History of U.S. Marine Corps Operations in World War II

I have recently uploaded my collection of U.S. Marine Corps Operations in World War II
this is a huge detailed five volume set ... At first I wasn't going to do this but after another member made the claim the US didn't do much during WWII I figure this was the best way to highlight our contribution and the great sacrifices of our fathers and grandfathers... I hope you all enjoy...

Volume 1 Pearl Harbor to Guadalcanal
Volume 2 Isolation of Rabaul
Volume 3 Central Pacific Drive
Volume 4 Western Pacific Operations
Volume 5 Victory and Occupation

reply to post by DaddyBare



I have copied those for later reading DB. Some of those battles were real meat grinders, your guys certainly gave it their all in the Pacific.

S F to you all.

Thanks for the thread...S&F

This was truly our greatest Generation.

Thank you for the thread and links. As an inactive Marine I am always interested in knowing more about our beloved Corps. Much of the info I already knew from one source or another but there is also so much more to the stories I have heard and this has quite a bit of meat to it. S+F to one of my favorite members!
Semper Fi!

Thank you for posting this info, I will definitely have some reading to do.
You apparently still have a high dedication to our Corp as do all Marines.
Semper Fi Brother.

reply to post by DaddyBare
I had an uncle (by marriage) that was a Chippewa from Michigan. He served proudly in Vietnam as a dog handler with the US Army.
His father served in WWII in the Army, and was pictured in a famous photo shaking hands with a Soviet soldier on the broken bridge over the River Elbe at Torgau. He is the rearmost American soldier in the photo in the link, the photo where they are shaking hands across the broken bridge.

Elbe River @ Torgau

His grandfather served with the Marines in the Pacific theater in WWII. The story that I was told about him was that he and some fellow marines were pinned down overnight in a shell hole facing the inevitable banzai attacks and were without water to drink. His grandfather volunteered to go find water, and came back unscathed with all the canteens full, a short time later, after venturing out through sniper fire. When they advanced against the Japanese the next day, his fellow Marines saw a shell hole partly filled with water and the bloated bodies of three Japanese soldiers. He said, "That's where I got the water last night."

reply to post by butcherguy


Ya see...
that's why they made sure everyone had their daily quinine pills...

bad water bad food biting insects... their fight was as much against nature as it was a very seasoned enemy

Semper Fi, thanks for the links ... Weapons co 1st Btn 6th Marines

reply to post by DaddyBare


S & F

I had these maps stashed away for debates with those who are of the "The US Didn't do much in WWII" ilk pundits. For the Eurocentric crowd WWII wasn't just fought in Europe! Daddybare I appreciate the attention to detail. I'll let these speak for themselves.

Japanese expansion WWII

US Marines beach landings WWII

Too many detractors of US participation always give us credit for D-Day the Sixth of June in Europe but either choose to ignore or are ignorant of the ferocity and shear brutality of what went on in the Pacific. Most are not aware of the magnitude in logistics for such a large theater not to mention the volume of landings that took place in the Pacific theater of operation that went on day after day, week after week, month in and month out, over and over again. The following video is of only one such landings, There were many many more that took place.

US Marines Beach Landing 1944

Semper Fi

reply to post by SLAYER69


Glad I gave you the opportunity to put those maps and photos to good use....
Of course detractors will never read the books or look at the photos...
so for them I'll just throw out a cartoon
youtu.be...

one of those most iconic scenes of ww2

yeah the marines didnt do much in world war 2

just one of many battles they fought

semper fi

reply to post by neo96


The famous picture taken by Rosenthal actually captured the second flag-raising event of the day. A U.S. flag was first raised atop Suribachi soon after it was captured early in the morning (around 10:20) of February 23, 1945...

Who they were can be found here

reply to post by DaddyBare


yep know all about that was going to put the picture in the thread but uploads of pictures seem to disabled at the moment.

when a person stops and thinks about how many people it took to get to that point and multiply that by every battle fought it adds more weight to those men and every other one who made that possible and the victory possible for word war 2.

there is no one in this country who i respect more than the marines and other servicemen and women of this country

going into harms way....one things for sure none will ever hear me trash talk the us military

suscribing for later.
I remember reading something interesting about the Tarawa invasion, how the USSR had informed the Japanese the time, date , and where. I think it was in "Battles Lost and Won".
thanks for the read.

reply to post by neo96


Day One... Dec 7th 1942...Pearl Harbor...

The Navy and Marine Corps had 2,086 officers and Enlisted men killed, the Army 194, as a result of the attack; 1,109 men of all the services survived their wounds.

Japanese losses.The enemy carriers recovered all but 29 of the planes they had sent out; ship losses amounted to five midget submarines; and less than a hundred men were killed....

Hell of a way to learn your in a war....

Thank you for the post. its always nice to she corps get the proper respect that we deserve. The reason Marines today carrie the honor and the pride we do is because of the things our corps has accomplished in every american war since 1775. Anyone who thinks that the U.S. did nothing in WWII obviously has never met a Marine. The Marines that fought in WWII are some of the toughest and bravest Marines ever to wear the eagle globe an anchor. Marines like Lewis "Chesty" Puller, and John Bassilone only give credence to the hard fighting the Marines experienced in the pacific. I am a Marine Corps infantryman and fought in Operation Phantom Fury in Fallujah back in 2004. As bad as things got for us, i still would rather fight our modern enemy than have to go fight the Japenese in the Pacific during WWII. So again thank you for the post and SEMPER FIDELIS.

For those who dont know...
John Basilone (November 4, 1916 – February 19, 1945) was a United States Marine Gunnery Sergeant who received the Medal of Honor for his actions at the Battle of Guadalcanal during World War II. He was the only enlisted Marine in World War II to receive the Medal of Honor and the Navy Cross.

Lieutenant General Lewis Burwell "Chesty" Puller (June 26, 1898 – October 11, 1971) was an officer (General) in the United States Marine Corps. Puller is the most decorated U.S. Marine in history

Navy Cross w/ 4 award stars (That's 5 of them)
Distinguished Service Cross
Silver Star
Navy Presidential Unit Citation w/ 5 service stars

plus about 2 dozen others... but I only list the top row of his fruit salad

reply to post by usmc0311


Ya know I had a job offer to go back to Camp St Mere / FOB St Mere Eglise...
they need a civilian training officer over there...
paid $110,000 per year....

Of course the civilians they want to train are the MEK... Makes me wonder what the TPTB got planned next???

Here's the job posting

Additional Duty Location Info:


1 vacancy - OA - The Middle East




You will direct overall planning and operations. Develop operational concepts and plans to expand or change future operations. Lead a team of specialists involved a variety of planning, operations, and logistics functions. Interpret the concepts and objectives of senior logisticians to determine impact on mission. Oversee storage, maintenance, upgrading of equipment, small arms maintenance support, and stay-behind equipment accountability. Track equipment readiness and coordinate readiness reporting requirements with subordinate units. Identify specific requirements for money, manpower, materiel, facilities, equipment, and services. Initiate corrective actions and ensure coordination of actions with government and contractor personnel. Coordinate efforts to improve quality of life for unit personnel including life support, mobility, and communications.

and this is why I didn't apply

This position is "Emergency Essential." You may be required as a condition of employment to take the series of anthrax vaccine immunizations to include annual boosters. May include other immunizations that may be required for this position/for a position you may fill as an emergency essential alternate. Failure to take immunizations may lead to your removal from position or separation from Federal service. Vacancy will be subject to on-call and irregular work hours. Selection for assignment to this position requires passing an appropriate physical examination for overseas duty. Selection for assignment to this position will require annual physical examinations.

Originally posted by DaddyBare
For those who dont know...
John Basilone (November 4, 1916 – February 19, 1945) was a United States Marine Gunnery Sergeant who received the Medal of Honor for his actions at the Battle of Guadalcanal during World War II. He was the only enlisted Marine in World War II to receive the Medal of Honor and the Navy Cross.

Lieutenant General Lewis Burwell "Chesty" Puller (June 26, 1898 – October 11, 1971) was an officer (General) in the United States Marine Corps. Puller is the most decorated U.S. Marine in history

Navy Cross w/ 4 award stars (That's 5 of them)
Distinguished Service Cross
Silver Star
Navy Presidential Unit Citation w/ 5 service stars

plus about 2 dozen others... but I only list the top row of his fruit salad

edit on 19-9-2011 by DaddyBare because: (no reason given)

Joining them is Dakota Meyer, who ran a Hadji gauntlet FOUR times to rescue his fellow Marines and the Afghan soldiers they were training. Mad respect for the first Marine to earn the Medal of Honor since Vietnam (that lived to tell about it.)

Meyer ran another gauntlet on Wall Street today when he bravely sidestepped a few dozen protesters in order to get inside the building in time to ring the opening bell. Ooh Rah.

Semper Fi Marines.

Americans patting themselves on the back again.

I think the point of that other thread was that America didn't do as much as your history and movies try to make it seem compared with other nations.

America likes to think it won the war all by itself.

We know you did a lot and we couldn't have won without you, but do you have to keep reminding us?

Russia lost far more people, and suffered far more than any of us, and we would have lost without them also, but do we hear them going on about it all the time?

You seem to have this impression that you were in the war to save other people, which is nonsense. Britain fought off the Nazis all by themselves before you even joined the war. The US joined the war for its own financial reasons. America is not the great saviour of the world, it is its exploiter.