marine corps
Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refle ...
, though in the past it did. It was originally set up as a sub-branch of the
South African Navy
The South African Navy (SA Navy) is the naval warfare branch of the South African National Defence Force.
The Navy is primarily engaged in maintaining a conventional military deterrent, participating in counter-piracy operations, fishery prot ...
during the
apartheid
Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
era, with the primary purpose of protecting the country's harbours (1951-1955). Then it was recreated in 1979 during the
South African Border War
The South African Border War, also known as the Namibian War of Independence, and sometimes denoted in South Africa as the Angolan Bush War, was a largely asymmetric conflict that occurred in Namibia (then South West Africa), Zambia, and Angol ...
as 1-Marine Brigade with the aim of serving as marine infantry (1979-1990). Today, the SAN Maritime Reaction Squadron is the closest analogue to a marine corps South Africa has.
South African Corps of Marines
Establishment of Coast Garrison Force
The South African Corps of Marines was established as a corps in 1951, though the unit has it origins much earlier than 1951.
In 1912, a Coast Garrison Force was established consisting of two Corps, the South African Garrison Artillery (SAGA) and the South African Coast Defence Corps. In turn, the South African Garrison Artillery consisted of two Divisions.
* 1st Division SAGA – this division had previously been a Cape Colonial Force Volunteer unit, and became the
Cape Garrison Artillery
A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment which drapes the wearer's back, arms, and chest, and connects at the neck.
History
Capes were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon. Th ...
. The
Cape Garrison Artillery
A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment which drapes the wearer's back, arms, and chest, and connects at the neck.
History
Capes were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon. Th ...
manned batteries at
Sea Point
Sea Point (Afrikaans: ''Seepunt'') is one of Cape Town's most affluent and densely populated suburbs, situated between Signal Hill and the Atlantic Ocean, a few kilometres to the west of Cape Town's Central Business District (CBD). Moving from ...
Cape Town
Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...
, as well as Noah's Ark and other Batteries at Simonstown.
* 2nd Division SAGA. This division was converted from "A" and "B" Batteries of the
Natal Field Artillery
NATAL or Natal may refer to:
Places
* Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, a city in Brazil
* Natal, South Africa (disambiguation), a region in South Africa
** Natalia Republic, a former country (1839–1843)
** Colony of Natal, a former British colony ...
and was known as the "Durban Garrison Artillery," commanded by Lt. Col. C. Wilson. They manned four 15-pounder guns mounted on the concrete gunpits on Durban Bluff which years previously had been manned by the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve.
First World War
On the decision to invade
German South-West Africa
German South West Africa (german: Deutsch-Südwestafrika) was a colony of the German Empire from 1884 until 1915, though Germany did not officially recognise its loss of this territory until the 1919 Treaty of Versailles. With a total area of ...
, the need for Heavy Artillery was recognised and a Heavy Artillery Brigade was formed in 1915 to accompany the SA Expeditionary Force. Command was given to Lt. Col. J. M. Rose,
Royal Marine Artillery
The history of the Royal Marines began on 28 October 1664 with the formation of the Duke of York and Albany's Maritime Regiment of Foot soon becoming known as the Admiral's Regiment. During the War of the Spanish Succession the most historic achi ...
, and the Brigade was constituted from elements of the RMA stationed in South Africa, together with officers and men of the Cape and Durban Garrison Artilleries. The initial one Brigade was eventually expanded into three Brigades, ultimately consisting of 60 officers and 1,000 other ranks. Durban Garrison Artillery provided "K" Heavy Battery armed with 12-pounders, which accompanied Col. Berrange's Eastern Force in German South-West Africa, and "N" Heavy Battery armed with 6-inch 30-cwt. Howitzers was attached to Northern Force. The Northern Force was also strengthened by the remainder of the Heavy Artillery Brigade consisting of "0" Battery, armed with 4-inch Naval Guns; "D" Battery with 12-pounder Naval Guns and "F" Battery with 5-inch Howitzers.
On the conclusion of the War, the Coast Garrison Force was reconstituted, and in 1921 the SA Permanent Garrison Artillery was established to undertake maintenance and instruction with the Coast Garrison Force. In due course the Permanent Garrison Artillery and the Coast Garrison Force became so integrated that Coast Garrison units were commanded and administered by permanent force officers who were in turn understudied by the more numerous Coast Garrison Force officers.
World War II
The approach of war led to expansion of artillery forces and in 1934, the Cape Garrison Artillery became 1st and 2nd Batteries of the Cape Artillery Brigade which was equipped with Heavy Coast Batteries, two medium Batteries with 60-pounders and 6-inch howitzers, and was also responsible for the operation of No.1 Armoured Train. During World War II, permanent Batteries of Heavy Artillery were established from Walvis Bay to Durban, being responsible for general coast defence. With the aid of the new part-time Coast Defence Corps units specially created to assist the Permanent Units, many Cape Artillery Brigade troops were released for full-time volunteer service with Artillery in the Desert and Italy.
This Coast Defence Corps was different from the South African Coast Defence Corps created by the Defence Act of 1912. It was created at the time of Japanese landings in the Far East and when the East Coast of Africa was believed threatened. Consequently, the objective was to form a force specially mustered to repulse coastal landings. The effectiveness of the SA Coast Defences can be gauged from the fact that no German vessels ever attempted to bombard South African ports and the only time that a shot was
black beret
The black beret is a type of headgear. It is commonly worn by paramilitaries and militaries around the world, particularly armored forces such as the British Army's Royal Tank Regiment (RTR), the Royal Canadian Armoured Corps (RCAC), and Royal Aus ...
, web belt and boots, worn with nutria brown fatigues. Early marines were distinguished by being issued with the
H&K G3
The Heckler & Koch G3 (''Gewehr'' 3) is a 7.62×51mm NATO, select-fire battle rifle developed in the 1950s by the German armament manufacturer Heckler & Koch (H&K) in collaboration with the Spanish state-owned design and development agency CET ...
7.62 LAR as opposed to the traditional
FN FAL
The FAL (a French acronym for (English: "Light Automatic Rifle")), is a battle rifle designed in Belgium by Dieudonné Saive and manufactured by FN Herstal (simply known as FN).
During the Cold War the FAL was adopted by many countries of th ...
used by the
SADF
The South African Defence Force (SADF) (Afrikaans: ''Suid-Afrikaanse Weermag'') comprised the armed forces of South Africa from 1957 until 1994. Shortly before the state reconstituted itself as a republic in 1961, the former Union Defence F ...
. The G3s were later replaced by the SADF standard
R4 assault rifle
The Vektor R4 is a 5.56×45mm assault rifle designed in 1979 based on the IMI Galil rifle. It entered service as the standard service rifle of the South African Defence Force (SADF) in 1980. The R4 replaced the R1, a variant of the 7.62×51mm ...
The South African Marines were disbanded on 18 January 1990,Pitta, 1993 following a major restructuring of the Navy at the end of the
South African Border War
The South African Border War, also known as the Namibian War of Independence, and sometimes denoted in South Africa as the Angolan Bush War, was a largely asymmetric conflict that occurred in Namibia (then South West Africa), Zambia, and Angol ...
.
Maritime Reaction Squadron
After the integration of the
South African National Defence Force
The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) comprises the Military, armed forces of South Africa. The commander of the SANDF is appointed by the President of South Africa from one of the Military branch, armed services. They are in turn a ...
the Navy was increasingly called on to assist with
peacekeeping
Peacekeeping comprises activities intended to create conditions that favour lasting peace. Research generally finds that peacekeeping reduces civilian and battlefield deaths, as well as reduces the risk of renewed warfare.
Within the United N ...
operations. Realising that this situation would continue, the then Chief of the Navy
Refiloe Johannes Mudimu
Vice Admiral Refiloe Mudimu is a former South African military commander, who served as the Chief of the Navy before his retirement in 2014.
Early life
Johannes Mudimu was born on 6 March 1954, in Sophiatown. He became a member of the African N ...
, decided to create this capability by creating a Naval Rapid Deployment Force.
An Operational Boat Squadron was formed in 2006 to ensure that South Africa could commit meaningfully to the peacekeeping at the Great Lakes.
The Rapid Deployment Force became the Maritime Reaction Squadron on 1 September 2006.