The 12th Marine Regiment is an artillery

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscript ...

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 Camp Smedley Butler,

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

, Japan. Nicknamed "Thunder and Steel," the regiment falls under the command of the

3rd Marine Division The 3rd Marine Division is a division of the United States Marine Corps based at Camp Courtney, Marine Corps Base Camp Smedley D. Butler in Okinawa, Japan. It is one of three active duty infantry divisions in the Marine Corps and together with th ...

Mission

Provide close and continuous fire support by neutralizing, destroying, or suppressing targets which threaten the success of the supported unit.

Current Units

The regiment is made up of two

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 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 battery: *

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 ...

, 12th Marines (HQ Battery, 12th Marines) *

1st Battalion, 12th Marines 1st Battalion 12th Marines (1/12) is an artillery battalion comprising three firing batteries and a Headquarters Battery. The battalion is stationed at Marine Corps Base Hawaii and falls under the 12th Marine Regiment and the 3rd Marine Division ...

(1/12 Marines) *

3rd Battalion, 12th Marines 3rd Battalion 12th Marines (3/12) is an artillery battalion comprising four firing batteries and a Headquarters Battery. The firing batteries are not permanently assigned to the battalion- they are all on 6 month rotations in Okinawa from the 1 ...

(3/12 Marines)

History

Activated October 4, 1927, at

Tientsin Tianjin (; ; Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Tientsin (), is a municipality and a coastal metropolis in Northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the nine national central cities in Mainland China, with a total popul ...

, China and assigned to the 3rd Marine Brigade.

World War II

12th-marines-bougainville-75mm-howitzer-M1-1943

The regiment was reactivated September 1, 1942, 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 the 12th Marines and assigned to the

. It relocated during October 1942 to

Camp Dunlap Camp Dunlap was a United States Marine Corps base in Imperial County, California. The camp was named for Brigadier General Robert H. Dunlap. The 250,000 acre camp was used to train artillery and anti-aircraft units of the Fleet Marine Force. ...

, California. From there it deployed during March 1943 to

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. In July 1943 it moved to Guadalcanal. The regiment participated in the following World War II campaigns: * Bougainville campaign (1944–45) *

Northern Solomons Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a ...

* Battle of Guam * Battle of Iwo Jima Following the war, the 12th Marines relocated in December 1945 to

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.

Post World War II history

Reactivated March 17, 1952, at Camp Pendleton, California, and assigned to the 3rd Marine Division. Deployed during August 1953 to Camp McNair, Japan. Redeployed during February 1956 to

. Redeployed from March–July 1965 to the

Republic of Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam ( vi, Việt Nam Cộng hòa), was a state in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975, the period when the southern portion of Vietnam was a member of the Western Bloc during part of t ...

(South Vietnam). Participated in the War in Vietnam, May 1965 – November 1969, operating from: * Da Nang * Phu Bai *

Chu Lai Chu Lai is a seaport, urban and industrial area in Núi Thành District, Quảng Nam Province, Vietnam. The city is served by Chu Lai International Airport. It is also the site of the Chu Lai Open Economic Zone (Vietnamese: ''Với Khu Kinh T� ...

Huế Huế () is the capital of Thừa Thiên Huế province in central Vietnam and was the capital of Đàng Trong from 1738 to 1775 and of Vietnam during the Nguyễn dynasty from 1802 to 1945. The city served as the old Imperial City and admi ...

Đông Hà Đông Hà () is the capital of Quảng Trị Province, Vietnam. Đông Hà is situated at the crossroads of National Highway 1A and Route 9, part of the East–West Economic Corridor (EWEC). It lies on the North–South Railway (Reunificatio ...

Redeployed from August–November 1969 to Camp Hansen, Okinawa. Relocated during August 1971 to Camp Hauge, Okinawa. Elements participated in the Southeast Asia Evacuations, April–June 1975. Elements participated in the recovery of the SS Mayaguez in May 1975. Relocated during August 1976 to Camp Zukeran, Okinawa. Camp Zukeran renamed Camp Foster during March 1980. Elements participated in the Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm, Southwest Asia, September 1990-April 1991. Relocated during July 1998 to Camp Hansen, Okinawa.

Global War on Terror

3rd Battalion 12th Marines in Kajaki District 2010-10-22

Operation Enduring Freedom

Operation Enduring Freedom is an ongoing war in Afghanistan entering its twelfth year. Marines from the battalion took part in the

Helmand Province Campaign The Helmand province campaign was a series of military operations conducted by the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) forces against Taliban insurgents and other local groups in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan. Their objective ...

, particularly the Battle of Sangin.

Notes

External links

12th Marines' official website
{{3rdMarDiv

012 012 may refer to: * Tyrrell 012, a Formula One racing car * The dialing code for Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassie ...

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 ...