1st Battalion, 10th Marines (1/10) is an

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

battalion composed of four firing batteries and a headquarters battery. The battalion is stationed at

Camp Lejeune Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune () is a United States military training facility in Jacksonville, North Carolina. Its of beaches make the base a major area for amphibious assault training, and its location between two deep-water ports ( Wilming ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

and falls under the command of

10th Marine Regiment The 10th Marine Regiment is an artillery regiment of the United States Marine Corps based at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. They fall under the command of the 2nd Marine Division and the II Marine Expeditionary Force. Subordina ...

, part of 2d Marine Division. Its primary weapon system is the M777A2 155mm lightweight howitzer.

Mission

The unit's mission is to provide direct artillery support for 2d Marine Division in time of conflict. That support may come in traditional fashion, i.e. artillery support to maneuver forces, or by providing batteries to serve as provisional rifle companies.

Current units

Headquarters Battery In United States Army units, a Headquarters and Headquarters Company (HHC) is a company (military unit), company-sized military unit, found at the battalion level and higher. Considered one unit, a Headquarters and Headquarters Company is essent ...

Battery Battery most often refers to: * Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power * Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact Battery may also refer to: Energy source *Automotive battery, a device to provide power t ...

A (Alpha Battery) * Battery B (Bravo Battery) * Battery C (Charlie Battery) * Battery D (Delta Battery) *Battery R (Romeo Battery)

History

World War II

The unit was activated on November 1, 1940, at

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United Stat ...

, as 1st Battalion, 10th Marines (1/10) and was assigned to the 2d Marine Brigade,

Fleet Marine Force The United States Fleet Marine Forces (FMF) are combined general- and special-purpose forces within the United States Department of the Navy that perform offensive amphibious or expeditionary warfare and defensive maritime employment. The Flee ...

. The 2d Marine Brigade was renamed the 2d Marine Division on February 1, 1941. During January 1942, 1/10 was deployed to

American Samoa American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the Internationa ...

and detached from the 2d Marine Division. In November 1942, the unit was redeployed to Guadalcanal and attached to

11th Marines The 11th Marine Regiment is an artillery regiment of the United States Marine Corps based at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. Known as the "Cannon Cockers", the regiment falls under the command of the 1st Marine Division and the I M ...

1st Marine Division The 1st Marine Division (1st MARDIV) is a Marine division of the United States Marine Corps headquartered at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. It is the ground combat element of the I Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF). It is th ...

, Fleet Marine Force. In December 1942, the unit was reassigned to 9th Marines. 1st Battalion, 10th Marines participated in the following

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

campaigns: * Guadalcanal * Battle of Tarawa *

Battle of Saipan The Battle of Saipan was a battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, fought on the island of Saipan in the Mariana Islands from 15 June to 9 July 1944 as part of Operation Forager. It has been referred to as the "Pacific D-Day" with the ...

Battle of Tinian The Battle of Tinian was a battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, fought on the island of Tinian in the Mariana Islands from 24 July until 1 August 1944. The 8,000-man Japanese garrison was eliminated, and the island joined Saipan ...

* Battle of Okinawa and subsequently in the occupation of Japan from September 1945 to June 1946. During July 1946, 1/10 was relocated to MCB Camp Lejeune; then deactivated on November 18, 1947. The unit was then reactivated to Camp Lejeune as 1st Battalion, 10th Marines on December 1, 1948.

1960s–1980s

1/10 deployed to

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

in response to the missile crisis from October to December 1962. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the battalion was deployed to Europe for participation in

North Atlantic Treaty Organization The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

(NATO) exercises. During the 1980s, the battalion became a cold-weather-trained unit, conducting training at

Fort Drum, New York Fort Drum is a U.S. Army military reservation and a census-designated place (CDP) in Jefferson County, on the northern border of New York, United States. The population of the CDP portion of the base was 12,955 at the 2010 census. It is home ...

and above the Arctic Circle. The battalion also transitioned to the 155mm Howitzer during this period. They regularly supported training operations at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center at 29 Palms, California. Charlie Battery was deployed to Beirut, Lebanon in 1983 as a part of Battalion Landing Team 1/8. On 23 October, the battery lost eight Marines in the Beirut Barracks attack. While deployed to Beirut, Charlie Battery was the first U.S. artillery unit to fire the M198 155mm howitzer in combat.

1990s

First Battalion participated in Operations Desert Shield and

Desert Storm The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...

in Southwest Asia from August 1990 to February 1991. A Detachment from Bravo Battery aboard the USS IWO JIMA (LPH 2) during MARG 2–92 participated in

Operation Provide Promise Operation Provide Promise was a humanitarian relief operation in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Yugoslav Wars, from 2 July 1992, to 9 January 1996, which made it the longest running humanitarian airlift in history. By the end of the operation, ...

from July to November 1992. From August to October 1994, an element of 1/10 participated in Operations Support Democracy and

Uphold Democracy Operation Uphold Democracy was a military intervention designed to remove the military regime installed by the 1991 Haitian coup d'état that overthrew the elected President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. The operation was effectively authorized by t ...

in Haiti.

Global War on Terror

In February 2003, 1/10 deployed to

Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...

, it then participated in Operation Iraqi Freedom, in

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...

in March 2003. During the invasion the unit took part in the Battle of Nasiriyah. Then again Battery B deployed to Iraq in June 2004 to February 2005 performed split-battery operations from the cities Muhumadyia and Iskandariyah providing fire support for the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU). Between September 2007 and April 2008, 1/10 was deployed to Iraq and was stationed throughout the Al Anbar province as TFMP (Task Force Military Police). From November 2010 to May 2011, 1/10 deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, in Helmand Province,

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

References

: ;Web
1/10's official website
{{2ndMarDiv Artillery battalions of the United States Marine Corps