Introduction Amphibious operations refer to military operations which are carried out by naval and air forces on board a ship or a craft on a hostile beach. Such operations involve well coordinated approaches among the forces that are trained to carry out an action of a common objective. Amphibious operations are complex and calls for thorough training, flexibility and organization to minimize the risks that come with it. It has been in use since the 16 th Century and still continues up to date. The modern amphibious operations present themselves in form of commando insertions done by zodiacs, patrol boats and mini-submersibles. A beachhead is also another modern military move witnessed to be founded on amphibious principles and tactics. There are basically four types of amphibious operations; raids, assaults, demonstrations and withdrawals (Green, p.7). This paper will look at amphibious operations in its historical aspect and analyze how the lessons learnt from the concept have been used in the modern USMC and amphibious operations. Amphibious Operations Amphibious operations are carried out with a primary focus of achieving the following; impeach combat operations further, divert the enemy’s attention to create a loophole in their defense, win over rule over a given area from the enemy and finally to use the land as a base for the naval and air force. Since the concept puts the forces in high risk, there are laid down procedure, sequence and plans; though the steps sometimes overlap, what matters is that they are carried out fast and to the latter. The whole idea is to get the enemy flat footed by surprising them by a swift attack and capitalizing on their weakness. A well planned and executed amphibious operation has its success pegged on the mobility and flexibility of the forces. And if the attacking forces succeed in making the enemies’ forces make a costly and wasteful move, the battle will definitely fall to the attackers’ advantage (Green, pp.8-9). Historical Context Amphibious operations dates back to the 16 th Century where it was one of the most favored military move, though quiet complex. This section gives a highlight of some of the amphibious operations that have taken place in the past centuries, their successes as well as their drivers and forces behind them. These historical wars were more massive than the small time commando operations that are witnessed currently. The Battle of Guadalcanal This battle took place on the Guadalcanal Island. It was driven by Allied forces headed by Americans with the main intention of taking over Tulagi and Florida from the Japanese forces. The Japanese hit back using their naval forces but to no avail; they finally dropped their efforts and fled Guadalcanal. During the war, the Allied forces went down on offensive operation strategy while the Japanese who were humiliated embarked on defensive initiative (Clemens, pp.22-25). The Battle of Saipan It was fought in 1944 during the Second World War. The dominant significant amphibious move was the Normandy landing. And just as the Guadalcanal battle, this war was carried by the Allied forces commandeered by Lieutenant Gen. Holland Smith against the IJA (Imperial Japanese Army) under Lieutenant Gen. Yoshitsugu Saito. It involved a total of 15 battleships and 11 cruisers from the Allied forces. The surprise attacks by the U.S forc