OVERVIEW: THE U.S. MARINE RAIDERS (1-2 pIII)

Colonel Martin J. ("Stormy") Sexton, USMC (retired)

The U.S. Marine Raiders were the first American ground forces to take the offensive to the Japanese and to stem the tide which had threatened to engulf the Pacific.  The time was February 1942, a period when the Unites States was still reeling from the offensive operations of the Japanese in the Pacific Theater.

The Japanese were rolling unchecked throughout the Pacific.  Their military forces were winning victory after victory, and the myth of the superior fighting man grew even greater.  It wasn't that no one had stopped them; no one had even slowed them down.  American, British, Dutch and French interests were all being pushed out of the Western Pacific.  

Marine Raider assault battalions struck fear in the enemy throughout the Southwest Pacific.  The landings at Makin Island and Tulagi were small insofar as military operations are concerned, but they marked the first ground offensives against the Japanese.

The American victory at Guadalcanal, in which the Raiders played key roles, inflicted the first ground defeat of significant enemy forces in the war.  This victory was one of the major turning points of the war.

Subsequent actions at Russell Islands, New Georgia, and Bougainville carried the offensive momentum into late 1943.

The Raiders, although small in number, played a large role in each of these victories.  They bought time for their country, dispelled the myth of Japanese military supremacy, initiated a steam-roller offensive in the Pacific, and wrested hard-fought island objectives from a brave and fanatical enemy.

The United States Marine Raiders were activated for the same reason as the British Commandos, to provide fast, hard-hitting assault units that could inflict surprise strikes by landing from submarines, destroyers, air transport, or regular Navy transports.  Lightly-equipped amphibious hit and run raids, rather than sustained operations, were the intent.

Although the Marine Raiders existed just two years as a special United States Marine Corps organization, their contributions were tremendously significant when the War in the Pacific is viewed in retrospect.

By 1944, the tenor of the entire war had changed.  The greatest naval armada ever conceived became reality.  The United States and her Allies were smashing toward Tokyo.  The need for Raiders, as such, no longer existed.  A true professional rises to any challenge, and as soon as the challenge changes he is prepared to successfully meet that or any other contingency.   Thus, the reactivation of the 4th Marine Regiment took place.  The new 4th came from the Raiders, and what a magnificent choice that was.  The new 4th distinguished itself in the assault operations of Guam and Okinawa. It was truly a worthy successor to the old 4th.

Today the U.S. Marine Raider Association keeps alive the memory of those Raiders who made the supreme sacrifice and the contributions and service of the men who fought and served with them.

Through its Solomon Islands Education Fund, former Raiders, their families, and friends of the Association have contributed (nearly a quarter of a million dollars) for the education of Solomon Islanders in remembrance and appreciation of the assistance and friendship they provided during World War II.

The traditions of the U.S. Marine Raiders of World War II, who contributed greatly to victory and to our country's rich military history, live on today through the "Gung Ho" Reconnaissance Battalions and the Long Range Recon Marines. The Recon motto of "Swift - Silent - Deadly," is an apt description of their forebears, the U.S. Marine Raiders.

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