,000 men.” 33
In 1808, with the threat of war with England increasing, President Thomas Jefferson
decided that a larger Regular Army was necessary to defend the United States. Weigley
argues that Jefferson took this action because he believed the militia would not be ready in a
sudden emergency. 34 However, when the war began in 1812, the size of the army was
significantly smaller than authorized, with only 6,744 men. 35 The demands of the War of
1812 required once again calling on the militia. This brought two issues to the forefront.
First, it led to a debate about whether states had the right to ignore requests from the federal
government to furnish troops. Second, the war highlighted the problem of using the militia
outside of the United States. Cadre proponents later emphasized both of these issues.
On April 10, 1812, the states of Massachusetts and Connecticut were called upon to
furnish 100,000 militiamen. The governors of these two states refused to provide troops
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32 See Chapter Three of this paper for further discussion of the Dick Act.
33 Weigley (1984), p. 109. See footnote below for the relative size of the military at this time.
34 Weigley (1984), p. 109
35 Millis (1956), p. 67. 6,744 troops was equivalent to 87 troops on active duty per 100,000 residents,
significantly higher than the average peacetime size of the army over during the nineteenth century (64 troops
per 100,000 residents). However, this was significantly less than the 10,000 troops (130 troops per 100,000
residents) Jefferson had asked for in 1808. During the war of 1812, the number of personnel on active duty
grew as large as 38,186 in 1814 (466 troops per 100,000 residents). [U.S. Census Bureau (1975), p. 1140-1143
and U.S. Census Bureau (2002), p. A-1]