United States Marines

From the halls of Montezuma
To the shores of Tripoli
We fight our country's battles
In the air, on land and sea. . .

This first verse of the Marines' Hymn about sums it up. In every war since the American Revolution this elite corps has played a part, often with uncommon valor.

They were with our fighting ships during the American Revolution, perched on wooden platforms high in the rigging, pouring musket fire into the British. The "Camel Marines" marched six hundred miles across the North African deserts to suppress the Barbary pirates. 

They fought in the War 1812, the wars against the Seminoles, then at Veracruz and in California in our war with Mexico.

They were first shore in the Spanish-American War, helping to liberate Cuba from the oppressive Spanish yoke. And in all our Caribbean interventions they proved their ability to restore order, then administer whole islands with justice and enlightenment.

Many Americans remember the headlines as the "Devil Dogs" slugged their way into shell-shattered Belleau Wood in World War I. And even the youngest reader of his book will have heard of the Marine landings at Guadalcanal, Iwo Jima, and other fiercely contested Japanese strongpoints in World War II.

The Leathernecks were again heroic in Korea, and they still stand guard against the enemies of democracy in advance bases all over the world.

In this lively and readable history of the Marines, there is not a single word of fiction. The facts, dates, and accounts of Marine action are taken from unimpeachable official sources. This book should give young Americans an understanding of the role Marines have played in our country's survival, and they role they may yet need to play again in our endangered world.

Two colorful Marine historians have written this lively and authentic history of the United States Marines.

—from the dust jacket

The Marines Have Landed and Have The Situation Well In Hand.

Sometime the "situation" meant the suppression of pirates in Tripoli, sometimes an amphibious assault of an enemy-held island. But whatever their assignments over the years, each was done intelligently and well.

The battle-ready Marines are "first to fight" and represent the razor-edge of our diplomacy. The President can put them into action without a declaration of war. In more than two hundred landings on foreign soil they have enforced respect for American lives and the American flag. And how many wars they have prevented by acting swiftly and discreetly!

However, as Marine Commandant General David M. Shoup has said, "We teach men to fight, not hate." Frequently, when the fighting is over, this elite corps turns to friendly and creative administration, sometimes building schools and hospitals and modern sanitation facilities. Marines have proved to be bright as well as brave.

Their motto is Semper Fidelis, "always faithful". In all our wars since the American Revolution they have proved worthy of that motto.

Sterling North
General Editor

—from the book