"Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the militia shall consist
of every able-bodied male citizen of the respective States, Territories, and the District of Columbia, and every able-bodied male of foreign birth who has declared his intention to become a citizen, who is more than eighteen and less than forty-five years of age, and shall be divided into two classes-the organized militia, to be known as the National National Guard of the State, Territory, or District of Columbia or by such other designations as may be given them by the laws of the respective States or Territories, and the remainder to be known as the Reserve Militia."

The Virginia Code defines the militia even more broadly:

"The militia of the Commonwealth of Virginia shall consist of all able-bodied citizens of this Commonwealth and all other able-bodied persons resident in this Commonwealth who have declared their intention to become citizens of the United States, who are at least sixteen years of age and, except as hereinafter provided, not more than fifty-five years of age. The militia shall be divided into four classes, the National Guard, which includes the Army National Guard and the Air National Guard, the Virginia State Defense Force, the naval militia, and the unorganized militia."





[Post edited by Joey Wahoo at 06/14/2017 7:23PM]