Courage is endurance for one moment more…
- Unknown Marine Second Lieutenant in Vietnam
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Showing posts with label US Marine Corps. Show all posts
Showing posts with label US Marine Corps. Show all posts
Monday, November 9, 2020
Happy 245th United States Marine Corps
Tuesday, November 10, 2015
240 Years of the US Marine Corps
The US Marine Corps Silent Drill
For the last 240 years US Marine Corps was and continues to be a brotherhood of a very special brand of men, and relatively recently, women. They are the few, the brave. As Gen. William Thornson of the US. Army once said, There are only two kinds of people that understand Marines: Marines and the enemy. Everyone else has a second-hand opinion.
The Marines are the first to go and the last to leave. Their courage and bravery is legendary. And they are never "ex", not even "former" Marines. A Marine is a Marine for life. He only wears a different uniform when not in active duty anymore. But only the Marines know why.
Happy 240th Birthday US Marine Corps!
Monday, February 23, 2015
Rising the Flag on Iwo Jima
Seventy years ago, on February 23, 1945, five United States Marines and one United States Navy corpsman planted the American flag on the peak of Mount Suribachi on the Japanese Island of Iwo Jima.
Not many people know that the 37-square-foot flag actually came from Pearl Harbor. The flag was discovered in a Pearl Harbor Navy depot only a few months earlier by a young Navy officer, Allan Wood.
The invasion of Iwo Jima began on February 19, 1945, after the fall of Philippines. Iwo Jima was used by the Japanese as an early warning station. The island was heavily fortified. The Japanese infantry kept secure positions in their underground bunkers and "pillboxes" that were connected by a myriad of tunnels. The bloody and difficult battle resulted in heavy casualties among the invading US Marines. It lasted until March 26, 1945, but the peak was taken only four days after landing.
The iconic shot was taken by an Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal who received a 1945 Pulitzer Prize for Photography.
This image inspired Felix de Weldon to sculpt the United States Marine Corps Memorial that was dedicated to all Marines who lost their lives in wars, past and present. The Monument is located near the Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, DC. It is a constant reminder of an incredible sacrifice and bravery of men who loved their country more than anything else.
By Dominique Allmon
Image source here
Thursday, November 10, 2011
The Few. The Proud. The Marines!
Some people wonder all their lives if they've made a difference.
The Marines don't have that problem. - Ronald Regan
Happy 236th Birthday US Marine Corps! Thank you for your service, brave men and women! Thank you for your service and sacrifice!
Monday, May 30, 2011
Happy Memorial Day!
Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima by Joe Rosenthal, 1945
Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for all those who have died in service for the United States of America. There are many stories about its actual origins, with over two dozen cities and towns claiming to be the birthplace of the Memorial Day celebrations.
Memorial Day was officially proclaimed on 5 May 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, in his General Order No.11, and was first observed on 30 May 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery.
The first state to officially recognize the holiday was New York in 1873. By 1890 it was recognized by all of the northern states. The South refused to acknowledge the day, honoring their dead on separate days until after World War I when the holiday changed from honoring just those who died fighting in the Civil War to honoring Americans who died fighting in any war.
Memorial Day is now celebrated in almost every State on the last Monday in May, though several southern states have an additional separate day for honoring the Confederate war dead: January 19 in Texas; April 26 in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi; May 10 in South Carolina; and June 3 (Jefferson Davis' birthday) in Louisiana and Tennessee.
The image above is one of the most indelible images of World War II as well as a Pulitzer winner, this photo of U.S. Marines raising their flag atop Mount Suribachi during the Battle of Iwo Jima is widely used as a tribute to American heroism. Of the six men in the shot, three died in the battle. The image was used to create the USMC War Memorial near Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, D.C.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Happy Birthday US Marine Corps!
235 Years of Honor, Courage, and Commitment
Today, on November 10, United States Marine Corps celebrates its 235th birthday. On that day, in 1775 in Philadelphia, Captain Samuel Nicholas formed two battalions of Continental Marines. These battalions fought the British in the American Revolutionary War and were disbanded when the war ended in 1783.
The institution, however, was resurrected in 1798 and assigned to fight in a conflict with France. Since then, the mission of the Marine Corps has evolved with the changing military doctrine and the trends in American foreign policy.
In 1883, the Marines adopted a Latin motto “Semper Fidelis,” which means “always faithful.” The Marine Corps motto is known by most people in its the shortened form “Semper Fi.”
The Marine Corps has served in every American armed conflict and attained prominence in the 20th century when its theories and practices of amphibious warfare proved prescient and ultimately formed the cornerstone of the Pacific campaign of World War II.
By the mid-20th century, the Marine Corps had become the dominant theorist and practitioner of amphibious warfare. Its ability to rapidly respond on short notice to expeditionary crises gives it a strong role in the implementation and execution of American foreign policy.
Each year, on November 10th, Marines all over the world celebrate the birth of the Corps. Marines and their wives go to balls, with a formal cake-cutting ceremony and a solemn reading of Gen. John A. Lejeune’s birthday message, summarizing the history, mission, and traditions of the Marine Corps. The country is reminded of the valor, pride, and honor of the United States Marines.
Today, the Marine Corps' values of honor, courage, and commitment remain as strong as ever and Marines deployed all over the world uphold these values as they sacrifice their lives every day to defend the freedom and the Country. The few. The proud. They fight so that the rest of us can sleep in peace.
Happy Birthday Brave Men! And Women!
P.S.
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. So long as that spirit continues to flourish Marines will be found equal to every emergency in the future as they have been in the past, and the men of our Nation will regard us as worthy successors to the long line of illustrious men who have served as "Soldiers of the Sea" since the founding of the Corps. JOHN A. LEJEUNE, Major General Commandant
For more information about the US Marine Corps please click here
P.S.
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. So long as that spirit continues to flourish Marines will be found equal to every emergency in the future as they have been in the past, and the men of our Nation will regard us as worthy successors to the long line of illustrious men who have served as "Soldiers of the Sea" since the founding of the Corps. JOHN A. LEJEUNE, Major General Commandant
For more information about the US Marine Corps please click here
Saturday, October 23, 2010
A Duty to Remember the Fallen in Beirut
US Marines at Arlington National Cemetery
Section 59 on October 17, 2010
At approximately 6:22 a.m., on Oct. 23, 1983, a Muslim terrorist drove a yellow delivery truck into the lobby of the Marine Corps barracks at Beirut International Airport. The vehicle exploded with a force equivalent to 12,000 pounds of TNT, destroying the building and killing 220 Marines, 18 sailors and three soldiers. Additionally, 58 French paratroopers were killed in a separate attack just two minutes later as they were mobilizing to assist their fellow service members.
Since 1984, the remembrance ceremony has been an annual event of sorrow and celebration for the men who gave their lives during a peace keeping mission in Beirut.
On October 17, 2010, Veterans, families, friends and various dignitaries gathered under blue skies at section 59 in Arlington National Cemetery to remember their loved ones and brothers in arms.
“Most of our countrymen probably believe this global war on terror started on 9/11,” said Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. James T. Conway. “I don’t believe that for a moment. I believe it started in October of 1983 when we first saw a significant strike on the young men – Marine, Navy and Army, who were in that building in Beirut.”
During the ceremony, families of the fallen were called forward to lead everyone in the pledge of allegiance. Leaders, dignitaries and veterans spoke about the courage and sacrifice of all who were affected by the tragedy. Furthermore, the Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps detachment of Mount Vernon High School laid white roses on the graves of those who died that day. To conclude the ceremony, a remembrance wreath was placed by the memorial stone next to the Beirut Cedar tree in section 59.
“We hope you will be consoled in the knowledge that others remember, you are not forgotten and never will be,” said Carmella LaSpada, executive director of the White House Commission of Remembrance. “Love has brought us together today, a love for those we honor, and a love for our nation.”
This year, numerous guest speakers, including 28th commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. Paul X. Kelly, 29th commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. Alfred M. Gray, Jr., and Lebanese Ambassador Antoine Chedid were present to recognize the sacrifices of the veterans and their families, fulfilling the promise that they will never be forgotten.
“They lost their lives while in a peace keeping mission,” Chedid said. “I’m here to pay tribute to them for their bravery. They paid the ultimate sacrifice in the service of peace. Twenty-seven years later, their memory is still in our hearts.”
For the Marines, sailors soldiers who were there, the memory will forever remain etched in their minds.
Craig Renshaw, president of Beirut Veterans of America, said it’s important to remember the lives of the men who died that day. Most Marines knew at least one person who died. For them, the memory is going to be there forever, but it’s up to the chapters, those who were affected and a younger generation to remind others what happened when we suffered the first blow in the war on terror.
“Remembrance is not letting the memory of the guys who gave their lives be forgotten,” he said. “It’s all about them.”
Article and image source here
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