“Old breed? New breed? There’s not a damn bit of difference so long as it’s the Marine Breed!”
LTGEN LEWIS B. “CHESTY” PULLER, USMC
250 years
- of the -
united states marine corps
For two and a half centuries, the United States Marine Corps has answered the call to defend our nation, embodying our motto, Semper Fidelis — Always Faithful — in every action. Since 1775, Marines have fought and won on battlefields around the world, safeguarded American ideals, and upheld the highest traditions of service.
This year, we honor the 250-year legacy of the Marine Corps, capturing the moments, missions, and Marines who have shaped history. From the earliest battles of the Revolutionary War to modern-day operations across the globe, this collection of stories and images reflects the spirit of those who have worn the Eagle, Globe, and Anchor.
As we look back on generations of Marines who have defended freedom, we also look ahead to the future of the Corps. The values of honor, courage, and commitment continue to inspire new generations, ensuring that the Marine Corps legacy endures for centuries to come.
semper fidelis.
master of ceremonies major general
james w. lukeman, usmc ( ret )
President & CEO, Marine Corps Heritage Foundation
guest of honor general
eric m. smith, usmc
39th Commandant of the Marine Corps
featured speakers
mr. virgil miller
Marine Corps Veteran & President, Aflac Incorporated colonel
nicole mann, usmc
Marine Corps Officer & NASA Astronaut general
joseph f. dunford, jr., usmc ( ret )
19th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
eric m. smith, usmc
39th Commandant of the Marine Corps
General Eric M. Smith, the 39th Commandant of the Marine Corps, has led Marines in combat across the globe and shaped the Corps’ future through key leadership and development roles, following a distinguished career of command at every level and senior service in the operating forces and the Pentagon.
Born in Kansas City, Missouri, and raised in Plano, Texas, General Smith graduated from Texas A&M University and was commissioned in 1987. He has commanded at every level, including Weapons Company, 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment during Operation Assured Response in Monrovia, Liberia; 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment during Operation Iraqi Freedom; and 8th Marine Regiment/ Regimental Combat Team 8 during Operation Enduring Freedom. He also served in Caracas, Venezuela as part of the U.S. Military Group. As a General Officer, he commanded U.S. Marine Corps Forces Southern Command, 1st Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force, and Marine Corps Combat Development Command. General Smith’s staff assignments as a General Officer include serving as the Director of Capability Development Directorate, Combat Development and Integration; Senior Military Assistant to both the Deputy Secretary of Defense and Secretary of Defense; Deputy Commandant for Combat Development and Integration; and the 36th Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps.
general
joseph f. dunford, jr., usmc ( ret ) 19th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
General Joseph F. Dunford, Jr., a Boston native and career infantry officer, culminated over four decades of service as the 19th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, guiding U.S. military strategy at the highest level after leading the Marine Corps as Commandant and commanding forces in Iraq and Afghanistan with distinction.
Retired General Joseph F. Dunford, Jr. served as the 19th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the nation’s highest-ranking military officer, and the principal military advisor to the President, Secretary of Defense, and National Security Council from Oct. 1, 2015, through Sept. 30, 2019. Prior to becoming Chairman, General Dunford served as the 36th Commandant of the Marine Corps. He previously served as the Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps from 2010 to 2012 and was Commander, International Security Assistance Force and United States Forces-Afghanistan from February 2013 to August 2014. A native of Boston, Massachusetts, General Dunford graduated from Saint Michael’s College and was commissioned in 1977. He has served as an infantry officer at all levels, to include command of 2nd Battalion, 6th Marines, and command of the 5th Marine Regiment during Operation Iraqi Freedom. General Dunford also served as the Assistant Division Commander of the 1st Marine Division, Marine Corps Director of Operations, and Marine Corps Deputy Commandant for Plans, Policies and Operations. He commanded I Marine Expeditionary Force and served as the Commander, Marine Forces U.S. Central Command. His Joint assignments include duty as the Executive Assistant to the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Chief of the Global and Multilateral Affairs Division (J-5), and Vice Director for Operations on the Joint Staff (J-3). A graduate of the U.S. Army Ranger School, Marine Corps Amphibious Warfare School, and the U.S. Army War College, General Dunford also earned master’s degrees in Government from Georgetown University and in International Relations from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.
colonel nicole mann, usmc Marine Corps Officer & NASA Astronaut
Colonel Nicole Mann, a U.S. Marine Corps officer and combat-tested F/A-18 pilot, commanded NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission and spent 157 days aboard the International Space Station, where she conducted groundbreaking research and two spacewalks in support of future deep space exploration.
Colonel Nicole Mann was selected by NASA in June 2013. She launched to the International Space Station (ISS) as commander of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft, Endurance, on October 5, 2022. The Crew-5 astronauts lived and worked aboard the ISS for nearly six months as part of Expedition 68. During their mission, Crew-5 contributed to hundreds of experiments and technology demonstrations, including cardiovascular health, bioprinting, and fluid behavior in microgravity to prepare for human exploration beyond low-Earth orbit and to benefit life on Earth. After splashing down safely in their Dragon spacecraft off the coast of Tampa, Florida, on Saturday, March 11, 2023, NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 completed the agency’s fifth commercial crew rotation mission to the International Space Station. The international crew of four spent 157 days in orbit. Mann conducted two spacewalks totaling 14 hours, 02 minutes. The California native holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering. Mann is a Colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps and served as a combat fighter pilot and test pilot in the F/A-18 Hornet and Super Hornet. She deployed twice aboard aircraft carriers in support of combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. She is the first indigenous woman from NASA to go to space. She is registered with the Wailacki of the Round Valley Indian Tribes.
mr. virgil miller
Marine Corps Veteran & President, Aflac Incorporated
Virgil Miller, President of Aflac Incorporated and Aflac U.S., is a visionary leader and U.S. Marine Corps veteran whose 30-year industry career has been defined by innovation, strategic growth, and a steadfast commitment to delivering exceptional customer experiences while shaping the future of insurance.
In this role at Aflac, his footprint includes aspects of Aflac’s Inc and Japan businesses, while supporting key companywide profitable growth and efficiency initiatives and driving the evolution of product and service offerings to meet market needs. He also continues to serve in his role as President of Aflac U.S. where he is responsible for all aspects of strategy and operations in the U.S. market. Virgil is known as a champion for driving growth and innovation and is passionate about delivering caring customer experiences while furthering the unique distribution and employee culture that sets Aflac apart. Virgil joined Aflac in 2004 and was quickly recognized as a visionary with a strong ability to motivate teams and achieve results. During his 20-year tenure with the company, he has led in every area and held roles of increasing responsibility. With more than 30 years of industry experience, Virgil continues to be recognized with accolades and business honors to celebrate his leadership and accomplishments. He was named one of Columbia Business Monthly’s 50 Most Influential Hall of Fame in 2022, then named 2023’s Executive of the Year by the NFBPA and is the 2024 recipient of the Rainbow PUSH DEI Corporate Responsibility Award. Virgil served as a U.S. Marine and is a veteran of Operation Desert Storm. He holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Georgia College, a master’s degree in business management from Wesleyan College and a doctorate in humane letters from Gammon Theological Seminary. Virgil serves on the Board of Directors for Georgia Power, the Board of Trustees for PlanSource via Vista Equity Partners, the Georgia Chamber of Commerce Board of Governors and Directors, America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), the nonprofit parent of LIMRA and LOMA, LL Global, and the American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI).
major general james w. lukeman, usmc ( ret ) President & CEO, Marine Corps Heritage Foundation
Major General James W. Lukeman, a second-generation Marine, dedicated 40 years of distinguished service to the Corps, rising through the ranks to lead at the highest levels— from platoon commander to Commanding General—while shaping strategy, education, and global operations across an extraordinary military career.
Major General Lukeman retired from active duty on July 1, 2020 after 40 years of continuous active service. He was born in Beaufort, South Carolina and was raised in a Marine Corps family. He graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering and was commissioned through the NROTC program in 1980. He has commanded at every level including 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines. He also served as Assistant Chief of Staff, G-7 and G-3 for the 1st Marine Division in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom. As a General Officer, he served as Deputy Director for Strategy and Plans, J5, US Africa Command; Commanding General of the Second Marine Division; Commanding General, Training and Education Command; Assistant Chief of Staff, U/C/J-5, United Nations Command/Combined Forces Command/U.S. Forces Korea and Commanding General, U.S. Marine Corps Forces Korea; and Inspector General of the Marine Corps. Major General Lukeman is a graduate of the Marine Corps Amphibious Warfare School, Marine Corps Command and Staff College, and the National War College.
DEFINING YEARS SPONSORS
We extend our deepest thanks to our sponsors for supporting this historic tribute to 250 years of Marine Corps service— your generosity helps preserve the legacy, honor the heroes, and inspire the future of the Corps.
COL G. F. ROBERT HANKE, USMC
DAVID HUMPHREYS
THE FRED A. THOMAS FAMILY
250 years 1775 - 2025 reflect. honor.
1775 - 1800 BIRTH of the
The origin story of the U.S. Marine Corps is rooted in the American Revolution. Early in that conflict the Continental Congress realized it could not leave British sea power uncontested, and any American navy it built would also need American Marines to be effective. On November 10, 1775, Congress created the Continental Marines. The new Marine force was decentralized and distributed among the ships of the fleet while its center of gravity resided in Philadelphia near the seat of government. There, under early leaders like Captain Samuel Nicholas, the Continental Marines provided forces for an amphibious raid at New Providence, for the Penobscot Expedition, and for General George Washington’s New Jersey campaign. All the while, Marines distinguished themselves in some of the most famous actions of the Continental Navy at sea. Though the Continental Marines, along with the rest of the American naval establishment, ceased to exist after the conclusion of the revolution in 1783, rising tensions with the Barbary powers and France led the leaders of the fledgling United States to realize they could not do without a Navy any longer. As in the revolution, the Navy needed Marines. Thus, Congress established the U.S. Marine Corps on July 11, 1798. Soon thereafter, Marines made their value clear in the Quasi War with France that followed.
1775 1800
SPONSORED
BY
COL G. F. ROBERT HANKE, USMC
10 November
The Continental Congress authorized two battalions of Marines.
28 November Samuel Nicholas was commissioned as a captain of Marines by the Continental Congress. In 1776, Congress placed him “at the head of the Marines with the rank of Major.” He is traditionally regarded as the first Commandant of the Marine Corps.
3 March
A battalion of Marines and sailors, led by Captain Samuel Nicholas, landed on New Providence Island, captured the fort protecting Nassau, and seized stores to aid Washington’s army.
April
John Martin, a Black man, enlisted to serve as a Marine on the Continental brig Reprisal . He is recognized today as the first Black Marine.
5 September
The Marine Committee of the Continental Congress decreed the first distinctive Marine uniform: green coats with buff white facings, buff breeches, black gaiters, and a leather stock worn on the neck.
Samuel Nicholas
24 April
The Continental sloop Ranger defeated the British sloop of war HMS Drake off the coast of Ireland. Drake surrendered following an hour-long broadside of grape shot from the Ranger’s crew.
7 September
The last Continental Marine left the service following the end of the Revolutionary war.
AN ACT FOR ESTABLISHING AND ORGANIZING A MARINE CORPS
27 March Congress authorized a corps of Marines, totaling 6 officers and 310 enlisted Marines to serve aboard the six frigates that will comprise the U.S. Navy In the Navy Act of 1794.
11 July
President John Adams signed An Act for Establishing and Organizing a Marine Corps. It marked the rebirth of the Corps, this time named the United States Marine Corps.
31 March Marines established a Marine barracks to guard the Washington Navy Yard.
4 July
The Marine Band performs at City Tavern in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is the earliestknown public appearance by the band. 1778 1783 1794 1798
1801
The formal establishment of the U.S. Marine Corps in 1798 was followed by several important events that further defined the Corps in its early years. When the national capital moved from Philadelphia to the new federal District of Columbia in May 1800, the headquarters of the Marine Corps soon followed. In 1801, Marine Barracks, Washington was established at its current location, and is now “The Oldest Post in the Corps.” This permanent headquarters in the national capital brought a close association with the Presidency, one that continues to this day as the Marine Band plays at presidential events and Marine sentries stand guard at the White House. The primary function of the Corps in these years was to garrison the barracks in Navy Yards and to serve as Ships’ Guards aboard Navy vessels. Marines served with distinction at sea in the Barbary Wars and in the famous frigate duels of the War of 1812. On a few occasions Marines also distinguished themselves in operations apart from the Navy, such as General Andrew Jackson’s defense of New Orleans in 1815. The event which captured the imagination of the Corps more than any other was the expedition to Derna in 1805. A party of eight Marines led by Lieutenant Presley O’Bannon provided the backbone of the force in its long journey and led the way in battle. Earning such distinction apart from the Navy was the source of such great pride for the Marine Corps that “To the Shores of Tripoli” was added to the Corps’ colors, and later to the Marines’ Hymn.
IN HONOR OF ALL MEDAL OF HONOR RECIPIENTS
31 March
President Thomas Jefferson and Commandant Burrows ride on horseback to select the site for the Marine barracks at 8th & I.
31 October
The U.S. frigate Philadelphia ran aground while pursuing a small cargo ship and surrendered when surrounded by Tripolitan gunboats. The ship’s sailors and Marines were imprisoned in horrible conditions.
16 February
Navy Lieutenant Stephen Decatur, 52 sailors, and 8 Marines used the Intrepid to enter Tripoli harbor during the night and burned the captured Philadelphia.
29 November
27 April Supported by American warships, O’Bannon and his force assaulted and captured the fortress town of Derna in western Tripoli. Two Marines were killed; and Eaton and one Marine were wounded. 1801 1803 1804 1804 1805
Lieutenant Presley O’Bannon, William Eaton, seven Marines, and a few hundred mercenaries landed at Alexandria, Egypt, to lead an assault against Tripoli, 600 Miles away.
Rounding Cape Horn
March
First Lieutenant John Gamble and the Marine detachment aboard the U.S. frigate Essex became the first Marines to enter the Pacific Ocean when the ship rounded Cape Horn.
10 September Marines participated in Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry’s victory over the British fleet on Lake Erie, thus gaining permanent U.S. control of the Great Lakes.
24 August Marines and sailors beat back three British assaults during the closing stages of the Battle of Bladensburg in Maryland. The British subsequently occupied and burned much of Washington, D.C.
8 January Marines participated in the Battle of New Orleans, repulsing the British assault on Andrew Jackson’s lines. The British lost more than 2,000 soldiers, while the American forces suffered 13 casualties.
October
12 March Marines from the Boston Navy Yard subdued a riot at the state prison in Boston, Massachusetts. 1813
President Monroe appointed Brevet Major Archibald Henderson to be the Lieutenant Colonel Commandant. He is the fifth Commandant of the Marine Corps.
HENDERSON’S CORPS
1826
Archibald Henderson became the Lieutenant Colonel Commandant of the Marine Corps in 1820 and held that post until he passed away as Brevet Brigadier General in 1859. Henderson’s influence was most strongly felt because of his longevity as Commandant during the era from 1826-1850. The “Grand Old Man of the Marine Corps” left a very deep imprint on the culture, organization, and reputation of the Corps. He provided steady leadership through ten different Presidential administrations and sixteen Secretaries of the Navy. In that time, Henderson imposed very tight fiscal control on the Marine Corps and personally mentored every new officer commissioned into the service. Most importantly, he made sure the Marine Corps demonstrated its value to the nation by volunteering his Marines for landward expeditions rather than allowing them to be confined to purely naval roles. Henderson combed the Corps’ posts for manpower to build task-organized units to fight in the Creek and Seminole Wars, as well as the war with Mexico. Henderson personally led some of these operations, and in all cases promoted the Marine Corps by spreading word of the good deeds his Marines had done in the service of their nation. The service of Henderson’s Marines in General Winfield Scott’s campaign to capture Mexico City once again inspired the Corps to modify its colors, which then proudly proclaimed, “From Tripoli to the Halls of the Montezumas.”
Landing at Quallah Battoo, Sumatra,
1 May
The Mameluke hilt was first prescribed for Marine officers’ swords.
7 February
The frigate Potomac landed 250 Marines and sailors at Quallah Battoo, Sumatra, in retaliation for pirate attacks on American merchant ships. The force captured the pirate forts defending the town and then set fire to them.
30 June
Congress passed An Act for the Better Organization of the United States Marine Corps. The key provision stated that Marines were under naval jurisdiction unless detached by the President for service with the Army.
21 May
President Andrew Jackson accepted Commandant Henderson’s offer of a Marine regiment to assist the Army in fighting against the Creek and Seminole Indians in Georgia and Florida.
4 July Commandant Archibald Henderson ordered a change in the colors of the Marine uniform from green to blue with scarlet facings.
1826 1832 1834 1836 1840
29 November
Commodore Matthew Perry landed with 75 Marines and sailors in Liberia to combat the slave trade and piracy in the area.
18 October
President James Polk sent First Lieutenant Archibald Gillespie to California with secret orders to the American consul in California to seek annexation to the United States.
1843 1845
18 May
Marines and sailors sailed up the Rio Grande and assisted Army troops in establishing a position south of the river.
7 July
Marines and sailors landed at Monterey and occupied the town. California was proclaimed a part of the United States.
6 August – 13 September
Marines helped seize the fortress of Chapultepec in Mexico City and occupied the National Palace on the site of the “Halls of Montezuma.”
1846
1846
1847
1851
Through the middle of the 19th century, Marines remained an essential partner with the Navy in promoting the expansion of U.S. trade around the globe. Marines served with distinction in naval expeditions such as Commodore Matthew C. Perry’s efforts to peacefully open Japan to western trade in 1853 and 1854, as well as the bold seizure of Korean forts outside Seoul in 1871. In the U.S. Civil War, the demands of an extensive coastal blockade and riverine operations proved a daunting task for the U.S. Navy, which had to build and man an immense fleet to conduct these operations. The Marine Corps also shared in this problem. At times the manpower need was so great Marines were called upon to depart from their traditional shipboard roles, manning the great guns of the ships to make up for shortages of sailors. There was little manpower for the Corps to pursue special missions, an exception being the formation of a battalion as an offensive expeditionary force for the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron. In the peace which followed, with public attention largely captured by the war’s dramatic land battles, the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps went underappreciated. Some Marine officers understood the Corps suffered for lack of a distinct identity and public image and sought to correct the problem. This led to the adoption of the Eagle, Globe, and Anchor as the Marine Corps’ emblem in 1868 as well as the publication of the first history of the Corps in 1875. Such efforts to promote the Corps’ image continued in the years that followed, to include the adoption of the motto Semper Fidelis in 1883.
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14 July
Commodore Matthew Perry went ashore at Uraga, Japan, to open negotiations with the closed nation. One hundred Marines under Major Jacob Zeilin landed first to provide the honor guard for the Commodore’s arrival.
1853
16 – 22 November
A landing force of Marines and sailors captured the four barrier forts on the Pearl River outside of Canton after they fired on American ships. The landing force suffered 42 casualties during the operation.
1856
6 January
Brevet Brigadier General Henderson died in office at age 76. He has been known as the “Grand Old Man of the Marine Corps.”
1859
16 – 18 October
Abolitionist John Brown launched a raid on the arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia. First Lieutenant Israel Greene, leading 86 Marines, captured Brown in the arsenal’s firehouse following a bayonet assault.
1859
21 July
A Marine battalion of 12 officers and 353 enlisted participated in the First Battle of Bull Run in Northern Virginia.
1861
15 May
Corporal John F. Mackie distinguished himself in combat aboard the USS Galena in the Battle of Drewry’s Bluff, and later became the first Marine to receive the Medal of Honor.
1862
19 June
Marines under Orderly Sergeant Charles Young served one of the main guns on the Union steamer Kearsarge, which sank the Confederate raider Alabama off Cherbourg, France.
1864
5 August Marines served heavy guns and provided musket fire in support of Admiral David Farragut’s battle with forts and the Confederate ironclad Tennessee in Mobile Bay, Alabama. Eight Marines were awarded the Medal of Honor.
1864
15 January
A naval brigade composed of 400 Marines and 1,600 sailors from the Union North Atlantic Blockading Squadron participated in the ground assault on Fort Fisher.
1865
19 November
The Eagle, Globe, and Anchor was adopted as the official emblem of the U.S. Marine Corps.
1868
10 – 11 June
Four Marine officers and 105 enlisted Marines led a naval brigade in a landing on the banks of the Salee River near Inchon. They destroyed four large forts and captured hundreds of cannons after two days of fighting.
1871
The final decades of the 19th century marked an era of radical change within the naval services. The Navy began transitioning to the modern all-steam Navy, and some Navy officers began to question the need for Marines in such a fleet. They argued that the Navy was recruiting more disciplined sailors and planned to fight battles at greater and greater distances where Marine marksmen would be less relevant. Aboard these modern ships the Marines of the Ships’ Guards adapted, assuming responsibility for manning secondary batteries while Marine officers began to study new naval technologies such as mine and torpedo warfare. Throughout this era, Marines were also called upon to land in Egypt, Colombia, the Hawaiian Islands, Haiti, Samoa, China, and Nicaragua, to secure and protect several national interests. It was America’s war with Spain in 1898, however, which pointed towards a truly essential and distinct role for Marines in support of the Navy. The fleet blockading Santiago, Cuba required a coaling base to refuel, and a Marine battalion was formed to secure Guantanamo Bay for that purpose. Despite its success in Cuba, the Corps was unable to embrace this new role in practice because of the unanticipated demands of the nation’s growing global footprint in Asia and Latin America. The insurgency in the Philippines and intervention in the Boxer Rebellion in China demanded Marines and foreshadowed the nation’s enduring need for the Corps to serve as a force in readiness for expeditionary operations and small wars across the globe.
1876 1900
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3 April
A detachment of Marines arrived at Le Havre, France, aboard Constitution to serve as the honor guard for the American exhibit at the Universal Exposition in Paris.
1 October John Phillip Sousa was appointed as the 17th Leader of the Marine Band.
1883
The Marine Corps adopted Semper Fidelis (Always Faithful) as its official motto.
Alliance landing
18 January
In response to revolutionary activity in Colombia and the Isthmus of Panama, Marines from the gunboat Alliance landed at Colon to protect the Caribbean end of the railroad. They returned to the ship the following day.
1878 1880
1885
April
The Marine Corps created its first brigadesized force in history when Two Marine Battalions and a Navy unit formed in Colon in response to continuing unrest.
1885
at Colon, Panama
15 February
Twenty-eight Marines and 232 sailors died when the battleship Maine exploded and sank in the harbor of Havana, Cuba.
1 May Marines served on secondary gun batteries aboard ships in Admiral Dewey’s fleet during its victory over the Spanish fleet at the Battle of Manila Bay.
10 June
Lieutenant Colonel Robert Huntington’s First Marine Battalion landed at Guantanamo Bay to establish an advance naval base for the U.S. fleet.
14 June
Two companies of Marines advanced two miles and defeated a larger Spanish force at Cuzco Wells. Sergeant John H. Quick later received the Medal of Honor for signaling the fire support ship while under fire.
31 May Marines reached Peking to help defend the International Legations during the Boxer Rebellion.
15 July Private Dan Daly earned his first Medal of Honor while singlehandedly holding a barricade at the International Legations against a Chinese attack.
1898 1898 1898 1900 1900
1901 - 1925 FOUNDATIONS of the MODERN CORPS
1901 1925
The emergence of the United States as a global power at the opening of the 20th century constantly demanded the deployment of Marines for expeditionary operations in the Philippines, Dominican Republic, Panama, and Nicaragua. While Marines deployed in such missions having little to do with the U.S. Navy, reform-minded Navy officers sought to eliminate Marines from Navy ships. This effort culminated in a 1908 Executive Order issued by President Theodore Roosevelt terminating the role of Marines as part of ships’ crews. The loss of the Corps’ only unique mission distinguishing it from the Army was an existential threat, defeated only when Congress passed a law mandating that Marines remain part of the crews of all capital ships. This experience did motivate the Corps to pay greater attention to a new and unique expeditionary mission, the Advanced Base Force designed to secure forward bases for fleet operations. Recruiting efforts meanwhile turned toward distinguishing the Corps from the other services by highlighting Marines as “Soldiers of the Sea” and promising the opportunity to be “First to Fight.” The standing Advanced Base Force and continual expeditionary deployments were sustained commitments that could not be met by hastilyformed battalions, as had been the practice in the 19th century. Consequently, the Marine Corps organized into standing battalions, regiments, and eventually brigades. The value of these units was demonstrated in a host of interventions, but the greatest test came in France in 1918, where the Marines of the 4th Brigade distinguished themselves at Soissons, Belleau Wood, Mont Blanc, and St. Mihiel. The reputation the Marine Corps earned in World War I greatly improved the Corps’ public image and generated deep pride among Marines.
16 November Marines commanded by Major Littleton W.T. Waller assaulted the Filipino insurgent stronghold on the cliffs above the Sojoton River.
16 December Marine detachments were part of the “Great White Fleet” when it sailed from Hampton Roads, Virginia, on a 14-month voyage around the world.
20 August
First
Lieutenant Alfred A. Cunningham completed his solo flight and became the first Marine aviator.
24 – 25 October
A 40-Marine patrol defeated a night ambush by 400 Haitian rebels. Captain William Upshur and First Lieutenant Edward Ostermann received the Medal of Honor, while Gunnery Sergeant Dan Daily received his second Medal of Honor.
18 November Major Smedley Butler earned his second Medal of Honor while leading Marines in an attack on Fort Riviere in Haiti.
29 August
The National Defense Act authorized the Marine Corps to increase its personnel strength and established the Marine Corps Reserve.
1916
24 October
The 6th Regiment joined with the 5th Regiment in France to form the 4th Brigade (U.S. Marines). With additional U.S. Army units they formed the U.S. Army’s 2d Division.
1917
6 June
The 4th Brigade (U.S. Marines) counterattacked against the German advance at Belleau Wood. The Marine casualties that day–1,087 killed or wounded–exceeded the total losses suffered by the Marine Corps in its entire history up to that point.
1918
13 August
Private Opha May Johnson was the first woman to enlist in the Marine Corps.
1919 Marine aviators in Haiti and the Dominican Republic experimented with glidebombing techniques to support Marine Ground Operations.
30 June Major General John A. Lejeune becomes the 13th Commandant of the Marine Corps.
1918
1919 1920
1926 - 1950 INTERWAR INNOVATION and the
PACIFIC WAR
The decades after World War I began with the Marine Corps still searching for its special role in national defense, being split between Ships’ Guards; intervention in China; Small Wars in the Caribbean and Latin America; and, for a time, even guarding the U.S. Mail. Meanwhile, Lieutenant Colonel Earl “Pete” Ellis’s forward-thinking 1921 study, Advanced Base Operations in Micronesia, anticipated that the nation would need an amphibious assault force for a Pacific War with Japan. For the better part of the next two decades, Marines progressively developed amphibious doctrine, tactics, equipment, and experience. This provided the foundation for success in World War II, though many hard-fought lessons still had to be learned. Ultimately, it was the fighting spirit of the Marines that was decisive on a series of soon-to-be legendary battlefields, including Guadalcanal, New Georgia, New Britain, Tarawa, the Marshall Islands, Saipan, Guam, Tinian, Peleliu, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. The final campaigns of World War II brought that conflict to a close at staggering costs, but the Marine Corps immediately faced new challenges. The post-war drawdown was accompanied by a threat of the Corps’ abolishment as the military services consolidated into a new Department of Defense. The eruption of war in Korea, however, provided Marines with the opportunity to once again demonstrate their value. The Corps quickly formed a combat-ready airground brigade at Pusan and then conducted a masterful division-sized amphibious operation at Inchon. In the most dramatic demonstration of resolve and fighting spirit, the Marines at the frozen Chosin Reservoir prevailed against hopeless odds.
1926 1950
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21 March
The 4th Regiment landed at Shanghai and would remain there for 14 years.
25 July First Lieutenant Lewis B. “Chesty” Puller, while fighting in Nicaragua, earned the first of his five Navy Crosses.
14 November Marines at Quantico began work on the Tentative Landing Operations Manual . This manual would guide the Marine Corps’ planning for amphibious assaults in World War II.
15 January Ground and air elements of the Fleet Marine Force participated in Fleet Landing Exercise 1 at Culebra, Puerto Rico, to test the Marine Corps’ new amphibious doctrine.
1 June
The Marine Corps began recruiting Black men for segregated units on the orders of President Roosevelt and established a segregated training facility at Montford Point Camp outside of Jacksonville, North Carolina.
7 August
The 1st Marine Division landed on Guadalcanal and Tulagi, marking the first major American ground offensive in the Pacific Theater during World War II.
1927
1930
1933
1935
1942
1942
20 November
The 2d Marine Division launched an amphibious assault against Betio Island, Tarawa Atoll. The Marines engaged in brutal close combat for three days against Japanese Special Naval Landing Force troops to seize the Island.
1943
19 February V Amphibious Corps began the amphibious assault on Iwo Jima. Four days later Marines raised the flag atop Mount Suribachi.
1945
25 July
President Truman signed the National Security Act of 1947 into law confirming the Marine Corps as a separate service within the Navy Department and giving the Corps the primary responsibility for developing an amphibious warfare capability.
1947
1 December
The Marine Corps activated its first helicopter squadron, Marine Helicopter Squadron 1 (HMX-1), at Quantico, Virginia.
1947
December
Facing Chinese encirclement, the 1st Marine Division, reinforced by elements of the U.S. Army, British Royal Marines, and South Korean Army, staged an epic breakout from the Chosin Reservoir to the sea under subzero wintry conditions.
1950
1951 - 1975 EARLY COLD WAR and VIETNAM
As the Cold War began to take shape, the Corps proved ready for a different series of conflicts in which national objectives and nuclear realities made decisive military victory elusive. In the latter stages of the Korean War the battlefield began to resemble the trench warfare of World War I. Nevertheless, the Marine Corps remained innovative and was at the forefront of using new technologies such as the helicopter to transport equipment, casualties, and tactical formations on the battlefield. After Korea, Marines soon engaged in a series of interventions in the Middle East and Caribbean. In these operations, the Corps drew upon its Small Wars heritage where the close connection between ground forces and Marine aviation had first been forged. This concept had served Marines well in the Solomons and on Peleliu, as well as in the opening months of the Korean War, so that task-organized air-ground units became the standard mode of employment. This was formalized in doctrine as the Marine AirGround Task Force (MAGTF) in 1963. The Corps was again tested in Vietnam, where Marines took part from its earliest operations in 1965 until the final withdrawal ten years later. In the northernmost provinces of the Republic of Vietnam Marines fought enemy infiltration from the Ho Chi Minh Trial and across the Demilitarized Zone, as well as pitched battles to include Hue and Khe Sanh. All the while, the Marines in Vietnam again drew upon their Small Wars heritage to fight communist insurgents within the villages under the Combined Action Program. The Corps fought with honor and agility in a type of conflict that has now come to be thought of as hybrid war, preparing it for new challenges in the decades that would follow.
1951 1975
SPONSORED BY THE PUNARO GROUP
21 September Marine Helicopter Transport Squadron 161 began a new age of battlefield mobility when it transported 224 combatloaded Marines to occupy Hill 884 under combat conditions.
1951
28 June Congress determined that the Marine Corps would be composed of three Marine divisions and three Marine aircraft wings.
22 June President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed an executive order formally adopting an official seal for the U.S. Marine Corps.
23 May Sergeant Major Wilbur Bestwick was appointed as the first Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, the Commandant’s senior enlisted advisor.
15 – 16 July
More than 1,700 Marines landed at Beirut as part of the U.S. intervention during a crisis caused by political and religious tensions. Eventually, 6,000 Marines deployed to Lebanon before the United States withdrew on 18 October.
8 March
The 9th Marine Expeditionary Brigade, the first American ground combat unit deployed to Vietnam, arrived in Da Nang to defend the U.S. air base.
1952
1954
1957
1958
1965
28 April – 1 May
The 6th Marine Expeditionary Unit and 4th Marine Expeditionary Brigade landed in the Dominican Republic to establish security during political unrest.
1965
1 August
The Marine Corps established the Combined Action Program, which partnered a Marine infantry squad and South Vietnamese militia units to form combined action platoons (CAPs) to protect South Vietnamese villages.
1965
21 January
The 77-day siege of Khe Sanh began when North Vietnamese Army forces surrounded the remote Marine outpost and cut off land resupply routes.
1968
6 February
Marines recaptured the province headquarters building in the southern part of Hue after several days of intense urban combat. The Marines and South Vietnamese forces finally retook the entire city after nearly a month of brutal fighting.
1968
29 April
The 9th Marine Amphibious Brigade conducted Operation Frequent Wind, the evacuation of Americans, thirdcountry nationals, and some South Vietnamese officials and civilians from Saigon as North Vietnamese forces approached the city.
1975
1976 - 2000 FORCE IN READINESS for the JOINT TEAM
In the decades after the Vietnam War, combat ready and forward deployed Marine Air Ground Task Forces continued to prove their value numerous times, from the rapid seizure of Grenada to the frustrating peacekeeping operations in Beirut, where in 1983 an act of terrorism proved lethal on an unprecedented scale. Renewed focus on the Soviet threat brought new ideas which would ultimately bear fruit under the leadership of General Afred M. Gray, Jr. General Gray brought the Corps an intensified emphasis on combat effectiveness, Warfighting doctrine, and a concept of formal and informal Professional Military Education for Marines of all ranks. The fall of the Soviet Union began an era of great uncertainty and instability, but one in which Marines served across the full spectrum of conflict from a host of stability and humanitarian assistance operations in the 1990s, to the decisive application of force in Panama and the first Gulf War. Marines adapted to this change with new concepts such as the Strategic Corporal and Three Block War. This was also an era in which the 1986 Goldwater Nichols Act reshaped how the military services organized for operations. The joint command structure provided Marine generals with new opportunities for prominence within the Department of Defense, including at the helm of U.S. Central Command. With a more secure place in the national defense than had ever existed before, the Marine Corps was no longer a junior partner to the Navy, and even took a leading role in defining new interservice concepts such as “From the Sea” in 1994. The most telling indicator of the Corps’ security was the 1997 order ending the mission of providing Ship’s Detachments to the capital ships of the U.S. Navy.
1976 2000
SPONSORED BY AERODYNE INDUSTRIES
11 May
Brigadier General Margaret A. Brewer became the first female general officer in the Marine Corps.
1978
4 November 13 Marine guards were among the 53 Americans taken hostage when more than 500 Iranian protestors invaded the U.S. Embassy in Tehran. 1979
23 October A suicide truck bomb destroyed the building serving as a barracks and headquarters for Battalion Landing Team 1/8 in Beirut, killing 220 Marines and wounding 70.
1983
25 October
The 22d Marine Amphibious Unit, U.S. Army Rangers, and elements of the 82d Airborne Division conducted Operation Urgent Fury to rescue 1,000 stranded Americans and restore Grenada’s government.
1983
1 July
General Alfred M. Gray, Jr. was appointed as the 29th Commandant of the Marine Corps.
20 December Elements of 3d Battalion, 6th Marines and 2d Light Armored Infantry Battalion participated in Operation Just Cause. The Marine task force conducted security patrols for several months following the conclusion of the operation.
1987
1989
16 January
Marine aircraft participated in the Operation Desert Storm allied air campaign against targets in Iraq and Kuwait following Iraq’s failure to withdraw from Kuwait by the 15 January deadline.
1991
24 – 28 February
Marines attacked through the Iraqi Saddam Line on the Kuwaiti border toward Kuwait City during the Operation Desert Storm ground campaign, liberating Kuwait City and suffering 68 killed and 92 wounded.
9 December President Bush ordered the U.S. military to intervene in Somalia in response to a famine and civil war. The Marines landed in Mogadishu to secure airfields and ports for followon forces.
1991
1992
16 August
General Charles C. Krulak, 31st Commandant of the Marine Corps, announces changes to recruit training. The most significant will be the Crucible, a 54-hour event near the end of the boot camp cycle. 1995
1 September Marine Major General Carol A. Mutter was advanced to lieutenant general, becoming the first woman to hold that rank in any branch of the U.S. armed forces.
The GLOBAL WAR on TERRORISM and NEW HORIZONS
The terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 signified not just the start of a new century, but also an entirely new security paradigm for the United States. The foreign policy and strategy changes that resulted meant a sustained military investment in the Middle East. The Marine Corps was ready for the heavy demands that would be placed upon it to fight and win in Iraq and Afghanistan in a range of activities from decisive combat operations to counterinsurgency. The performance of the Marines projecting combat power deep inland to Kandahar and Baghdad was a product of their expeditionary nature, combat leadership, and the heroism of this new generation of Marines. These feats and the battles which followed added names like Helmand Province and Fallujah to the distinguished lineage of the Corps. Though many Marines deployed to the deserts of Southwest Asia for the better part of a career without ever having served aboard the ships of the U.S. Navy, the bond between the naval services has remained strong and the emergence of a blue-water threat in the South China Sea has driven the Corps to yet another strategic reorientation. Without abandoning the MAGTF, the Corps has turned back to its naval roots with Force Design and Expeditionary Advanced Base Operations, where its culture of innovation, forward deployment, and combat readiness places it at the tip of the spear for confronting tomorrow’s threats.
2001 2025
SPONSORED BY GENERAL DYNAMICS
25 November
The 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) landed by air in Afghanistan and established Camp Rhino at an airfield near Kandahar.
2001
20 – 21 March
I Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF) crossed the Kuwait border into Iraq. The 1st Marine Division seized key facilities in the Rumaila oil fields, preventing the Iraqi Army from sabotaging the nearly 500 oil wells. 2003
8 November
U.S. Marines began Operation Phantom Fury. The operation’s mission was to surround the city of Fallujah and kill or capture all Al Qaeda in Iraq insurgents entrenched within the city, including the terrorist leader Abu Musab alZarqawi. 2004
15 April
General Peter Pace, USMC, was nominated as the first Marine to serve as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
28 October
The Marine Corps received approval to create the Marine Corps Special Operations Command component, abbreviated as MARSOC, to perform special operations as part of the U.S. Joint Special Operations Command.
2005
2005
January
President Bush presented the Medal of Honor to Cpl. Jason L. Dunham’s family. Cpl. Dunham, who died of wounds sustained in combat in Iraq in April 2004, was the first Marine to receive the Medal of Honor for any action since 1970.
2007
February –December Marines of the 2d Marine Expeditionary Brigade participated in the Battle of Marjah in Afghanistan, aimed at eliminating the last Taliban stronghold in Helmand Province.
2010
2016 Marine air units operating from the sea conducted sustained strikes on Islamic State positions in Libya during Operation Odyssey Lightning.
March
The Commandant of the Marine Corps, General David H. Berger, introduces Force Design 2030. The plan’s aim is to modernize the Marine Corps to better prepare it for the conflicts of the future. The program was renamed Force Design in 2023.
2016
2020
10 November
The United States Marine Corps celebrates its 250th Birthday.
26 August
A suicide attack killed 11 Marines, one Navy Corpsman, one soldier, and at least 160 Afghan civilians at the Hamid Karzai International Airport. The Marines were serving at the airport in support of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. 2021 2025
“This high name of distinction and soldierly repute we who are Marines today have received from those who preceded us in the Corps...
...With it we have also received from them the eternal spirit which has animated our Corps from generation to generation and has been the distinguishing mark of the Marines in every age.”
MAJOR
GENERAL JOHN A. LEJEUNE, COMMANDANT,
1921
TABLE SPONSORS
RICHARD AND DANIELLE BOUDRIA
RICHARD AND CHERYL MOXLEY
DAVID STULB
A.J. AND TINA LAHASZOW
BURKE WHITMAN
ASSOCIATE SPONSORS GEORGE
EASTMENT
HEATHER ICHORD PAUL KALSBEEK
MR. AND MRS. JAMES D. KING GLENN KRAMER
RICHARD SPENCER
OUR LEADERSHIP & TEAM
MajGen James W. Lukeman, USMC (Ret), President & CEO
Ms. Jennifer Vanderveld, Chief Operations Officer
Mrs. Sara Hogan, Senior Development Manager
Mrs. Stephanie Grooms, Marketing Manager
Mrs. Nicole Gomez, Events & Support Services Manager
Mrs. Sharon Hughes, Executive Assistant/SFMP Manager
Mrs. Sabrina Linnehan, Office Manager
Mr. Joshua Craig, Data And Systems Director
Ms. Gayle Union, Estate Administration & Gift Planning Manager
Ms. Jessica Copon, Theater & Rifle Range Supervisor
Mrs. Claudyne Gardiner, Development Services Supervisor
Ms. Melissa Velez Nazario, Development Coordinator
Ms. Vichara Nginn, Development Services Assistant
Mrs. Sommer Varnell, Development Services Assistant
Alex Cardenas, Theater & Rifle Range Associate
Mason Leon, Theater & Rifle Range Associate
Max Leon, Theater & Rifle Range Associate
Clara Pattay, Theater & Rifle Range Associate
Mrs. Sarah Dillenbeck, Special Events Coordinator
Ms. Kenya Gadsden, Special Events Coordinator
Ms. Victoria Iiams, Special Events Coordinator
OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Gen Gary Thomas, USMC (Ret), Chairman Of The Board
Mr. Burke Whitman, Vice Chairman
DIRECTORS
LtCol David B. Armstrong, USMC (Ret)
Ms. Linda Bammann
SgtMaj Mike Barrett, USMC (Ret)
LtGen David G. Bellon, USMC (Ret)
LtCol Michael Geffroy, USMC (Ret)
Mr. Richard Hartnack, Treasurer
Ms. Kristin Houston
Ms. Heather Ichord
Mr. B. Todd Jones, Secretary
SgtMaj Carlton W. Kent, USMC (Ret)
LtCol A.J. Lahaszow, USMC (Ret)
Col Steven P. Logan, USMCR (Ret)
MajGen Arnold L. Punaro, USMCR (Ret)
Mrs. Susan M. Rocco
Mr. David L. Stulb
Gen Thomas D. Waldhauser, USMC (Ret)
“The raising of that flag on Suribachi means a Marine Corps for the next 500 years.”
JAMES FORRESTAL, SECRETARY OF THE
NAVY