9781422287743

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THE U.S. MARINE CORPS

The U.S. Marine Corps is one of the world’s most effective fighting forces. Equipped with ships, vehicles, and aircraft, the Marines have always shown what it takes to be an elite member of the military—their greatest asset being their mental toughness. The U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) was formed in 1775, and as of June 2013, 202,433 people were enlisted as active duty in the Marines. In battle they have proved their mental toughness time and time again. During World War I, for example, over 13,000 Marines were killed or wounded in the trenches. Between the wars, Marines were sent to defend the Pacific Islands. Small units were on these islands when Japanese bombers attacked the U.S. Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. The subsequent Japanese offensive in the southwest Pacific captured most of New Guinea and part of the Solomon Islands. America had been taken by surprise, and they began a huge fight to push the Japanese back to their homeland. The Marines were asked to help capture the Pacific Islands from the Japanese and, in doing so, they fought in some of the bloodiest battles of World War II. Iwo Jima (February to May 1945), for example, was bought with the lives of 6,800 Marines and 900 sailors, and another 20,000 were wounded. Even when the war ended, the Marines did not rest for long. By 1950 they were back in action in the Korean War, helping to stop South Korea from

Marine recruits on the obstacle course at Parris Island, South Carolina. The Marine Corps has about 202,400 Marines on active duty.