COVER: LAVs of the 2d Marine Division 

move past burning oil wells in Kuwait. 
The 2d Marine Division

and Its Regiments

by

Danny J. Crawford, Robert V. Aquilina

Ann A. Ferrante, Lena M. Kaljot, and Shelia P. Gramblin

Reference Section, Historical Branch

HISTORY AND MUSEUMS DIVISION

HEADQUARTERS, U.S . MARINE CORPS

WASHINGTON, D.C.

2001
PCN 190 00319 300

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U .S . Government Printing Offic e

Internet : bookstore .gpo .gov Phone : (202) 512-1800 Fax: (202) 512-225 0

Mail : Stop SSOP. Washington, DC 20402-000 1

ISBN 0-16-050817-7
Table of Contents

2d Marine Division 1

2d Marine Division Commanding Generals 1 0

2d Marine Division lineage 1 2

2d Marine Division Honors 1 4

The 2d Marine Division Patch 1 5

The 2d Marines 1 6

Commanding Officers, 2d Marines 2 4

2d Marines Lineage 2 7

2d Marines Honors 2 9

The 6th Marines 3 0

Commanding Officers, 6th Marines 3 8

6th Marines Lineage 4 1

6th Marines Honors 4 4

The 8th Marines 4 5

Commanding Officers, 8th Marines 5 4

8th Marines Lineage 5 6

8th Marines Honors 5 9

The 10th Marines 60

Commanding Officers, 10th Marines 68

10th Marines Lineage 7 0

10th Marines Honors 7 3

iii
The 2d Marine Division

The 2d Marine Division is the direct descendant

of the 2d Marine Brigade, which was activated o n

1 July 1936 at San Diego, California. Within a year

of its activation, the brigade was called upon to

reinforce the 4th Marines in China, when unstable

conditions threatened American lives and property

in Shanghai's International Settlement . Arriving in

Shanghai on 19 September 1937, the brigade occupied defensive positions within the American sec -

tor of the international zone . When the immediate

threat to American lives had passed, the brigade,

less the 4th Marines, was withdrawn and redeployed to California during February-April 1938.

As the prospect of war increased during 1940,

the Marine Corps expanded . An immediate reflection of this increase in strength was the creation o f

division-sized organizations. Accordingly, the 2d

Marine Division was officially activated 1 February

1941 at Camp Elliott near San Diego, California ,

dropping its earlier designation as the 2d Marin e

Brigade . Major General Clayton B. Vogel became

the first commanding general of the division . By

2d Division Marinesprepare to advance toward the front lines in trucks capturedfrom Japanese forces

in the midst of the intense fighting on Guadalcanal in December 1942.

Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A5140 0

1
late spring of 1941, the division consisted of thre e

infantry regiments, the 2d, 6th, and 8th Marines; an

artillery regiment, the 10th Marines; service, medical, and engineer battalions; and transport, service ,

tank, signal, chemical, and antiaircraft machine gu n

companies.

Each of the three infantry regiments in the new

division brought a wealth of Marine Corps combat

tradition. The 2d Marines had landed at Veracruz ,

Mexico, in 1914, and at Haiti in 1915 . The 6th

Marines had fought in France during World War I,

and had seen action in the Dominican Republi c

and Cuba in 1924. The 8th Marines had manned

the Texas border during 1917-1918, and had fought

in Haiti during the early 1920s.

As the threat of war intensified, the 6th Marines ;

the 2d Battalion, 10th Marines; and reinforcing

tank, medical, service, and engineering units

formed the 1st Provisional Marine Brigade . They

sailed for Iceland during May and June 1941 to

counter the threat of an anticipated German invasion. The 2d Engineer Battalion was similarly

detached and sent to Hawaii in the fall of 1941 ,

where it helped to defend Pearl Harbor during the

Japanese attack of 7 December.

Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A6205 4

LtGen Alexander A. Vandegrift, right, commanding general of all Southwest Pacific Marine

forces, confers with MajGen Julian C. Smith, the

commanding general of the 2d Marine Division ,

near Wellington, New Zealand, September 1943.

Marines assault a bombproofshelter just off the beach at'1arawa on 20 November 1943 .

Department of Defense Photo (USMC)A6393 0

2
Immediately after the outbreak of war, the 2d

Marine Division, in conjunction with U .S . Army

units, was assigned the mission of defending the

California coast against possible Japanese invasion .

Similarly, the 8th Marines, reinforced by other units

from the division, was designated part of a new 2 d

Marine Brigade, which sailed from San Diego on 6

January 1942 to assume the defense of American

Samoa . After the immediate danger of invasion had

passed, the division was relieved of its defensive

duties, and began the task of reforming into a n

amphibious assault organization . The 9th Marine s

became part of the division for a few months. On

1 April 1942, the 6th Marines, back from Iceland ,

rejoined the division .

By late summer of 1942, the 2d Marine Divisio n

was ready to participate in the first United States

ground offensive of World War II—the Guadalcana l

campaign . In early August 1942 the 2d Marines,

along with supporting elements and 1st Marine

Division units, landed on Tulagi, Gavutu, and

Florida Islands, distinguishing themselves in bitter

fighting during the opening days of the Guadalcanal operation. The 8th Marines arrived o n

Guadalcanal early in November 1942, and the 6t h

Marines in January 1943. Now fighting for the first

time as a full division, the 2d Marine Division, in

conjunction with Army units, succeeded in driving

the Japanese back to the westernmost part of th e

island. Combat operations on Guadalcanal included tank-infantry attacks and point-blank artiller y

fire, along with grenade and small arms assaults.

Organized enemy resistance collapsed early in

February 1943 . By the end of that month, all unit s

of the 2d Marine Division (with the exception o f

the 3d Battalion, 18th Marines, and the Seabee bat -

talion of the engineer regiment) embarked fo r

New Zealand, to begin eight months of rehabilitation and retraining.

The 2d Marine Division, commanded by Major

A 2d Marine Division patrol, using a demolition charge, flushes out a stubborn Japanese soldier during the rugged fighting on Saipan on 24June 1944.

Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A8328 2

3
Marines from the 2d Division wade ashore on Tinian in late July 1944 .

General Julian C. Smith, opened the drive through

the Central Pacific with an assault on Betio Islan d

at Tarawa Atoll in the Gilbert Islands, in the early

morning hours of 20 November 1943 . The ensuing

76 hours at Tarawa saw some of the fiercest fighting in Marine Corps history. Withering defensive

fire from Japanese machine guns and mortars

inflicted heavy Marine casualties during the landing, making it difficult to secure a toehold . On

D+1, the Marines began to move inland . Despite

intense resistance, Betio was secured by 2 3

November. Five days later the entire atoll was in

friendly hands. The battle for Tarawa was the first

real Navy and Marine Corps test of amphibiou s

assault doctrine and techniques, which would b e

refined during subsequent operations in th e

Pacific. At Tarawa, the 2d Marine Division suffere d

more than 3,000 casualties. In December 1943, the

last elements of the division sailed from Tarawa to

rejoin the parent unit now located on the island o f

Hawaii.

On Hawaii, the 2d Marine Division began intensive training to prepare for its next operation. By

early May 1944, the division learned that its next

mission, in conjunction with the 4th Marine

Division and the U.S . Army's 27th Infantry Division, would be the assault and seizure of Saipa n

and Tinian in the Mariana Islands. The capture of

the Marianas was central to allied strategy in th e

Central Pacific campaign . The islands would pro -

vide air and sea bases to bring the war directly t o

Japan.

On 15 June 1944, assault waves of the 6th and

8th Marines landed on the southwestern beache s

of Saipan, against moderate resistance . Japanese

mortar fire began to build up, however, as the

defenders reacted to the initial landings. The

Marines pushed steadily forward against stiffening

resistance . The remaining elements of the 2d an d

4th Marine Divisions were landed on the following

day. Later, the Marines would encounter a system

of well-defended caves and a last-ditch Japanes e

counterattack, but after three weeks of fighting,

the island was declared secure on 9 July 1944 . The

seizure of Saipan led to construction of the first

base in the Pacific for B-29 bombing missions

against the Japanese home islands.

On 24 July 1944, elements of the 2d Marine

Division conducted a successful offshore feint nea r

Tinian Town, while units of the 4th Marine Divisio n

4
landed on the northwest beaches ofTinian . The 2d

Marine Division landed on the following day an d

joined forces with the 4th Marine Division to eliminate Japanese resistance from the southern end o f

the island. After elements of the 2d Marine

Division successfully repulsed Japanese banza i

attacks on 1 August, organized resistance on the

island ceased. The 2d Marine Division units

returned to Saipan to resume mopping-up operations. On 27 March 1945, the division left Saipan

to take part in the battle for the Ryukyus.

The landings on Okinawa began on 1 April

1945 . The 2d Marine Division was employed as a

floating reserve that made feints along the south -

ern approaches to Okinawa. The unopposed main

landings were made by Marines and units of the

U.S. Tenth Army on the north-central beaches. The

2d Marine Division remained at sea until 11 April ,

when it returned to Saipan after sending Seabees

and amphibian trucks ashore .

In mid-May, during the course of the Ryukyu s

campaign, the 2d Marine Division had to furnis h

units to seize two small islands, Iheya and Aguni,

located near Okinawa. A task force composed of

the 8th Marines; the 2d Battalion, 10th Marines ; and

other supporting units, made an unopposed landing on lheya on 3 June. The island was secured th e

following day. Aguni was taken on 9 June, again

without opposition . The same task force was redeployed several days later to Okinawa . It was place d

under the operational control of the 1st Marin e

Division for the final drive of the Ryukyus campaign. After completing mop-up operations o n

Okinawa, all 2d Marine Division units were redeployed to Saipan by mid July 1945 .

The end of hostilities in September 1945 did no t

signal the end of the 2d Marine Division's role in

the Pacific . From September 1945 until June 1946,

the division took part in the occupation of Japan ,

primarily on the island of Kyushu . In July 1946, th e

division finally relocated to Camp Lejeune, Nort h

Carolina. At greatly reduced strength, it settled int o

a peacetime routine .

During the first few postwar years, the division

conducted training exercises and maneuvers in the

Atlantic and on the East Coast of the United States.

2d Division Marines on a street in Nagasaki on 23 September 1945 during the occupation ofJapan.

Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A13977 4

5
Department of Defense Photo (USMC)A17500

A 2d Marine Division machine gun crew is positioned on a rooftop in the dock area of Beirut,

Lebanon, on 23 July 1958, alert for any contingency that might arise.

In February 1948, the 8th Marines, then at one-bat -

talion strength, sailed for the Mediterranean i n

response to developing crises in Greece an d

Turkey. This marked the beginning of a series o f

forward afloat deployments with the Sixth Flee t

that continues to this day. Throughout this period ,

the 2d Marine Division has provided landing teams

and Marine air-ground task forces for service in the

Caribbean as well .

The 2d Marine Division's role as a force-in-readi -

ness was tested by the outbreak of war in Korea, in

June 1950. Many of the division's personnel were

integrated into units of the understrength 1st

Marine Division through redesignations and unit

transfers to the West Coast, but the 2d Marin e

Division itself was also brought up quickly to

wartime strength. After an intensive training program, it was pronounced ready for any assignment ,

but did not deploy to Korea .

The division's combat readiness would next be

tested during the summer of 1958 . On 14 July,

three reinforced battalions from the 2d Marine Division, which were then afloat in the Mediterranea n

with the Sixth Fleet, were ordered into Lebanon .

Units of the division were ashore on the beaches o f

Lebanon within hours of the decision to land, an d

were joined several days later by air-transporte d

elements of the 2d Battalion, 8th Marines, from

Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. Remaining in

Lebanon until October, the Marines in and around

Beirut helped to maintain political stability, to preserve law and order, and to protect American live s

and property. In all, more than 6,000 Marines were

committed to the 1958 Lebanon operation, in conjunction with U.S. Army units.

The division's ability to respond decisively in a n

emergency situation was tested again barely fou r

years later. The Cuban missile crisis of Octobe r

6
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A19478

Marines of the 2d Division storm ashore in combat gear on Onslow Beach at Camp Lejeune, North

Carolina, in an amphibious landing exercise during February 1964.

1962 brought the deployment of most of the 2 d

Marine Division to Guantanamo Bay and the

waters off Cuba . Remaining in the Caribbean unti l

early December, the division had once agai n

demonstrated its ability to respond to short-notic e

embarkation orders with speed and efficiency .

The chaotic conditions created by a Communist-inspired coup in the Dominican Republi c

during April 1965 led to American intervention.

Marines went ashore and entered the capital city

of Santo Domingo to protect the lives of American

citizens, and to assist in the evacuation of refugees.

Units of the division—in all, four reinforced battalions—helped more than 1,300 evacuees durin g

the six-week mission in the Dominican Republic .

During the 1970s, the 2d Marine Division conducted comprehensive training programs t o

increase combat efficiency and to maintain th e

capability of responding rapidly to emergencies.

Amphibious exercises, many involving North

Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) allies, were

held routinely throughout the Caribbean, th e

Atlantic, and the Mediterranean. The division's

units received rigorous combined arms training

under live fire conditions at the Marine Air-Ground

Combat Center at Twentynine Palms, California ;

cold weather and mountain warfare training in the

Sierra Nevadas; and jungle warfare training in

Panama, among other opportunities.

The 2d Marine Division's ability to meet the fast

breaking challenges of an uncertain world has continued to be tested through an unending series of

alerts, evacuations, and other non-routine deployments. From the summer of 1982, through earl y

1984, division units served on a rotating basis a s

peacekeeping forces in Lebanon, accepting th e

hazards inherent in such a mission with courag e

and professionalism . In October 1983, as well, the

division provided the ground combat element fo r

the Marine landing force that took part in a deftly -

executed, short-notice intervention in Grenada.

Throughout the remainder of the decade, the

7
Department of Defense Photo (USN) DN-ST-84-0 t 282

Men of the 2d Marine Division arrive at vacated

buildings of the Lebanese Scientific University in

February 1983 to take up watch positions in th e

northern portion of the 22d Marine Amphibiou s

Unit's perimeter around Beirut International

Airport.

division and its regiments conducted numerou s

training operations to maintain a high level of preparedness. From December 1989 to January 1990 ,

elements of the division participated in Operation

Just Cause, a joint operation with the U .S . Army,

Navy, and Air Force which helped to restore orde r

and democracy in the Central American nation of

Panama .

The 2 August 1990 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait

threatened the stability of the entire Persian Gulf

region. President George H. Bush ordered the

deployment of U.S . Armed Forces to the region, to

prevent a possible Iraqi invasion of neighboring

Saudi Arabia . As the 2d Marine Division prepare d

to deploy to the Persian Gulf, the Secretary o f

Defense authorized the Marine Corps to call up

15,000 reservists. Increments of mobilized Re -

serve units soon began to arrive at Camp Lejeune

for processing and integration into the active

forces. On 18 November, the 2d Marine Division

received the expected orders to deploy to the

Kuwait theater of operations.

After an elaborate 10 December review at Cam p

Lejeune, the main body of the division began its

movement to Saudi Arabia . The 2d Marine Divisio n

formally established its presence in Saudi Arabia on

14 December 1990, with the arrival of it s

Commanding General, Major General William M .

Keys. Over the next several weeks, units continued

to arrive and join the division . The division's main

command post arrived in the vicinity of Al Kibri t

on 14 January, with other elements arriving as late

as the 24th.

The division began immediate training and

preparation for mechanized operations and th e

breaching of Iraqi minefields. On 10 January 1991. ,

the U.S. Army's 1st Brigade, 2d Armored Division

(the "Tiger Brigade"), reported to operational control of the 2d Marine Division, and would prove t o

be of great benefit during the ensuing campaign .

With the arrival of this important brigade, the division's assembly in theater was complete.

By the end of January, the division had begun

planning for movement to final assembly areas

and, on 27 January, conducted its first offensive

operation with an artillery raid against Iraqi positions. By 19 February the division had complete d

its move to Al Khanjar in preparation for the majo r

allied coalition assault into Kuwait and Iraq. At HHour on 24 February, division engineers blew lanes

across enemy minefields, which cleared the six

lanes necessary for the passage of 2d Marin e

Division units. After breaking through the obstacles, the division fanned out towards Al Jabe r

Airfield. Enemy opposition was initially light, consisting mostly of intermittent shelling. On 25 and

26 February, Iraqi armored counterattacks hit th e

right flank of the division, and were defeated wit h

heavy enemy losses.

Through the execution of rapid maneuver an d

the skillful application of firepower, Iraqi force s

were soon overwhelmed. By outflanking the

enemy and destroying their heavy equipment with

air and artillery fire, the division gave the Iraqis the

choice of surrendering or dying where they stood .

In the thousands, they chose the former. By 27

February, the division had consolidated its positions outside of Al Jahrah and Al Kuwait, and

cleared the last pockets of Iraqi resistance. On 28

February, a ceasefire was ordered .

During the 100 hours of combat in which the

2d Marine Division was engaged, it amassed a n

impressive amount of enemy equipment an d

troops: more than 13,000 prisoners taken and 53 3

tanks, 127 artillery pieces, 291 armored personnel

8
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) DM-SC-92-0121 1

An infantryman of the 2d Marine Division mans a fighting hole as part of a drill at the division combat operations center in Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Storm.

carriers, and 45 pieces of antiaircraft artillery

either destroyed or captured. It was truly an

impressive achievement . Elements of the division

remained in Southwest Asia to participate in

Operation Provide Comfort, which provided disaster relief and established security zones for

Kurdish refugees in Iraq. The bulk of the division

began its redeployment from the Gulf in April ,

receiving a well-deserved welcome home at Camp

Lejeune.

During the immediate post-Desert Storm years ,

and throughout the remainder of the decade, elements of the 2d Marine Division participated i n

military operations and humanitarian missions in

areas as diverse as Liberia (Operation Sharp Edge),

Haiti (Operation Support Democracy), Somalia

(Operation Restore Hope), and Cuba (Operation

Sea Signal) in support of American interests a t

home and abroad. These operations provide d

humanitarian support, non-combatant evacuations ,

and in the instance of Haiti, helped to restore

democracy and rebuild the nation . Closer to home ;

elements of the division participated during 1993 -

94 in Operations Able Manner and Able Vigil, whic h

supported the interdiction of Haitian and Cuba n

migrants in the Florida Straits.

The 2d Marine Division has also supported continuedAmerican foreign policy interests in Europe .

During the last years of the decade, elements of th e

division participated in support of NATO operations in Bosnia, and later Albania and Kosovo, a s

ethnic strife in the former Yugoslavia threatened

the stability of Eastern Europe .

A mechanized patrol of Battalion Landing Team

3/8 halts to interact with children in Gnjilane,

Kosovo, in July 1999.

Photo courtesy of Maj Nathan S . Lowrey, USMCR

9
2d Marine Division

Commanding Generals

MajGen Clayton B. Vogel 1 February 1941 - 7 December 194 1

MajGen Charles E. B . Price 8 December 1941 - 23 March 1942

BGen Joseph C. Fegan 24 March 1942 - 31 March 194 2

MajGen John Marston 1 April 1942 - 30 April 194 3

MajGen Julian C . Smith 1 May 1943 - 10 April 194 4

MajGen Thomas E.Watson 11 April 1944 - 22 June 1945

MajGen Leroy P. Hunt 23 June 1945 - 9 July 194 6

Col Gregon A. Williams 10 July 1946 - 20 July 194 6

MajGen Thomas E.Watson 21 July 1946 - 31 January 194 8

MajGen Franklin A. Hart 1 February 1948 - 30 June 195 0

MajGen Ray A. Robinson 1 July 1950 - 6 December 195 1

MajGen Edwin A. Pollock 7 December 1951 - 2 September 1952

MajGen Randolph McC . Pate 3 September 1952 - 29 May 195 3

BGen Robert E. Hogaboom 30 May 1953 - 23 June 195 3

MajGen George F. Good, Jr 24 June 1953 - 1 July 195 4

MajGen Lewis B. Puller 2 July 1954 - 7 February 195 5

MajGen Edward W. Snedeker 8 February 1955 - 1 July 195 5

MajGen Reginald H. Ridgeley,Jr 2 July 1955 - 2 June 195 7

MajGen Joseph C. Burger 3 June 1957 - 24 October 195 9

BGen Odell M. Conley 25 October 1959 - 5 November 1959

MajGen James P. Berkeley 6 November 1959 - 3 November 196 1

MajGen Frederick L.Wieseman 4 November 1961 - 23 June 1963

BGen Rathvon McC.Tompkins 24 June 1963 - 26 September 1963

MajGen William J. Van Ryzin 27 September 1963 - 11 April 1965

MajGen Ormond R. Simpson 12 April 1965 - 21 November 1967

MajGen Edwin B. Wheeler 22 November 1967 - 18 May 196 9

MajGen Michael P. Ryan 1 9 May 1969 - 4 June 197 1

BGen Robert D. Bohn 5 June 1971 - 28 September 197 1

MajGen Fred E. Haynes, Jr 29 September 1971 - 9 January 197 3

BGen Arthur J. Poillon 10 January 1973 - 1 July 197 3

MajGen Samuel Jaskilka 2 July 1973 - 19 December 1973

BGen William H . Lanagan, Jr 20 December 1973 - 15 May 1974

MajGen William G. Joslyn 16 May 1974 - 30 June 1976

MajGen Kenneth McLennan 1 July 1976 - 17 May 1978

MajGen Edward J. Bronars 18 May 1978 - 27 June 1979

MajGen David M.Twomey 28 June 1979 - 4 June 1981

MajGen Alfred M. Gray, Jr 5 June 1981 - 28 August 198 4

MajGen Dennis J. Murphy 29 August 1984 - 29 October 198 7

MajGen Orlo K. Steele 30 October 1987 - 26 September 198 9

MajGen William M. Keys 27 September 1989 - 24 June 1991

10
MajGen Paul K.Van Riper 25 June 1991 - 3 April 199 3

MajGen Richard I. Neal 4 April 1993 - 28 July 1994

MajGen James L. Jones 29 July 1994 - 23 June 199 5

MajGen Lawrence H. Livingston 24 June 1995 - 24 July 1997

MajGen Emil R. Bedard 25July 1997 - 29 June 1999

MajGen Robert R. Blackman, Jr 30 June 1999 -

11
2d Marine Division

LINEAGE

1936-1940

ACTIVATED 1 JULY 1936 AT SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA,AS THE

2D MARINE BRIGADE, FLEET MARINE FORC E

DEPLOYED DURING AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 1937 TO SHANGHAI, CHINA

RELOCATED DURING FEBRUARY-APRIL 1938 TO SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNI A

1941 - 195 7

REDESIGNATED 1 FEBRUARY 1941 AS THE 2D MARINE DIVISION ,

FLEET MARINE FORCE

ELEMENTS DEPLOYED TO ICELAND,JULY 1941 -MARCH 194 2

DEPLOYED TO THE SOUTH PACIFIC DURING JANUARY 1942 - JANUARY 1943

PARTICIPATED IN THE FOLLOWING WORLD WAR II CAMPAIGN S

GUADALCANA L

SOUTHERN SOLOMONS

TARAWA

SAIPAN

TINIAN

OKINAWA

DEPLOYED DURING SEPTEMBER 1945 TO NAGASAKI, JAPAN

PARTICIPATED IN THE OCCUPATION OF JAPAN, SEPTEMBER 1945 - JUNE 194 6

RELOCATED DURING JUNE JULY 1946 TO CAMP LEJEUNE, NORTH CAROLINA

1958 - 1988

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN THE LANDINGS IN LEBANON,JULYNOVEMBER 195 8

PARTICIPATED IN THE CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS, OCTOBER-DECEMBER 1962

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN THE INTERVENTION IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, APRIL-JUNE 196 5

PARTICIPATED IN NUMEROUS TRAINING EXERCISES THROUGH THE 1970 5

12
ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED AS PART OF THE MULTINATIONAL PEACEKEEPING FORCE IN LEBANON ,

AUGUST 1982 - FEBRUARY 1984

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN THE LANDINGS ON GRENADA - CARRIACOU,

OCTOBER-NOVEMBER 1.983

1989 - 1999

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN OPERATION JUST CAUSE, PANAMA ,

DECEMBER 1989 - JANUARY 199 0

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN OPERATION SHARP EDGE, LIBERIA,

MAY 1990 - JANUARY 199 1

PARTICIPATED IN OPERATIONS DESERT SHIELD AND DESERT STORM ,

SOUTHWEST ASIA, DECEMBER 1990 -APRIL 199 1

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN OPERATION PROVIDE COMFORT, IRAQ,APRIL-JULY 199 1

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN OPERATIONS IN SOMALIA, DECEMBER 1992 - MARCH 199 4

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN OPERATIONS IN HAITI ,

OCTOBER 1993 - OCTOBER 1994

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN HAITIAN REFUGEE OPERATIONS, CUBA ,

NOVEMBER 1991 - DECEMBER 199 5

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN OPERATIONS ABLE MANNER AND ABLE VIGIL ,

FLORIDA STRAITS,JANAURY 1993 - OCTOBER 199 4

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN OPERATIONS IN BOSNLA,AUGUST 1994, JUNE 1995 - FEBRUARY 199 6

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN OPERATION ASSURED RESPONSE ,

LIBERIA,APRIL-AUGUST 1996

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED EN OPERATIONS [N KOSOVO ,

MARCH-JULY 199 9

13
2d Marine Division

HONORS

PRESIDENTIAL UNIT CITATION STREAME R

WORLD WAR II

TARAWA - 194 3

NAVY UNIT COMMENDATION STREAMER

SOUTHWEST ASIA

1990 - 199 1

MARINE CORPS EXPEDITIONARY STREAMER WITH ONE BRONZE STA R

CHINA SERVICE STREAME R

AMERICAN DEFENSE SERVICE STREAMER WITH ONE BRONZE STAR

EUROPEAN-AFRICAN-MIDDLE EASTERN CAMPAIGN STREAMER

ASIATIC-PACIFIC CAMPAIGN STREAMER WITH ONE SILVER AND TWO BRONZE STAR S

WORLD WAR II VICTORY STREAMER

NAVY OCCUPATION SERVICE STREAMER WITH "ASIA "AND "EUROPE "

NATIONAL DEFENSE SERVICE STREAMER WITH TWO BRONZE STAR S

ARMED FORCES EXPEDITIONARY STREAMER WITH THREE BRONZE STARS

SOUTHWEST ASIA SERVICE STREAMER WITH THREE BRONZE STARS

14
THE 2D MARINE DIVISION PATCH

THE 2D MARINE DIVISION SHOULDER PATCH WAS AUTHORIZED FOR WEAR BY UNITS WHICH SERVE D

WITH OR WERE ATTACHEDTOTHE DIVISION IN THE PACIFIC DURING WORLD WAR II . DESIGNED AN D

APPROVED IN LATE 1943,THE INSIGNIA IS IN THE OFFICIAL MARINE CORPS COLORS OF SCARLET AN D

GOLD. THE INSIGNIA DISPLAYS A SPEARHEAD-SHAPED SCARLET BACKGROUND WITH A HAND HOLD -

ING ALOFT A LIGHTED GOLD TORCH . A SCARLET NUMERAL "2" [S SUPERIMPOSED UPON THE TORCH ,

AND THE TORCH AND HAND IS ENCIRLED BY FIVE WHITE STARS IN THE ARRANGEMENT OF TH E

SOUTHERN CROSS CONSTELLATION, UNDER WHICH THE DIVISION'S FIRST WORLD WAR II COMBA T

TOOK PLACE-AT GUADALCANAL. THE WEARING OF UNIT SHOULDER PATCHES BY MARINES WAS DIS -

CONTINUED IN 1947.
The 2d Marines

The 2d Marines was orginally activated on 1 9

June 1913 as the 1st Advance Base Regiment a t

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, under the command o f

lieutenant Colonel Charles G. Long. The unit

became part of the Advance Base Brigade in Dec -

ember 1913 and was redesignated the 1st Regi -

ment,Advance Base Brigade, on 18 February 1914.

The regiment had participated in a number of

training maneuvers in Puerto Rico, Florida, and

Louisiana when political conditions began to deteriorate in Mexico . Marine Corps forces were ordered to land at Veracruz after President Woodrow

Marines at Veracruz, Mexico, 1914, are, from left. Capt Frederick .H. Delano, SgtMaj John H. Quick, LtCol

Wendell C'. Neville, Col John A. Lejeune, and Maj Smedley D. Butler. Col Neville and Maj Butler of the 2d

Marines were both awarded Medals of Honor for their distinguished conduct during the fighting a t

Veracruz.

Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A30217 7

16
Wilson received word that a German merchant

ship was going there with a cargo of arms . On 22

April 1914, the 1st Regiment landed at Veracru z

and joined other forces in clearing the city. Two of

the regiment's officers, Major Smedley D. Butler

and Lieutenant Colonel Wendell C. Neville, who

would later become 14th Commandant of the

Marine Corps, received Medals of Honor for distinguished conduct in the battle . The regiment

remained there as part of an occupation force for

the next seven months, but with the advent of a

new and stable government, left Veracruz on 23

November for Philadelphia .

On 3 December 1914, the Advance Base Brigade

was reorganized. The 1st Regiment, the fixed

defense regiment, was assigned a fire control uni t

and eight companies, which included four 5-inc h

gun companies, a searchlight company, a min e

company, an engineer company, and an antiaircraft

company. The increase of firepower inherent in

this reorganization strengthened the regiment's

capabilities for the further developments of the

Marine Advance Base Force .

By the summer of 1915, internal disorder an d

revolution in the Republic of Haiti had become

critical, jeopardizing American lives and property.

On 15 August, the 1st Regiment landed at Cap

Haitien, to begin a long period of occupation an d

"bush"warfare . The regiment carried out extensive

patrolling into the interior of the country, in searc h

of Caco bandits. Gunnery Sergeant Daniel J. Daly

received his second Medal of Honor for his outstanding contribution to the success of these operations. The Marines had many encounters with the

Haitian rebels. These included the attack and capture of Fort Riviere on 17 November 1915, wher e

Major Butler received his second Medal of Honor.

Marines assaulted the old French bastion, located

on the summit of Montagne Noir, and overwhelmed the enemy in the fort during a viciou s

hand-to-hand fray.

After the capture of Fort Riviere and other forts,

Haiti became relatively stable. Even as the regiment continued to garrison a number of Haitia n

towns, some of its rifle companies were sent to the

neighboring Dominican Republic . During the

early months of 1916, internal disorders there had

threatened American lives and property. After

order had been restored, the regiment was redesignated as the 2d Regiment, 1st Brigade, on 1 July

1916. Its primary activity then shifted to training

of the newly formed Haitian Constabulary, as wel l

as its own Marines.

With the decrease in bandit activity, the 2 d

Regiment spent the World War I years in routin e

barracks duty in the tropics. By March 1919, however, rebellions had erupted again in Haiti . The 2d

Regiment took to the field, as the native gendarmerie failed to contain the increasing disorder.

During May, the regiment mounted a concerted

drive to clear the country of bandits. Within a few

months, it had mopped up most rebel strongholds.

The next decade in Haiti was relatively peaceful. The 2d Regiment continued to perform dutie s

Instruction with compasses was part of many routine field training exercises conducted by the 63 d

Company, 2d Regiment, while stationed in Haiti during January 192 6

17
that included training and supervising the native

constabulary, patrolling and mapping, and quellin g

political disturbances. On 1 January 1933, as part

of a Marine Corps-wide redesignation of units, the

2d Regiment was redesignated as the 2d Marines

and assigned to the 1st Brigade . Slightly more than

a year later, the 1st Brigade left Haiti, and the 2 d

Marines was disestablished on 15 August 1934 .

The regiment was reactivated 1 February 1941 ,

at San Diego, California, as part of the 2d Marin e

Division. Under the command of Colonel John M .

Arthur, it deployed to Koro Island on 25 July 1942 ,

in time for the final rehearsal for the Guadalcanal

landing. Although its mission was one of divisio n

reserve, elements of the regiment landed on

Florida Island on 7 August 1942, prior to the mai n

assault on Guadalcanal, to support the Tulagi landing. Other elements landed on Gavutu and

Tanambogo, to reinforce units engaged in clearin g

operations. Two infantry battalions of the regimen t

landed on Tulagi on 9 August and secured the small

islands in the area .

On 29 October the 2d Marines moved to

Guadalcanal, to take part in the attack toward s

Kokumbona . Through 11 January 1943, the regiment occupied several defensive positions withi n

the Guadalcanal perimeter, reinforcing the fron t

lines where most needed . It launched a final threeday offensive drive to the west of Point Cniz on 12

January, before reassembling in a reserve area . On

31 January 1943, the regiment left Guadalcanal fo r

New Zealand, arriving in Wellington a few weeks

later. Here, for the next nine months, the 2d Marines would rest, train, and reorganize .

The regiment sailed on 28 October 1943, for

Efate, south of Espiritu Santo, for fmal rehearsals of

the landing at Tarawa . On 20 November, under the

command of Colonel David M. Shoup, the 2d

Marines assaulted Betio Island, the defensive bastion of the Japanese force on Tarawa Atoll. The

assault waves mounted in amphibian tractors

crossed the large coral reef which surrounded th e

island and moved steadily to shore . The 3d

Battalion of the 2d Marines was the first unit to

reach its assigned beach and gain a foothold . Liter

waves embarked in landing craft, had trouble cross2d Marines advancing on the city of Garapan during the assault on Saipan in June 1944 .

Department of Defense Photo (USMC) AHSO1 6

18
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A8767 5

Above, Col David M. Shoup at work on Tinia n

Island in July 1944. Col Shoup, commanding

officer of the 2d Marines during NovemberDecember 1943, was awarded a Medal of Honor

for his heroic actions during the assault and capture of Tarawa in November. Below, infantrymen

of the 2d Marines pause on a street in Nagasaki,

Japan, in September 1945.

ing the reef, and were forced to wade hundreds o f

yards to shore under intense fire . Despite heavy

losses, the landing force managed to secure Beti o

within three days. Colonel Shoup was awarded the

Medal of Honor.

On 24 November the 2d Marines left Tarawa for

Hawaii, where a new camp awaited it at Kamula .

Here at Camp Tarawa, the regiment began the task

of rehabilitation, reorganization, and intensive

training for battles still ahead . Six months later it

left Hawaii for the attack on Saipan. Now under

the command of Lieutenant Colonel Walter J.

Stuart, the 2d Marines were to feint a diversionary

landing on 15 June 1944 in the Tanapag area, the n

to operate in support of the main landing force .

Once ashore, the 2d Marines launched an attac k

toward Garapan on 17 June . A week later, advancing against stiff enemy opposition, the regimen t

reached the outskirts of Garapan. Here it remained,patrolling and consolidating its lines, while

other elements of the division moved into positio n

for a push northward. On 2 July the regiment

began its attack through Garapan, taking the town

within two days. From 6 to 11 July, the 2d Marines

continued to advance, finally helping to compress

the enemy into a small area on the northern tip o f

Department of Defense Photo (USMC)A13977 5

19
the island. Saipan was declared secure on 9 July,

but isolated pockets of resistance kept mop-u p

operations going until 23 July.

On the following day, the 2d Marines conducte d

another feint landing, this time off Tinian Town, in

support of landing forces to the north. A day later,

the regiment landed and advanced rapidly against

sporadic enemy resistance to help capture the

island. After Tinian was declared secured on 1

August, the regiment once again began the task of

mopping up.

After the Tinian operation, the 2d Marine s

returned to Saipan for rehabilitation and reorganization. The regiment remained there for the next

seven months, training under semi-battle conditions, as Japanese stragglers continued to emerg e

from the jungle long after the fighting was officially over.

The 2d Marines sailed for Okinawa on 25 Marc h

1945, under the command of Colonel Richard M .

Cutts, Jr. With other forces the regiment was agai n

executing a diversionary landing when a Japanes e

kamikaze smashed through one of the landin g

ships, killing and wounding a number of Marines.

After withdrawal of this diversionary force, the 2d

Marines returned to Saipan, once again for intensive training, in anticipation of landings on th e

Japanese home islands.

At the war's end the regiment landed at

Nagasaki, for occupation duty. After nine months,

the 2d Marines relocated to Camp Lejeune, North

Carolina, during June and July 1946 . By late 1946

the regiment had an advanced amphibious trainin g

program underway, but on 19 November 1947, the

2d Marines was reduced to battalion strength, with

the designation "2d Marines" kept intact . Upon the

request of the Navy for a battalion-sized unit to b e

deployed with the Sixth Fleet in the Mediterranea n

Sea, the 2d Marines embarked on 5 January 1948

for the island of Malta . As part of the first amphibious unit to reinforce the Sixth Fleet, the 2d Marine s

took part in landing exercises until relieved in

March. The regiment returned to Camp Lejeune ,

where it regained two-battalion strength on 1 7

October 1949.

During the 1950s, the regiment engaged in numerous training exercises in the Caribbean an d

Mediterranean. From 31 October to 3 Novembe r

1956, Battalion Landing Team 3/2 assisted in th e

evacuation of United States observers and othe r

Marines of the 81 mm Mortar Platoon, attached to the 2d Battalion, 2d Marines, man positions over -

looking the city of Beirut, Lebanon, in August 1958.

Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A17465

20
foreign nationals from Alexandria and the Gaza

Strip, as war threatened between Egypt and Israel.

In the summer of 1958, political tensions

increased in Lebanon. President Dwight D.

Eisenhower, complying with a request from the

Lebanese president, decided to intervene with military force . Battalion Landing Team 2/2 made the

initial landing in Lebanon on 15 July 1958 . When

tensions began to ease, the Marines withdrew o n

15 August. By 23 October, the unit had returned to

Camp Lejeune.

In October 1962, after President John F.

Kennedy's ultimatum that Soviet offensive missiles

be removed from Cuba, the 2d Battalion and othe r

elements of the 2d Marines embarked once again .

They sailed for the Caribbean as part of a large r

task force ordered to impose a naval quarantine

against arms shipments to Cuba . After the crisis

had subsided, the Marines returned to Camp

Lejeune in early December.

In late April 1965, internal problems in the Dominican Republic led to intervention by forces of th e

United States. As part of a joint task force, Battalion

Landing Team 1/2 sailed on 1 May and remained

offshore as a floating reserve for one month .

Through the 1970s and into the 1980s, the 2d

Marines continued to deploy units in a high state

of readiness for a wide variety of training exercise s

and contingency responses. With the advent of the

Corps' Unit Deployment Program in 1982, the regiment assumed a truly worldwide posture, periodically deploying battalions to the Pacific for the first

time since World War II.

During the 1980s, the 2d Marines took part in

many training exercises, which included participation in North Atlantic Treaty Organization exercises, in order to maintain the regiment's traditional high standards of operational readiness.

The Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in August 199 0

threatened the stability of the entire Persian Gulf

region, and President George H. Bush immediately

ordered American forces to the area in order t o

prevent a possible Iraqi Invasion of Saudi Arabia.

On 23 August, the 2d Battalion, 2d Marine's, was

assigned to the operational control of the 6th

Marines, and subsequently deployed with that regiment in late December to Saudi Arabia for participation in Operation Desert Shield .

The 2d Marine Division, meanwhile, assigne d

Regimental Landing Team 2 (RLT 2) to the operational control of the 4th Marine Expeditionary

Brigade (4th MEB). During mid-August, RLT 2 ,

consisting of the 1st and 3d Battalions, 2d Marines ,

along with supporting ground units and aviatio n

A simulated guerrilla village is searched as part of a training exercise held in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba,

by Marines of Company E, 2d Battalion, 2d Marines, on 12 August 1966

Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A452020

21
Department of Defense Photo (USN) DN-ST-92-0733 9

A convoy of cargo trucks of the 1st Battalion, 2d Marines, crosses the desert in Saudi Arabia durin g

Operation Desert Shield.

assets, deployed to the Persian Gulf as part of 4th

MEB for participation in Operation Desert Shield .

In late September, the two battalions participate d

in training and amphibious rehearsals for possible

employment as a landing force along the Kuwait i

coast. In early January 1991, elements of the 1st

Battalion, 2d Marines participated in the evacuation of American civilians and other foreign nationals during Operation Eastern Exit in Somalia . The

Battalion Landing Team then returned to th e

Persian Gulf region to continue planning for contingency operations.

On 24 February, RLT 2's ships sailed north into

the Persian Gulf to await tasking, prior to the

beginning of the ground portion of Operatio n

Desert Storm. Contingency planning and last

minute plans for an amphibious landing in Kuwai t

continued. With the announcement, however, of

the 28 February ceasefire, it was realized that the

call for an amphibious landing in Kuwait would

not occur. In mid-March, RLT 2 sailed for home,

and was briefed and congratulated by th e

Commanding General, 4th MEB, on its critical rol e

during Operation Desert Storm in deceiving Iraqi

forces as to a possible amphibious landing i n

Kuwait. The RLT's sister battalion, the 2d Battalion,

2d Marines, participated, however, in the groun d

assault portion of Operation Desert Storm.

By 23 February, the battalion had moved to its

final assembly area prior to the major Allie d

Coalition assault. On 24 February, the 2d Battalion ,

2d Marines, was among the units leading the 2d

Marine Division assault into Kuwait, by breachin g

the center sector of the Iraqi minefields and subsequent defensive lines. Throughout the three-day

attack, the battalion met and overcame every challenge and obstacle that was encountered . A 28

February ceasefire ended the fighting, with Iraqi

forces thoroughly defeated . In late March, the battalion moved back to Al Jubayl, Saudi Arabia, and

returned home to Camp Lejeune inApril to a warm

welcome .

22
Meanwhile, on 23 March, the USS Shreveport

(LPD-12), carrying RLT 2, transited the Suez Cana l

and entered the Mediterranean Sea, enroute t o

Rota, Spain. On 15 April, RLT 2 arrived at Morehea d

City, North Carolina, and was greeted by an enthusiastic and supportive crowd which lined the

docks to show its appreciation and to welcome the

Marines back home . On 6 May the RLT reverted to

the operational command of the 2d Marine

Division.

During the remainder of the decade, the 2d

Marines participated in operations in locales as

diverse as the Caribbean, Africa, and Europe.

Elements of the regiment deployed during the

1990s to Cuba, Haiti, Liberia, Somalia, Sierre Leone ,

Zaire, and Albania . The 2d Marines' versatility an d

rapid response capability in these operations,

which included disaster and humanitarian relief, Department of Defense Photo (USMC) M-0012-DSP-94-A00320

along with non-combatant emergency evacua- LCpl j T. Eimer of Company E, 2d Battalion, 2d

dons, and support for civil authority, demonstrated Marines, stands at his security post in Cap

the regiment's historic versatility and operational Haitien, Haiti, in support of Operation Uphold

readiness. Democracy in September 1994.

23
2d Marines

Commanding Officers

LtCol Charles G. Long 19 June 1913 - 5 May 1914

Col James E. Mahoney 6 May 1914 - 4 December 1914

LtCol Charles G. Long 5 December 1914 - 7 August 191 5

Col Theodore P Kane 8 August 1915 - 15 August 191 5

Col Eli K. Cole 16August 1915 - 8 May 191 6

LtCol Laurence H. Moses 9 May 1916 - 24 June 1916

Col Eli K. Cole 25 June 1916 - 30 November 191 6

LtCol Philip M. Bannon 1 December 1916 - 10 January 191 8

Maj Richard S . Hooker 11 January 1918 - 31 March 191 8

Maj John W. Wadleigh 1 April 1918 - 28 April 191 8

LtCol Richard S . Hooker 29 April 1918 - 14 November 191 8

LtCol Thomas H. Brown 15 November 1918 - 28 November 191 8

LtCol Richard S . Hooker 29 November 1918 - 9 December 191 8

Maj Henry S . Green 10 December 1918 - 17 January 191 9

LtCol Richard S . Hooker 1.8 January 1919 - 20 July 191 9

LtCol Thomas H. Brown 21 July 1919 - 10 September 191 9

Maj Charles A. Lutz 11 September 1919 - 2 October 1919

Col Randolph C. Berkeley 3 October 1919 - 20 October 192 1

Col George Van Orden 21 Ocobert 1921 - 8 April 1923

LtCol William H . Pritchett 9 April 1923 - 9 July 1923

Col William N. McKelvy 10 July 1923 - 10 November 1924

Maj Maurice E. Shearer 11 November 1924 - 9 January 192 5

Col William N. McKelvy 10 January 1925 - 10 June 192 5

Maj Maurice E. Shearer 11June 1925-30 June 1925

Col Harold C. Snyder 1 July 1925 - 8 April 1926

Col Macker Babb 9 April 1926 - 30 June 1927

Maj Archibald Young 1 July 1927 - 19 August 1927

Col Presley M. Rixey II 20 August 1927 - 21 May 192 9

Col Richard P. Williams 22 May 1929 - 30 May 1930

Col Edward B. Manwaring 31 May 1930 - 15 May 1.932

Col Henry G. Bartlett 16 May 1932 - 16 June 1932

Col James T. Buttrick 17 June 1932 - 27 December 193 3

Col Eli T. Fryer 28 December 1933 - 31 May 193 4

Maj Samuel P Budd 1 June 1934 - 15 August 193 4

Col Joseph C. Fegan 1 February 1941 - 24 October 194 1

LtCol Roy C. Swink 25 October 1941 - 20 November 194 1

Col John M.Arthur 21 November 1941 - 6 June 1943

Col William M. Marshall 7 June 1943 - 18 July 194 3

LtCol Arnold F. Johnston 19 July 1943 - 26 September 1943

Col William M. Marshall 27 September 1943 - 7 November 1943

24
Col David M. Shoup 8 November 1943 - 23 December 194 3

LtCol Lloyd Russell 24 December 1943 - 1 January 194 4

LtCol Walter J. Smart 2 January 1944 - 3 September 1944

Col Richard M . Cutts, Jr 4 September 1944 - 24 October 1945

LtCol Clarence J. O'Donnell 25 October 1945 - 17 April 194 6

LtCol Ronald B.Wilde 18 April 1946 - 1 August 194 6

Col Francis H. Brink 2 August 1946 - 6 April 194 8

LtCol Max C. Chapman 7 April 1948 - 30 April 194 8

LtCol Wilbur F. Meyerhoff 1 May 1948 - 18 May 1948

Col Randall M.Victory 19 May 1948 - 21 November 194 8

LtCol Harold Granger 22 November 1948 - 31 July 194 9

LtCol Jack W. Hawkins 1 August 1949 - 2 October 194 9

Col Randall M.Victory 3 October 1949 - 1 February 195 0

LtCol Gould P. Groves 2 February 1950 - 25 February 195 0

Col Reynolds H. Hayden 26 February 1950 - 28 April 195 0

LtCol Gould P. Groves 29 April 1950 - 10 August 195 0

LtCol Walter F. Layer 11 August 1950 - 5 September 195 0

Col Reynolds H. Hayden 6 September 1950 - 20 July 195 1

Col Bruno Hochmuth 21 July 1951 - 29 July 195 2

Col Robert F. Scott 30 July 1.952 - 16 August 195 3

LtCol William A. Stiles 17 August 1953 - 19 October 195 3

Col David W. Stonecliffe 20 October 1953 - 9 July 195 4

Col George W. Hayes 10 July 1954 - 24 August 195 5

Col William R. Collins 25 August 1955 - 5 July 1956

Col Robert E. Cushman, Jr 6 July 1956 - 19 February 195 7

Col Raymond L. Dean 20 February 1957 - 15 July 1957

LtCol Tillman N. Peters 16 July 1957 - 1 August 1957

Col John J. Gormley 2 August 1957 - 25 June 1958

Col Charles R. Baker 26 June 1958 - 1 December 1959

Col ErmaA.Wright 2 December 1959 - 12 June 1960

Col Charles W. Kelly, Jr 13 June 1960 - 16 June 196 1

Col Alfred L. Booth 17 June 1961 - 4 April 1962

Col Robert M. Richards 5 April 1962 - 2 July 1963

LtCol John B. Bristow 3 July 1963 - 31 July 196 3

Col James Taut 1 August 1963 - 1 August 1964

Col Paul M. Smith 2 August 1964 - 6 Februsry 196 5

Col Charles H. Brush, Jr 7 February 1965 - 7 June 1966

Col William R. Burgoyne, Jr 8 June 1966 - 31 August 1967

Col Leroy V. Corbett 1 September 1967 - 18 February 196 8

Col William E. Barber 19 February 1968 - 13 May 196 9

Col Lawrence J. Bradley 14 May 1969 - 28 May 1970

LtCol David M.Twomey 29 May 1970 - 2 March 1971

Col Charles D. Redman 3 March 1971 - 21 April 197 2

Col Alfred M . Gray, Jr 22 April 1972 - 27 December 1972

Col James W. Marsh 28 December 1972 - 18 December 1973

25
Col James K. Coody 19 December 1973 - 14 July 197 4

Col John E. Greenwood 15 July 1974 - 30 September 197 5

Col Harold L. Blanton, Jr 1 October 1975 - 23 June 197 7

Col Gerald H.Turley 24 June 1977 - 21 November 197 8

Col Pasquale L. Cacace 22 November 1978 - 29 May 198 0

Col John B. Donovan 30 May 1980 - 26 March 1981

Col Carl E. Mundy, Jr 27 March 1981 - 30 April 1982

Col Robert E Milligan 1 May 1982 - 13 May 1983

Col John A. Speicher 14 May 1983 - 31 May 1984

Col Harry W. Jenkins, Jr 1 June 1984 - 8 June 1986

Col Michael J. Bryon 9 June 1986 - 13 July 1988

Col John W. Ripley 14 July 1988 - 19 July 1990

Col Tom A. Hobbs 20 July 1990 - 12 June 1992

Col Richard F.. Vercauteren 13 June 1992 - 16 June 1993

Col Thomas S. Jones 17 June 1993 - 21 June 1995

LtCol Dennis W. Reilly 22 June 1995 - 10 August 1995

Col John F Sattler 11 August 1995 - 29 May 1997

Col Gordon C. Nash 30 May 1997 - 30 June 1998

Col Dirk R .Ahle 1 July 1998 - 21 June 200 0

Col Jerry L. Durrant 22 June 2000 -

26
2d Marines

LINEAGE

1913 - 1934

ACTIVATED 19 JUNE 1913 AT PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA,AS 1ST ADVANCE BASE REGIMEN T

REDESIGNATED 23 DECEMBER 1913 AS 1ST ADVANCE BASE REGIMENT,ADVANCE BASE BRIGAD E

REDESIGNATED 18 FEBRUARY 1914 AS 1ST REGIMENT,ADVANCE BASE BRIGAD E

PARTICIPATED IN THE LANDING AT VERACRUZ, MEXICO, APRIL-NOVEMBER 191 4

RELOCATED DURING AUGUST 1915 TO CAP HAITIEN, HAIT I

REDESIGNATED 1 JULY 1916AS 2D REGIMENT, 1ST BRIGAD E

REDESIGNATED 1 JANUARY 1933 AS 2D MARINES, 1ST BRIGAD E

DEACTIVATED 15 AUGUST 193 4

1941 - 1946

REACTIVATED 1 FEBRUARY 1941 AT SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, AS 2D MARINES ,

2D MARINE DIVISION

DEPLOYED DURING JULY 1942 TO KORO ISLAND

PARTICIPATED IN THE FOLLOWING WORLD WAR II CAMPAIGN S

GUADALCANAL

TARAWA

SAIPAN

TINIAN

OKINAWA

REDEPLOYED DURING SEPTEMBER 1945 TO NAGASAKI, JAPAN

PARTICIPATED IN THE OCCUPATION OF JAPAN, SEPTEMBER 1945 - JUNE 194 6

RELOCATED DURING JUNE JULY 1946 TO CAMP LEJEUNE, NORTH CAROLIN A

1947 - 1989

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN THE LANDINGS IN LEBANON, JULY-AUGUST 195 8

PARTICIPATED IN THE CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS, OCTOBER-DECEMBER 196 2

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN THE INTERVENTION IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, MAY 196 5

27
PARTICIPATED IN NUMEROUS TRAINING EXERCISES THROUGHOU T

THE 1970S AND 19805

1990 - 1999

PARTICIPATED IN OPERATIONS DESERT SHIELD AND DESERT STORM ,

SOUTHWEST ASIA, DECEMBER 1990 -APRIL 199 1

ELEMENT PARTICIPATED IN HAITIAN REFUGEE OPERATION, CUBA, MAY-JUNE 1992

ELEMENT PARTICIPATED IN OPERATIONS IN SOMALIA, MARCH-AUGUST 199 3

ELEMENT PARTICIPATED IN OPERATIONS PROVIDE PROMISE AND DENY FLIGHT, BOSNIA ,

AUGUST 1994

ELEMENT PARTICIPATED IN OPERATIONS SUPPORT DEMOCRACY AND UPHOLD DEMOCRACY, HAITI ,

AUGUST-OCTOBER 1994

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN OPERATION SEA SIGNAL, CUBA ,

SEPTEMBER-DECEMBER 1994 AND JULY-OCTOBER 1995

ELEMENT PARTICIPATED IN OPERATION ASSURED RESPONSE, LIBERIA ,

APRIL-JUNE 1996

28
2d Marines

HONORS

PRESIDENTIAL UNIT CITATION STREAMER WITH ONE BRONZE STAR

WORLD WAR II

GUADALCANAL - 1942

TARAWA - 194 3

NAVY UNIT COMMENDATION STREAMER

SOUTHWEST ASIA

1990 - 1991

MEXICAN SERVICE STREAMER

HAITIAN CAMPAIGN STREAMER WITH ONE BRONZE STA R

MARINE CORPS EXPEDITIONARY STREAMER WITH ONE BRONZE STA R

WORLD WAR I VICTORY STREAMER WITH "WEST INDIES"

AMERICAN DEFENSE SERVICE STREAME R

ASIATIC-PACIFIC CAMPAIGN STREAMER WITH ONE SILVER AND ONE BRONZE STA R

WORLD WAR II VICTORY STREAMER

NAVY OCCUPATION SERVICE STREAMER WITH "ASIA"AND "EUROPE "

NATIONAL DEFENSE SERVICE STREAMER WITH TWO BRONZE STAR S

ARMED FORCES EXPEDITIONARY STREAMER WITH TWO BRONZE STAR S

SOUTHWEST ASIA SERVICE STREAMER WITH TWO BRONZE STARS

29
The 6th Marines

The 6th Marines was organized on 11 July 191 7

at Quantico, Virginia, for combat service with th e

American Expeditionary Force in France . Commanded by ColonelAlbertus W. Catlin, the regiment

was composed of the following units: the 1st Battalion, consisting of the 74th, 75th, 76th, and 95t h

Companies; the 2d Battalion, consisting of th e

78th, 79th, 80th, and 96th Companies ; and the 3d

Battalion, consisting of the 82d, 83d, 84th, and 97t h

Companies. The regiment spent the summer o f

1917 in extensive training and maneuvers at

Quantico, conducting drills in trench and gas warfare, and the use of hand grenades, the bayonet, and

machine guns.

In less than eight months, the regiment wa s

fighting on the front lines in France . The 5th an d

A contingent of 6th Marines passes in review on 8 August 1919, as the 2d Division parades up 5th

Avenue from Washington Square, New York City.

National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-51945 8

30
6th Marines, along with the 6th Machine Gu n

Battalion, formed the 4th Marine Brigade commanded by Brigadier General Charles A. Doyen. As

part of the U.S. Army's 2d Infantry Division, the

4th Marine Brigade participated in some of the

heaviest fighting of World War I .

In a series of bitterly contested battles during 6 -

25 June 1918, the 6th Marines helped to sweep

German troops from Belleau Wood, receiving alon g

with the 5th Marines, special commendation fro m

the French Government. The Belleau Wood area

was renamed "Bois de la Brigade de Marine ."

Shortly after the engagement at Belleau Wood ,

the 6th Marines fought at Soissons, suffering heavy

casualties from German artillery and machine gu n

fire. By the end of July 1918, however, the German

line had been broken, bringing about the capture

of hundreds of guns and thousands of prisoners.

The 6th Marines then moved to a rest and training area, to prepare for the St. Mihiel offensive ,

which began on 12 November 1918 . In this operation the 2d Infantry Division was commanded b y

Marine Major General John A. Lejeune . The 6th

Marines again displayed tenacity and coolness

under fire, while driving back a determined enemy.

During October 1918, the 6th Marines participated in the Meuse-Argonne drive . In a series of

assaults and counterattacks, the regiment captured

the fortified hill of Blanc Mont and the heights of

St. Etienne, freeing the Allied approaches to th e

western Argonne . In the closing weeks of the war,

the 6th Marines also took part in the final phase of

the Meuse-Argonne drive, and on 10 Novembe r

1918, one day before the signing of the Armistice ,

succeeded in crossing the Meuse River. Two

Marines of the regiment received the Medal of

Honor: Corporal John H . Pruitt, 78th Company, and

Gunnery Sergeant Fred W. Stockham, 96th Company. At the conclusion of World War I the French

Government awarded three unit decorations,

including the coveted Croix de Guerre with Palm ,

to the 6th Marines.

After the Armistice, the regiment crossed th e

Rhine River to serve for a short while in occupie d

Germany. Redeploying in July 1919, it returned t o

Quantico, where it was disbanded on 13 August

1919.

Two years later, on 15 September 1921, the 6t h

Marines was reactivated at Quantico, for a varie d

history of service with the East Coast Expeditionary Force, overseas duty in China, and maneuvers

with the Fleet Marine Force—all interspersed wit h

periods of disbandment or inactivation .

Elements of the 6th Marines served briefly a t

Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and landed in the Dominican Republic during the 1920s to protec t

American interests. For the most part, however,

the regiment's postwar duties focused on trainin g

and maneuvers.

In May 1927, whenAmerican lives and property

in China were threatened, the 6th Marines

deployed quickly to Shanghai as part of the 3 d

Brigade, to help defend the city's Internationa l

Settlement. The regiment's next two years in China

consisted mainly of guard and patrol duty Early in

1929 the 6th Marines withdrew from the Far East ,

and returned to San Diego, California, where it disbanded on 31 March 1929.

Upon the establishment of the Fleet Marin e

Force, the 6th Marines was reactivated on 1

September 1934 at San Diego . The regiment took

part in Pacific maneuvers with the U .S . Fleet in the

spring of 1935, before returning to San Diego fo r

further training and exercises. During the summe r

of 1937, more trouble in China caused another

deployment in the Far East . The 6th Marines saile d

for Shanghai in September 1937, to augment

American forces already positioned in the International Settlement. The regiment returned to the

United States in April 1938 and assumed an inactive status.

In March 1940, the 6th Marines was reestablished at Marine Corps Base, San Diego . The regiment became the principal infantry unit of the 2 d

Marine Brigade, which on 1 February 1941, wa s

Two Marines stand guard at an observation post

of the 2d Battalion, 6th Marines, in Shanghai,

China, in 1937.

National Archives Photo WSMC) 127G-A52105 6

31
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A52421 3

A squad of infantrymen from the 6th Marines train in wind-swept, snow-covered fields in a period of

half-light during the Icelandic winter in 1941-1942.

redesignated the 2d Marine Division . During the

summer of 1941, the 6th Marines was temporaril y

detached from the division when it was incorporated, along with other Marine units, into the 1st

Provisional Marine Brigade . The regiment deployed to Iceland with the brigade, to preclude a

threatened German invasion . Upon its return from

Iceland in March 1942, the 6th Marines again wa s

stationed at San Diego, and reassigned to the 2 d

Marine Division.

On 19 October 1942, the 6th Marines bega n

deploying to New Zealand, enroute to rejoining

other 2d Marine Division units on Guadalcanal . By

mid January 1943, the regiment had assumed front -

line positions in the right half of the 2d Marine

Division's sector. The 6th Marines, along with Army

units, assaulted Japanese defenses in that area, an d

in the sectors east and south of Kokumbona.

Relieved of frontline duty on 30 January, the regiment continued to assist in mopping-up operations

on the island. In early February 1943, the 6t h

Marines and other units of the 2d Marine Division

left Guadalcanal for New Zealand to undergo reha -

bilitation and training in preparation for the

Gilbert Islands campaign .

At Tarawa Atoll, on 20 November 1943, the 6th

Marines was initially held in reserve . But the precarious position of the 2d Marine Division at th e

end of the first day's fighting soon required it s

reserve to be committed to the battle . The 1st

Battalion, 6th Marines, landed on Betio Island on 2 1

November 1943 . That afternoon, the 2d Battalion,

6th Marines, landed on Bairiki Island, east of Betio ,

and seized the island . The Japanese avenue of

retreat from Tarawa was now blocked, and th e

Marine seizure of Bairiki provided an excellent

location from which Marine artillery could support operations on Betio. By the following day

most of the regiment's men were heavily engaged

against strongly defended Japanese pillboxes an d

artillery on Betio. The island was declared secure

on 23 November, and all three battalions of the 6th

Marines spent the following days in cleaning ou t

the rest of the atoll. By 28 November, all of Tarawa

was in American hands. The 2d Marine Division

subsequently relocated to Hawaii during Decem32
Marines move out from the beachhead onto the

November 1943 .

ber 1943, to begin preparation for its next amphibious operation.

The 6th Marines played a paramount role in the

assault on the Marianas during the summer of

1944. The regiment landed on the southwest coast

of Saipan on 15 June 1944, with troops of the 2 d

and 4th Marine Divisions, and advanced inland

despite determined enemy resistance . The 6th

Marines fought off savage Japanese counterattacks

during the night of 16-17 June, and again on 26

June . After recapturing the town of Garapan, on 4

July, the 2d Marine Division briefly went into

reserve, but soon rejoined the steady, but slow,

advance against a system of well-defended caves.

Organized Japanese resistance on Saipan virtually

ceased on the island by 8 July. On that day the 2d

Marine Division replaced the Army's 27th Divisio n

in the front lines, and continued to mop up remaining groups of Japanese holdouts on the island .

The 2d and 4th Divisions landed on Tinian on 2 4

July 1944, and advanced rapidly inland. The 6th

Marines participated in the steady drive southwar d

on Tinian, which by 31 July had brought the regiment to a line of vertical cliffs, where Japanes e

resistance had stiffened . Fighting alongside the 8th

Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A6403 2

smoke-covered Japanese airstrip on Tarawa in

Marines, the 6th Marines repulsed several enemy

counterattacks. By 1 August, organized resistanc e

had ceased, although sporadic clashes continued

for another week. The 6th Marines returned to

BGen Merritt A. Edson, assistant division commander of the 2d Marine Division, confers with

Col James R Risely commanding officer of the

6th Marines, and LtCol Kenneth F. McLeod, executive officer of the 6th Marines, on Saipan during June 1944.

Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A8248 1

33
Deparment of Defense Photo (USMC) A15207 4

Supported by a medium tank, Marines advance on Tinian during late July 1944.

Saipan in mid-August, where it took part in mopping-up operations, which would include a majo r

drive in November.

The 2d Marine Division left Saipan for Okinaw a

in late March 1945 . On D-Day, 1 April, the 6th

Marines engaged in diversionary activities along

the southeast coast of the island . The 2d Marine

Division remained in floating reserve . The 130t h

Naval Construction Battalion and the 2 d

Amphibian Truck Company were put ashore on 1 1

April, and the remainder of the division returned t o

Saipan. Later, in June, the 8th Marines and reinforcing units went back to Okinawa and took par t

in the final days of fighting .

After the Japanese surrender, the 6th Marine s

accompanied the 2d Marine Division to Japan . The

regiment arrived at Nagasaki on 23 Septembe r

1945 for occupation duty. It left Japan during June

1946, but in lieu of rejoining the 2d Marine

Division units at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, i t

was relocated instead to Camp Pendleton,

California, where it was attached to the 3d Marine

Brigade on 11 September 1946 . Upon the deactivation of the 3d Marine Brigade the following year,

the 6th Marines was transferred to the 1st Marin e

Division.The regiment was deactivated on 1 October 1949 ; on 17 October, however, a new 6th Marines was activated as part of the 2d Marine

Division at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina .

The outbreak of the fighting in Korea in July

1950 created an immediate need to build up the

understrength 1st Marine Division . This brought

about further changes in the organizational structure of the 6th Marines. Organic units of the regiment were transferred to the 1st and 7th Marines,

1st Marine Division . Within days, however, new

elements of the 6th Marines were activated . The

regiment was quickly brought up to wartime

strength, underwent an intensive training program ,

and soon resumed its place as one of the majo r

combat elements of the 2d Marine Division.

Since January 1950, the 6th Marines has provid34
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A19986

Personnel of the 1st Battalion, 6th Marines, gathered on the airfield in Santo Domingo, Dominica n

Republic, in May 1965.

ed reinforced battalions, on a rotating basis, for service with the U.S . Sixth Fleet in the Mediterranean.

In July 1958, after an urgent appeal from Lebanon,

President Dwight D. Eisenhower orderedAmerican

troops into Beirut, to support the Lebanese government. The 3d Battalion, 6th Marines, landed

near Beirut on the morning of 16 July 1958 as part

of the 2d Provisional Marine Brigade, and remained

ashore until 1 October 1958 .

During the Cuban missile crisis of Octobe r

1962, all elements of the 6th Marines were

embarked to assist in the quarantine of Cuba, ready

to land if required . In the aftermath of the crisis,

2d Marine Division units remained in the Caribbean area until early December 1962 .

Chaotic conditions in the Dominican Republic

during April 1965 once more tested the capabilities of the 6th Marines. Elements of the regiment

were the first to respond to President Lyndon B.

Johnson's orders to deploy Marines into the capital

city of Santo Domingo, to protect American live s

and property and to assist in evacuations . With the

rest of the 4th Marine Expeditionary Brigade, units

of the 6th Marines helped in the evacuation of

more than 1,300 refugees from the Dominica n

Republic during April-June 1965, before returnin g

to Camp Lejeune .

During the 1970s and 1980s, units of the 6th

Marines conducted numerous amphibious and

training exercises, especially in the Mediterranea n

and the Caribbean . As part of the 22d Marine

Amphibious Unit, the 2d Battalion, 6th Marines—as

the nucleus of Battalion Landing Team 2/6—

deployed to Beirut, Lebanon, during February Jun e

1983, as part of a multinational peacekeeping

force .

The next test of the regiment's operationa l

readiness occurred in December 1989, when elements of the 6th Marines participated in Operation

Just Cause in Panama . This operation was launche d

to protect American lives, restore the democratic

process, and preserve the integrity of the Panam a

Canal Treaty. The operation concluded in Jun e

1990.

Barely two months after the termination o f

Operation Just Cause, the readiness of the 6t h

Marines was again put to the test . In August 1990 ,

the forces of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein invad -

35
Marines of Company K, 3d Battalion, 6th Marines, man a roadblock that separated Howard Air Forc e

Base from the coastal town of Vera Cruz, Panama, during Operation Just Cause in 1990 .

ed Kuwait, sparking a major crisis in the Persia n

Gulf. After President George H. Bush ordere d

American military forces to the region, the 6th

Marines immediately underwent an aggressive

training program. As preparations continued at a

rapid pace at Camp Lejeune for possible deployment to Southwest Asia, there was still work to b e

done on the regiment's organization . The 2d

Battalion, 6th Marines, had been deactivated i n

1989, and its place in the regiment was taken by

the 2d Battalion, 2d Marines. In November, the 2d

Marine Division received the anticipated orders for

deployment to the Persian Gulf, and in midDecember, the 6th Marines deployed to Saud i

Arabia for Operation Desert Shield .

It was quickly recognized that whatever mission

might be assigned, the ability to move into Kuwai t

to engage the enemy would depend on the abilit y

of the 2d Marine Division to conduct a successful

breach of Iraqi defenses. By early February, it wa s

determined that the division's breach of thes e

defenses would be conducted by the 6th Marines,

as that regiment had the most training in breaching

operations.

Early on the morning of 24 February 1991, th e

6th Marines, with attached combat engineers ,

assaulted the Iraqi defensive lines, using min e

plows, mine rakes, and line charges to blow up th e

obstacles. Six breach lanes were successfully mad e

through the enemy minefields. The following day,

the 6th Marines was engaged by an Iraqi battalionsized armor and mechanized infantry force .

Fighting back with its own tanks and air support ,

the regiment routed the enemy. As Iraqi forces

began to surrender in large numbers, the regiment

continued movement to its assigned objectives.

On 28 February, a general ceasefire ended 2d Marine Division offensive operations.

During March, the regiment maintained a defensive posture and continued mopping up operations in the vicinity of Al Jahra, Kuwait, until move -

ment to the south later in the month. DuringApril ,

the regiment redeployed to North Carolina, and

received a hearty welcome at Camp Lejeune for a

job well done.

The 6th Marines continued to utilize its skill s

and team spirit during the 1990s in humanitaria n

and peacekeeping activities. Elements of the regi36
ment participated from July-October 1994 in sup -

port of Operation Sea Signal at Guantanamo Bay,

Cuba. The operation was a humanitarian relie f

effort for 14,000 Haitian migrants seeking shelter

from a military dictatorship, and more than 30,00 0

Cubans stymied by the closing of a door to the

United States. More recently, elements of the regiment participated during 1995-96 in Operations

Deny Flight and Joint Endeavor in Bosnia;

Operations Southern Watch and Desert Thunder in

Southwest Asia in 1998 ; and Operation Unite d

Force in Kosovo in 1999 . The participation of the

6th Marines in these operations was undertaken in

conjunction with other American and foreign

forces, in support of United Nations peacekeeping

efforts in the strife-tom nations.

At right, members of the 6th Marines disembark

from the USS Dubuque (LPD-8) upon their

arrival in Saudi Arabia as part of Operation

Desert Shield in September 1990. (Department of

Defense Photo (USN) DN-ST-91-02384) Below,

Marines from Company C, 1st Battalion, 6th

Marines, participate in Operation Urban Warrior

at Camp Lejeune in January 1998. (Photo courtesy of 2d Marine Division)

37
6th Marines

Commanding Officers

Col Albertus W. Catlin 11 July1917 - 15 November 191 7

Maj Frank E. Evans 16 November 1917 - 15 January 191 8

Col Albertus W. Catlin 16 January 1918 - 6 June 191 8

LtCol Harry Lee 7 June 1918 - 12 July 191 8

Maj Thomas Holcomb 13 July 1918 - 15 July 191 8

LtCol Harry Lee 16 July 1918 - 12 August 1919

Capt Charles B. Hobbs 15 December 1920 - 22 March 192 1

Capt Francis S. Kieren 23 March 1921 - 20 July 192 1

Maj Calvin B. Matthews 21 July 1921 - 8 September 192 1

Capt Thomas E. Wicks 22 November 1921 - 6 January 192 2

Maj Calvin B. Matthews 7 January 1922 - 14 August 1922

Maj Harold L. Parsons 15 August 1922 - 4 September 192 2

Maj Calvin B. Matthews 5 September 1922 - 19 February 192 3

Maj Thomas S . Clarke 20 February 1923 - 31 July 192 3

Maj James J. Meade 1 August 1923 - 8 October 192 3

LtCol Edward A . Greene 9 October 1923 - 25 November 192 3

Maj Ralph S . Keyser 26 November 1923 - 25 February 1924

Maj Howard C. Judson 26 February 1924 - 4 June 192 4

LtCol Edward A. Greene 5 June 1924 - 15 March 1925

Col Harold C. Snyder 26 March 1927 - 2 August 192 8

Col Charles H. Lyman 3 August 1928 - 9 January 1929

Maj Calhoun Antrum 10 January 1929 - 31 March 1929

LtCol Andrew B. Drum 1 September 1934 - 30 September 193 5

LtCol Oliver Floyd 1 October 1935 - 30 October 193 5

Col Philip H.Torrey 31 October 1935 - 7 June 193 7

Col Thomas S . Clarke 8 June 1937 - 12 January 193 8

LtCol James L. Underhill 13 January 1938 - 11 May 193 8

LtCol Alphonse De Carre 12 May 1938 - 15 May 193 8

Col Harry L. Smith 16 May 1938 - 31 May 193 9

LtCol Earl H .Jenkins 1 June 1939 - 20 June 1939

Col Samuel L. Howard 21 June 1939 - 2 June 1940

LtCol Franklin A. Hart 3 June 1940 - 21 June 1940

LtCol Oliver P Smith 22 June 1940 - 28 June 194 0

LtCol Franklin A. Hart 29 June 1940 - 23 July 1940

Col Leo D. Hermle 24 July 1940 - 31 December 194 1

LtCol William McN . Marshall 1 January 1942 - 24 March 194 2

Col Leo D. Hermle 28 March 1942 - 31 July 194 2

Col Gilder D. Jackson, Jr 1 August 1942 - 13 April 194 3

LtCol Lyman G. Miller 14 April 1943 - 30 April 194 3

Col Maurice G. Holmes 3 May 1943 - 16 December 194 3

38
Col James P. Riseley 17 December 1943 - 3 September 194

4

Col Gregon W. Williams 4 September 1944 - 5 November 194

5

Col Jack P. Juhan 6 November 1945 - 24 January 194

6

Col James P Berkeley 25 January 1946 - 26 March 194

6

Col John F. Hough 27 March 1946 - 30 March 194

7

Col George

H. Potter 31 March 1947 - 6 April 194

7

Col John E Hough 7 April 1947 - 11 June 194

7

LtCol Thomas C . Kerrigan 12 June 1947 - 29 June 194

7

Col Hewin O. Hammond 30 June 1947 - 15 July 194

7

Col James P. S . Devereux 16 July 1947 - 30 September 194

7

Col GeorgeH. Potter 1 October 1947 - 31 October 194

7

Maj Norman R. Nickerson 1 November 1947 - 13 November 194

7

Col George H. Potter 14 November 1947 - 30 April 194

8

LtCol George D. Rich 1 May 1948 - 23 May 194

8

Col George H . Potter 24 May 1948 - 6 July 194

8

LtCol William N. McGill 7 July 1948 - 8 March 194

9

Col JohnH. Cook, Jr 9 March 1949 - 1 October 194

9

Col Homer L. Litzenberg, Jr 17 October 1949 - 7 July 195

0

Col Russell N. Jordhal

8 July 1950 - 13 August 195

0

LtCol William E Prickett 14 August 1950 - 10 September 195

0

Col Henry W. Buse, Jr 11 September 1950 - 13 December 195

1

Col William E Prickett 14 December 1951 - 16 January 195

2

Col Ormand R. Simpson 17 January 1952 - 23 April 195

3

Col CharlesM. Nees 24 April 1953 - 27 July 195

4

Col Jean H. Buckner 28 July 1954 - 1 June 195

5

LtCol Wilson F Humphreys 2 June 1955 - 9 July 195

5

Col Edward L. Hutchinson 10 July 1955 - 5 July 195

6

Col Max C. Chapman 6 July 1956 - 10 June 195

7

LtCol Theodore E Beeman 11 June 1957 - 16 July 195

7

Col Austin C. Shofner 17 July 1957 - 11 August 195

8

Col William J. McKennan 12 August 1958 - 1 December 195

9

Col Melvin D. Henderson 2 December 1959 - 7 March 1961.

Col Maxie R. Williams 8 March 1961 - 6 June 1961.

Col JonasH. Platt 10 July 1961 - 19 July 196

2

Col Robert W. L. Bross 8 August 1962 - 26 July 196

3

LtCol Anthony A.Akstin 27 July 1963 - 23 August 196

3

Col Glenn R. Long 24 August 1963 - 13 July 196

3

Col George W E . Daughtry 14 July 1963 - 14 July 196

5

Col John N. McLaughlin

1 5 July 1965 - 28 December 1965

Col JamesB. Ord 29 December 1965 - 6 July 196

6

Col JamesC. Short 7 July 1966 -1.June 196

7

Col Oscar T. Jensen, Jr 2 June 1967 - 11 March 196

8

Col RichardH. Kern 12 March 1968 - 26 March 196

8

Col RobertM. Platt 27 March 1968 - 6 August 196

9

Col Paul B. Haigwood 7August 1969 - 14 October 197

0

39
Col Francis R. Kraince 15 October 1970 - 1 June 197 2

LtCol John J. Peeler 2 June 1972 - 19 March 197 3

Col Ezra H.Arkland 20 March 1973 - 20 February 197 4

Col David M. Ridderhof 21 February 1974 - 7 May 197 5

Col Harold G. Glasgow 8 May 1975 - 3 June 197 6

Col Daniel J. Ford 4 June 1976 - 23 September 197 7

Col Leemon B. McHenry 24 September 1977 - 18 July 1978

Col Francis V. White, Jr 19 July 1978 - 20 June 197 9

Col Louis J. Piantadosi 21 June 1979 - 19 May 1980

Col Frederic L.Tolleson 20 May 1980 - 20 August 198 1

Col Randall W.Austin 21 August 1981 - 19 October 198 3

Col William M. Keys 20 October 1983 - 7 February 1986

Col James E. Livingston 8 February 1986 - 24 June 1987

Col John J. Carroll 25 June 1987 - 8 August 1988

Col Russell H. Sutton 9 August 1988 - 12 June 1990

Col Lawrence H. Livingston 13 June 1990 - 27 February 1992

Col James H. Benson 28 February 1992 - 15 July 199 3

Col Richard A. Huck 16 July 1993 - 9 June 199 5

Col James C. Hardee 10 June 1995 - 23 July 199 7

Col Thomas E. Sheets 24 July 1997 - 9 July 199 8

Col Robert G. Neller 10 July 1998 - 6 July 2000

Col John C. Coleman 7 July 2000 -

40
6th Marines

LINEAGE

1917-1921

ACTIVATED 11 JULY 1917 AT QUANTICO,VIRGINIA,AS THE 6TH REGIMENT

DEPLOYED DURING OCTOBER 1917 - FEBRUARY 1918 TO FRANCE, AND ASSIGNED TO THE 4TH

MARINE BRIGADE, 2D DIVISION (ARMY),AMERICAN EXPEDITIONARY FORC E

PARTICIPATED IN THE FOLLOWING WORLD WAR I OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN S

AISNE

AISNE-MARNE

ST. MIHIEL

MEUSE-ARGONNE

PARTICIPATED IN THE FOLLOWING WORLD WAR I DEFENSIVE CAMPAIGNS

TOULON-TROYON

CHATEAU-THIERRY

MA.RBACHE

LIMEY

PARTICIPATED IN THE OCCUPATION OF THE GERMAN RHINELAND,

DECEMBER 1918 - JULY 191 9

RELOCATED DURING AUGUST 1919 TO QUANTICO,VIRGINI A

ELEMENT OF THE REGIMENT REMAINED ON ACTIVE DUTY 1919-192 1

1921 - 1925

REACTIVATED 15 SEPTEMBER 1921 AT QUANTICO,VIRGINIA

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN EXPEDITIONARY DUTY IN CUBA AND THE

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, JUNE 1924 - MARCH 192 5

DEACTIVATED 15 MARCH 1925 AT QUANTICO, VIRGINI A

1927-1929

REACTIVATED 26 MARCH 1927 AT PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA

41
DEPLOYED DURING MAY 1927 TO SHANGHAI, CHINA,AND ASSIGNED TO

THE 3D BRIGADE

RELOCATED DURING MARCH 1929 TO SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA,AN D

DETACHED FROM THE 3D BRIGAD E

DEACTIVATED 31 MARCH 192 9

1934 - 1949

REACTIVATED 1 SEPTEMBER 1934 AT SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, AS TH E

6TH MARINES, FLEET MARINE FORCE

ASSIGNED 1 JULY 1936 TO THE 2D MARINE BRIGADE, FLEET MARINE FORCE

DEPLOYED DURING SEPTEMBER 1937 TO SHANGHAI, CHIN A

RELOCATED DURING APRIL 1938 TO SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNI A

2D MARINE BRIGADE REDESIGNATED 1 FEBRUARY 1941 AS THE 2D MARINE DIVISION, FLEET

MARINE FORCE

DEPLOYED DURING MAY-JULY 1941 TO REYKJAVIK, ICELAND, AND ASSIGNE D

TO THE 1ST PROVISIONAL MARINE BRIGAD E

RELOCATED DURING FEBRUARY-MARCH 1942 TO SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA ,

AND REASSIGNED TO THE 2D MARINE DIVISION, FLEET MARINE FORC E

DEPLOYED DURING OCTOBER-NOVEMBER 1942 TO WELLINGTON ,

NEW ZEALAND

PARTICIPATED IN THE FOLLOWING WORLD WAR D CAMPAIGN S

GUADALCANA L

SOUTHERN SOLOMONS

TARAWA

SAIPAN

TINIAN

OKINAWA

DEPLOYED DURING SEPTEMBER 1945 TO NAGASAKI, JAPAN

PARTICIPATED IN THE OCCUPATION OF JAPAN, SEPTEMBER 1945 - JUNE 1946

RELOCATED DURING JULY 1946 TO CAMP PENDLETON, CALIFORNI A

42
REASSIGNED 11 SEPTEMBER 1946 TO THE 3D MARINE BRIGADE,

FLEET MARINE FORC E

REASSIGNED 11 JULY 1947 TO THE 1ST MARINE DIVISION ,

FLEET MARINE FORC E

DEACTIVATED 1 OCTOBER 194 9

1949 - 1988

REACTIVATED 17 OCTOBER 1949 AT CAMP LEJEUNE, NORTH CAROLINA ,

AND ASSIGNED TO THE 2D MARINE DIVISION, FLEET MARINE FORCE

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN THE LANDINGS IN LEBANON ,

JULY-OCTOBER 195 8

PARTICIPATED IN THE CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS, OCTOBER-DECEMBER 196 2

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN THE INTERVENTION IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC,APRILJUNE 196 5

PARTICIPATED IN NUMEROUS TRAINING EXERCISES THROUGHOUT THE 1970 S

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED AS PART OF THE MULTINATIONAL PEACEKEEPING FORCE IN LEBANON ,

FEBRUARY-JUNE 198 3

1989 - 1999

ELEMENTS DEPLOYED TO PANAMA DURING JANUARY 1989 - JUNE 199 0

PARTICIPATED IN OPERATIONS DESERT SHIELD AND DESERT STORM, SOUTHWEST ASIA ,

SEPTEMBER 1 .990 -APRIL 1991

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN SUPPORT OF OPERATION SEA SIGNAL, CUBA, JULY-OCTOBER 1994 AN D

OCTOBER-DECEMBER. 199 5

ELEMENT PARTICIPATED IN SUPPORT OF OPERATIONS DENY FLIGHT AND JOINT ENDEAVOR ,

BOSNIA, SEPTEMBER 1995 - FEBRUARY 1996

ELEMENT PARTICIPATED IN OPERATIONS SOUTHERN WATCH AND DESERT THUNDER ,

SOUTHWEST ASIA, FEBRUARY-APRIL 1998

ELEMENT PARTICIPATED IN OPERATION UNITED FORCE, KOSOVO, MARCH-APRIL 1999

43
6th Marines

HONORS

PRESIDENTIAL UNIT CITATION STREAME R

WORLD WAR II

TARAWA-1943

NAVY UNIT COMMENDATION STREAME R

SOUTHWEST ASIA

1990-199 1

WORLD WAR I VICTORY STREAMER WITH ONE SILVER STA R

ARMY OF OCCUPATION OF GERMANY STREAMER

YANGTZE SERVICE STREAME R

MARINE CORPS EXPEDITIONARY STREAMER WITH THREE BRONZE STAR S

CHINA SERVICE STREAMER

AMERICAN DEFENSE SERVICE STREAMER WITH ONE BRONZE STAR

EUROPEAN-AFRICAN-MIDDLE EASTERN CAMPAIGN STREAMER

ASIATIC-PACIFIC CAMPAIGN STREAMER WITH ONE SILVER AND ONE BRONZE STAR

WORLD WAR II VICTORY STREAMER

NAVY OCCUPATION SERVICE STREAMER WITH "ASIA"AND "EUROPE "

NATIONAL DEFENSE SERVICE STREAMER WITH TWO BRONZE STAR S

ARMED FORCES EXPEDITIONARY STREAMER WITH TWO BRONZE STAR S

SOUTHWEST ASIA SERVICE STREAMER WITH TWO BRONZE STARS

FRENCH CROIX DE GUERRE WITH TWO PALMS AND ONE GILT STA R

44
The 8th Marines

The 8th Marines was originally activated as th e

8th Regiment at Quantico, Virginia, on 9 October

1917 . The infantry regiment was formed by companies from Philadelphia and California's Mare

Island, as well as Quantico . Major Ellis B. Miller, a

37-year-old Iowan, assumed command of the regiment, which had a strength of approximately

1,000.

The outbreak of hostilities between the Unite d

States and Germany in 1917 had caused the regiment's activation, but it was first sent to Texas ,

instead of France . During November 1917, the regiment moved to Fort Crockett, near Galveston, t o

guard against German agents who might try to disrupt vital shipments from Mexican oil fields .

Duties in Texas were those of a typical garrison

force, with a training program pointed toward contingency operations in Mexico. The need for suc h

operations never materialized . The regiment

embarked on board the USS Hancock (AP-3) in

April 1919. Upon returning to Philadelphia it was

deactivated .

By the end of 1919, however, the 8th Regimen t

was reactivated in Haiti . At Port-au-Prince, the 1st

Marines near Port-au-Prince, Haiti, in 1920 prepare to patrol in search of Caco bandits.

Depannent of Defense Photo (USMC)A519809

45
Battalion was activated on 17 December, and th e

regimental headquarters on 5 January 1920 .

Lieutenant Colonel Louis McCarty Little, an office r

with prior service in Latin America and China, wa s

given command of the reactivated 8th Regiment ,

which in turn was assigned to the 1st Marin e

Brigade. During 1920 and 1921, the regiment suppressed Caco bandits in the southern half of the

country, primarily in the region around Port-auPrince . By early 1922, banditry had almost been

eradicated in Haiti, and the 8th Regiment soon

switched its emphasis to duties related to civic

action: mapping the country; helping to construct

roads and sanitation facilities; and training the local

constabulary. Under continued peaceful conditions, the regiment was deactivated at Port-auPrince on 1 July 1925 .

In early 1940, the Marine Corps gradually bega n

to increase the number of units on active duty, as a

consequence of general war in Europe durin g

1939. The first major organization to be brough t

back into being was the 8th Marines, reactivate d

on 1 April 1940 at San Diego, California . Colonel

Leo D. Hermle, a veteran of World War I, took command of the regiment, which was initially assigne d

to the 2d Marine Brigade. The 8th Marines was

assigned to the 2d Marine Division at the division's

activation on 1 February 1941, and joined othe r

division units in training exercises on San Clemente Island, off the coast of Southern California .

Department of Defense Photo (IISMC)A5183 1

Col Richard HJeshke, commanding officer of the

8th Marines, and LtCol Augustus Fricke, commanding the 3d Battalion, 8th Marines, discuss

plans for a new drive on Guadalcanal i n

January 1943.

After the Japanese struck at Pearl Harbor on 7

December, the 8th Marines had an initial mission o f

defending the California coast from Oceanside to

the Mexican border against a possible Japanese atMaj Henry P. "Jim" Crowe is at his command post, where he observes and directs the 2d Battalion, 8t h

Marines, during the bitter fighting on Tawara in late November 1943 .

Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A6395 6

46
tack. The regiment was next ordered to prepare

for deployment to American Samoa, in the South

Pacific . Forming the nucleus of a new 2d Marine

Brigade, the 8th Marines sailed from California on

6 January 1942—part of the first force to moun t

out for the Pacific after the outbreak of war.

Arriving at the Samoan capital of Pago Pago on 1 9

January, the regiment, now commanded by Colonel

Richard H. Jeschke, took over the job of shoring up

the island's defenses from the 7th Defens e

Battalion.

By summer, the 8th Marines had begun to pre -

pare for offensive operations outside of th e

Samoan area. The regiment's first combat assignment of World War H came during the struggle fo r

Guadalcanal. On 4 November 1942, after a 10-day

voyage from Samoa, the unit reached the embattle d

island, and went ashore near Lunga Point on the

northern coast. Almost immediately, the unit wa s

involved in heavy fighting with the Japanese ,

which continued through November and into the

next month.

During January the 8th Marines, with other

Marine Corps and Army units, made a final drive

toward the west, with the support of naval gunfire .

Guadalcanal was eventually declared secure on 8

February 1943.

The entire regiment reassembled for a period o f

rest and relaxation in New Zealand on 16 Februar y

1943, establishing a permanent base near

Paekakariki, 35 miles north of Wellington . Large

quantities of war material began to arrive from th e

United States. The target for the next campaign

was the Gilbert Islands, and the capture of Taraw a

Atoll. A significant enemy garrison was located on

Betio Island .

Shortly before dawn on 20 November 1943 the

transports carrying the invasion force arrived off

Betio. The initial wave to go ashore consisted of

Major Henry P. "Jim" Crowe's 2d Battalion, 8th

Marines, and the 2d and 3d Battalions, 2d Marines .

The 3d Battalion, 8th Marines, headed for the

beach several hours later, losing many men fro m

enemy machine gun fire, shell fragments, and

Alen of the 8th Marines pause to regroup during the battle for Saipan in June 1944.

Deoartment of Defense Photo (USMC) A82703

47
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) Al2698 7

Men of the 8th Marines on board LSTs advance toward their objective, Iheya Shima, in June1945, a s

the small island off Okinawa's northern coast is also assaulted by air

drownings. When the landing craft were unable to

get past an offshore reef, the Marines dismounte d

and waded ashore, crossing hundreds of yard s

through a fire-swept lagoon . Early on 21 November the 1st Battalion joined the regiment ashore .

The Marines suffered extremely heavy losses during four days of bitter fighting. The 8th Marines,

less the 1st Battalion, stood down on 23 November.

By the end of that day, the entire island was in

American hands.

After Tarawa, the 8th Marines sailed for the

Hawaiian Islands. After a stop at Pearl Harbor,

where the wounded were transferred to hospitals,

the regiment traveled to the island of Hawaii and

helped set up a base named Camp Tarawa . There,

the Marines would rest, re-equip themselves, and

prepare for their next landing : Saipan .

Now commanded by Colonel Clarence R.

Wallace, a veteran of the battle for Kwajalein, th e

8th Marines furnished two battalions—the 2d an d

3d—for the initial Saipan landing, on the morning

of 15 June 1944 . The assault waves were met by

withering enemy fire and sustained heavy losses,

but managed to move forward against Japanese

strongholds after reaching the beach . The 1st

Battalion, 8th Marines, soon joined the rest of th e

regiment ashore and helped expand its perimeter.

Over the ensuing three weeks, the 8th Marines,

with other units of the 2d Marine Division, pushed

northward, hampered equally by a tenacious fo e

and by the rugged, mountainous terrain of th e

island. Organized Japanese resistance finally ended

on 9 July, although mopping-up operations would

go on for some time after that .

With Saipan secure, the regiment was ordere d

to prepare for a landing on nearby Tinian . At dawn

on 24 July, the 8th and 2d Marines conducted a

feint off the beach at Tinian Town on the southwes t

coast. This diverted Japanese attention from th e

main landings by the 24th and 25th Marines of th e

4th Marine Division, on two small beaches on th e

northern tip of the island . The 8th Marines came

ashore the following morning and began movin g

north toward its objective, Ushi Point . Despite

rocky terrain, thick undergrowth, a fierce two-day

typhoon, and groups of the determined Japanese

holed up in craggy coral outcroppings, the islan d

was officially secured by 1 August . The 8th Marines

then assumed sole responsibility for patrolling an d

mop-up activities, which lasted for months.

On 1 April 1945, the 8th Marines formed part of

a division-sized feint against the southeast coast of

Okinawa, while the main landings were taking

place on the western coast . Shortly afterward, th e

regiment redeployed to Saipan, but before long

was called back to Okinawan waters to seize off48
shore islands. It captured Iheya Shima on 3 June ,

then Aguni Shima on 9 June . In a final thrust

against entrenched Japanese forces, the 8t h

Marines was called in to relieve the battle-worn 7t h

Marines on 18 June . That same day, U .S .Tenth Army

commander Lieutenant General Simon B . Buckner

was mortally wounded by enemy shelling while he

was observing the battle progress in the 3d

Battalion, 8th Marines' sector.

Marine Lieutenant General Roy S. Geiger, who

had taken command of the Tenth Army after General Buckner's death, declared the island secured

on 22 June 1945. The 8th Marines stayed on

Okinawa until 1 July for mopping-up operations.

The regiment then redeployed to Saipan where i t

rejoined the 2d Division, then in training for the

projected invasion of Japan .

After the war ended in August 1945, the 8th

Marines prepared to move to the island of Kyushu,

where it would be assigned occupation duty. The

regiment arrived at the devastated city of Nagasaki

in late September. For the next nine months, it

served alongside other 2d Marine Division an d

Army units of the occupation force . In June 1946,

the 8th Marines received orders to return to the

United States, to end four and a half years in the

Pacific theater. After debarking in Norfolk, the regiment proceeded to Camp Lejeune, North

Carolina, where the 2d Marine Division had established its new home.

The 8th Marines, after being reduced to the size

of an infantry battalion, participated in Atlantic

Fleet maneuvers in February 1948, then departe d

for the Mediterranean Sea, part of a second Marine

amphibious unit which deployed with the Sixth

Fleet. The deployment of such amphibious force s

to the Mediterranean has since become routin e

and continuous, providing a base for rapid contingency response in the region. After another

deployment to the Mediterranean in 1949, the 8th

Marines was deactivated on 17 October 1949, a

result of the ongoing postwar reorganization of a

shrinking Marine Corps.

The outbreak of the Korean War, in June 1950 ,

brought about reactivation of the 8th Marines by 9

August of that year. In June 1951, battalions of the

regiment resumed their Mediterranean deployments, where they took part in North Atlantic

Treaty Organization (NATO) exercises. In the

Caribbean, other battalions—and on occasion the

entire regiment—deployed frequently for training

exercises.

A civil war in Lebanon during the summer of

Department of Defense Photo (USMC:) A450302

A rifle squad from Company D, 1st Battalion, 8th

Marines, attempts to locate a sniper firing at a

position near the international safety zone in

Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, in May

1965.

1958 resulted in the landing of two battalions o f

the 8th Marines at Beirut during 18-21 July, as par t

of a larger peacekeeping force . The 1st Battalion ,

8th Marines, which had deployed to the Mediterranean earlier in the year, came ashore in landing

craft. The 2d Battalion, along with Company K of

the 3d Battalion, arrived by airlift increments at

Beirut International Airport . After calm was

restored, the two battalions left Lebanon in September, returning to Camp Lejeune .

In the fall of 1962, the 8th Marines played a role

in the Cuban missile crisis. As President John F.

Kennedy, on 22 October, spoke to the American

people about the presence of Soviet missiles in

Cuba, the regiment, now commanded by Colonel

Anthony Caputo, dispatched the 1st Battalion t o

reinforce the U.S . Naval Base at Guantanamo.The

rest of the regiment's battalions went on boar d

ship several days later to help establish a naval

quarantine near Cuban waters. After the crisis

eased, the 8th Marines redeployed to Camp

Lejeune in increments during late November and

early December.

On 26 October 1964, in a division-sized landin g

exercise codenamed Steel Pike I, Colonel Richar d

S . Johnson's 8th Marines became the first regiment

in the history of the Marine Corps to make an

amphibious landing entirely by helicopter. The

exercise was conducted off the coast of Spain.

In the spring of 1965, the 1st Battalion, 8t h

Marines, was airlifted to the Dominican Republic,

joining two other 2d Division battalions that ha d

been deployed as part of a joint task force to dea l

with worsening unrest there. For one month,

49
Department of Defense Photo (USN) DN-ST-84-0127 3

Personnel from Battalion Landing Team 1/8, 24th Marine Amphibious Unit, come ashore in late May

1983 at Beirut, Lebanon, debarking from a utility landing craft, ready to participate as part of the

United Nations multinational peacekeeping force.

Marines of the battalion braved sniper fire to patrol

its sector of the capital city of Santo Domingo . The

1st Battalion sailed back to Camp Lejeune on 3

June 1965.

Two non-routine deployments of the 1st and 3d

Battalions, 8th Marines, occurred in 1970 and 1971 ,

to New England and Washington, D .C., in connection with potential civil disturbances .

The regiment turned its attention to NATO's

northern flank in a series of exercises beginning i n

the fall of 1976, before becoming the Marine

Corps' dedicated Mediterranean regiment, taske d

with providing battalions for routine deploymen t

with the Sixth Fleet.

In May 1980, the 1st Battalion, 8th Marines,

deployed to Key West, Florida, on a humanitarian

mission, assigned to assist in receiving civilia n

refugees from Cuba and Haiti.

As the ground combat element of the 32 d

Marine Amphibious Unit (MAU), Battalion Landing

Team 2/8 assisted in the evacuation of America n

citizens from Lebanon in late June 1982 . It then

landed at Beirut in August as part of a multinational peacekeeping force to oversee the two-week -

long evacuation of Palestinian guerrillas. Reembarking shortly after the guerrillas left, the

Marines were ordered back to Beirut in lat e

September. They established positions near the

Beirut International Airport. Over the next 18

months, all three battalions of the 8th Marines

were rotated through Beirut, as the ground cotnponents of the 24th and 22d MAUs, serving as part

50
Infantrymen from Company F, 2d Battalion, 8th Marines, begin patrolling on the island of Carriacou

after a pre-dawn, surprise landing on 1 November 1983. The landing on Carriacou took place seven

days after the initial American assault on nearby Grenada.

of the multinational peacekeeping force .

At 0622 on Sunday morning, 23 October 1983, a

suicide truck-bomb attack on the headquarters

building of the 1st Battalion at the Beirut International Airport resulted in 220 Marine deaths, th e

largest loss of Marines on a single day since World

War II. Meanwhile in the Caribbean, Battalio n

Landing Team 2/8, part of the 22d MAU enroute to

Lebanon, was diverted to Grenada for operations in

conjunction with other American and Caribbean

forces. At 0500 on 25 October, Marines conducted

a helicopterborne assault from the USS Guam

(LPH-9) on Pearls Airport . By 2 November, the

Marines had concluded operations on Grenada ,

secured the neighboring island of Carriacou, and

were back on their way to Lebanon, where the y

remained until February 1984 .

The regiment's traditional high level of operational readiness was tested again, in August 1990 ,

when Iraqi forces invaded Kuwait. Accordingly,

President George H. Bush ordered a major deployment of U.S . Armed Forces to the Persian Gulf t o

51
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) 960705-M-39830-00 2

A Marine from Company K, 3d Battalion, 8th Marines, stands his post at the southern end of the U.S.

Embassy grounds in Monrovia, Liberia, in August 1996

prevent a possible Iraqi invasion of Saudi Arabia .

The 2d Marine Division, including the 8th Marines,

immediately intensified its training program in

preparation for deployment to the Gulf.

On 12 December, the main body of the division

began deployment to Saudi Arabia to take its place

as part of I Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF). As

the 8th Marines had to leave two of its four battalions behind to cover any other MEF commitment s

which might arise, the 3d Battalion, 23d Marines, a

Reserve unit headquartered in New Orleans ,

Louisiana, became the 8th Marines' third battalion .

The 2d Battalion, 4th Marines, operationally

attached to the regiment since mid-October,

deployed to the Persian Gulf with the 8th Marines.

In Saudi Arabia, the regiment underwent extensive training in preparation for the expected

assault into Kuwait. The initial weeks prior to the

assault was a period of continuous activity for the

regiment, as it prepared to move to its final assembly areas. The 8th Marines also acquired an extra

armored "punch" during this period, as two companies of the 4th Tank Battalion were assigned to

the regiment.

In the early morning hours of 24 February 1991 ,

the 8th Marines advanced through breaches in the

Iraqi minefields and attacked enemy positions inside of Kuwait. Units of the regiment were responsible for the destruction of dozens of enemy tanks

and vehicles, hundreds of Iraqi casualties, and mor e

than 1,200 enemy prisoners of war. As the 8th

Marines continued to clear its sector of enemy

forces, a 28 February ceasefire ended the fighting

with a complete Coalition victory.

In March, while the 2d Marine Division command post displaced to Saudi Arabia, the 8t h

Marines remained in Kuwait under the operational

control of Marine Forces Southwest Asia, in order

52
Photo courtesy of Maj Nathan S . Lowrey, USMCR

Marines from Weapons Company, Battalion Landing Team 3/8, in Gnjilane, Kosovo, in July 1999, during Operation Joint Guardian.

to provide a "presence" of U.S . forces in the area .

Elements of the regiment participated from April

to July 1991 in Operation Provide Comfort, which

was designed to provide humanitarian assistanc e

to the Kurdish populations of northern Iraq. The

bulk of the regiment remained in Kuwait until

early May, when it was ordered to return to A l

Jubayl in Saudi Arabia . At that time, the regiment

returned to the operational control of the 2 d

Marine Division, and began preparation for deployment back to Camp Lejeune . The 8th Marines was

the last Marine ground combat unit to leave

Kuwait. The long-awaited deployment home was

completed in mid-May, when the Marines receive d

a well-deserved welcome at Camp Lejeune .

The remainder of the decade proved eventfu l

for the 8th Marines. The regiment's operational

skill and readiness was thoroughly tested, as elements of the 8th Marines participated in militar y

operations and humanitarian missions in support

of American foreign policy interests. During the

1990s Marines from the regiment were deployed

to Bosnia (1993 and 1994), Cuba and the Carib -

bean area (1993 and 1994), the Central African

Republic (1996), and Liberia (1996), where their

presence supported a variety of missions, including non-combatant evacuations, humanitarian

relief operations, and the restoration of order and

democracy. During the last years of the decade ,

elements of the regiment participated in th e

enforcement of United Nations resolutions in

Albania and in Kosovo, as the spread of ethnic conflict in the former Yugoslavia threatened the stability of Eastern Europe.

53
8th Marines

Commanding Officers

Maj Ellis B. Miller 11 October 1917 - 12 October 191 7

LtCol George C. Reid 13 October 1917 - 24 October 191 7

Maj Ellis B. Miller 25 October 1917 - 2 November 191 7

Col Laurence H. Moses 3 November 1917 - 8 March 191 9

LtCol Theodore E.Backstrom 9 March 1919- 10April 191 9

LtCol Louis McC. Little 5 January 1920 - 30 April 192 1

Col Dickinson P. Hall 1 May 1921 - 31 October 192 1

LtCol Harry R. Hall 1 November 1921 - 7 April 192 3

Col James T. Bootes 8 April 1923 - 29 April 192 3

LtCol Harry R. Lay 30 April 1923 - 30 May 192 3

Col James T. Bootes 31 May 1923 - 20 July 1924

LtCoI William L. Redles 21 July 1924 - 23 July 192 4

Col Harold C. Snyder 24 July 1924 - 1 July 192 5

Col Leo D. Hermle 1 April 1940 - 23 July 194 0

Col Henry L. Larsen 24 July 1940 - 31 October 194 1

LtCol Victor F Bleasdale 1 November 1941 - 11 December 194 1

Col Henry L. Larsen 12 December 1941 - 22 December 194 1

LtCol Richard H. Jeschke 23 December 1941 - 3 May 194 3

Col Elmer E. Hall 4 May 1943 - 14 December 194 3

LtCol Paul D . Sherman 15 December 1943 - 1 January 1944

LtCol John H. Griebel 2 January 1944 - 9 April 1944

Col Clarence R. Wallace 10 April 1944 - 28 June 1945

Col James F Shaw 29 June 1945 - 14 July 194 5

Col Thomas G. McFarland 15 July 1945 - 1 April 194 7

Col Reginald H. Ridgely 2 April 1947 - 28 September 1.948

LtCol Richard C. Nutting 29 September 1948 - 31 October 1948

LtCol Arthur N.B. Robertson 1 November 1948 - 16 October 194 9

Maj Anthony Walker 10 August 1950 - 5 September 1950

LtCol Norman E. Sparling 6 September 1950 - 21 September 1950

Col James M. Masters, Jr 22 September 1950 - 16 March 1952

Col John H. Masters 17 March 1952 - 1 February 195 3

Col Dewolf Schatzel 2 February 1953 - 13 May 195 4

Col Alexander A . Vandegrift, Jr 14 May 1954 - 6 February 195 5

Col Marlowe C. Williams 7 February 1955 - 12 December 195 5

Col Glen C. Funk 13 December 1955 - 4 May 1956

Col KenythA. Damke 5 May 1956 - 29 August 195 6

Col Thomas J. Colley 30 August 1956 - 31 August 195 7

Col Robert C. Burns 1 September 1957 - 28 July 195 8

Col George W. Killen 29 July 1958 - 2 July 195 9

Col Ronald A. Van Stockum 3 July 1959 - 10 June 1960

54
Col Victor R. Bisceglia 11 June 1960 - 17 March 196 1

Col Ronald E. Carey 18 March 1961 - 6 March 196 2

Col Anthony Caputo 7 March 1962 - 1 June 1963

Col James O. Bell 2June 1963-1June 1964

Col Richard S. Johnson 2June 1.964-28 June 1965

Col Gerald F. Russell 29 June 1965 - 15 July 196 6

Col George D. Webster 16 July 1966 - 28 December 196 6

LtCol Curtis A . James, Jr 28 December 1966 - 9 January 196 7

Col William H. Mulvey 10 January 1967 - 9 October 196 8

Col William M.Van Zuyen 10 October 1968 - 19 March 196 9

LtCol John R. Greenstone 20 March 1969 - 6 February 1970

Col Harold A. HIatch 7 February 1970 - 19 June 197 0

LtCol Charles M.C. Jones, Jr 20 June 1970 - 17 September 1970

Col Lemuel C. Shepherd III 18 September 1970 - 8 June 197 1

Col Edwin M.Young 9 June 1971 - 2 June 1972

LtCol Oswald P. Paredes 3 June 1972 - 6 September 1972

Col Stanley Davis 7 September 1972 - 27 June 1973

LtCol Daniel C. Daly 28 June 1973 - 13 July 1973

Col William D. Kent 14 July 1973 - 24 July 1974

Col Gerald C.Thomas, Jr 25 July 1974 - 21 August 197 5

Col Alexander P. McMillan 22 August 1975 - 27 January 1977

Col Americo A . Sardo 28 January 1977 - 21 March 197 8

Col William R. Ball 22 March 1978 - 5 June 1979

Col Michael K. Sheridan 6 June 1979 - 5 June 198 0

Col Jim R. Joy 6 June 1980 - 9 August 198 1

Col Laurence R. Gaboury 10 August 1981 - 7 February 198 3

Col Robert B. Johnston 8 February 1983 - 22 May 1984

Col John P. Brickley 23 May 1984 - 13 November 1986

Col John J. Sheehan 14 November 1986 - 16 May 1988

LtCol Ray L. Smith 17 May 1988 - 19 June 1990

Col Larry S . Schmidt 20 June 1990 - 5 June 1992

Col Keith T. Holcomb 6 June 1992 - 1 December 1993

Col Jennings B. Beavers 2 December 1993 - 26 July 199 5

Col Tony L. Corwin 27 July 1995 - 27 June 199 7

Col Joseph J. Streitz 28 June 1997 - 31 July 199 8

Col James W. Davis 1 August 1998 - 10 July 2000

Col Mastin M. Robeson 11 July 2000 -

55
8th Marines

LINEAGE

1917-1919

ACTIVATED 9 OCTOBER 1917 AT QUANTICO, VIRGINIA,AS THE 8TH REGIMEN T

RELOCATED DURING NOVEMBER 1917 TO FORT CROCKETT,TEXAS

ASSIGNED DURING AUGUST 1918 TO THE 3D PROVISIONAL BRIGAD E

RELOCATED DURING APRIL 1919 TO PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANI A

DEACTIVATED 25 APRIL 191 9

1920 - 1925

REACTIVATED 5 JANUARY 1920 AT PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI, AND ASSIGNE D

TO THE 1ST PROVISIONAL BRIGADE

PARTICIPATED IN OPERATIONS AGAINST DISSIDENTS, JANUARY 1920 -JUNE 192 5

DEACTIVATED 1 JULY 192 5

1940 - 1949

REACTIVATED 1 APRIL 1940 AT SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA,AS THE 8TH MARINES ,

2D MARINE BRIGADE

2D MARINE BRIGADE REDESIGNATED 1 FEBRUARY 1941 AS 2D MARINE DIVISION ,

FLEET MARINE FORC E

ASSIGNED DURING DECEMBER 1941 TO 2D MARINE BRIGADE, 2D MARINE DIVISIO N

DEPLOYED DURING OCTOBER 1942 TO AMERICAN SAMOA AND DETACHED FROM

THE 2D MARINE DIVISIO N

DETACHED DURING OCTOBER 1942 FROM THE 2D MARINE BRIGAD E

ASSIGNED DURING FEBRUARY 1943 TO THE 2D MARINE DIVISIO N

PARTICIPATED IN THE FOLLOWING WORLD WAR H CAMPAIGN S

GUADALCANA L

TARAWA

SAIPAN

TINIAN

OKINAWA

56
DEPLOYED DURING SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 1945 TO NAGASAKI, JAPA N

PARTICIPATED IN THE OCCUPATION OF JAPAN, OCTOBER 1945 - JUNE 194 6

RELOCATED DURING JUNE-JULY 1946 TO CAMP LEJEUNE, NORTH CAROLINA

ASSIGNED DURING NOVEMBER 1948 TO THE 2D PROVISIONAL MARINE REGIMENT

DEACTIVATED 17 OCTOBER 1949

1950 - 1990

REACTIVATED 9 AUGUST 1950 AT CAMP LEJEUNE, NORTH CAROLINA,AN D

ASSIGNED TO THE 2D MARINE DIVISIO N

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN THE LANDINGS IN LEBANON ,

JULY-SEPTEMBER 1958

PARTICIPATED IN THE CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS, OCTOBER-DECEMBER 196 2

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN THE INTERVENTION IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, MAY-JUNE 196 5

PARTICIPATED IN NUMEROUS TRAINING EXERCISES THROUGHOUT THE 1970 5

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED AS PART OF THE MULTINATIONAL PEACEKEEPING FORCE IN LEBANON ,

AUGUST 1982 - FEBRUARY 198 4

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN THE LANDINGS ON GRENADA - CARRIACOU ,

OCTOBER-NOVEMBER 198 3

1990 - 1999

ELEMENT PARTICIPATED IN OPERATION SHARP EDGE, LIBERIA,

AUGUST 1990 - JANUARY 199 1

PARTICIPATED IN OPERATIONS DESERT SHIELD AND DESERT STORM, SOUTHWEST ASIA ,

DECEMBER 1990 -APRIL 199 1

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN OPERATION PROVIDE COMFORT, IRAQ ,

APRIL-JULY 199 1

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN SUPPORT OF OPERATIONS PROVIDE PROMISE AND DENY FLIGHT ,

BOSNIA, SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 1993 AND JANUARY 199 4

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN SUPPORT OF OPERATION SUPPORT DEMOCRACY, CUBA AN D

CARIBBEAN AREA, OCTOBER-NOVEMBER 1993 AND MAY-JULY 199 4

ELEMENT PARTICIPATED IN SUPPORT OF OPERATION SEA SIGNAL, CUBA ,

JUNE JULY 199 4

57
ELEMENT PARTICIPATED IN OPERATION QUICK RESPONSE, CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC ,

MAY 1996

ELEMENT PARTICIPATED [N OPERATION ASSURED RESPONSE, LIBERIA ,

APRIL-AUGUST 1996

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN OPERATIONS IN ALBANIA, MARCH-MAY 1997AND

APRIL-MAY 1999

ELEMENT PARTICIPATED IN OPERATIONS IN KOSOVO ,

JUNE-JULY 1999

58
8th Marines

HONORS

PRESIDENTIAL UNIT CITATION STREAMER WITH TWO BRONZE STAR S

WORLD WAR II

GUADALCANAL - 194 2

TARAWA - 194 3

OKINAWA - 194 5

NAVY UNIT COMMENDATION STREAME R

SOUTHWEST ASIA

1990 - 1991

WORLD WAR I VICTORY STREAMER

HAITIAN CAMPAIGN STREAMER

MARINE CORPS EXPEDITIONARY STREAMER WITH TWO BRONZE STAR S

AMERICAN DEFENSE SERVICE STREAMER

ASIATIC-PACIFIC CAMPAIGN STREAMER WITH ONE SILVER STA R

WORLD WAR II VICTORY STREAMER

NAVY OCCUPATION SERVICE STREAMER WITH "ASIA"AND "EUROPE "

NATIONAL DEFENSE SERVICE STREAMER WITH TWO BRONZE STAR S

ARMED FORCES EXPEDITIONARY STREAMER WITH FOUR BRONZE STAR S

SOUTHWEST ASIA SERVICE STREAMER WITH THREE BRONZE STAR S

59
The 10th Marine s

The 10th Regiment was activated at Quantico,

Virginia, on 15 January 1918, under the command

of Major Robert H. Dunlap. It was organized from

units of the Mobile Artillery Force, an outgrowth o f

the artillery battalion formed at Veracruz, Mexico ,

in 1914 and later deployed to Haiti and Sant o

Domingo. The 10th Regiment was formed to sup -

port the Marine regiments of the America n

Expeditionary Force in France . Plans called for a

Marine artillery regiment to man 7-inch naval gun s

in support of an all-Marine division during th e

extensive Allied operations planned for 1919 . The

signing of the Armistice found the unit still training

in the United States. Postwar demobilization soon

brought a marked drawdown on the regiment's

strength.

Reorganized several times during the 1920s, th e

10th Regiment supplied personnel for expeditions

to the Caribbean and the Pacific. During the early

1920s, the regiment took part in annual recreation s

of famous Civil War battles: The Wilderness in

1921, Gettysburg in 1922, New Market in 1923, an d

Antietam in 1924. Elements of the 10th Regimen t

also went to Culebra, Puerto Rico, and the territory of Hawaii. On 14 November 1924, all companie s

were renamed as batteries. During October 1926 ,

the 10th Regiment (less the 4th Battery, 2 d

Battalion) was assigned to guard the U.S . mails, in

Marines man a 3-inch field piece in full recoil, used in the Dominican Republic in 1916.

Department of Defense Photo (USMC)A52154 2

60
Elements of the 10th Marines, along with members of several other Marine Corps units, were assigned

the task of guarding mail in the wake of a series of robberies in the 1920s.

the wake of a series of robberies . In four months

of guard duty in the Midwest, no shots were fire d

by Marines and no Marine-guarded mail was lost .

In February of the following year, the unit returne d

A battalion of the 10th Marines is inspected i n

Tientsin, China in 1928. From left are Col Harry

Lay, USMC; MajGen Joseph C. Castner USA, th e

commander of US. Forces in China; BGen

Smedley D. Butler, USMC; and LtCol Ellis B. Miller,

USMC.

Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A515290

to Quantico, where it was placed on a stand-b y

basis for expeditionary service in China .

Elements of the 10th Regiment deployed to ,

Tientsin, China, during June 1927. As part of the 3d

Brigade, under the command of Brigadier General

Smedley D. Butler, the unit provided security for

American lives and property until October 1928 ,

when it returned to Quantico .

On 10 July 1930, reflecting a Corps-wide change

of "Regiment" to "Marines," the 10th Regiment wa s

redesignated the 10th Marines. After the formatio n

of the Fleet Marine Force in 1933, the 10th Marine s

took part in fleet landing and training exercise s

from Hawaii to Puerto Rico through the rest of the

decade. During this period the 2d Battalion, 10t h

Marines, was activated at San Diego.

During late spring of 1941, artillery batteries o f

the 2d Battalion, 10th Marines, were attached t o

the 6th Marines, for deployment to Iceland . The '

artillerymen returned to the United States and

rejoined the 10th Marines on 1 April 1942 .

At the outbreak of World War H, the 10t h

Marines was attached to the 2d Marine Divisio n

and stationed at Camp Elliott, San Diego, California .

61
Department of Defense Photo (USMG) A524206

A group of British Army and U.S. Marine officers observe the operations of a 75mm howitzer gun cre w

in maneuvers in Iceland, 1941-1942.

Elements of the regiment began deploying in early

1942 : first to American Samoa, later to New

Zealand.

In August 1942, the 3d Battalion, 10th Marines,

attached to the 2d Marines, 1st Marine Division ,

was among the first units to land at Guadalcanal .

Following the initial landing, the 3d Battalion, 10th

Marines, landed onTulagi during early August, with

remaining elements of the regiment arriving in

October. The 1st and 3d Battalions provided

artillery support during the heavy fighting on

Guadalcanal, and the 1st and 2d Battalions took

part in the final drive against the enemy. After the

Guadalcanal campaign, the 10th Marines wen t

through a period of rehabilitation, reorganization ,

and training at Wellington, New Zealand .

During the period, while the regiment prepared

for the Tarawa landing, Colonel Thomas E. Bourke

was promoted to brigadier general—becoming th e

first "commanding general" of the 10th Marines—

and the regiment absorbed a fifth battalion . After

remaining at sea as regimental reserve during th e

initial assault on Betio Island, the 10th Marine s

delivered direct fire in support of the 2d and 8th

Marines on 21 November 1943. By that afternoon,

the entire 1st Battalion, 10th Marines, had com e

ashore . The following morning, batteries of the 2d

Battalion, 10th Marines, landed on the neighboring

island of Bairiki, subsequently directing heavy fire

on Betio. On the morning of 23 November, the 4th

Battalion, 10th Marines, landed on Betio to support

the final attack. During this attack, however, the

infantry advance was so quick and the fightin g

took place at such close quarters that fire missions

became infeasible . The entire island was in

American hands by the end of the day.

In December 1943, following relocation t o

Hawaii and passage of command to Colone l

Raphael Griffin, preparations began for the Saipa n

operation. On the afternoon of 13-Day, 15 Jun e

1944, the 1st and 2d Battalions, 10th Marines, landed on the west coast of the island, to support

infantry and tank units that had landed earlier in

the day and sustained heavy casualties. These battalions helped drive back the Japanese during a

counterattack in the early morning hours of the

16th . Later that afternoon, the 3d and 4t h

Battalions landed . The damage suffered from the

direct Japanese fire on the regimental command

post and fire drection center on the night of 23-2 i 4

June forced the 1st Battalion, 10th Marines, to temporarily assume regimental fire control responsibilities. Supported by heavy artillery fire, units of

the 2d and 4th Marine Division, along with the U.S.

Army's 27th Division, continued to push the

Japanese off the island . The 3d and 4th Battalions,

10th Marines, were attached to the 4th Marin e

Division to reinforce the 14th Marines and sue62
cessfully helped repulse thousands of enemy soldiers in a desperate banzai attack on the morning

of 7 July. The Marines fired their howitzers at poin t

blank range before seizing pistols, rifles, and automatic rifles, to fight as infantry. The 3d Battalion,

10th Marines, was later awarded the Navy Unit

Commendation by Secretary of the Navy Jame s

Forrestal.

After Saipan was declared secure on 9 July, th e

10th Marines turned its attention toward operations on nearby Tinian. The campaign to capture

Tinian began with the steady and methodical bombardment of the island from the southern end of

Saipan from 9-23 July 1944. On the morning of 24

July, while the 2d and 8th Marines conducted a successful diversionary feint off the beach at Tinian

Town, elements of the 4th Marine Division found

light resistance at the actual landing sites. During

the landings which followed, battalions of the 10th

Marines were assigned to the 4th Marine Divisio n

initially. Later they went back to the 2d Marin e

Division . On 27 July, the 3d and 4th Battalions,

10th Marines, joined other 10th Marine units. For

the remainder of the battle, all battalions of th e

10th Marines fired in direct support of the 2d, 6th,

and 8th Marines. After the island was secured, the

10th Marines returned to Saipan for rest and training.

On 27 March 1945, the 2d Marine Divisio n

embarked at Saipan and sailed 1,200 miles westward to Okinawa. On 1 April, while Marine and

Army units landed on the west coast of the island ,

the 2d Marine Division conducted a demonstration

on the southeast coast to confuse the Japanes e

defenders . For the first part of April, the 10t h

Marines formed part of the floating reserve off the

southern coast of Okinawa, until a growing threa t

of Kamikaze attacks on U.S . ships caused the 2 d

The pack howitzer is shown firing into a cave of Japanese soldiers from the brink of a cliff on Tinian

on 25 August 1944. The artillery piece was lashed securely in its unusual position after being carrie d

in parts by weary Marines to the edge of the embankment.

Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A94660

63
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A1598 3

Marine artillery firing during training operations on Vieques Island, Puerto Rico, in March 1954.

Marine Division to return to Saipan. The 2d

Battalion, 10th Marines, returned to Okinawa i n

June as part of a landing force that had been taske d

with seizing several offshore islands. Later that

month, the 2d Battalion served as supporting

artillery for the 8th Marines and assisted in th e

final assault on the southern end of the island . The

10th Marines then returned to Saipan and its surrounding islands for artillery and maneuver exercises, remaining there until the end of the war.

During late September 1945, the 10th Marines

relocated to Nagasaki, on the island of Kyushu, to

assist in the occupation of Japan . The 2d Division

remained in Japan, and eventually became solel y

responsible for the occupation of the island of

Kyushu. The 10th Marines was one of the last units

to leave Japan, after being relieved by the U . S .

Army's 24th Division during June 1946. It reached

its new home, at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, i n

JuIY•

Despite reduced strength as a result of postwar

demobilization, elements of the 10th Marines participated in a great variety of training exercises,

deployments, and field artillery demonstrations,

including some at the familiar prewar training sit e

of Culebra, Puerto Rico. A major reorganization

during November 1947 resulted in the deactivation of all four artillery battalions, which were

replaced by batteries. 'Following several additional reorganizations, the 10th Marines units wer e

redesignated as 11th Marines units, in an effort to

build up the 1st Marine Division artillery for

deployment to Korea during the summer of 1950 .

Meanwhile, a new regiment, built primarily on

Marine reservists, was formed at Camp Lejeune .

Throughout the 1950s, training of the expanding 10th Marines intensified . Much of the time, th e

10th Marines took part in maneuvers in the

Caribbean and on the East Coast of the United

States . At times, elements of the 10th Marines par64
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A45266 0

A gun crew from Battery L, 3d Battalion, 10th Marines, prepares to load a 155mm howitzer (towed)

while conducting a live fire exercise at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, during the 1970s. Below,

Marines from the 4th Battalion, 10th Marines, participate in a civil disturbance training exercise a t

Camp Lejeune in October 1972.

Department of Defense Photo (USMC)A451693

ticipated in North Atlantic Treaty Organization operations in the North Sea and the Mediterranean.

During July 1958, rising tensions in the Middle

East resulted in three battalion landing teams, with

accompanying batteries from the 10th Marine s

landing at Beirut. The Marines stayed in Lebanon

until October.

In late October 1962, the 10th Marines deployed with the 2d Marine Division during the

Cuban missile crisis. The regiment's units remained on board amphibious shipping until December.

The 2d and 3d Battalions, 10th Marines, were

among the units sent to the Dominican Republi c

during April 1965, to support Marine infantry battalions assigned to restore order to the city of

Santo Domingo during political upheavals. These

artillery units were set up in the vicinity of the

Embajadore Hotel where American citizens were

being assembled for evacuation . All elements of

the 10th Marines had left the Dominican Republi c

by late May.

65
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) DM-ST-91-1158 3

Marine artillerymen fire their M-198 155mm howitzer in support of the opening of the ground offensive to free Kuwait during Operation Desert Storm in February 1991 .

During the war in Vietnam, the understrength

2d Marine Division continued to meet it s

Mediterranean and Caribbean commitments,

which required artillery batteries to deploy with

battalion landing teams.

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, the 10t h

Marines continued to participate in a variety o f

training exercises, including several NATO exercises in northern Europe and semi-annual firing exercises at Fort Bragg, North Carolina . Beginning in

the summer of 1982, artillery batteries of the 10t h

Marines were deployed to Beirut in support of th e

Marine amphibious unit (MAU) serving there wit h

the multinational peacekeeping force. The regiment continued to provide artillery support over

the next 18 months to the MAUs stationed i n

Beirut. In October 1983, a battery of the 10th

Marines formed a provisional rifle company to take

part in the successful operations against

Communist forces on the island of Grenada .

The regiment's ability to respond quickly to a

crisis was tested again, this time in August 1990 ,

when the military forces of Iraq's Saddam Hussein

invaded and occupied Kuwait . President Georg e

H. Bush immediately ordered American forces,

including Marines, to the Persian Gulf, to prevent a

possible Iraqi invasion of Saudi Arabia.

Elements of the 10th Marines began departin g

Camp Lejeune on 11 December, enroute to Saudi

Arabia and Operation Desert Shield . As several elements of the regiment remained either at Cam p

Lejeune or on Okinawa to support other commitments, the 10th Marines was augmented by batteries from the 12th Marines and 14th Marines, a

Reserve unit. The mission of the 10th Marines during Operation Desert Shield was to provide effective artillery support to the 2d Marine Division, and

upon arrival in Saudi Arabia, the regiment undertook an intensive training program .

On 17 January 1991, the military operation in

Southwest Asia was renamed Operation Desert

Storm with the onset of Allied offensive air operations against Iraq . The 10th Marines tactical posture soon changed from defensive to offensive, as

training intensified for combat operations .

On 27 January 1991, the 10th Marines fired its

66
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) DSP-94-A0026 2

Personnel from 1st Battalion, 10th Marines, off loadfrom a LCAC near the port of Cap Haitien, Haiti,

during Operation Uphold Democracy in September 1994.

first artillery mission against Iraqi forces, when elements of the regiment conducted an artillery rai d

just east of the Al Wahfrah oil field in Kuwait . This

was the first offensive action by the 10th Marine s

since World War II. Several days later, on 29

January, Iraqi forces commenced full-scale probing

actions across the Saudi Arabian border with tanks

and mechanized forces. Engagements were out o f

range of 10th Marines artillery positions, which

precluded the regiment's participation in the

actions.

On 24 February, the Coalition forces unleashed

its major ground offensive to liberate Kuwait .

Throughout the ensuing days of combat, the 10th

Marines provided close and continuous fire in sup -

port of the 2d Marine Division . The regiment fired

counter-battery missions with deadly effectiveness

when enemy targets were acquired . In one of th e

most memorable artillery actions of the campaign,

virtually an entire Iraqi self-propelled battalion wa s

acquired on radar and eliminated by accurat e

artillery fire from the 10th Marines.

After the 28 February 1991 ceasefire which

ended the fighting, the 10th Marines prepared to

depart the Persian Gulf for home . A detachment

from 3d Battalion, 10th Marines, remained i n

Kuwait, and would later participate in Operation

Provide Comfort in Iraq, which was designed to

provide disaster relief and establish security zone s

for Kurdish refugees. However, the bulk of the regiment redeployed during April to Camp Lejeune ,

and a much-deserved welcome home .

Throughout the remaining years of the decade ,

elements of the 10th Marines participated i n

Operation Safe Harbor in Guantanamo Bay, Cub a

(1991), and in Operations Restore Democracy,

Support Democracy, and Uphold Democracy i n

Haiti (1994). The first operation provided humanitarian assistance to Haitians fleeing their country 's

internal power struggles, while in the latter three

operations, the regiment participated with othe r

American forces in helping to restore democracy

to the strife-torn nation of Haiti. Elements of the

regiment also participated during 1994 in

Operations Able Manner and Able Vigil in the

Florida Straits, which supported U .S . Navy and

Coast Guard efforts to interdict Haitian and Cuban

migrants off the Straits of Florida .

67
10th Marines

Commanding Officers

Maj Robert H. Dunlap 25 April 1914 - 17 February 191 8

Maj Chandler Campbell 18 February 1918 - 30 November 191 8

Col Dion Williams 1 December 1918 - 3 March 191 9

Maj Ralph L. Shepard 4 March 1919 - 20 April 191 9

LtCol Richard M. Cutts 21 April 1919 - 8 January 192 2

LtCol Chandler Campbell 9 January 1922 - 15 August 1923

Maj Robert O. Underwood 16 August 1923 - 31 May 192 5

Maj Emile P. Moses 1 June 1925 - 28 August 192 5

Maj Howard W. Stone 29 August 1925 - 13 September 192 5

Col Harry R. Lay 14 September 1925 - 26 November 1928

Maj Alexander A. Vandegrift 27 November 1928 - 18 December 192 8

Maj James L. Underhill 19 December 1928 - 13 November 193 0

LtCol Andrew B. Drum 1.4 November 1930 - 9 July 193 3

Maj Fred S . N. Erskine 10 July 1933 - 12 September 193 3

LtCol Harold S. Fasset (1st Bn) 13 September 1933 - 29 July 193 6

LtCol Thomas E . Bourke (1st Bn) 30 July 1936 - 5 September 193 6

LtCol Lloyd L. Leech (2d Bn) 6 September 1936 - 24 May 193 7

LtCol Thomas E . Bourke (1st Bn) 25 May 1937 - 2 May 1938

Maj William H. Harrison (2d Bn) 3 May 1938 - 5 June 1938

LtCol Raphael Griffin (1st Bn) 6 June 1938 - 3 June 1940

LtCol John B.Wilson (2d Bn) 4 June 1940 - 26 December 1940

Col Thomas E. Bourke 27 December 1940 - 5 August 194 2

Col John B.Wilson 6August 1942 - 31 August 194 2

LtCol Ralph E. Forysth 1 September 1942 - 22 November 194 2

BGen Thomas E. Bourke 23 November 1942 - 9 December 194 3

Col Raphael Griffin 10 December 1943 - 30 November 194 4

LtCol Saville T. Clark 1 December 1944 - 31 December 194 4

Col Bert A.Bone 1 January 1945 - 9 June 194 5

Col Saville T. Clark 10 June 1945 - 7 June 1947

Col Randall M. Victory 8 June 1947 - 11 November 1947

Col Robert B. Luckey 12 November 1947 - 15 June 1949

LtCol Thomas S . Ivey 16 June 1949 . 14 July 194 9

Col Wilburt S . Brown 15 July 1949 - 3 April 1951 .

LtCol Claude S . Sanders, Jr 4 April 1951 - 4 May 1951 .

Col Jack Tabor 5 May 1951 - 14 July 1952

Col Donald M. Weller 15 July 195 2 - 5 June 195 3

Col Joe C. McHaney 6June 1953-5June 1954

Col Louie C. Reinberg 6 June 1954 - 18 June 1955

Col Merritt Adelman 19 June 1955 - 1 August 195 6

Col Ransom M. Wood 2 August 1956 - 9 June 195 7

68
LtCol Robert H.Armstrong 10 June 1957 - 3 July 1 957

Col George B.Thomas 4 July 1957 - 21 June 195 8

Col Frederick J. Karch 22 June 1958 - 1 December 1959

Col Carl A.Youngdale 2 December 1959 - 14 February 196 1

LtCol Edmund E.Allen 15 February 1961 - 29 March 196 1

Col Wade H. Hitt 30 March 1961 - 1 September 1962

Col William P. Oliver, Jr 2 September 1962 - 27 June 1963

Col Henry H. Reichner, Jr 28 June 1963 - 6 March 1964

Col John R . Chaisson 7 March 1964 - 10 February 1965

Col Herman Poggemeyer, Jr 11 February 1965 - 31 May 1966

LtCol Edward A . Bailey 1 June 1966 - 8 July 1966

Col Charles E. Walker 9 July 1.966 - 1 July 1968

Col Thomas J. Holt 2 July 1968 - 8 April 1971

Col Charles A. Webster 9 April 1971 - 1.5 July 1971

Col Charles R. Burroughs 16 July 1971 - 13 April 197 2

LtCol Thomas A. McPheeters 14 April 1972 - 9 August 197 2

Col Calhoun J. Killeen 10 August 1972 - 12 July 1973

Col Robert L. Milbrad 13 July 1973 - 11 January 197 4

Col David A. Clark 12 January 1974 - 20 December 197 4

Col Richard P. Johnson 21 December 1974 - 30 April 1976

Col William H . Rice 1 May 1976 - 12 May 1977

Col Francis Andriliunas 13 May 1977 - 11 July 1978

Col Martin D. Julian 12 July 1978 - 10 July 198 0

Col Thomas W. Haven 11 July 1980 - 8 September 198 1

Col Albert J. McCarthy, Jr 9 September 1981 - 26 April 198 3

Col Larry R. Williams 27 April 1983 - 31 May 1984

Col Christopher Catoe 1 June 1984 - 5 February 1986

Col James B.Way 6 February 1986 - 14 September 1987

Col Gary A. Blair 15 September 1987 - 28 June 1988

Col Thomas W. Roberts 29June 1988-16June 1989

Col Ronald G. Richard 17 June 1989 - 16 August 1990

Col Leslie M. Palm 17 August 1990 - 1 May 199 2

Col Edward Hanlon, Jr 2 May 1992 - 7 July 199 3

Col Philip E. Hughes 8 July 1993 - 2 June 1995

Col James L. Sachtleben 3 June 1995 - 18 June 1997

Col Robert L. Click 19 June 1997 - 7 July 1999

Col Henry T. Gobar 8 July 1999 -

69
10th Marines

LINEAGE

1914 - 191 7

ACTIVATED 25 APRIL 1914 AT VERACRUZ, MEXICO, AS ARTILLERY BATTALION AND ASSIGNE D

TO THE 1ST BRIGADE

RELOCATED DURING NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 1914 TO MARINE BARRACKS, ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND ,

AND DETACHED FROM THE 1ST MARINE BRIGAD E

DEPLOYED DURING AUGUST 1915 TO PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI, AND ASSIGNED TO THE 1ST BRIGADE

REDEPLOYED DURING MAY 1916 TO SANTO DOMINGO, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

RELOCATED DURING JUNE JULY 1916 TO SANTIAGO, DOMINICAN REPUBLI C

RELOCATED DURING NOVEMBER 1916 TO SANTO DOMINGO, DOMINICAN REPUBLI C

REASSIGNED DURING JANUARY 1917 TO THE 2D BRIGAD E

RELOCATED DURING APRIL-MAY 1917 TO QUANTICO, VIRGINIA, AND DETACHE D

FROM THE 2D BRIGADE

REDESIGNATED 15 MAY 1917 AS THE 1ST FIELD ARTILLERY BATTALIO N

REDESIGNATED 1 AUGUST 1917 AS THE MOBILE ARTILLERY FORCE

1918 - 1940

REDESIGNATED 15 JANUARY 1918 AS THE 10TH REGIMEN T

REDESIGNATED 1 APRIL 1920 AS THE 1ST SEPARATE FIELD ARTILLERY BATTALIO N

REDESIGNATED 1 JANUARY 1921 AS THE 10TH REGIMEN T

PARTICIPATED IN THE GUARDING OF THE U .S . MAILS, OCTOBER 1926 - FEBRUARY 192 7

HEADQUARTERS BATTERY, 10TH REGIMENT, DEACTIVATED 24 MAY 192 7

ELEMENTS DEPLOYED TO TIENTSIN, CHINA, JUNE 1927 - OCTOBER 192 8

REDESIGNATED 10 JULY 1930 AS THE 10TH MARINES

ELEMENTS OF THE REGIMENT REMAINED ON ACTIVE DUTY, 1927 - 194 0

70
1940-195 7

REACTIVATED 27 DECEMBER 1940 AT SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA,AS TH E

10TH MARINES AND ASSIGNED TO THE 2D MARINE BRIGADE

2D MARINE BRIGADE REDESIGNATED 1 FEBRUARY 1941 AS THE 2D MARINE DIVISION

ELEMENTS DEPLOYED TO ICELAND, JUNE 1941 - MARCH 194 2

DEPLOYED DURING JANUARY-NOVEMBER 1942 TO THE SOUTH PACIFI C

PARTICIPATED IN THE FOLLOWING WORLD WAR II CAMPAIGN S

GUADALCANAL

SOUTHERN SOLOMONS

TARAWA

SAIPAN

TINIAN

OKINAWA

REDEPLOYED DURING SEPTEMBER 1945 TO NAGASAKI, JAPAN

PARTICIPATED IN THE OCCUPATION OF JAPAN, SEPTEMBER 1945 - JUNE 194 6

RELOCATED DURING JUNE JULY 1946 TO CAMP LEJEUNE, NORTH CAROLIN A

1958 - 1989

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN THE LANDINGS IN LEBANON,JULY-OCTOBER 195 8

PARTICIPATED IN THE CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS, OCTOBER-NOVEMBER 196 2

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN THE INTERVENTION IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC,

APRIL-JUNE 196 5

PARTICIPATED IN NUMEROUS TRAINING EXERCISES THROUGHOUT THE 1970 S

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED AS PART OF THE MULTINATIONAL PEACEKEEPING FORCES IN LEBANON ,

AUGUST 1982 - FEBRUARY 1984

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN THE LANDINGS ON GRENADA, OCTOBER 1983

1990 - 1999

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN OPERATION SHARP EDGE, LIBERIA,AUGUST 199 0

PARTICIPATED IN OPERATIONS DESERT SHIELD AND DESERT STORM, SOUTHWEST ASIA ,

AUGUST 1990 -APRIL 199 1

71
ELEMENT PARTICIPATED IN OPERATION PROVIDE COMFORT, IRAQ,APRIL 199 1

ELEMENT PARTICIPATED IN OPERATION SAFE HARBOR, GUANTANAMO BAY ,

CUBA, NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 199 1

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN OPERATIONS RESTORE DEMOCRACY, SUPPORT DEMOCRACY ,

AND UPHOLD DEMOCRACY, HAITI, JULY-OCTOBER 199 4

ELEMENTS PARTICIPATED IN OPERATIONS ABLE MANNER AND ABLE VIGIL, FLORIDA STRAITS ,

AUGUST-OCTOBER 1994

72
10th Marines

HONORS

PRESIDENTIAL UNIT CITATION STREAME R

WORLD WAR II

TARAWA - 194 3

NAVY UNIT COMMENDATION STREAMER

SOUTHWEST ASIA

1990 - 1991

HAITIAN CAMPAIGN STREAMER

DOMINICAN CAMPAIGN STREAMER

WORLD WAR I VICTORY STREAMER WITH "WEST INDIES"

YANGTZE SERVICE STREAMER

MARINE CORPS EXPEDITIONARY STREAMER WITH TWO BRONZE STAR S

AMERICAN DEFENSE SERVICE STREAME R

ASIATIC-PACIFIC CAMPAIGN STREAMER WITH ONE SILVER AND ONE BRONZE STA R

WORLD WAR B VICTORY STREAME R

NAVY OCCUPATION SERVICE STREAMER WITH "ASIA"AND "EUROPE "

NATIONAL DEFENSE SERVICE STREAMER WITH TWO BRONZE STAR S

ARMED FORCES EXPEDITIONARY STREAME R

SOUTHWEST ASIA SERVICE STREAMER WITH THREE BRONZE STAR S

73
ISBN 0-16-050817- 7

9 780160 508172
The device reproduced on the back cove r

is the oldest military insignia in continuous use in the United States. It first

appeared, as shown here, on Marine

Corps buttons adopted in 1804. With the

stars changed to five points, the device

has continued on Marine Corps buttons

to the present day.