The Soldier's Creed is a standard by which all
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
personnel are expected to live. All U.S. Army enlisted personnel are taught the Soldier's Creed during basic training, and recite the creed in public ceremonies at the conclusion of training. Both the Soldier's Creed and the
Noncommissioned Officer's Creed
The U.S. Army Creed of the Noncommissioned Officer, otherwise known as the Noncommissioned Officer's Creed, and commonly shortened to the NCO creed, is a tool used in the United States Army to educate and remind enlisted leaders of their responsib ...
are required knowledge at enlisted promotion boards to compete for the rank of
sergeant
Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...
and above, as well as 'Soldier of the Month' boards. It is also common practice to recite the Soldier's Creed at the graduation ceremony from
Army ROTC. Unlike the
U.S. Uniformed Services Oath of Office or the
Oath of Enlistment
The oath of enlistment is a military oath made by members of the United States armed forces who are not commissioned officers.
Description
Upon enlisting in the United States Armed Forces, each person enlisting in an armed force (whether a so ...
, the Soldier's Creed is not a legally-binding oath and can be affirmed by both commissioned officers and enlisted soldiers.
History
The current version of the Soldier's Creed is a product of the 'Warrior Ethos' program authorized by the then
Army Chief of Staff Eric K. Shinseki
Eric Ken Shinseki (; born November 28, 1942) is a retired United States Army General (United States), general who served as the seventh United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs (2009–2014). His final United States Army post was as the 34th C ...
in May 2003. It was written by members of Task Force Soldier's Warrior Ethos Team, and was first approved in its current format by the next Army Chief of Staff
Peter Schoomaker
Peter Jan Schoomaker (born February 12, 1946) is a retired four-star general of the United States Army who served as the 35th Chief of Staff of the United States Army from August 1, 2003 to April 10, 2007. Schoomaker's appointment as Chief of S ...
on 13 November 2003. The introduction of the Soldier's Creed kicked off a campaign known as 'Task Force Soldier'. This is a leadership commitment to soldiers ensuring they are prepared for combat and embody the Warrior Ethos contained in the Soldier's Creed.
SMDC – CSM Homepage
It seems to have been discussed in Congress in a 'Hearing on Army Issues' held by Senator John W. Warner on or about 19 November 2003. It was first published in the magazine ''Infantry'' on 22 December 2003.
Soldiers stand at attention when formally reciting the Soldier's Creed as part of an official ceremony.
Current version
U.S. Army Warrior Ethos
The U.S. Army Warrior Ethos has been incorporated into the Soldier's Creed and is italicized in the text above (as is quite common in any print version supplied by the U.S. Army itself).
Pre-2003 version
See also
*Airman's Creed
The Airman's Creed is a creed for members of the U.S. Air Force. It was introduced in 2007 by General T. Michael Moseley, Chief of Staff of the U.S. Air Force. In a letter introducing the creed, Moseley wrote that one of his "top priorities" was ...
( U.S. Air Force)
* Code of the U.S. Fighting Force
The Code of the U.S. Fighting Force is a code of conduct that is an ethics guide and a United States Department of Defense directive consisting of six articles to members of the United States Armed Forces, addressing how they should act in combat ...
*Creed of the United States Coast Guardsman
The Creed of the United States Coast Guardsman was written in 1938 by Vice Admiral Harry G. Hamlet, who served as Commandant of the Coast Guard from 1932 to 1936.U.S. Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, multi ...
)
* Infantryman's Creed (U.S. Army, Infantry Branch)
*Noncommissioned officer's creed
The U.S. Army Creed of the Noncommissioned Officer, otherwise known as the Noncommissioned Officer's Creed, and commonly shortened to the NCO creed, is a tool used in the United States Army to educate and remind enlisted leaders of their responsib ...
( U.S. Army)
* Quartermaster Creed (U.S. Army, Quartermaster Corps
Following is a list of Quartermaster Corps, military units, active and defunct, with logistics duties:
* Egyptian Army Quartermaster Corps - see Structure of the Egyptian Army
* Hellenic Army Quartermaster Corps (''Σώμα Φροντιστών ...
)
*Ranger Creed
The Ranger Creed is the official creed of the United States Army Rangers. The Ranger Creed was written in 1974 by CSM Neal R. Gentry, the original command sergeant major of the reactivated 1st Ranger Battalion. It was initiated by the Battalion C ...
(U.S. Army, Rangers
A Ranger is typically someone in a military/paramilitary or law enforcement role specializing in patrolling a given territory, called “ranging”. The term most often refers to:
* Park ranger or forest ranger, a person charged with protecting and ...
)
* Rifleman's Creed (U.S. Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through comb ...
)
* Sailor's Creed ( U.S. Navy)
References
External links
New values cards, Warrior Ethos ‘dogtags’ available to Army units
Web Version of U.S. Army FM 3-21.75 The Warrior Ethos and Soldier Combat SkillsArmy slide show on the Warrior Ethos
{{US military navbox
United States Army traditions
Warrior code
2003 works
Works originally published in American magazines