The 1st Marine Regiment is an infantry regiment of the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

based at

Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton is the major West Coast base of the United States Marine Corps and is one of the largest Marine Corps bases in the United States. It is on the Southern California coast in San Diego County and is bordered by O ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. The regiment is under the command of the

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 ...

and the

I Marine Expeditionary Force The I Marine Expeditionary Force ("I" pronounced "One") is a Marine Air Ground Task Force (MAGTF) of the United States Marine Corps primarily composed of the 1st Marine Division, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, and 1st Marine Logistics Group. It is ...

. The 1st Marine Regiment is also sometimes referred to as "Regimental Combat Team 1" or "Inchon".

Subordinate units

The regiment comprises four

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and mar ...

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions a ...

s and one headquarters company: * Headquarters Company 1st Marines *

1st Battalion, 1st Marines 1st Battalion 1st Marines (1/1st Marines) is an infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps based out of Camp Pendleton, California, consisting of anywhere from 800 to 2,000 Marines and Sailors, but the number fluctuates depending on t ...

(1/1) *

2nd Battalion, 1st Marines 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines (2/1) is an infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps based out of Camp Horno on Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. Nicknamed "The Professionals," the battalion consists of approximately 1,200 Mar ...

(2/1) * 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines (3/1) * 1st Battalion, 4th Marines (1/4) – (1/4 is assigned to the 1st Marine Regiment for the purpose of facilitating 4th Marines as a "host" regimental headquarters for battalions on unit deployment program assignments to 3rd Marine Division on Okinawa.)

History

The 1st Marines were activated in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

, Pennsylvania on 27 November 1913. At this time, it bore the designation of 2nd Advanced Base Regiment. During the 1st Marine Regiment's early years, it was primarily employed as a combat force in the so-called

Banana Wars The Banana Wars were a series of conflicts that consisted of military occupation, police action, and intervention by the United States in Central America and the Caribbean between the end of the Spanish–American War in 1898 and the inceptio ...

, and in the Caribbean area. The first of these engagements occurred in April 1914, when the regiment landed and seized the Mexican port of Vera Cruz. They next participated in the Haitian campaign (1915–1916) and the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...

campaign (1916). On 1 July 1916, this organization was re-designated as the 1st Regiment of Marines. In December 1918, the 1st Regiment returned to the Caribbean and was 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 ...

for approximately six months. Following its second Dominican tour of duty, it was deactivated; but it was subsequently reactivated at

Quantico, Virginia Quantico ( or ; formerly Potomac) is a town in Prince William County, Virginia, United States. The population was 480 at the 2010 census. Quantico is approximately 35 miles southwest of Washington, DC, bordered by the Potomac River to the east ...

on 15 March 1925. The Regiment received its present designation of 1st Marines on 10 July 1930. The 1930s was a period of inactivity in the 1st Marines' history, as the unit was in a deactivated status during most of this time. World War II was the occasion for the next reactivation of the Regiment on 1 February 1941 at

Culebra, Puerto Rico Isla Culebra (, ''Snake Island'') is an island, town and municipality of Puerto Rico and geographically part of the Spanish Virgin Islands. It is located approximately east of the Puerto Rican mainland, west of St. Thomas and north of Vieque ...

as part of the 1st Marine Division.

World War II

The 1st Marines stood at a low state of readiness at the beginning of the war, having just been reconstituted from cadre status; however, the regiment did possess very strong leadership at the higher levels. In June 1942, the 1st Marines set sail from San Francisco on board a mix of eight ships headed for the South Pacific. The 1st Marines landed on the island of Guadalcanal, part of the

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capit ...

, on August 7, 1942 and fought in the Guadalcanal Campaign until relieved on 22 December 1942. Some of the heaviest action the regiment saw on Guadalcanal took place on August 21, 1942 during the

Battle of the Tenaru The Battle of the Tenaru, sometimes called the Battle of the Ilu River or the Battle of Alligator Creek, was a land battle between the Imperial Japanese Army and Allied ground forces that took place on 21 August 1942, on the island of Guada ...

, which was the first Japanese counter-attack of the campaign. Following their first campaign, the regiment was sent to

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Australia to rest and refit. During their stay, there they were billeted in the Melbourne Cricket Ground until leaving in September 1943. The 1st Marines' next action was

Operation Cartwheel Operation Cartwheel (1943–1944) was a major military operation for the Allies of World War II, Allies in the Pacific War, Pacific theatre of World War II. Cartwheel was an operation aimed at neutralising the major Empire of Japan, Japanes ...

, which was the codename for the campaigns in Eastern New Guinea and New Britain. The regiment was the first ashore at the

Battle of Cape Gloucester The Battle of Cape Gloucester was fought in the Pacific theater of World War II between Japanese and Allied forces on the island of New Britain, Territory of New Guinea, between 26 December 1943 and 16 January 1944. Codenamed Operation Backhan ...

on December 26, 1943; and continued fighting on the island, at such places as ''Suicide Creek'' and ''Ajar Ridge'', until February 1944. The 1st Marines next battle was its bloodiest yet – the

Battle of Peleliu The Battle of Peleliu, codenamed Operation Stalemate II by the US military, was fought between the United States and Japan during the Mariana and Palau Islands campaign of World War II, from September 15 to November 27, 1944, on the island of ...

. The regiment landed on September 15, 1944 as part of the 1st Marine Division's assault on the island. The division's commanding general, Major General William H. Rupertus had predicted the fighting would be, ''"...tough but short. It'll be over in three of four days – a fight like

Tarawa Tarawa is an atoll and the capital of the Republic of Kiribati,Kiribati
''

, the regiment was decimated by heavy artillery and accurate small arms fire in the vicinity of ''Bloody Nose Ridge''. Repeated frontal assaults with fixed bayonets failed to unseat the Japanese defenders from the 14th Division (Imperial Japanese Army). The 1st Marines fought on Peleliu for 10 days before being pulled off the lines after suffering 58% casualties and no longer being combat effective. Ten days of fighting on Peleliu cost the 1st Marine Regiment 1,749 casualties. The last World War II engagement for the regiment was the Battle of Okinawa under the command of Colonel

Arthur T. Mason Arthur Theodore Mason (October 3, 1902 – August 24, 1980) was a decorated officer of the United States Marine Corps with the rank of Brigadier general (United States), brigadier general. He is most noted as commanding officer of the 1st Marine ...

. In September 1945, the 1st Marines deployed to North China to take part in the garrisoning of the area and in the repatriation of former enemy personnel. It remained in China until February 1949. It is also likely that they were stationed in North China to bolster the Chinese Nationalists defense against the Chinese Communists. The presence of the 1st Marines was used as leverage by

George C. Marshall George Catlett Marshall Jr. (December 31, 1880 – October 16, 1959) was an American army officer and statesman. He rose through the United States Army to become Chief of Staff of the US Army under Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry ...

in 1945–46 to attempt to moderate a settlement to the impending

Chinese Civil War The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on m ...

. The regiment returned to

and was deactivated on October 1, 1949.

Korean War

The

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

prompted an expansion of the Marine Corps. As a result, the regiment was brought back into existence on 4 August 1950. On 15 September, the 1st Marine Division, including the 1st Marines, assaulted the beaches of

Inchon Incheon (; ; or Inch'ŏn; literally "kind river"), formerly Jemulpo or Chemulp'o (제물포) until the period after 1910, officially the Incheon Metropolitan City (인천광역시, 仁川廣域市), is a city located in northwestern South Kore ...

. The regiment then went on to take part in the liberation of

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 of ...

and later in the

Chosin Reservoir Campaign The Battle of Chosin Reservoir, also known as the Chosin Reservoir Campaign or the Battle of Lake Changjin (), was an important battle in the Korean War. The name "Chosin" is derived from the Japanese pronunciation "''Chōshin'', instead of th ...

. For the next two and one-half years, the 1st Marines continued to engage the North Koreans and Chinese Communists. Following the termination of hostilities in July 1953, the Regiment remained in Korea and acted as a defensive force against possible Communist attempts to rekindle the war. The 1st Marines returned to

Camp Pendleton Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton is the major West Coast base of the United States Marine Corps and is one of the largest Marine Corps bases in the United States. It is on the Southern California coast in San Diego County and is bordered by O ...

in April 1955. There it stayed for the following ten years, except for a brief deployment to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and the Caribbean during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.

Vietnam War

With the intensification of the American involvement in the war in

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

in 1965, the 1st Marine Regiment was quickly deployed to the region. By January 1966, the entire regiment had completed its move to Vietnam. The first major operation in the war for a battalion of the 1st Marines was

Operation Harvest Moon Operation Harvest Moon/Lien Ket 18 was a US Marine Corps and Army of the Republic of Vietnam search and destroy operation in the Quế Sơn Valley in western Quảng Tín Province, lasting from 8 to 20 December 1965. Background On the evening o ...

in December 1965. By fall of 1967, the 1st Marines were operating permanently in the northern sector of the

I Corps I Corps, 1st Corps, or First Corps may refer to: France * 1st Army Corps (France) * I Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * I Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French A ...

tactical zone. The following winter the communists launched their all-out

Tet Offensive The Tet Offensive was a major escalation and one of the largest military campaigns of the Vietnam War. It was launched on January 30, 1968 by forces of the Viet Cong (VC) and North Vietnamese People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) against the force ...

. The enemy overran

Hue In color theory, hue is one of the main properties (called color appearance parameters) of a color, defined technically in the CIECAM02 model as "the degree to which a stimulus can be described as similar to or different from stimuli that ...

, the old imperial capital. Between 31 January and 2 March 1968, elements of the 1st Marines, commanded by Col. Stanley Hughes, along with other U.S. Marine and South Vietnamese units, fought to regain control of the city. Bitter street fighting and hand-to-hand combat characterized the battle. Hue was finally recaptured after the enemy suffered nearly 1,900 killed. The regiment remained deployed in South Vietnam for the next two and a half years, participating in numerous operations, both large and small. On 28 June 1971, the last members of the regiment departed Da Nang to return to the United States at MCB Camp Pendleton. The 1st Marines were the last marine infantry unit to depart Vietnam.

Post Vietnam era

In the spring of 1975, the 1st Marines provided primary support to the Marine Corps Base at Camp Pendleton for preparation of a camp to house Vietnamese refugees during

Operation New Arrivals Operation New Arrivals (April 29 – September 16, 1975) was the relocation of 130,000 Vietnamese refugees from Pacific island staging areas to the United States. Following the South-Vietnamese evacuation during the Fall of Saigon, Operation N ...

. In 1983, 1st Marines were assigned responsibility to provide the Ground Combat Element for the WESTPAC MAU. Since the inception of the special operations capable (SOC) marine expeditionary units (MEUs) in support of contingency operations in the Western Pacific, the 1st Marine Regiment has been the SOC regiment of the 1st Marine Division.

Operation Desert Storm and LA riots

In August 1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait and 1st Marines deployed in support of

Operation Desert Shield The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a Coalition of the Gulf War, 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Ba'athist Iraq, ...

. On 30 December 1990, 1st Marines was designated as Task Force Papa Bear. The task force attacked into Kuwait on 23 February and continued its march to the vicinity of

Kuwait International Airport Kuwait International Airport ( ar, مطار الكويت الدولي, ) is an international airport located in the Farwaniya Governorate, Kuwait, south of the centre of Kuwait City, spread over an area of . It serves as the primary hub for K ...

, where hostilities ceased on 27 February. From 1 to 11 May 1992, elements of the regiment deployed to perform riot control operations as part of the Joint Special Purpose Marine Air Ground Task Force Los Angeles. They assumed a prominent role in quelling the urban unrest in

South Central Los Angeles South Los Angeles, also known as South Central Los Angeles or simply South Central, is a region in southwestern Los Angeles County, lying mostly within the city limits of Los Angeles, south of downtown. It is "defined on Los Angeles city maps as a ...

Operation Iraqi Freedom

In January 2003, 1st Marines deployed for Operation Iraqi Freedom. Organized as a 5,000-man combined arms task force, known as Regimental Combat Team One (RCT-1), the regiment fought its way from

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 ...

Baghdad Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon. I ...

, with significant actions at An Nasariyah,

Al Kut Kūt ( ar, ٱلْكُوت, al-Kūt), officially Al-Kut, also spelled Kutulamare or Kut al-Imara, is a city in eastern Iraq, on the left bank of the Tigris River, about south east of Baghdad. the estimated population is about 389,400 people. It ...

, and Baghdad. On 5 April, commanding officer Colonel Joe D. Dowdy was relieved by Major General

James Mattis James Norman Mattis (born September 8, 1950) is a retired United States Marine Corps four-star general who served as the 26th US secretary of defense from 2017 to 2019. During his 44 years in the Marine Corps, he commanded forces in the Persian ...

and replaced by Colonel John Toolan, a highly unusual act. Subsequent to the collapse of the regime, the RCT conducted security and stability operations in Baghdad and

Al Hillah Hillah ( ar, ٱلْحِلَّة ''al-Ḥillah''), also spelled Hilla, is a city in central Iraq on the Hilla branch of the Euphrates River, south of Baghdad. The population is estimated at 364,700 in 1998. It is the capital of Babylon Province an ...

until returning home throughout the summer of 2003. In February 2004, 1st Marines deployed to the

Al Anbar Al Anbar Governorate ( ar, محافظة الأنبار; ''muḥāfaẓat al-’Anbār''), or Anbar Province, is the largest governorate in Iraq by area. Encompassing much of the country's western territory, it shares borders with Syria, Jordan, ...

province of

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 ...

. Upon arrival in theater, 1st Marines formed into RCT-1 and conducted a relief-in-place with 3d Brigade of the 82d Airborne Division. RCT-1 consisted of several major subordinate commands from 1st Marine Division and various smaller attachments from throughout the Marine Corps. 2 1 in Fallujah

The RCT's area of operation consisted of numerous cities, most important of which was Al Fallujah. On 31 March 2004, four U.S. citizens working for

Blackwater USA Blackwater was an American private military company founded on December 26, 1996 by former Navy SEAL officer Erik Prince. It was renamed Xe Services in 2009 and known as Academi since 2011 after it was acquired by a group of private investors ...

were attacked, mutilated and hung on a bridge in the city. On 7 April 2004,

Operation Vigilant Resolve The First Battle of Fallujah, code-named Operation Vigilant Resolve, was an operation against militants in Fallujah as well as an attempt to apprehend or kill the perpetrators of the killing of four U.S. contractors in March 2004. The chief cat ...

commenced in response to these deaths. After intense urban fighting, a political resolution was mandated and the regiment was ordered out of the city. Throughout September and October 2004, insurgent presence increased in Fallujah. Led by the 1st Marine Division,

Operation Phantom Fury The Second Battle of Fallujah, codenamed Operation al-Fajr ( ar, الفجر, ) and Operation Phantom Fury, was an American-led offensive of the Iraq War that lasted roughly 6 weeks, starting 7th November, 2004. Marking the highest point of the ...

began with an assault north of the city, with four infantry battalions in the attack. Designated the division main effort, RCT-1 ( 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines) crossed the line of departure on 7 November 2004. After twelve days of intense urban combat, 1st Marine Division had defeated the insurgents and successfully fought its way to the southern end of the city capturing the western half of Fallujah. First Marines returned to

, California, in April 2005.

Unit awards

A unit citation or commendation is an award bestowed upon an organization for the action cited. Members of the unit who participated in said actions are allowed to wear on their uniforms the awarded unit citation. The 1st Marine Regiment has been presented with the following awards:

Medal of Honor recipients

Nineteen Marines from the 1st Marines have been awarded the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valo ...

: 7 during World War II, 10 during the Korean War, and two during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...

References

: ;Sources * * * * * * *

Notes

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:001 Infantry01 1st Marine Military units and formations established in 1913 InfReg0001 Military units and formations of the United States Marine Corps in the Vietnam War Military units and formations of the United States in the Gulf War Infantry units and formations of the United States Marine Corps 1st Marine Division (United States) 1913 establishments in Pennsylvania