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US Marine Corps’ 240th anniversary

by Jonn Lilyea••24

240 years ago today the Naval Committee of the Continental Congress was directed to raise two battalions of Marines, and so we got the naval infantry. The first amphibious assault by the new Marine Corps occurred in the Bahamas on March 3, 1776 when the force seized Fort Montague and Fort Nassau, a British ammunition depot and naval port in New Providence.

So Happy Birthday, Marine Corps. From the Halls of Montezuma to shores of Tripoli. From the peak of Suribachi to the alleyways of Fallujah.

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24 thoughts on “US Marine Corps’ 240th anniversary”

  2. Cripes. Another one? Seems like only last year at this time they celebrated an anniversary.

    1. Marines only display 4 colors: blue, green, khaki and red. Happy Birthday fellow Jar Heads living and dead.

    2. Chip:

      With your gift, the Marines can get back to traditionally marked maps and a 5 minute brief, rather than 2 hours of uselessness via PowerPoint.

      Semper Fi!

  6. Thirteen years ago today, my wife and I were in a big hotel in Nevada that was full of Marines. Every one of those young Marines were polite and reflected credit upon the Marine Corps. Happy Birthday Devil Dogs.

  8. Marines, the only grunts that show off about half as much as the friggin’ airborne !!!
    Happy Birthday to the finest bunch of cutthroat killers in history !!!

  10. The President of the United States wishes the United States Marine Corpse a happy anniversary and he’d like to remind each Marine that it’s raining in D.C.–so keep those umbrellas at the ready.

  12. Happy Birthday, Marines.

    If I had to distill the essence of the word “Marine” into a few short paragraphs, I could do no better than these written by LtCol Michael Strobl, USMC (Ret). He wrote the report that eventually evolved into the movie “Taking Chance”, his story about escorting the remains of LCpl Chance Phelps to his final resting place.

    After the funeral and burial ceremony, a wake was held at the local VFW. The story goes on:

    “After a while we all gathered in the Chance Phelps room for the formal dedication. The Post commander told us of how Chance had been so looking forward to becoming a Life Member of the VFW. Now, in the Chance Phelps Room of the Dubois, Wyoming post, he would be an eternal member. We all raised our beers and the Chance Phelps room was christened.

    Later, as I was walking toward the pool tables, a Staff Sergeant from the Reserve unit in Salt Lake grabbed me and said, “Sir, you gotta hear this.” There were two other Marines with him and he told the younger one, a Lance Corporal, to tell me his story. The Staff Sergeant said the Lance Corporal was normally too shy and modest to tell it but now he’d had enough beer to overcome his usual tendencies.

    As the Lance Corporal started to talk, an older man joined our circle. He wore a baseball cap that indicated he had been with the 1st Marine Division in Korea. Earlier in the evening he had told me about one of his former commanding officers; a Colonel Puller.

    So, there I was, standing in a circle with three Marines recently returned from fighting with the 1st Marine Division in Iraq and one not so recently returned from fighting with the 1st Marine Division in Korea. I, who had fought with the 1st Marine Division in Kuwait, was about to gain a new insight into our Corps.

    The young Lance Corporal began to tell us his story. At that moment, in this circle of current and former Marines, the differences in our ages and ranks dissipated—we were all simply Marines.

    His squad had been on a patrol through a city street. They had taken small arms fire and had literally dodged an RPG round that sailed between two Marines. At one point they received fire from behind a wall and had neutralized the sniper with a SMAW round. The back blast of the SMAW, however, kicked up a substantial rock that hammered the Lance Corporal in the thigh; only missing his groin because he had reflexively turned his body sideways at the shot.

    Their squad had suffered some wounded and was receiving more sniper fire when suddenly he was hit in the head by an AK-47 round. I was stunned as he told us how he felt like a baseball bat had been slammed into his head. He had spun around and fell unconscious. When he came to, he had a severe scalp wound but his Kevlar helmet had saved his life. He continued with his unit for a few days before realizing he was suffering the effects of a severe concussion.

    As I stood there in the circle with the old man and the other Marines, the Staff Sergeant finished the story. He told of how this Lance Corporal had begged and pleaded with the Battalion surgeon to let him stay with his unit. In the end, the doctor said there was just no way—he had suffered a severe and traumatic head wound and would have to be med’evaced.

    The Marine Corps is a special fraternity. There are moments when we are reminded of this. Interestingly, those moments don’t always happen at awards ceremonies or in dress blues at Birthday Balls. I have found, rather, that they occur at unexpected times and places: next to a loaded moving van at Camp Lejeune’s base housing, in a dirty CP tent in northern Saudi Arabia, and in a smoky VFW post in western Wyoming.

    After the story was done, the Lance Corporal stepped over to the old man, put his arm over the man’s shoulder and told him that he, the Korean War vet, was his hero. The two of them stood there with their arms over each other’s shoulders and we were all silent for a moment. When they let go, I told the Lance Corporal that there were recruits down on the yellow footprints tonight that would soon be learning his story.”

    Semper Fi, Marines, both past and present, wherever you may be.

  14. Happy Birthday to all Marines from a Navy Seabee brother who has served beside you and supported you. Thank you very much Marines saved our ass several times and I know we helped them a little bit. This is a true thank you and we Seabees share a true Bond in brother hood. Marines Rock!!!!!

  15. I am a Navy man, but I love the USMC!

    Happy Birthday Brother Marines!

    4 years ago today, my retirement ceremony was held!

  16. So they start this new military unit, and the very first thing it gets to do is invade the Bahamas.

    What does the Army get? Defense of a goofy cow pasture called Bunker Hill.

    Mom always liked you better, jarheads…

  19. WE THE WILLING
    LEAD BY THE UNKNOWING
    HAVE DONE THE IMPOSSIBLE, FOR THE UNGRATEFUL
    WE HAVE DONE SOME MUCH, FOR SO LONG, WITH SO LITTLE
    WE ARE NOW QUALIFIED TO DO ANYTHING WITH NOTHING

    I loved being around every low life, ill tempered, sarcastic, arrogant, violent, obnoxious, fuck I ever served with. I trusted no one more, before or since, to do what needed to be done.

    Semper Fi my brothers

    “Show me a hero and I’ll show you a bum.”
    ― Gregory Boyington

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