The United States Marine Corps

The United States Marine Corps is an expeditionary and amphibious force in readiness with a history that spans almost the entire course of US history. The first American marines served under either continental or state employ during the War for American Independence. Although the Marine Corps celebrates 10 November 1775 as its official birthday, it was not until 11 July 1798 that the Marine Corps became a permanent military branch. Marines are an interesting amalgam of military and naval. Like their British Royal Marine ancestors, U.S. Marines serve with the navy afloat but they are not sailors. They have military features and organization but are not just soldiers either. Conceptually speaking, they are best thought of as naval infantry: soldiers who serve on ships at sea, not sailors who fight ashore. During the Barbary Wars (1801–1815), the War of 1812, and the American Civil War, detachments of Marines served aboard most naval vessels as the nucleus of landing parties, and safeguards against potentially mutinous crews. After the Spanish American War (1898–1899), the navy tasked the Marines with studying advanced base seizure and defense which would eventually lead to the Marine Corps adopting amphibious landings as one of their primary missions. The Marines, along with the navy, grew in size and function as the United States increased its sphere of influence around the globe and became a great maritime power just before the Great War. From World War I to the present day, the US Marine Corps has accrued a rich history of counterinsurgency and conventional campaigns. World War II is to this date still the Corps’ largest war which saw it expand to 485,000 Marines. Since the 1952 Douglas-Mansfield Act the Corps has hovered between 170,000 and 200,000 annually. Their present Marine Air Ground Task Force organization has allowed them to remain flexible and reliable to help the navy protect American interests and serve US policy and strategic objectives abroad. Significant participation in the Korean War, Vietnam War, Gulf War, and the more recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are examples of this. Having fought in every major American war, and most of its smaller ones, the US Marine Corps has attracted a robust amount of scholarly attention. What follows is a selected collection of some of the most notable and useful works. It is by no means exhaustive but should serve as a starting point for researchers.