THE TENSION: USMC 232nd Birthday Salute

The Commandant's Birthday Message
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Video: Marines Celebrate Corps Birthday in Iraq
Scenes include Marines participating in a ceremony, cutting and eating a birthday cake and an officer speaking to the gathered Marines. Nov. 10, 2007
General Conway's Marine Corps Birthday Message

General Lejeune's Marine Corps Birthday Message

USMC History Division

USMC History Quiz

On November 10, 1775, the Continental Congress passed a resolution stating that "two battalions of Marines be raised" for service as landing forces with the fleet. This established the Continental Marines and marked the birth of the United States Marine Corps.

Serving on land and at sea, early Marines distinguished themselves in a number of important operations, including their first amphibious raid on foreign soil in the Bahamas in March 1776, under the command of the Corps’ first commandant, Capt. Samuel Nicholas.

The 1783 Treaty of Paris ended the Revolutionary War and as the last of the Navy’s ships were sold, the Continental Navy and Marines disbanded.

Following the formal re-establishment of the Marine Corps on July 11, 1798, Marines fought in conflicts with France, landed in Santo Domingo and conducted operations against the Barbary pirates along the "Shores of Tripoli."

From GlobalSecurity.org: History of USMC